jhurl's review against another edition
informative
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
Spoiler
I loved The Spymistress but this one seemed slow to me. It comes across as a diary but that leaves the story as a small part and too much what is going on in Ada's head. I do like the character and her interactions with other known (Babbage) and to me unknown (Mary Somerville) characters so I'm glad I read it. The first programmer - not recognized much in her own time but she does have a programming language named after her (ADA).reindeerbandit's review against another edition
1.0
i don’t even think i hit 100 pages before i realized i was just slogging through it. such a dry account of a fascinating woman.
terrim21's review against another edition
2.0
At its heart, this is the story of a celebrity dad who abandoned his wife and child to pursue his career. The mother, thinking her ex has a mental health situation, attempts to shield her child from his fame and possibly a similar fate. She discouraged her daughter's flights of imagination and channeled her pursuits to the more cerebral - think STEM. But mom had her own issues and left the child in the care of a revolving door of governesses while she sought health at an assortment of resorts and spas, accompanied by her circle of female companions.
Not much science or numbers in this tale.
Not much science or numbers in this tale.
brebrivera's review against another edition
4.0
Somewhere between a 4 and 4.5. I am not a math person so I don’t know how I knew I’d like this book but I did and it was great!! It gave me big Bridgerton energy except less scandalous—it was a lot of Society drama and I slurped it up!!! Miss Chiaverini bodied this! I will say that there were waves of reading this book where I was bored but idk I thoroughly enjoyed reading this.
dja777's review against another edition
2.0
Starts out well, but drags after the middle and then feels rushed at the very end. I liked finding out more about this interesting woman, but the pacing of the novel lessened my enjoyment.
bkish's review against another edition
3.0
THIS is an interesting book as Ada's life was interesting. I didnt know she was daughter of Byron. she did very good thing in writing this book and its a very complicated story cause of the times and the people.
I do think this book needs editing. Its not the details its her writing and probably some degree of obsessiveness.
I think the focus of her story was the people and the events that went on then. I would have liked to read about Ada's mathematical genius. It was there in one chapter regarding something she wrote and her dispute w Babbage.
I found the telling of the character of her mother Lady Byron was somewhat disturbing. When you read historical fiction its almost impossible to know what is made up. She had a lot of courage to leave her husband in those times when a woman could not divorce. Was she really that cruel to her daughter Ada? Its somewhat connected to her belief that her husband Byron was mad and that her daughter inherited that so she had to limit what her daughter did and there is only one word for it to me that is cruelty regardless of the "reason".
Im glad I read the book. I want to add that I think she has a genre of writing for popularity. It would be good for her to write a book without relying on that ...
Judy
I do think this book needs editing. Its not the details its her writing and probably some degree of obsessiveness.
I think the focus of her story was the people and the events that went on then. I would have liked to read about Ada's mathematical genius. It was there in one chapter regarding something she wrote and her dispute w Babbage.
I found the telling of the character of her mother Lady Byron was somewhat disturbing. When you read historical fiction its almost impossible to know what is made up. She had a lot of courage to leave her husband in those times when a woman could not divorce. Was she really that cruel to her daughter Ada? Its somewhat connected to her belief that her husband Byron was mad and that her daughter inherited that so she had to limit what her daughter did and there is only one word for it to me that is cruelty regardless of the "reason".
Im glad I read the book. I want to add that I think she has a genre of writing for popularity. It would be good for her to write a book without relying on that ...
Judy
thenovelbook's review against another edition
4.0
***I received a digital advance copy of this through Penguin's First to Read program in exchange for my thoughts. It goes on sale Dec. 5.
For about two years I have been fascinated by whatever I can learn about Ada Lovelace and Charles Babbage. These two were closely connected in the development of what *could* have been the world's first computer...a hundred years ahead of time. Steam-powered. Wild, right?! I think so. Charles Babbage invented the machine--although he never completed the construction of it; Ada translated a paper about it and added so many of her own notes with calculations and algorithms that she is regarded by some as the first software programmer. They were an eccentric pair of friends, and I can't get enough of them.
Enter this book. This is the fictionalized, but pretty accurate, account of Ada's life.
It's fiction, but seems to exude careful attention to facts and history; so much so, that in many cases the dialogue was far too skimpy for my tastes. Because of this, the book seemed to ride a line between novel and memoir, not being strictly satisfying in either category. The exception to this is when Ada first sets eyes on Babbage's Difference Engine, and embarks on friendship with him. That scene is a delight to read, with a greater in-the-moment feel than the rest of the book.
The book is written in the first person; however, it starts in Ada's first year of life and proceeds with excruciating slowness. In my opinion, the first-person narrative is not suited to reminiscences of a baby and toddler. I was unable to suspend my disbelief and accept that she would have such detailed accounts of what those around her did, said, felt and thought. It was over the top.
What the book does well is provide a cohesive account of Ada's life, which I only knew the highlights of. I think it could have been even better if it had condensed the accounts of her young years and focused on her late teens and adult life, especially where the Difference Engine and the Analytical Engine were concerned. I found the descriptions of the Difference and Analytical Engines fascinating, and the author handled with a light touch Ada's perception of what they could mean for the future.
Content advisory: It gets PG-13 in one scene, where teenage Ada has a close encounter with her tutor whom she has fallen in love with. And because Ada's father was George Gordon, Lord Byron, there are a couple of adult themes that show up. If you know your Byron history they won't be shocking, and they're only presented as part of the family biography, not graphically shown.
For about two years I have been fascinated by whatever I can learn about Ada Lovelace and Charles Babbage. These two were closely connected in the development of what *could* have been the world's first computer...a hundred years ahead of time. Steam-powered. Wild, right?! I think so. Charles Babbage invented the machine--although he never completed the construction of it; Ada translated a paper about it and added so many of her own notes with calculations and algorithms that she is regarded by some as the first software programmer. They were an eccentric pair of friends, and I can't get enough of them.
Enter this book. This is the fictionalized, but pretty accurate, account of Ada's life.
It's fiction, but seems to exude careful attention to facts and history; so much so, that in many cases the dialogue was far too skimpy for my tastes. Because of this, the book seemed to ride a line between novel and memoir, not being strictly satisfying in either category. The exception to this is when Ada first sets eyes on Babbage's Difference Engine, and embarks on friendship with him. That scene is a delight to read, with a greater in-the-moment feel than the rest of the book.
The book is written in the first person; however, it starts in Ada's first year of life and proceeds with excruciating slowness. In my opinion, the first-person narrative is not suited to reminiscences of a baby and toddler. I was unable to suspend my disbelief and accept that she would have such detailed accounts of what those around her did, said, felt and thought. It was over the top.
What the book does well is provide a cohesive account of Ada's life, which I only knew the highlights of. I think it could have been even better if it had condensed the accounts of her young years and focused on her late teens and adult life, especially where the Difference Engine and the Analytical Engine were concerned. I found the descriptions of the Difference and Analytical Engines fascinating, and the author handled with a light touch Ada's perception of what they could mean for the future.
Content advisory: It gets PG-13 in one scene, where teenage Ada has a close encounter with her tutor whom she has fallen in love with. And because Ada's father was George Gordon, Lord Byron, there are a couple of adult themes that show up. If you know your Byron history they won't be shocking, and they're only presented as part of the family biography, not graphically shown.