A review by lisagray68
Land of Love and Drowning by Tiphanie Yanique

3.0

I got this early review copy from Library Thing's Early Reviewer program and read almost the entire book on my flights yesterday. This book really reminds me of "Till the Well Runs Dry", which I recently reviewed, although I liked that one better. This is the author's debut novel, and it's clear that she really knows how to tell a story. I loved her writing, it really captured me. I also liked reading a book about some of the history of the U.S. Virgin Islands, including some real stunning setting work on some of the islands I never even knew about. So why the three stars? Even though I really liked so much about this book, I was impatient with the story. I just kept feeling like it was one disaster after another -- pretty much everything that could go wrong did. I wanted the characters to find some kind of peace and happiness, but it seemed they were incapable. Maybe that is how life really was in those days on the islands, these women certainly did not have very many options. AND, maybe the fact that I disliked the characters was part of the author's craft. Not sure. Anyway, if you are interested in the U.S. Virgin Islands, it's culture and character, this would be a great book to read.