rebeccatc's review
4.0
Fascinating story of a man named Richard Morgan who is transported as a convict to Australia in the 1780's. As always, McCullough's attention to historical detail is staggering, while still creating compelling characters and sending them on page-turning adventures. The first 100 pages dragged a little, but it was worth it because once Morgan was sent to Bristol Newgate prison I couldn't put the book down. From his time in prison to the long journey by sea on a convict ship with horrifying conditions, to the first European settlement in Australia near modern-day Sydney to the even more remote Norfolk Island, Morgan is a survivor who is fundamentally changed for the better by his experiences. Recommended.
pelias2828's review
3.0
While I found the story interesting, I did not appreciate the latent homophobia in this book.
javamamanc's review
adventurous
challenging
emotional
informative
inspiring
sad
medium-paced
- 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? It's complicated
5.0
saj_81's review
1.0
I wanted to throw this book out of the window at least 5 times while reading it. Yet somehow I struggled to the bitter (horrible) ending. I have two main complaints:
1. Richard Morgan is seriously annoying. No real human is that perfect all the time. He has the perfect body, perfect mind, perfect manners, perfect skills for every situation and perfect ability to control himself no matter what happens. During hundreds of pages the man never does anything wrong and everyone adores him. Personally I couldn't care less what happens to him, which is already a bad sign in a book that revolves so heavily around one person.
2. The women in this book are either non-existent or completely unrealistic. There is not a single believable female in this story. The women in England are hysterical caretakers, who can't control their feelings. The female prisoners are sad victims who, if they are smart and understand their place, are being sexually abused by the men (not Mr. Morgan of course, he has no sexual desires...). The women who came to Botany Bay with the officers are only mentioned as providing sexual services to each other's husbands. At the end of the book we meet one woman who is described in more detail. Her main characteristic? Being hopelessly dependant on Richard Morgan. I find it hard to believe that this would be the whole truth about women in the 18th century. Without wanting to exaggerate, I would describe this book as anti-feminist.
In conclusion, I would have much rather read an honestly historical account about this journey.
1. Richard Morgan is seriously annoying. No real human is that perfect all the time. He has the perfect body, perfect mind, perfect manners, perfect skills for every situation and perfect ability to control himself no matter what happens. During hundreds of pages the man never does anything wrong and everyone adores him. Personally I couldn't care less what happens to him, which is already a bad sign in a book that revolves so heavily around one person.
2. The women in this book are either non-existent or completely unrealistic. There is not a single believable female in this story. The women in England are hysterical caretakers, who can't control their feelings. The female prisoners are sad victims who, if they are smart and understand their place, are being sexually abused by the men (not Mr. Morgan of course, he has no sexual desires...). The women who came to Botany Bay with the officers are only mentioned as providing sexual services to each other's husbands. At the end of the book we meet one woman who is described in more detail. Her main characteristic? Being hopelessly dependant on Richard Morgan. I find it hard to believe that this would be the whole truth about women in the 18th century. Without wanting to exaggerate, I would describe this book as anti-feminist.
In conclusion, I would have much rather read an honestly historical account about this journey.
viktoriya's review
:( What happened?! I was really looking forward to reading another Colleen McCullough's book after falling in love with [b:The Thorn Birds|3412|The Thorn Birds|Colleen McCullough|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1391416796s/3412.jpg|816449]
Though this book will be a great read: it's about early Australia, the convicts, England's criminal system, it's long...On the surface this book has everything I am looking for. Even the style of writing didn't bother me at all and I got used to it fast. However, all of the sudden, somewhere around page 300 I realized that I didn't care at all for Richard or for his other "friends". I didn't care what happened to them. I simply couldn't stand reading even another sentence :(
Though this book will be a great read: it's about early Australia, the convicts, England's criminal system, it's long...On the surface this book has everything I am looking for. Even the style of writing didn't bother me at all and I got used to it fast. However, all of the sudden, somewhere around page 300 I realized that I didn't care at all for Richard or for his other "friends". I didn't care what happened to them. I simply couldn't stand reading even another sentence :(
mamanrees's review
I managed to get about a third of the way through this book but just never got into it. After I realized it had been sitting on my bedside table for months, I decided to just abandon it for the time being.
tanyarobinson's review
4.0
It's interesting to me that some readers complained about McCullough's heavy focus on period detail, because for me that's what made this book so special. Anybody can write a fluffy little novel set in the past. McCullough writes history with fictionalized characters. I learned so much about the origins of Australia from this book, and recommended it to my father who is soon visiting the continent.
joneal233's review
1.0
I don't know the last time it took me this long to read a book this short. (It's 600 pages...which isn't really a "short" book.) However,the length of time it took me to this book would be for a novel in the 1500+ range and likely a literary classic. Many times I wanted to just give up, but I am too stubborn and it causes me more pain to not finish a book, than drag through a bad one. Ultimately for a topic that should have been interesting (founding of Australian colonies by English convicts) was just REALLY boring. I loved McCullough's Rome series, particularly the first novels. Maybe I have a higher tolerance for dry historical fiction set in the early Roman Empire era?