shereadytoread's Reviews (806)

This book follows Nora, a woman who is depressed and living a life where everything seems to have gone wrong at once. After making a decision years ago, she is on bad terms with the last family member she has left and nothing else seems to be given right. She is given the opportunity to explore her regrets and possible differences it would have made in her life. 

This book was so good. I really enjoyed exploring the different scenarios and how one action, big or small affected the outcome of her life. It challenges how we define success and happiness, and how the smallest interactions with the people around us can completely change our lives and theirs. 

I am not sure that any book is absolutely flawless, but I can't really think of any major downsides to this book. 

This book was beautifully written, complex, and had an amazing depth. It pulls on so many themes while setting a gay romance set during the brutality of slavery. The book examines how the relationship between Samuel and Isaiah develops and affects the lives of the both the slaves and slave owners.  

One place this work of historical fiction excels is drawing direct paralells to current times. It examines issues of race, class, religion, power, and economics, in a way that you can see in modern society and how the same cycles are plaguing us today. With the romance connecting all facets of the story, it examines how acts of love can be revolutionary, and how far people will go to protect their own interests. The book utilizes books of the bible to relate to each chapter.

The characters, both slaves and slave owners have distinct personalities, which create a rich viewpoint in the way that dehumanizing systems ruin humanity and how power over others corrupts even those who believe they have good intentions.

Typically I offer a pros and cons list, but I couldn't do that. This book was like nothing I read before, and I think I'll definitely read it again to fully get everything I can from it. As someone who typically dislikes historical fiction, this was a 5 star read that I'll definitely recommend.

This book is beautifully written, it just wasn't for me. I am not a big fan of historical fiction, but I picked it up as a story through the ages. Unfortunately (for me) the modern portion was the smallest of the book, and the weakest. If you like historical fiction, I think this would be a wonderful read for you, and I would definitely recommend it to anyone who does.

 

I feel like any book that is the 5th in a series and I can follow the story line with no issue is a success. What dropped this from 4 to 3 stars for me was the number of storylines that he attempted to cram into the book. Each side had large teams of people that are all given backstory and different lives. While this is interesting, it makes the book feel cluttered and choppy at times. Overall an enjoyable read.