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Community comment are the opinions of contributing users. These comment do not represent the opinions of Strathcona County Library.
Dec 01, 2014GLNovak rated this title 3 out of 5 stars
I read this for a book club and would probably have picked it up anyway because I am always interested in the tsarist Russia of the early 1900's. At first I was confused with the time and setting switch from a small village in 1895 to a prison in 1905 (I think I have the dates close), but figured out what the author was doing about one third the way through. The heroine did not engage me very much but her stepmother was another matter. She was complex, strong but yet endearing, and from my perspective made the book interesting. The whole narrative really felt like a description of a picture rather than a depiction of life. Maybe a bit too back and forth for me, with the ending leaving me feeling that the author didn't know how to tie it up so just stopped. I would say try this because some of my group really liked it and didn't have the same disappointment about the ending.