Amy

Writing & narration mediocre

Revisado: 06-30-24

I got 2 hrs in and had enough. The writing was fine but not great, same with narrator. Main character so far just seems insecure and lacking depth.

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Mediocre story & narration

Revisado: 06-02-24

The writing was beautiful! But the story very slow and lacking depth. I got about 6 hrs in and not much was happening besides an extramarital affair that even felt lacking because of a boundary to not go too far physically. And emotionally, really how deep can something be that lasts a couple weeks.

The character of the narrator also feels a little shallow and very self absorbed. I have empathy for her midlife crisis but also she seems to be resigned to feeling blah in her regular life (despite her many successes) and having a superficial relationship with her husband, not because she doesn't like him, but why? It isn't clear except she keeps stating they don't really know each other. But why? Not revealed, during first half of book at least.

The narrator matches this tone perfectly, it's the author so maybe intentional but not very pleasing to listen to. Kind of a flatlined, depressed, monotone feel. I could see some listeners being into it.

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esto le resultó útil a 1 persona

Good writing & narration but very depressing story

Revisado: 05-18-24

A great read overall, I love the characters and narration is awesome. I got most of the way through but couldn't finish it because things kept going from bad to worse and then still worse. But, it's historical fiction and those were the facts of what happened in that time and those places. Maybe the ending takes a brighter turn for the characters somehow.

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Bleak, lonely, weary story with no real point

Revisado: 04-21-24

I liked it at first, the writing was strong and great narration. But the interesting adventure scenes were sparse between the larger story of an unfortunate woman forced to constantly travel the world alone her entire life, with no apparent reason given for her fate. She is forced to leave anyone she ever loves and it goes on and on line this until I just felt exhausted and sad for her.

What was the point of the book overall or the reason this happened to her? Maybe it finally was unveiled in the last hour, but 10 hours in I couldn't take any more so if so I missed it.

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esto le resultó útil a 2 personas

Short and sweet

Revisado: 12-17-23

Nice story, good performance. I liked the characters and it felt authentic, not overly sentimental.

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Disliked narration so much could not listen

Revisado: 06-29-23

I should have listened to the sample for longer... but this is the kind of narration I could easily listen to for 10 min, but that's about the max. Just be sure to listen to the sample well before you purchase.

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Interesting concept but a very choppy format

Revisado: 02-26-22

I got about 4 hours in and was enjoying it overall. The narration is very well done, more like a performance piece than a book. But the choppiness started wearing on me, and I can't imagine listening to another 9+ hrs. It bounces between characters so quickly that often each character will speak for only 30 seconds, or sometimes literally only one sentence. It honestly appealed to me as a concept, but in the end I didn't find a flow to get into.

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Loved it, until the horrific end.

Revisado: 12-24-19

I will not give away the end of this book, but I feel compelled to write a review and it is based on the ending. I really enjoyed the book the whole way through, especially because I live in Oakland. The writing is great and the story is very interesting.

But, the end destroyed it for me. It was absolutely stunningly awful and I wish I could erase it from my memory. If you get attached to characters in a book or at all sensitive, don't read this book!

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Beautiful writing, captivating story

Revisado: 09-27-19

I found this a really captivating, well-written and unique story. Dark and lush, really creates a landscape. Just the right length-- didn't drag on too long or bog down in places like I feel a lot of books do. I enjoyed the narration, too.
I am not a "young adult" and I still loved it!

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Absolutely mesmerizing

Revisado: 07-29-19

This book really blew me away. The writing was crisp and never got bogged down in too many details or seemed to be trying to force emotions in the reader (yet it is very emotional just based on the facts presented). The narration was perfect as well, including accommodating characters with very different voices and manners of speaking. The story is fascinating and I was riveted for the entire listen. I don't read nonfiction very often-- this one works well for those of us who usually prefer fiction (because of the pacing and the way it is written) in addition to people just interested in the many informative subject matters.

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