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bluegrasspam's review against another edition
I really wanted to like it and read the quartet but could not get into it, at this time. Maybe I will come back to it.
nonie's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
cayleejanet's review against another edition
i cannot get into this writing for the life of me
roseb's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
gems_books's review against another edition
Not in the right reading space me struggled to comprehend / recall all that was happening in the text
sarah_i_jackson's review against another edition
challenging
dark
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Death, Violence, and Colonisation
Minor: Domestic abuse, Incest, Miscarriage, and Sexual assault
jochno's review against another edition
2.0
I really wanted to love this book but I ended up finding it very hard going despite being an extremely small book. The prose are completely unique in their style but are extraordinarily clunky. The book could easily be far briefer than it already is. The plot itself is in theory excellent: a violent and unlikeable colonialist named Donne chases a woman who has run away from him. He used to be abusive to her. A crew follows him, a crew that has died completing the journey before, he perished with them. Local villagers fear them for they thought they were dead. They exist between life and death, following the river. The narrator, never named is among this crew and seems to be fairly passive throughout.
Unfortunately if I hadn't read a synopsis before, none of this would be very clear to me, it is quite opaque in its style and whilst at times searingly beautiful, it at other times makes little sense at all. If you are looking for inspiration, this is a good book to read but it certainly isn't going to be for everyone and I ended up loosing the plot several times despite already knowing what it was.
Unfortunately if I hadn't read a synopsis before, none of this would be very clear to me, it is quite opaque in its style and whilst at times searingly beautiful, it at other times makes little sense at all. If you are looking for inspiration, this is a good book to read but it certainly isn't going to be for everyone and I ended up loosing the plot several times despite already knowing what it was.