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A review by viralmysteries
Lost in the Spanish Quarter: A Novel by Heddi Goodrich
3.0
Thanks to HarperCollins for the ARC at BEA 2019, and to Heddi Goodrich for signing my copy!
There are a lot of books that are written every year. As a small time reviewer who reads a lot, I often think about a book on the follow scale: you need to buy this book RIGHT NOW; you should get this!; if you get the chance, get it from your library, but don't pay for it; ehh, I mean, if you don't have better stuff to read...; don't read this book.
This book fell into the second to last category for me.
I wanna say that Goodrich clearly has potential as a writer. Her descriptions of Naples and the Italian countryside were really nice. I felt like I was looking at a really nice painting.
The problem is, that's what the whole first 150 pages of the book felt like; staring at a pretty landscape painting. Pretty, but, not much actually happening.
The book picked up more about halfway through, and I thought the tension between Heddi and Pietro was well written. I mean, it's a classic love story of someone going to a foreign place, they fall in love with a local, but they can't be together b/c [work, cultural/family problems, different career goals].
I think this book had a tension internally. Is it a true-story romance, or a reflective memoir? It kinda switched between the two and as a result I felt like it hurt itself on both ends.
I will commend the use of the emails written months/years after the events interspersed throughout the book.
Ultimately, I read an ARC. It's possible things change before it comes out this September. But as of right now, I wouldn't really recommend this book for purchase. It just didn't stand out for me.
There are a lot of books that are written every year. As a small time reviewer who reads a lot, I often think about a book on the follow scale: you need to buy this book RIGHT NOW; you should get this!; if you get the chance, get it from your library, but don't pay for it; ehh, I mean, if you don't have better stuff to read...; don't read this book.
This book fell into the second to last category for me.
I wanna say that Goodrich clearly has potential as a writer. Her descriptions of Naples and the Italian countryside were really nice. I felt like I was looking at a really nice painting.
The problem is, that's what the whole first 150 pages of the book felt like; staring at a pretty landscape painting. Pretty, but, not much actually happening.
The book picked up more about halfway through, and I thought the tension between Heddi and Pietro was well written. I mean, it's a classic love story of someone going to a foreign place, they fall in love with a local, but they can't be together b/c [work, cultural/family problems, different career goals].
I think this book had a tension internally. Is it a true-story romance, or a reflective memoir? It kinda switched between the two and as a result I felt like it hurt itself on both ends.
I will commend the use of the emails written months/years after the events interspersed throughout the book.
Ultimately, I read an ARC. It's possible things change before it comes out this September. But as of right now, I wouldn't really recommend this book for purchase. It just didn't stand out for me.