A review by mdabernig
The Lost Sisterhood by Anne Fortier
4.0
A large part of me wants to give this five stars purely because I LOVED it, but I'm being good and refraining because, as much as I loved it, even me in my extreme bias knows this isn't a five star book.
I adored Anne Fortier's first book [b:Juliet|6718608|Juliet|Anne Fortier|http://images.gr-assets.com/books/1366399299s/6718608.jpg|6914700] and because of that I could hardly wait to read her follow up book - I was not disappointed at all. She follows the Juliet format by telling us two stories in one - the first about an Oxford lecturer, Diana, as she tries to find out if the fabled Amazons really did exist all the while trying to avoid various shady characters and, in the second story, we go back to the bronze age to see Myrina, a young woman trying to make her way in the world as a sister, a priestess, a warrior and more and how that journey takes her to Troy and beyond.
I was entranced by both stories...there is of course a love story in both tales and it is to the author's credit that you get caught up in them both, especially when you are aware that clearly, tragedy can only happen. I do think that as much as I loved this idea, it wasn't as well executed as it was in Juliet - I felt underwhelmed by the resolution of Myrina and Paris' story and with Myrina's motivations post Troy. I loved the spin on the fall of Troy...it was very well thought out and I kept thinking while reading it how much I would love to see a version of this tale on the big screen, but I felt like Myrina's story, and her character, lost all steam after that. Which is perhaps understandable considering what happened at that moment, but still...
Other than that minor gripe, I think the thing that made me not give it the five stars I wanted to give it was that everything was a little too convenient at times. That sounds dumb considering, but it was all just a little too...tidy.
Those reasons aside, I adored it - it was a good read, it was interesting, the characters were likable, the love stories were engaging and I hated every time I had to stop reading. I will probably make it part of my annual tradition of re-reading Juliet - I enjoyed it that much. I think if, like me, you loved Juliet, you will love this. If you have even a passing interest in history and anthropology, you will probably love this, but otherwise, it might not be as enjoyable to you. I'd still give it a try though.
I just can't wait for Anne Fortier's third book now.
I adored Anne Fortier's first book [b:Juliet|6718608|Juliet|Anne Fortier|http://images.gr-assets.com/books/1366399299s/6718608.jpg|6914700] and because of that I could hardly wait to read her follow up book - I was not disappointed at all. She follows the Juliet format by telling us two stories in one - the first about an Oxford lecturer, Diana, as she tries to find out if the fabled Amazons really did exist all the while trying to avoid various shady characters and, in the second story, we go back to the bronze age to see Myrina, a young woman trying to make her way in the world as a sister, a priestess, a warrior and more and how that journey takes her to Troy and beyond.
I was entranced by both stories...there is of course a love story in both tales and it is to the author's credit that you get caught up in them both, especially when you are aware that clearly, tragedy can only happen. I do think that as much as I loved this idea, it wasn't as well executed as it was in Juliet - I felt underwhelmed by the resolution of Myrina and Paris' story and with Myrina's motivations post Troy. I loved the spin on the fall of Troy...it was very well thought out and I kept thinking while reading it how much I would love to see a version of this tale on the big screen, but I felt like Myrina's story, and her character, lost all steam after that. Which is perhaps understandable considering what happened at that moment, but still...
Spoiler
I felt like the speech Myrina gave her sisters when they left Troy was too bitter for someone who had and lost such a great love. I could understand a degree of bitterness over the pain she felt, but I don't know if I would accept Myrina as she had been in Troy, would have ever forbade or discouraged her sisters from finding the happiness she had, never mind the idea that she would have encouraged them to abandon male children. It was just something that didn't match up with me, personally.Other than that minor gripe, I think the thing that made me not give it the five stars I wanted to give it was that everything was a little too convenient at times. That sounds dumb considering, but it was all just a little too...tidy.
Those reasons aside, I adored it - it was a good read, it was interesting, the characters were likable, the love stories were engaging and I hated every time I had to stop reading. I will probably make it part of my annual tradition of re-reading Juliet - I enjoyed it that much. I think if, like me, you loved Juliet, you will love this. If you have even a passing interest in history and anthropology, you will probably love this, but otherwise, it might not be as enjoyable to you. I'd still give it a try though.
I just can't wait for Anne Fortier's third book now.