Reviews with content warning for War - Eva Luna

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Eva Luna by Isabel Allende

9 reviews

tctimlin's review against another edition

adventurous challenging emotional reflective medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.5

Set in an unnamed Latin American country, in contemporary times (written in 1987j) Eva Luna tells her story, from her mother’s start in the jungle, conceived while her servant mother was nursing a strange red-haired gardener back to life. She makes her own way out of poverty and travels through a world of characters epitomizing the colorful diversity of her nation. As Eva is narrating her fantastical life story, the novel paints a counterpoint in the biography (told in third person) of German immigrant Rolf, fleeing his own nation’s and father’s cruelty to a small town in Latin America where German immigrants create almost a Disneyfied version of their homeland, with chalets and dogs and candle making. As their tales intersect, Eva Luna tries to “live my life as I would like it … like a novel.”

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rubybastille's review against another edition

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emotional reflective 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? No

4.0

Beautiful writing, as expected, but light on both story and the magical realism the blurbs led me to expect. I enjoyed the characters, especially Mimi, a trans drag performer turned national celebrity, and Elvira, an elderly maid who looks out for Eva. CW for transphobia along Mimi’s journey and some underage sexual content (this is a book from the 80s and while its trans representation is actually decent, it still misses a few marks by modern standards).

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jinmichae's review against another edition

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adventurous emotional hopeful informative inspiring reflective tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.5

I really loved the writing of this book. It made for a very compelling story, and as soon as I was finished, I put several more of the books by the same author on my "to read" list.

The ups and downs of Eva's life, and the way she interacts with the people in her life, are the main focus. And she's such an interesting character in an interesting setting that it was hard to put down: I was always wanting to see what would happen next, and how the plot would resolve.

It's definitely dark in places: much of the story is set against corruption and political takeovers.

But there's a happy ending, which felt almost impossible with the odds placed against the characters, but I was glad for it. I don't need everything to be cold hard reality, and it was set up enough to feel like a satisfying payoff: even if it only exists because of a sometimes unreliable narrator. It's just a story, so why not let Eva tell it how she wants to?

Also, I adore Mimí. Her success and happiness might have been the best part of the whole book.

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