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ellemnope 's review for:
The Forest of Vanishing Stars
by Kristin Harmel
adventurous
emotional
informative
inspiring
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
4.5 stars.
The Forest of Vanishing Stars was super close to a 5-star read for me. WWII historical fiction, but from a somewhat fresh angle. The start was a little slow and felt a little more fantastical than the rest of the novel, but overall it worked out alright. The writing was good and backed up with a lot of atmospheric description. There was a lot of detail to each movement that made the narrative feel incredibly tangible and realistic.
The characters were really well done and I liked the fact that there was not the tendency to move toward the 100% happy ending with every situation. There were high stakes and things didn't always work out. It was admittedly probably still a bit more optimistic than the realistic historical situation, but it felt good and balanced for me.
The entire story is adventurous and dangerous with a high level of tension, but also did a wonderful job of celebrating the human spirit and the sense of community that we can find in one another. It was a good mix of recognizing the evil that humans are capable of as well as the good that they will often do.
The author's historical note at the end of the story was particularly interesting to read and added a lot of credibility to her story. I was glad to learn about the research she undertook and hear her explanations of what she changed from fully historically accurate and why. I think she took great care with this work and that should be appreciated. Harmel did a wonderful job with this book and I would not hesitate to recommend it to other readers with high praise.
* Disclaimer: I received a copy of this novel from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. *
The Forest of Vanishing Stars was super close to a 5-star read for me. WWII historical fiction, but from a somewhat fresh angle. The start was a little slow and felt a little more fantastical than the rest of the novel, but overall it worked out alright. The writing was good and backed up with a lot of atmospheric description. There was a lot of detail to each movement that made the narrative feel incredibly tangible and realistic.
The characters were really well done and I liked the fact that there was not the tendency to move toward the 100% happy ending with every situation. There were high stakes and things didn't always work out. It was admittedly probably still a bit more optimistic than the realistic historical situation, but it felt good and balanced for me.
The entire story is adventurous and dangerous with a high level of tension, but also did a wonderful job of celebrating the human spirit and the sense of community that we can find in one another. It was a good mix of recognizing the evil that humans are capable of as well as the good that they will often do.
The author's historical note at the end of the story was particularly interesting to read and added a lot of credibility to her story. I was glad to learn about the research she undertook and hear her explanations of what she changed from fully historically accurate and why. I think she took great care with this work and that should be appreciated. Harmel did a wonderful job with this book and I would not hesitate to recommend it to other readers with high praise.
* Disclaimer: I received a copy of this novel from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. *