I always enjoy Isabel Allende's books. She has such a magic touch with creating emotional and colorful historical pieces. This one is quite a sweeping journey with a very strong female protagonist...something of a Chilean American Nellie Bly.

I chose this out of my TBR pile as part of a first chapter challenge. I read the first chapter of three separate books and chose the one I found most intriguing. Allende's atmospheric writing and tangible historical style sucked me right in. My choice of which book to read was an easy one.

The first person POV was powerful and really immersed me in the story. Everything was presented so realistically. Many historical considerations were made that made it obvious that Allende has done her homework. Speaking of history, the presentation of the Chilean Civil War was intense and really well written. It was a part of world history I was unfamiliar with but it was constructed in the narrative in such a thorough and understandable way that it felt as if it was something I knew quite a bit about by the time I had finished my read.

My only complaint about this novel is the ending. I know, I know...I'm always too picky about endings. I just didn't like how open ended it left things. And the lead up to the last bit felt somewhat off kilter from the rest of the book. In a sense it felt as if Allende was sick of writing the tale and just wrapped it up where it stood. It wasn't awful, but it did not suit my tastes and I might be a teensy bit bitter about it. Still...it will not stop me from reading another Allende novel. She has me hooked.