now_booking's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Like many of Allende’s protagonists, Violeta is born into some privilege. This book spans Violeta’s life from her birth during the emergence of the 1920 flu pandemic, the stock market crash and the Great Depression, through the rise of Naziism, fascism, peasant uprisings, revolution and the legacy of colonialism, Western political influence and dictatorship in Latin America, to the end of her life in 2020’s coronavirus pandemic. While this work of historical fiction is not specifically about these historical events, the dramatic events of her life and her dysfunctional family are greatly influenced by these events and through her story, we get a fresh perspective of what it may have been to love through those times.
This is ultimately a book of an entire life, so there is a lot of sadness and trauma in this that linger especially when one looks back at a lifetime and has experienced the pain of regret and loss. This isn’t a maudlin read, Violeta has a good sense of self irony and is witty and humorous, and is viciously honest even with herself about her own failings, yet the overarching mood of this is sort of sad and reflective. This book addresses themes of neglect and abuse, infidelity, sexual assault, addiction, violence and genocide. If you’ve had experience living under an authoritarian regime and experienced loss through it, this might be somewhat triggering. If you haven’t, this has a lot of loss in it, so gird your loins.
That said, this book is absolutely gorgeous. The writing is fantastic… it reads authentically like an old lady wrote it as her memoir and there are so many points reading this that I stopped to reflect. There were so many points of reflection about relationships, faith, regret, wealth. The story of love and family and found family that is built through this book is so real yet so flawed and because of that compellingly human. The character development is as expected from and Allende novel, great, and even the description of the most mundane aspects of her life was compelling. This would have been a perfect 5 stars for me if not that I think it was at times a bit repetitive in parts and I think in places the story could have moved faster. I think fans of the Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo will adore this, but I found this to be more encompassing, more meaningful and just… more! I highly highly recommend this!
Graphic: Emotional abuse, Gaslighting, Genocide, Grief, Abandonment, Cancer, Dementia, Forced institutionalization, Murder, Physical abuse, Terminal illness, Violence, Sexism, Classism, Death, Addiction, Infidelity, Sexual assault, Suicide, Bullying, Drug use, Fatphobia, Toxic relationship, Kidnapping, Drug abuse, Body shaming, Death of parent, Domestic abuse, Misogyny, and Mental illness
Moderate: Child abuse, Xenophobia, Infertility, Torture, War, Ableism, Confinement, Misogyny, and Fire/Fire injury
Minor: Eating disorder, Incest, Adult/minor relationship, Homophobia, Abortion, Chronic illness, and Colonisation
gruizco23's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Graphic: Genocide
darcyjanea's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
Moderate: Dementia, Death, Death of parent, Domestic abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Infidelity, and Police brutality
Minor: Torture, Genocide, Suicide, and Rape
sib_reads's review against another edition
- 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
5.0
Graphic: Death, Death of parent, Misogyny, Toxic relationship, Drug abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Murder, Sexism, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Addiction, Classism, Domestic abuse, Genocide, Grief, Infidelity, Mass/school shootings, Physical abuse, Terminal illness, Torture, Violence, and War
Moderate: Alcohol, Blood, Dementia, Gun violence, Infertility, Child abuse, Confinement, Animal death, Animal cruelty, Cancer, Pedophilia, Police brutality, Pregnancy, Sexual content, and Rape
Minor: Abortion and Eating disorder
daniellekat's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
Graphic: Drug abuse, Physical abuse, Sexual violence, Sexism, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Violence, Police brutality, and Sexual assault
Moderate: Terminal illness, Genocide, Infidelity, Pregnancy, Rape, Suicide, and Forced institutionalization
Minor: Drug use
kiandrareadsbooks's review against another edition
- 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
Graphic: Death of parent, Suicide, and Classism
Moderate: Dementia, Addiction, Cancer, Drug abuse, Genocide, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Terminal illness, and Toxic relationship
franklola's review against another edition
- 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
4.0
Graphic: Police brutality, Drug use, Domestic abuse, Colonisation, Murder, Infidelity, and Genocide
Moderate: Addiction, Violence, Sexual assault, Pregnancy, and War
Minor: Torture
annalucy29's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
Graphic: Genocide, Police brutality, and Murder
Moderate: Sexual assault, Addiction, Alcohol, Drug abuse, Grief, Infidelity, Domestic abuse, and Toxic relationship
wellreadjill_'s review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Graphic: Drug abuse, Domestic abuse, Alcoholism, Colonisation, Death, Addiction, Child death, Dementia, Gaslighting, Death of parent, Emotional abuse, Genocide, Pregnancy, Murder, Sexual assault, and Toxic relationship
amandas_bookshelf's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
Graphic: Genocide, Murder, Domestic abuse, Addiction, Animal death, Cancer, Death, Death of parent, Child death, Dementia, Drug abuse, Drug use, Infidelity, Police brutality, and Pregnancy