ritacunha 's review for:

Sharks in the Time of Saviors by Kawai Strong Washburn

3.5

emotional slow-paced

Plot or Character Driven: Character

Strong character development: Yes

Loveable characters: Yes

Diverse cast of characters: Yes

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

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I truly wanted to love this book. The beginning—with all its mysterious allusions to a turn of fate and magical realism—sucked me in. But halfway through I lost steam. I think this was a mix of things: the narrative taking a turn I wasn’t expecting (or thrilled about) and my finding out the author is not Native Hawaiian (despite it being made very ambiguous in interviews). 

However, I’m still glad I picked this one up. The characters all have very distinct voices and the full-cast audiobook is a treat. I also really appreciated how grief and loss are portrayed in this family epic.