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A review by cchartier
Un déluge de feu by Amitav Ghosh
4.0
I enjoyed all of the books in this trilogy, but with diminishing returns. The first was by far my favorite and that is because it is the only one with Deeti’s voice. She remains a character but only in memories. In this volume, I did enjoy meeting and learning about her brother, and of course, I delighted in seeing passengers from the Ibis meet again through outlandish coincidences. It’s the Dickens in me! ;)
I do love how much I learn from these books. The Opium Wars, the impact of British colonialism on Asian countries, the various levels of society created through religion, class/caste, gender, etc. I especially enjoyed hearing about the hybrid British-Indian whites who grew up in colonial India. Even though I didn’t know the pidgin words, I understood the meanings of what they said. That world needed more Paulette’s and fewer Cathy’s.
I did not like Zachary’s heel turn and the resolution of his story with Cathy/Mee/Paulette. As an American, I wanted more exploration of his racial identity in combination with his decision to go full douchebag.
I do love how much I learn from these books. The Opium Wars, the impact of British colonialism on Asian countries, the various levels of society created through religion, class/caste, gender, etc. I especially enjoyed hearing about the hybrid British-Indian whites who grew up in colonial India. Even though I didn’t know the pidgin words, I understood the meanings of what they said. That world needed more Paulette’s and fewer Cathy’s.
I did not like Zachary’s heel turn and the resolution of his story with Cathy/Mee/Paulette. As an American, I wanted more exploration of his racial identity in combination with his decision to go full douchebag.