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ange11's review against another edition
3.0
This is the second book I have read of this author and I like it but I feel like there are some parts that need more detailing and others where you are overwhelmed by the details. While I read I couldn’t help but wonder what happened between one scene and the other because there is no connection in some parts. I did enjoy it and was able to read it in almost one day, so I do recommend it.
amateurshark's review against another edition
2.0
There are authors you love, and you pick them up and you know you’re in for a treat. Sarah Lark is one of those authors for me. Although the usual length of her books always intimidates me (we’re talking 800 pages plus), I know that I’m going to inhale her stories.
Yes, all her stories are more or less always build on the same formula and will have a happy end, but that’s what I’m expecting from her: A world that completely absorbs me and leaves me back with a smile.
So I picked up “A Hope At The End of The World” after a series of books that disappointed me, expecting that THIS finally will the book that makes me happy again. And the premises were great: It’s only 400 pages, it has illustrations and it’s the 4th part of the New Zealand Saga. I mean THE FOURTH PART of my all-time favorite saga!
But man, I am sooooo disappointed. Sarah Lark, what happened to your writing? While many of the reviews on Goodreads assume that maybe something got lost in translation, I can assure you: No. I read the book in German and it was just not like the novels I read before.
The story is set during WWII in New Zealand and revolves around polish refugee Helena Grabowski. This is, by the way, the major difference to Lark’s other novels: it’s just about Helena. Helena and Luzyna (her little sister) live in a refugee camp near Teheran, where one of the sisters is given the unique opportunity to live in an American refugee camp for polish children in New Zealand (sounds weird, but apparently this camp really existed). After Luzyna being Luzyna misses the transport older Helena takes her place, and identity. After the arrival of our protagonist in Polish Camp things don’t get better, Helena discovers she is pregnant, mild Spoiler ahead:
I don’t think the story was boring, but it neither was exciting. There were just so many issues:
1. Helena is one-dimensional and so pessimistic. Sure, you can’t expect a character like her to be happy and optimistic. Her family was deported to Siberia, her parents died, her sister is a little brat, she was abused… I get it, but it was a bit annoying that Lark made it so plain obvious in her story that everything will be okay. For me Helena had no personality.
2. That ending? Skip this point if you don’t want to be spoilered!
3. The new characters were way more interesting than Helena. I would have loved to get to know more about Miranda. Or Moana. Not James, he just seemed like a mix of old characters.
4. The love story between James and Helena was cute, but nothing more. A bit too smooth, a bit too boring.
5. Overall there were too many ideas for 400 pages (again spoilers):
6. Not really part of the story: The illustrations. It was nice to have the picture of Christchurch, but the others, I guess they depicted the Grabowski family and their history, but an explanation in form of a title would have been nice.
I`ve read the book in an afternoon, it was a fast and easy read. It didn’t let me behind with a smile, Helena and her story didn’t really touch me. At the end I was happy I finally finished it. Rating it as boring would be too harsh, but clearly not as thrilling and exciting as I am used to. Big parts of the story are just revisiting the New Zealand trilogy, AHATEOFT (terrible acronym) gives a glimpse into the future of the characters after the events of the last part, but ultimately fails to satisfy. It was too short for all the ideas Mrs. Lark had, and too long for the “I wonder what happened to all my beloved characters”- thing. But to be honest, only the appearance of the old characters made the story somehow enjoyable.
If you intend this to be your first Lark: Don’t! This is the weakest of all her novels I read so far, start with “The Land of The Big White Cloud”. And if you’re looking for a continuation of the New Zealand Saga: Don’t get your hopes up too high, this book lacks nearly everything that made the Saga so wonderful.
Yes, all her stories are more or less always build on the same formula and will have a happy end, but that’s what I’m expecting from her: A world that completely absorbs me and leaves me back with a smile.
So I picked up “A Hope At The End of The World” after a series of books that disappointed me, expecting that THIS finally will the book that makes me happy again. And the premises were great: It’s only 400 pages, it has illustrations and it’s the 4th part of the New Zealand Saga. I mean THE FOURTH PART of my all-time favorite saga!
But man, I am sooooo disappointed. Sarah Lark, what happened to your writing? While many of the reviews on Goodreads assume that maybe something got lost in translation, I can assure you: No. I read the book in German and it was just not like the novels I read before.
The story is set during WWII in New Zealand and revolves around polish refugee Helena Grabowski. This is, by the way, the major difference to Lark’s other novels: it’s just about Helena. Helena and Luzyna (her little sister) live in a refugee camp near Teheran, where one of the sisters is given the unique opportunity to live in an American refugee camp for polish children in New Zealand (sounds weird, but apparently this camp really existed). After Luzyna being Luzyna misses the transport older Helena takes her place, and identity. After the arrival of our protagonist in Polish Camp things don’t get better, Helena discovers she is pregnant, mild Spoiler ahead:
Spoiler
tries to kill herself and ends up living on Kiward Station under the protection of Gloria and James.I don’t think the story was boring, but it neither was exciting. There were just so many issues:
1. Helena is one-dimensional and so pessimistic. Sure, you can’t expect a character like her to be happy and optimistic. Her family was deported to Siberia, her parents died, her sister is a little brat, she was abused… I get it, but it was a bit annoying that Lark made it so plain obvious in her story that everything will be okay. For me Helena had no personality.
2. That ending? Skip this point if you don’t want to be spoilered!
Spoiler
Why? I mean really why? This boy and this mine had nearly nothing to do with the rest of the story. Surely it connected to Helena’s History in Siberia, she lives through the darkness and fear before she truly gets revelated and her daughter is born. But still. It feels so out of place. And WHO lets a woman so advanced in pregnancy enter an unstable old mine?3. The new characters were way more interesting than Helena. I would have loved to get to know more about Miranda. Or Moana. Not James, he just seemed like a mix of old characters.
4. The love story between James and Helena was cute, but nothing more. A bit too smooth, a bit too boring.
5. Overall there were too many ideas for 400 pages (again spoilers):
Spoiler
The Persian refugee camp, the Polish Camp, the abuse by the teacher, the internment of the Neumann family, Moana’s Story, Wiremu’s Story (nice to mention him, but why was he back in the village?), the fate of the Maori culture, Miranda’s Story, what happened to Natalia, and especially: What happened to Luzyna (She was way too present in the story without being part of it)?6. Not really part of the story: The illustrations. It was nice to have the picture of Christchurch, but the others, I guess they depicted the Grabowski family and their history, but an explanation in form of a title would have been nice.
I`ve read the book in an afternoon, it was a fast and easy read. It didn’t let me behind with a smile, Helena and her story didn’t really touch me. At the end I was happy I finally finished it. Rating it as boring would be too harsh, but clearly not as thrilling and exciting as I am used to. Big parts of the story are just revisiting the New Zealand trilogy, AHATEOFT (terrible acronym) gives a glimpse into the future of the characters after the events of the last part, but ultimately fails to satisfy. It was too short for all the ideas Mrs. Lark had, and too long for the “I wonder what happened to all my beloved characters”- thing. But to be honest, only the appearance of the old characters made the story somehow enjoyable.
If you intend this to be your first Lark: Don’t! This is the weakest of all her novels I read so far, start with “The Land of The Big White Cloud”. And if you’re looking for a continuation of the New Zealand Saga: Don’t get your hopes up too high, this book lacks nearly everything that made the Saga so wonderful.
albon's review
4.0
2017 review:
Not as good as her other books, mostly because this was really short and her books are usually 600+ pages. I still enjoyed it, but I wish it was longer so she could've spent more time building up these characters and their lives.
I read this as a translated book, it was originally written in german but I read it in norwegian, and I could clearly tell that the translator wasn't the same as the one who translated her original New Zealand trilogy (which this one is a sequel to). In my opinion the old translator was a lot better. The new one had a tendency to leave some words in english, like "Mom" and "Dad" and "breeches", and it really disrupted the flow of the book.
Before reading:
If "James" is Jack and Gloria's son I will fling myself into the sun. In a good way.
READING PROGRESS
Not as good as her other books, mostly because this was really short and her books are usually 600+ pages. I still enjoyed it, but I wish it was longer so she could've spent more time building up these characters and their lives.
I read this as a translated book, it was originally written in german but I read it in norwegian, and I could clearly tell that the translator wasn't the same as the one who translated her original New Zealand trilogy (which this one is a sequel to). In my opinion the old translator was a lot better. The new one had a tendency to leave some words in english, like "Mom" and "Dad" and "breeches", and it really disrupted the flow of the book.
Before reading:
If "James" is Jack and Gloria's son I will fling myself into the sun. In a good way.
READING PROGRESS
April 17, 2017 – Shelved
April 17, 2017 – Shelved as: to-read
August 16, 2017 – Started Reading
August 22, 2017 –
page 50 18.73% "Bad news: I hate the protagonist already. She spent the first thirty pages talking about how much she loves her sister and would do anything for her, and then out of nowhere she betrays her in the worst posible way. Not a great start."
page 50 18.73% "Bad news: I hate the protagonist already. She spent the first thirty pages talking about how much she loves her sister and would do anything for her, and then out of nowhere she betrays her in the worst posible way. Not a great start."
August 29, 2017 – Shelved as: historical-fiction
August 29, 2017 – Shelved as: read-in-2017
August 29, 2017 – Shelved as: read-in-norwegian
August 29, 2017 – Finished Reading
butterfly2507's review against another edition
1.0
Habe es nach einigen Seiten abgebrochen. Ich fand Helena unausstehlich. So sehr dass mich ihre (spätere) Story noch nicht mal interessiert. Luzyna war okay wobei sie mir auch ein bisschen auf die Nerven ging. Schade.
bookerbride's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
reflective
sad
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
Content Warnings
Graphic: Alcoholism, Pedophilia, Racial slurs, Rape, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Grief, Suicide attempt, Death of parent, Pregnancy, Colonisation, War, and Deportation
Moderate: Antisemitism and Murder
Minor: Abortion
bookaholic_debbie's review against another edition
3.0
Hoewel het verhaal van de Poolse vluchtelinge Helena centraal staat, komen veel personages en plaatsen uit de Kwart-serie terug. Heel mooi om over die personen toch weer wat te lezen.
Wel voelde dit verhaal gehaaster dan ik van Sarah Lark gewend ben, dat vind ik jammer. Zo had ik graag meer gelezen over de zus van Helena, die toch een grote rol in het verhaal heeft!
Wel voelde dit verhaal gehaaster dan ik van Sarah Lark gewend ben, dat vind ik jammer. Zo had ik graag meer gelezen over de zus van Helena, die toch een grote rol in het verhaal heeft!
miiiiiiilla's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
emotional
inspiring
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
5.0
_tabae's review against another edition
5.0
Wieder ein guter Sarah Lark Roman entgegen der relativ schlechten Meinungen. Mir hat die Stimmung an sich gefallen und fand es schön, dass der Roman an die Wolken-Trilogie anschließt, meiner persönlichen Favoriten-Reihe. Zwar zeigt sich auch hier wieder, dass man sich das Leben auch selbst schwer machen kann, insbesondere wenn man nicht mit den Menschen in seiner Umgebung redet und stattdessen einfach voreilige Schlüsse zieht. Aber trotzdem wieder eine schöne Geschichte!:)
cazic's review against another edition
emotional
inspiring
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? Yes
5.0