booksbeyondimagining's review
adventurous
emotional
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
I definitely enjoyed reading this book, as I have enjoyed basically every other book Melissa has written (that I've read so far), with a couple of exceptions. I loved getting to know Bess, and go with her on her unexpected journey through Peru. I especially delighted in seeing her being so self-sufficient despite her poor eyesight, and taking charge of her own defense without worry.
While I didn't necessarily find the romance to be overly exciting or full of intense chemistry, it followed a trope that I always adore so I definitely enjoyed that part of it.
My biggest issue and one that is hard to hate on completely because of the circumstances of the novel and Bess's upbringing is how she viewed the Incans. While she was respectful of them and their culture, and did not wish to see them wiped out by the Spanish, she also felt sympathy for the Spanish as well when they were subjected to the Incans' revenge. I understand that she is living in a time when colonialism is not only accepted but lauded by those doing the colonizing, and as an Englishwoman probably does not understand why it is so terrible. While it makes sense that she would hate to see either group suffer at the hands of the other, she failed completely to grasp the concept that the Spanish had forcibly taken the land from the Incans and drove them into hiding and building up an armory to exact their revenge. Again, Bess is a woman of the time when people were ignorant to the plight of those they were exploiting, but I wish that, considering how intelligent and well-read she is, she would have been able to consider the situation more from the Incans' perspective and realize that no matter what they did to the Spanish, the Incans were still mostly in the right in trying to take their land back.
It is a hard subject to deal with, especially coming at it from a modern perspective and reading about it through the eyes of a woman with an understanding relative to the time, but I think for the most part McShane did as good a job as she could, considering Bess's circumstances. I mean, I think there could have been a bit of improvement in some aspects of her perspective on the situation, but overall she did her best to prevent what she feared the most - unecessary killing on either side.
Overall, it was still an enjoyable read, with some great characters and a captivating plot. I'm excited to read more about Amaya in the next book and see where her story arc takes her.
While I didn't necessarily find the romance to be overly exciting or full of intense chemistry, it followed a trope that I always adore so I definitely enjoyed that part of it.
My biggest issue and one that is hard to hate on completely because of the circumstances of the novel and Bess's upbringing is how she viewed the Incans. While she was respectful of them and their culture, and did not wish to see them wiped out by the Spanish, she also felt sympathy for the Spanish as well when they were subjected to the Incans' revenge. I understand that she is living in a time when colonialism is not only accepted but lauded by those doing the colonizing, and as an Englishwoman probably does not understand why it is so terrible. While it makes sense that she would hate to see either group suffer at the hands of the other, she failed completely to grasp the concept that the Spanish had forcibly taken the land from the Incans and drove them into hiding and building up an armory to exact their revenge. Again, Bess is a woman of the time when people were ignorant to the plight of those they were exploiting, but I wish that, considering how intelligent and well-read she is, she would have been able to consider the situation more from the Incans' perspective and realize that no matter what they did to the Spanish, the Incans were still mostly in the right in trying to take their land back.
It is a hard subject to deal with, especially coming at it from a modern perspective and reading about it through the eyes of a woman with an understanding relative to the time, but I think for the most part McShane did as good a job as she could, considering Bess's circumstances. I mean, I think there could have been a bit of improvement in some aspects of her perspective on the situation, but overall she did her best to prevent what she feared the most - unecessary killing on either side.
Overall, it was still an enjoyable read, with some great characters and a captivating plot. I'm excited to read more about Amaya in the next book and see where her story arc takes her.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Blood, Death, Xenophobia, and Kidnapping
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