To me, this book is well written, and I would put it in the historical fiction category, with a bit of mystery. It also includes a little romance, a little heartbreak, some mental anguish and evil. Ann Bennett is pretty good an intertwining the lives of three women, pulling you into the mystery of how they all connect from the past to the present-day of the book. I definitely learned things about what it was like during the 1930's in India within British and Indian history. I really wanted to keep reading to find out what happens and although I guessed the mystery earlier in the book, I still wasn't sure until I read it. Even after the mystery is revealed, plus a little more, I wanted there to be at least fifty more pages.
It's neither great nor terrible.
The writing is good.
The plotting is a little predictable.
Character development is a little light. Both of the main characters are OK. You wish them well in a general sort of way, but your heart doesn't soar or break with theirs. Some of their dumber decisions are not explained well so a lot of the plot seems to hinge on the ignorance of youth.
Characters, even in 1933, jump in and out of bed with strange men with a casualness that borders on co-dependency. [Spoiler alert] Who jumps into a sexual relationship with a near stranger before the the ink is dry on their divorce filing?
The men, by and large, are not the types to inspire confidence either. They tend to be bullies and users.
The book has a slight anti-Christian bias. The Christian characters are either hopelessly out of touch or overbearing and bullying. The major Christian character thinks that if only she had had more self determination she "wouldn't have spent so much time studying the Bible." Real Christians don't think that way.
Overall a readable book, but not remarkable.
The writing is good.
The plotting is a little predictable.
Character development is a little light. Both of the main characters are OK. You wish them well in a general sort of way, but your heart doesn't soar or break with theirs. Some of their dumber decisions are not explained well so a lot of the plot seems to hinge on the ignorance of youth.
Characters, even in 1933, jump in and out of bed with strange men with a casualness that borders on co-dependency. [Spoiler alert] Who jumps into a sexual relationship with a near stranger before the the ink is dry on their divorce filing?
The men, by and large, are not the types to inspire confidence either. They tend to be bullies and users.
The book has a slight anti-Christian bias. The Christian characters are either hopelessly out of touch or overbearing and bullying. The major Christian character thinks that if only she had had more self determination she "wouldn't have spent so much time studying the Bible." Real Christians don't think that way.
Overall a readable book, but not remarkable.
