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eve_kadou's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.25
Graphic: Child death, Cursing, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Incest, Misogyny, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Torture, Violence, Kidnapping, Car accident, Death of parent, Murder, and Sexual harassment
coleanne's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Graphic: Animal death, Confinement, Cursing, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Gore, Gun violence, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Blood, Excrement, Police brutality, Medical content, Kidnapping, Mass/school shootings, Death of parent, Murder, Pregnancy, Gaslighting, War, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism
flowerwineandbooks's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
People praise the poetic descriptions in this novel, and maybe it's the fault of translation but I didn't find the prose all the beautiful. There were a few stunning lines, but these were more from Nivea, Clara, and Alba about the importance of justice and resilience of women.
<blockquote> "this is to assuage our conscience, darling," she would explain to Blanca. "but it doesn't help the poor. They don't need charity, they need justice." </blockquote>
<blockquote> It was then I understood that the days of [character name] and all those like him are numbered, because they have not been able to destroy the spirit of these women. </blockquote>
This book has virtually no plot, it's all characters. And that would be fine, except most of the characters were not ones I was able to root for very easily. Additionally, I HATED HATED HATED reading from Esteban's point of view. I think this is the sole reason it took me so long to finish this book. If one of the themes of the novel is the spirit of women, I don't think this writing choice was the best... I understand that he was necessary as the patriarch to counterbalance the narrative being told about the spirits of the women throughout the family, but I feel like just seeing his actions would have been enough for the same to have been accomplished.
The historical context in the last few chapters of the book I found to be the most intriguing! Since the passing of Clara, I struggled to maintain interest in the story with no more characters I really cared for. The wider story of Chilean politics was fascinating to me, and I came to care more for some of the younger characters FINALLY at this point. However, the big reveal/twist wasn't as shocking as I would have liked because of the overused and blatant amount of foreshadowing throughout the ENTIRETY of the novel from the first chapters. (Which I know is not a translation issue, because I've read some reviews from those who read it in Spanish and said similar things here)
Graphic: Child abuse, Death, Domestic abuse, Infidelity, Misogyny, Rape, Sexual assault, Torture, and Police brutality
Moderate: Ableism, Animal death, and Lesbophobia
Minor: Animal cruelty, Car accident, and Death of parent
lief_'s review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.25
Graphic: Animal death, Child abuse, Confinement, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Gun violence, Homophobia, Misogyny, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Torture, Violence, Blood, Police brutality, Kidnapping, Abortion, Death of parent, Murder, War, and Classism
Moderate: Miscarriage, Medical content, and Mass/school shootings
Minor: Addiction and Incest
apple_cider's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Minor: Adult/minor relationship, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Cursing, Death, Mental illness, Miscarriage, Rape, Sexual content, Torture, Police brutality, Medical content, Medical trauma, Car accident, Abortion, Death of parent, and Pregnancy
not_another_ana's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
El pasado y el futuro eran parte de la misma cosa y la realidad del presente era un caleidoscopio de espejos desordenados, donde todo podía ocurrir.
No se qué escribir sobre este libro que nadie haya escrito antes, ni idea de cómo afrontar un libro de esta magnitud. Creo que empezaré por decir que ahora que lo leí entiendo perfectamente por qué es un clásico de la literatura latinoamericana. Este es un libro desgarrador, informativo, cercano, que todavía es relevante en este siglo.
Isabel Allende nos da un paseo por tres generaciones de una familia al mismo tiempo que nos muestra cómo se llega a una dictadura. Es rudo, es un libro que trata temas sensibles y pesados. En esta narración hay una aproximación a asuntos como la justicia, la desigualdad social, el machismo, el paternalismo político, la violencia, etc. La autora no se cohibió, plasmó claramente todo lo que había sentido y observado. Es un libro que necesita ser degustado y digerido, requiere múltiples lecturas.
Hubo cosas que no me gustaron. Uno de los puntos de vista es increíblemente violento y repugnante, y aunque entiendo el por qué de su existencia se me hizo pesado vivir en la mente de este personaje. Otra crítica de mi parte es que los párrafos son gigantes y no hay espacio para tomar un descanso, recomiendo bastante el audiolibro, me agradaron mucho los narradores y me pareció que es la mejor manera de consumir esta historia. En general lo disfruté más de lo que pensé.
Graphic: Animal death, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Torture, Violence, Blood, Police brutality, Kidnapping, Grief, Car accident, Death of parent, and Pregnancy
rhi_'s review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Graphic: Animal death, Child abuse, Confinement, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Gore, Gun violence, Incest, Infidelity, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Torture, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Excrement, Police brutality, Medical content, Kidnapping, Abortion, Death of parent, Murder, Pregnancy, Sexual harassment, and Classism
Moderate: Self harm, Suicidal thoughts, and Suicide attempt
j_mindelan's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.75
Graphic: Addiction, Adult/minor relationship, Alcoholism, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body shaming, Child abuse, Chronic illness, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Fatphobia, Homophobia, Incest, Infidelity, Miscarriage, Misogyny, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Slavery, Torture, Violence, Blood, Excrement, Police brutality, Grief, Religious bigotry, Abortion, Death of parent, Pregnancy, Alcohol, Sexual harassment, Colonisation, War, and Classism
marigoldgem's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Confinement, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Gun violence, Homophobia, Incest, Misogyny, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Torture, Violence, Excrement, Medical content, Kidnapping, Grief, Car accident, Death of parent, Sexual harassment, War, and Classism
ka_cam's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
Graphic: Animal death, Child death, Chronic illness, Death, Domestic abuse, Gun violence, Homophobia, Misogyny, Racial slurs, Racism, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Torture, Violence, Police brutality, Medical content, Kidnapping, Grief, Car accident, Abortion, Death of parent, Murder, Pregnancy, Alcohol, Colonisation, War, and Classism
Moderate: Addiction, Emotional abuse, and Blood