panThis one wasn‘t for me. I‘ll admit it was a gamble reading the sequel to a book I read eons ago, but I‘m still not sure I would have liked it. It picks up with Pei and Ji Shen moving to Hong Kong and trying to make their own way just in time to get caught up in its WWII occupation by Japan. Many things happen, but the competent, if unadorned, writing lacks much urgency or emotion. As a result, it was just too easy to put down.
pickReally loving this author at the moment. Her writing style and character development is stunning. #pick #maggieofarrell
pick4⭐️ Really liked how this dual-timeline novel was executed. A very chunky book, but definitely worth the read. #2025 #genremashup #historicalfiction #contemporaryfiction #literary #romance
pickKitty is raised to become a shallow woman whose only goal in life is to find a husband who is a ‘good catch‘. She marries Walter, a bacteriologist, because she can‘t find a better eligible match and follows him to Hong Kong. Never in love with Walter she soon starts an affair with an older, married man. When Walter finds out he takes a position in a town struck with cholera and forces Kitty to come with him. Left alone and despised by her husband
pickA sweeping novel that follows childhood friends Haiwen & Suchi, whose love is torn apart by war. As they each navigate famine, survival, and political upheaval, life moves forward—until decades later, in LA, Haiwen sees his Suchi. Told through dual perspectives—Haiwen‘s story moving backward and Suchi‘s story moving forward—this heartbreaking and hopeful story will stay with me for a long time. The dual narration on audio was excellent. ⭐⭐⭐⭐💫
pick⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️💫
One thread of this story goes from the past to the present, and the other from present to past; the effect is like a beautiful tapestry, where all moments of time are woven together. It made me cry more than any book has for quite awhile. Full of longing, full of life, full of love. #BOTM
