bundy23's review against another edition
2.0
DNF. The doctor stuff was interesting and would've made for a good 150-200 page book but the further it went the more it was drowned by the tears of the weeping wife/s. On top of that, the author really didn't seem able to write believable male characters at all. Or kids. Both kids seemed at least 10 years older than they actually were. I almost made it halfway through before I couldn't take it anymore.
bosicbyi's review
4.0
I won this book in a goodreads giveaway. This was very interesting, educational, and well written.
anne14's review against another edition
3.0
Personally, I found that the book became more interesting only in the last 100 pages. I expected to have a more alert pace, but it hasn't. I don't want to say it's boring, just maybe it wasn't what I expected to be.
tasmanian_bibliophile's review
4.0
‘It’s a fresh June morning without a trace of humidity, but Russov is sweating.’
Leningrad, 1952. The war is over, the siege of Leningrad has ended, but life is still fraught with danger. Anna, her sixteen-year-old brother Kolya, and her husband Andrei live in a small flat. Anna is a nursery schoolteacher and Andrei is a paediatric physician with a special interest in juvenile arthritis. Gorya Volkov, the ten-year-old son of a man high up in the Ministry for State Security, is admitted to the hospital. Russov, terrified of the consequences should something go wrong, is determined to refer Gorya to Andrei.
Andrei discovers that Gorya has a cancerous tumour in his leg. Andrei’s advice, that an amputation is required, is reluctantly accepted. Doctor Brodskaya is the surgeon. Gorya is an only child, and when it is discovered that the malignancy has spread, the consequences for those directly involved in his treatment are awful.
‘Rumours? Everything’s a rumour in this country, until it happens to you.’
I read this novel unaware that it was a sequel. But, while I have added ‘The Siege’ to my reading
list, I believe that this novel can be read as a standalone. Ms Dunmore captures the atmosphere of life in Stalin’s Russia: the bureaucracy, the watchful neighbours, the fear. The tension builds until the end, only lifting when Stalin dies. I finished the book wanting more, wanting to know what would happen next.
Jennifer Cameron-Smith
Leningrad, 1952. The war is over, the siege of Leningrad has ended, but life is still fraught with danger. Anna, her sixteen-year-old brother Kolya, and her husband Andrei live in a small flat. Anna is a nursery schoolteacher and Andrei is a paediatric physician with a special interest in juvenile arthritis. Gorya Volkov, the ten-year-old son of a man high up in the Ministry for State Security, is admitted to the hospital. Russov, terrified of the consequences should something go wrong, is determined to refer Gorya to Andrei.
Andrei discovers that Gorya has a cancerous tumour in his leg. Andrei’s advice, that an amputation is required, is reluctantly accepted. Doctor Brodskaya is the surgeon. Gorya is an only child, and when it is discovered that the malignancy has spread, the consequences for those directly involved in his treatment are awful.
‘Rumours? Everything’s a rumour in this country, until it happens to you.’
I read this novel unaware that it was a sequel. But, while I have added ‘The Siege’ to my reading
list, I believe that this novel can be read as a standalone. Ms Dunmore captures the atmosphere of life in Stalin’s Russia: the bureaucracy, the watchful neighbours, the fear. The tension builds until the end, only lifting when Stalin dies. I finished the book wanting more, wanting to know what would happen next.
Jennifer Cameron-Smith
claredesausmarez's review
challenging
dark
emotional
informative
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
sophiemgprice's review
dark
informative
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
amberw27's review
dark
hopeful
informative
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
Follow up to the siege. Andrei working as a doctor treats the son of a powerful man. Things do not go well for any of them.
jtyler's review
emotional
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.75
helensparrow's review
dark
mysterious
reflective
tense
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0