acatarina's review against another edition
4.0
Tinha ouvido falar muitíssimo bem deste livro e acho que a popularidade foi a única coisa que me fez não desistir da leitura a meio.
Sira, uma costureira madrilena, dá por si a fugir de uma vida convencional e a ter que começar de novo em Marrocos, com dívidas e um coração partido.
A história é interessante, a parte histórica também, mas a primeira metade do livro, embora tivesse acontecimentos fora do comum e reviravoltas, custou-me imenso a passar.
Já os últimos capítulos, foram devorados.
Sira, uma costureira madrilena, dá por si a fugir de uma vida convencional e a ter que começar de novo em Marrocos, com dívidas e um coração partido.
A história é interessante, a parte histórica também, mas a primeira metade do livro, embora tivesse acontecimentos fora do comum e reviravoltas, custou-me imenso a passar.
Já os últimos capítulos, foram devorados.
llochner's review
4.0
3.5 / 5
Sira frequently made decisions against her own interests imo that did not make sense to me as a reader. A bit corny at times, and there were a few things about the way the plot was developed left something to be desired for m. But entertaining nonetheless for the better part of its 600 pages.
Sira frequently made decisions against her own interests imo that did not make sense to me as a reader. A bit corny at times, and there were a few things about the way the plot was developed left something to be desired for m. But entertaining nonetheless for the better part of its 600 pages.
nunezkv's review
4.0
I’ll be honest the first third of this book was like pulling teeth for me. I struggle to sit by while a smart girl makes silly choices for a man, particularly when he seems so obviously rotten. But, I am so glad I saw it through.
I wouldn’t call anything a twist in this book but a fascinating progression of an incredible character in a breath catching world.
I wouldn’t call anything a twist in this book but a fascinating progression of an incredible character in a breath catching world.
edithcita's review against another edition
adventurous
informative
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
marandra's review against another edition
5.0
Una historia cautivante de intrigas y amor. 10/10 lo recomiendo.
juviotto's review against another edition
4.0
4,5 out of 5 stars.
LOVED 95% of this book, HATED the final 5%. Why did you do this, Maria Dueñas?
LOVED 95% of this book, HATED the final 5%. Why did you do this, Maria Dueñas?
hheimbaugh's review
5.0
I’ve had my share of rough times while abroad in Spain – tearfully attempting to explain my vivid yellow diarrhea to doctors who openly mocked me after spending a horrific night hallucinating on the toilet; being guilted into eating ham that was sliced off a pig leg in our pantry – a pig leg that that was still covered in a fine coating of PIG HAIR, mind you; eating what can I only assume what was a bowl of sea creatures and worms which my house-mom masqueraded as “pasta;” I’ve even had to see my house-mom’s cleaning lady naked….and well, my house-mom parading about in her birthday suit too for that matter… and those are sights that I can NEVER unsee. But at least I didn’t wake up in a hospital bed in Morocco after the typewriter salesman I fled Spain with disappeared with my fortune, leaving me high and dry with an unborn baby and an unpaid hotel bill for thousands of dollars. Of course my house-mom in not so many words banned me from visiting Morocco… so maybe she saved me some trouble. Thanks for that María Jose. But anyway, that is the situation we find our main character Sira in shortly after beginning The Time In Between by María Dueñas.
And it only gets better from there (better from an entertainment perspective of course, it actually gets a little worse for Sira). This book is everything I hoped the Devil in the White City would be – in other words, based on history but not rigidly bound to the cold hard facts. Dueñas seamlessly interweaved the real with the imaginary in creating the fictitious Sira and her relationships with a number of key figures who actually existed in Morocco and Spain during World War II. It’s the best of both worlds – Dueñas was able to take some artistic liberties while still being true to the personalities of the real characters and the general chain of events than unfolded during and after the Spanish Civil War. For me, straight up history can be a hard pill to swallow, and if a little bit of fiction helps it go down easier, I’m more than ok with that.
The Time in Between had a great many elements from my literary love list – mystery, romance, gossipy women, heartbreak, SPAIN, Portugal, danger, WWII, espionage, and a strong female lead (even if Sira didn’t necessarily start out that way). Despite it’s length (over 600 pages, at least on my nook) it never felt slow or boring in the least, and I had a hard time putting it down for very long at a time. Sadly, this is the twenty-year veteran of teaching Dueñas’ first novel, and given that it was the end result of her wanting to do something “new” for a change, who knows if we will be privy to any more of her masterful writing in the future. I guess I will just have to busy myself with reading the Spanish version of this book (which is the language in which the book was originally written) in the meantime, while I wait on the edge of my seat for any potential future works from her. This gives her a lot of time to come up with something good, because lets be honest, it will probably take me 15+ years to read the novel in Spanish, given that the meager abilities I once had have withered from years of neglect and disuse. And so I will end with a simple request to the author: ¡Más por favor!
Final Rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars.
And it only gets better from there (better from an entertainment perspective of course, it actually gets a little worse for Sira). This book is everything I hoped the Devil in the White City would be – in other words, based on history but not rigidly bound to the cold hard facts. Dueñas seamlessly interweaved the real with the imaginary in creating the fictitious Sira and her relationships with a number of key figures who actually existed in Morocco and Spain during World War II. It’s the best of both worlds – Dueñas was able to take some artistic liberties while still being true to the personalities of the real characters and the general chain of events than unfolded during and after the Spanish Civil War. For me, straight up history can be a hard pill to swallow, and if a little bit of fiction helps it go down easier, I’m more than ok with that.
The Time in Between had a great many elements from my literary love list – mystery, romance, gossipy women, heartbreak, SPAIN, Portugal, danger, WWII, espionage, and a strong female lead (even if Sira didn’t necessarily start out that way). Despite it’s length (over 600 pages, at least on my nook) it never felt slow or boring in the least, and I had a hard time putting it down for very long at a time. Sadly, this is the twenty-year veteran of teaching Dueñas’ first novel, and given that it was the end result of her wanting to do something “new” for a change, who knows if we will be privy to any more of her masterful writing in the future. I guess I will just have to busy myself with reading the Spanish version of this book (which is the language in which the book was originally written) in the meantime, while I wait on the edge of my seat for any potential future works from her. This gives her a lot of time to come up with something good, because lets be honest, it will probably take me 15+ years to read the novel in Spanish, given that the meager abilities I once had have withered from years of neglect and disuse. And so I will end with a simple request to the author: ¡Más por favor!
Final Rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars.
kdferrin's review
4.0
This book is really long (>600 pages!) and consequentially a little slow at times. It also has a lot of talk about politics which I generally find dull, especially when it involves a topic I know embarrassedly little about (the Spanish Civil War and Spain's involvement in WWII). However, despite this I really enjoyed the story and would like to read the sequel when/if it gets translated.
graciosareis's review against another edition
As 620 páginas deste livro foram lidas num ápice, não conseguimos despegar do enredo protagonizado por Sira Quiroga, uma jovem costureira de Madrid. Estamos na década de 1930, assistimos à guerra civil espanhola (1936-39), e acompanhamos a aliança de Franco e do seu governo com os alemães durante a segunda guerra mundial (1939-45). Ao longo da narrativa, envolvemo-nos nas intrigas, peripécias e reviravoltas da vida da narradora, Sira, em Madrid, em Tânger, Tétuan (Marrocos), de novo Madrid e numa incursão de poucos dias a Lisboa.
A autora tece a sua narrativa com mestria, cruza a vida pessoal de Sira com a história política do país, e constrói magistralmente encontros e desencontros, reviravoltas constantes sem nunca perder o fio à meada, abandonando personagens secundárias nos momentos certos, pois o importante é mesmo acompanhar a evolução do carácter da personagem principal que vai crescer no meio de paixões, amizades, traições, guerras, espionagem e muito, muito glamour sem no entanto perder a sua essência, o seu objetivo e o seu patriotismo.
Sira que muito jovem se deixou arrastar por uma paixão louca, vai viver a traição, a desilusão e o sofrimento. “Um dos efeitos da paixão louca e obcecada é que anula os sentidos para perceber o que acontece a sua volta”. Porém, aproveitando as oportunidades que lhe vão surgindo, vai lutar pela sua sobrevivência e pela da sua mãe, mas também pelos seus ideais e pelo seu país. No final, temos uma Sira reconstruída, confiante, extremamente elegante e com uma forte personalidade.
Como a trama é tão atrativa e empolgante, foi realizada uma mini-série com o mesmo nome que vou tentar ver a fim de averiguar se é fiel ao romance. Recomendo muito.
A autora tece a sua narrativa com mestria, cruza a vida pessoal de Sira com a história política do país, e constrói magistralmente encontros e desencontros, reviravoltas constantes sem nunca perder o fio à meada, abandonando personagens secundárias nos momentos certos, pois o importante é mesmo acompanhar a evolução do carácter da personagem principal que vai crescer no meio de paixões, amizades, traições, guerras, espionagem e muito, muito glamour sem no entanto perder a sua essência, o seu objetivo e o seu patriotismo.
Sira que muito jovem se deixou arrastar por uma paixão louca, vai viver a traição, a desilusão e o sofrimento. “Um dos efeitos da paixão louca e obcecada é que anula os sentidos para perceber o que acontece a sua volta”. Porém, aproveitando as oportunidades que lhe vão surgindo, vai lutar pela sua sobrevivência e pela da sua mãe, mas também pelos seus ideais e pelo seu país. No final, temos uma Sira reconstruída, confiante, extremamente elegante e com uma forte personalidade.
Como a trama é tão atrativa e empolgante, foi realizada uma mini-série com o mesmo nome que vou tentar ver a fim de averiguar se é fiel ao romance. Recomendo muito.