Reviews

This was a continuation of East by Edith Pattou. In it, Rose and Charles have just had their first baby and adopted orphaned Estelle. On his way back from a job, Charles's ship sink in a strange and violent storm. When it is reported that he has died, Rose refuses to believe and set off on another adventure to save her white bear, her family, and the world of humans.

While I didn't enjoy it quite as much as the first, West is, nonetheless, an enjoyable read. I will admit that I had never heard the fairy tale East of the Sun and West of the Moon as a child. I have recently come across several adaptations of this story. Having not been familiar with the base story prior to these adaptations, I wasn't aware of which story elements were a part of the original fairy tale. I just went to Wikipedia to read a synopsis of the original fairy tale and some of the variations, and now I'm wishing that I had known this fairy tale prior to reading these retellings. I think it would have made the experience even more enjoyable.

Regardless, it is a lovely story and one that I think my daughter will enjoy reading.

calhale1989's review against another edition

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5.0

East, book one in this duology, is one of my favorite books of all time. So it shouldn't surprise me that this book had me ugly crying with happiness at parts.

Edith Pattou seems to have swept up all the pieces of the original tale of East of the Sun and West of the Moon that she didn't use in East and wove them beautifully into the sequel. I love this world that she has created and the people in it. I love that they grow across both books and seeing how Rose changes from her youth as a North-born wild child to a strong and loving mother, was so impactful to me.

I will never not tell someone to read this series.

Please note: This book deals with a small epidemic and the aftermath of illness in a way that could be a trigger for some after the most recent pandemic. Please be advised.

This book felt super timely for me to be reading now.

lesthemess's review against another edition

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adventurous emotional hopeful mysterious sad medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

kaeschwalber's review against another edition

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adventurous mysterious medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.0

Easy to read, good plot, characters lack depth

geekmom's review against another edition

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3.5

This book seemed to be missing a lot of what made East such a great book. I didn't dislike it, but I just didn't find it compelling. Also,

The baby was completely unrealistic and not believable... not to mention the strange, absent-minded way that the characters in this book behaved around caring for the baby. I know Pattou has a child, so this completely unrealistic depiction of infancy and of taking care of an infant was very weird and really threw me out of the story.

saltysnails's review against another edition

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I really was upset by the way this book just disregarded the ending of east and what they said Rose’s future would be and i did not enjoy it

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