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cactuswildflower's review
4.0
Such a beautiful wild setting for the unravelling of this intriguing 100 year old family mystery. The setting is an important element of this story which includes intriguing characters, beautiful descriptions of historic architecture, natural and painted landscapes and oscillates nicely between centuries as the identity of some hidden bones is eventually revealed.
buoymehome's review against another edition
3.0
This book was a gift from my work secret Santa who admitted she wasn't sure what I'd like but that it looked like a fit.
While I have to admit this is not the kind of book I'd read and not really my cup of tea, I have to state that it is a good book, that I did read it and enjoyed it enough not to put it back into the pile of books never to be finished.
Would I have bought it? No.
Would I recommend it if the summary tickle your fancy? Yes.
While I have to admit this is not the kind of book I'd read and not really my cup of tea, I have to state that it is a good book, that I did read it and enjoyed it enough not to put it back into the pile of books never to be finished.
Would I have bought it? No.
Would I recommend it if the summary tickle your fancy? Yes.
slippy_underfoot's review against another edition
5.0
Enjoyable but familiar
Enjoyed reading this, but having read The Women of the Dunes by the same author recently this was very familiar, almost an anagram of the other book. Split timeline, check. Remote coastal Scottish location, check. Woman with family connection to said remote Scottish location arrives, and is treated a bit warily by locals, including a rugged plain speaking outdoorsy bloke. They pique each other’s interest in a love/hate way. Check. A body is found from an earlier timeline. Check. Dark deeds, and bodice-rending passions, from the family(s) history find parallels with the modern tale and reveal hitherto unknown connections. Check. Canada. Check.
Enjoyed reading this, but having read The Women of the Dunes by the same author recently this was very familiar, almost an anagram of the other book. Split timeline, check. Remote coastal Scottish location, check. Woman with family connection to said remote Scottish location arrives, and is treated a bit warily by locals, including a rugged plain speaking outdoorsy bloke. They pique each other’s interest in a love/hate way. Check. A body is found from an earlier timeline. Check. Dark deeds, and bodice-rending passions, from the family(s) history find parallels with the modern tale and reveal hitherto unknown connections. Check. Canada. Check.
readingsomewhere's review against another edition
3.0
Most of this was really enjoyable. I loved the shifting narrative although I wished they'd left Theo's voice out. I kept staying up late because I wanted to finish and know what happened. But Hetty... What a weak character! Even a woman living in 1910 had more guts than her. If she let one more guy interrupt her midsentence I was going to fling the book across the room. Took off a star for that and the love triangle if you can call it that.
hilaryjsc's review against another edition
3.0
I just went ahead and made myself a shelf for history mysteries with old houses and sad ladies, because apparently it's my favourite fiction genre and like 50% of what I read.
bookish20's review against another edition
3.0
I was more concerned for the birds in the story rather than the people. It did not have to be a dual timeline story. The 1911 timeline would’ve sufficed and been a better read for it. Hetty was a wet sock and she annoyed me as did the 2010 timeline. Very slow read too or maybe that was just me. ⭐️⭐️1/2
mkinne's review against another edition
3.0
A compelling read, a well-done unravelling of a mystery, a balancing of two timelines, and a beautiful portrayal of the outer Hebrides that gives a vivid impression of the place. But not without its problems - some of the characters do & say frustratingly stupid, uncharacteristic things, or frustratingly stereotypical things; they somehow lack veracity at times. And Sarah Maine's writing is clunky at times, heavy with adjectives & word choices that don't flow to me (esp. in comparison the straightforward, minimalist language that I prefer) but as I got sucked into the mystery, it became less noticeable.
jagrimm's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
eleiser's review against another edition
I truly enjoyed this book. I had most of it figured out mid way through, but not all of it!