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A review by phoenixjaneee
The Beast's Garden by Kate Forsyth
4.0
Recipe for Phoenix's Perfect Story:
• Start with a healthy dose of redeemable characters
• Mix in some goals and challenges for said characters to overcome
• Add a dollop of romance
• A hint of loss and despair
• A dash of lyrical prose
• A measure of magical realism (can substitute with the supernatural or fantastical)
• Finally, combine with a familiar tale interwoven with historical truths and volia! Phoenix's perfect story is complete.
Kate Forsyth knows this recipe well and keeps conjuring up books perfectly to my taste. The amount of research Forsyth undertakes before starting to write her novels is inspiring and it shows in the robust world she creates. This one in particular as all the characters aside from the main ones were real people who lived and died throughout World War II; all real activists, real Nazi's, real rebels. This was heart braking to discover, the atrocities of war are even more difficult to swallow when you know the names and lives of the people prosecuted. It gave the story much more depth as it isn't just some fairy tale retelling but an acknowledgement of some very strong individuals who stood up against Hitler's tyrannical ruling. I was not aware of the conspiracies against Hitler coordinated by appointed SS officers. By involving the main character's in this arm of history, it built tension and drove the plot without just relying on the threat of war itself to do so. In my opinion, Forsyth did a great job of honouring those impacted by the war and acknowledging the pain and suffering caused by Hitler's Regime while still creating a story to be enjoyed.
Another standout element which increased my enjoyment of this story was the choice of narrator. I cannot speak German so my assessment of accuracy is based off no prior knowledge but to my untrained ear, Jennifer Vuletic's German pronunciation was great and really added to the immersion of the story. It was particularly impressive when portraying slimy SS officers and when impersonating Ava's singing.
The only thing that slightly let me down was the relationship between Leo and Ava. It was a little too cheesy at points for me. The concept of the relationship seemed plausible but some of the dialogue between them was a little too contrived in the Disney, love at first sight kind of way. Once they were married their relationship seemed more natural but the courting phase felt a bit rushed and not very realistic. Eyes were rolled when listening to some of their conversations. This is sad as the relationship in Forsyth's other book 'Wild Girl' felt so real and natural. Forsyth took a little more time to build up the connection between Wilem and Dorcus whereas Ava and Leo were a little too contrived. I think this aspect brings the rating down more to a 3.5 for me and would put me off recommending it to my friends as I think my tolerance for cheesiness is much higher than others. This is disappointing as the other aspects of the story are perfect and it is a really great story honouring life in Berlin during the war.
• Start with a healthy dose of redeemable characters
• Mix in some goals and challenges for said characters to overcome
• Add a dollop of romance
• A hint of loss and despair
• A dash of lyrical prose
• A measure of magical realism (can substitute with the supernatural or fantastical)
• Finally, combine with a familiar tale interwoven with historical truths and volia! Phoenix's perfect story is complete.
Kate Forsyth knows this recipe well and keeps conjuring up books perfectly to my taste. The amount of research Forsyth undertakes before starting to write her novels is inspiring and it shows in the robust world she creates. This one in particular as all the characters aside from the main ones were real people who lived and died throughout World War II; all real activists, real Nazi's, real rebels. This was heart braking to discover, the atrocities of war are even more difficult to swallow when you know the names and lives of the people prosecuted. It gave the story much more depth as it isn't just some fairy tale retelling but an acknowledgement of some very strong individuals who stood up against Hitler's tyrannical ruling. I was not aware of the conspiracies against Hitler coordinated by appointed SS officers. By involving the main character's in this arm of history, it built tension and drove the plot without just relying on the threat of war itself to do so. In my opinion, Forsyth did a great job of honouring those impacted by the war and acknowledging the pain and suffering caused by Hitler's Regime while still creating a story to be enjoyed.
Another standout element which increased my enjoyment of this story was the choice of narrator. I cannot speak German so my assessment of accuracy is based off no prior knowledge but to my untrained ear, Jennifer Vuletic's German pronunciation was great and really added to the immersion of the story. It was particularly impressive when portraying slimy SS officers and when impersonating Ava's singing.
The only thing that slightly let me down was the relationship between Leo and Ava. It was a little too cheesy at points for me. The concept of the relationship seemed plausible but some of the dialogue between them was a little too contrived in the Disney, love at first sight kind of way. Once they were married their relationship seemed more natural but the courting phase felt a bit rushed and not very realistic. Eyes were rolled when listening to some of their conversations. This is sad as the relationship in Forsyth's other book 'Wild Girl' felt so real and natural. Forsyth took a little more time to build up the connection between Wilem and Dorcus whereas Ava and Leo were a little too contrived. I think this aspect brings the rating down more to a 3.5 for me and would put me off recommending it to my friends as I think my tolerance for cheesiness is much higher than others. This is disappointing as the other aspects of the story are perfect and it is a really great story honouring life in Berlin during the war.