rsarnelli's review
3.0
2.5 stars. This has an intriguing premise and is beautifully written and depicted, but I felt...nothing. No connection to the characters, no concern about what was going to happen. I was interested enough to keep reading, but if this had been a longer book I don't know if I would've. It's a bit dsappointing, because I like magical realism and had high hopes for this. I'll definitely check out whatever Mabry writes next, though.
shoelessmama's review
2.0
Book club pick. I ended up enjoying this one more than I thought I would. I didn't find it slow as many others did. While Lucas wasn't an amazing narrator personality-wise, he wasn't the worst one I've ever come across. Could he have been more likable, sure, but I found him sympathetic enough to keep me reading. However, I do agree with another reviewer who said this would have been a much better book if told from Isabel's POV. I really enjoyed the setting having never read a novel set in Puerto Rico before. Since my husband and I went there on our honeymoon it was fun being reminded of some of the locations and sights we saw in San Juan.
delaneybull's review against another edition
3.0
This was a weird one, I felt like I could never fully connect with it. I wish this wasn't from the perspective of Lucas, as we all know he wasn't the interesting one in this story. I liked some of the cultural elements to the story, but it just never hit quite as hard as I wanted.
cassieliegh97's review against another edition
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
2.75
pantsreads's review
3.0
3.5/5.
Interesting mix of magical realism and murder mystery, but didn't quite grip me like I'd hoped it would.
Read my full review on FYA.
Interesting mix of magical realism and murder mystery, but didn't quite grip me like I'd hoped it would.
Read my full review on FYA.
heykellyjensen's review
This is magical realism! It's quite reminiscent of Nova Ren Suma's IMAGINARY GIRLS, and I mean that in a very good way. It's about heroism, about girls staking a claim in their own stories, about cultural values and how white men think they can control and own everything (patriarchyyy). But it's a feminism novel featuring a male lead character, so those things are far more subtle than overt.
The language and writing are excellent and Mabry's an author I can't wait to read more from.
The language and writing are excellent and Mabry's an author I can't wait to read more from.
ktrusty416's review
1.0
In choosing Lucas as her protagonist, Mabry misses the mark here: the stories we really want to know are not available to Lucas, a gringo outsider, but to the girls and women of Puerto Rico. And they (the stories, the girls, the land itself) only exist as something Lucas desires. For a young man who finds his developer father's imperialism distasteful, Lucas seems destined to follow in his footsteps (despite all Mabry's wooden attempts to make us believe Lucas is aware of his privilege and casting it off). There was nothing fierce or subtle about this book.
lizzynh's review
2.0
Admittedly, I was not excited to read this book, but it had a beautiful cover so I figured it might still be worth a shot. I still can't decide if it was.
The plot itself was decent and interesting, but the real action didn't pick up until about 100 pages into the story.
What had me flipping pages so quickly was that I hate stopping in the middle of a book and wanted to move on to another, not because I was invested in the characters. Isabel wasn't deeply explored as a character. She was just there. Lucas started out as a jerk and ended as a... "permissible jerk," if I may.
My quiet hope was that the writing would save the plot and characters, but alas, it didn't. It was good, but not enough. Mabry used nice metaphors and a good vocabulary, but it all seemed out of place and like she was trying too hard coming from the point of view of Lucas.
All around, 3 stars because I didn't hate it. It was just meh.
The plot itself was decent and interesting, but the real action didn't pick up until about 100 pages into the story.
What had me flipping pages so quickly was that I hate stopping in the middle of a book and wanted to move on to another, not because I was invested in the characters. Isabel wasn't deeply explored as a character. She was just there. Lucas started out as a jerk and ended as a... "permissible jerk," if I may.
My quiet hope was that the writing would save the plot and characters, but alas, it didn't. It was good, but not enough. Mabry used nice metaphors and a good vocabulary, but it all seemed out of place and like she was trying too hard coming from the point of view of Lucas.
All around, 3 stars because I didn't hate it. It was just meh.
karinalynn's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0