hayleysreads's review
challenging
emotional
informative
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.5
A good book, remember reading it as a teen and now. I’m not a huge fan of the writing style as it feels quite traditional, but it does paint a really lovely image of London - starting as idyllic and then descending into chaos. It was nice to have 3 sisters running a shop and having agency & independence . Was really interesting to learn about the plague and the fire of London - along with the stories there is a historical context section in the back & some recipes for the sweets that the characters make in the book. I felt quite nostalgic reading this for London, imagining olde-world times and versions of places I know.
Also interesting in the context of Coronavirus & impending climate crisis - human life & society is cyclical. A line that stood out in the book was in the time between the plague & the fire of London “We all drank in the coming-in of the year and Sarah and I hugged each other and said that we were grateful and relieved and that the old year was over. Whatever happens in this one, it cannot be as cruel as the last” Now doesn’t that sound familiar in 2021??
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