readiac1999's review
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
informative
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
I almost passed this book over given the other reviews but I'm so glad I didn't! I can understand the frustration with the writing given that it was at times a bit vague but based on the approach that the book is trying to take of creating a plausible narrative for an uncovered artifact it's remarkably told. Her acknowledgements show she was clearly wedded to telling an approximately accurate story. The vagueness, I think is Stott not wanting to veer too far away from the little that is known about this period. A remarkable work of critical fabulation about a period that I would not have otherwise cared to read about!
Minor: Sexual violence, Sexual harassment, Rape, Pregnancy, Pandemic/Epidemic, Miscarriage, Injury/Injury detail, Death of parent, Blood, Animal death, Fire/Fire injury, Trafficking, Slavery, Sexism, and Religious bigotry
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