dearbear's review
emotional
hopeful
informative
inspiring
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.25
Wow. So beautifully and emotionally written. Filled with gorgeous metaphors and imagery, has a wonderful writing style that portrays Mona's voice wonderfully. Was not quite convinced of the romance between Mihai and Mona at the start of the book, but it grew on me over the course of the story. Also, I felt that perhaps Mona had one too many symbolic dreams, or that at times the metaphoric imagery was over-used, however, I feel like this gave me a really good insight into Romania in this time and place, including the culture and the importance of family, language and good food. Very very moving.
balancinghistorybooks's review
1.0
I am not at all a fan of romance novels, but Train to Trieste appealed to me for the Romania stop on my Around the World in 80 Books challenge, due to the political and social commentary which it promised. I find Romania fascinating, and cannot wait to visit in the next couple of years.
I found that the scene was set well here, with many small details about the world around protagonist Mona nestling into the narrative. As a character, however, she irritated me greatly. She has been crafted as a typical silly, giddy teenager, who has no cares apart from wanting her own way in life and love. She is selfish and self-centered, and her moods swing from one extreme to another in the space of just one or two paragraphs.
Train to Trieste feels rather overwritten in places, but still manages to feel too simplistic for an historical novel. It is therefore difficult to pinpoint the target audience which Radulescu was aiming this particular novel at; it is not on the same level as a lot of historical fiction, which made me think that maybe it was a young adult novel, but similarly it deals with some quite adult themes, and lots of jumping into bed. The prose is highly repetitive; Mona tells us, for instance, that her dress is 'blue' three times, and 'gauzy' twice, in the space of a page. Train to Trieste is far more involved with Mona's love life and obsessions than it is with the political climate of Romania in the 1970s, which I feel is a real shame. It reminded me largely of Pam Jenoff's novels, which I find rather fluffy, in that the love affairs of the protagonists always greatly overshadow the historical context.
I found that the scene was set well here, with many small details about the world around protagonist Mona nestling into the narrative. As a character, however, she irritated me greatly. She has been crafted as a typical silly, giddy teenager, who has no cares apart from wanting her own way in life and love. She is selfish and self-centered, and her moods swing from one extreme to another in the space of just one or two paragraphs.
Train to Trieste feels rather overwritten in places, but still manages to feel too simplistic for an historical novel. It is therefore difficult to pinpoint the target audience which Radulescu was aiming this particular novel at; it is not on the same level as a lot of historical fiction, which made me think that maybe it was a young adult novel, but similarly it deals with some quite adult themes, and lots of jumping into bed. The prose is highly repetitive; Mona tells us, for instance, that her dress is 'blue' three times, and 'gauzy' twice, in the space of a page. Train to Trieste is far more involved with Mona's love life and obsessions than it is with the political climate of Romania in the 1970s, which I feel is a real shame. It reminded me largely of Pam Jenoff's novels, which I find rather fluffy, in that the love affairs of the protagonists always greatly overshadow the historical context.
zorbbook's review
4.0
Interesting look at life in Romania in the 70's, and what is (I presume) a semi-autobiographical journey. Some areas seemed to drag on a bit too much for me, and I wasn't totally captivated by the character, but I did appreciate it for the history.
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