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cd1310's review
4.0
Engaging, fast-paced story, though not my favorite historical fiction. Elements of the story- word choice and some plot choices- made it hard to remember that this takes place in 1917
alyram4's review
4.0
Ok I really liked this one!
I probably mention this in every review for historical novels, but historical fiction is something I'm usually pretty nervous about reading since I'm picky. I loved Charlotte as a character, and I'm actually gonna miss her now that the book is done! Dmitri is also a great character, but I would've liked him to have been fleshed out a bit more. There's quite a bit of romance here, too. While we do see that they have a connection, it did feel almost like insta-love, but it doesn't seem distracting and works quite well! I liked the family dynamics going on throughout this book, as it makes the book have the potential to get readers to relate to Charlotte. My main issues is that the writing style isn't my cup of tea, and it can be a bit distracting at tines along with the slower pacing. Despite that, this was a really good read!
ARC provided to me by the publisher in exchange for an honest review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
I probably mention this in every review for historical novels, but historical fiction is something I'm usually pretty nervous about reading since I'm picky. I loved Charlotte as a character, and I'm actually gonna miss her now that the book is done! Dmitri is also a great character, but I would've liked him to have been fleshed out a bit more. There's quite a bit of romance here, too. While we do see that they have a connection, it did feel almost like insta-love, but it doesn't seem distracting and works quite well! I liked the family dynamics going on throughout this book, as it makes the book have the potential to get readers to relate to Charlotte. My main issues is that the writing style isn't my cup of tea, and it can be a bit distracting at tines along with the slower pacing. Despite that, this was a really good read!
ARC provided to me by the publisher in exchange for an honest review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
mercipourleslivres's review
2.0
1.5
Her siblings had to be the most annoying child characters I’ve ever had the misfortune of reading. If someone had killed them all in the first chapter, 98% of the plot drama wouldn’t have happened, and it would’ve been a happier ending for everyone, me included. Jesus.
Her siblings had to be the most annoying child characters I’ve ever had the misfortune of reading. If someone had killed them all in the first chapter, 98% of the plot drama wouldn’t have happened, and it would’ve been a happier ending for everyone, me included. Jesus.
writingwwolves's review
5.0
Gone by Nightfall is one of the only World War One books I’ve read & is almost certainly the only one that’s not focused on the Tzar & his family; it was a new perspective on the Russian Revolution & Dee Garretson did an incredible job of showing a balance perspectives of all sides of the Russian community during this time. Charlotte was a well balanced character with an intriguing family & I loved that she was never quite sure how she felt about the unrest in her country. This was an educational story but also deeply immersive & absorbing, when I really needed an escape.
⚠️ This book contains war themes such as gun use, violence & arson, as well as classism, sexism, violent riots & a lot of death. There is also references to the death of a parent that occurs before the book is set. ⚠️
I was sent this book by the author in return for an honest review.
Extended Review to follow.
⚠️ This book contains war themes such as gun use, violence & arson, as well as classism, sexism, violent riots & a lot of death. There is also references to the death of a parent that occurs before the book is set. ⚠️
I was sent this book by the author in return for an honest review.
Extended Review to follow.
nerfherder86's review
5.0
An excellent romantic historical fiction novel set during the Russian Revolution of 1917. Eighteen-year-old Charlotte lives on a large estate outside Petrograd, with her Russian retired general father and her many siblings and stepsiblings (a complicated situation as her American mother, now dead for a year, had three marriages, as did her Russian stepfather!). When Dmitri, a new tutor, arrives to teach her brothers, Charlotte is at first suspicious that the young man might be spying on them for the Russian secret police, as political tensions are rising and it is not safe to say anything against the czar's government; but he is very handsome and as she becomes friends with him she hopes her fears are not true... Trained as a nurse, Charlotte works at a hospital for women founded by her mother, where she must master the black market if she is going to be able to feed everyone. And she is friends with a progressive couple who run a theater where radicals often meet. As things get dicey with protests rising in the streets and the police getting bolder, Charlotte is swept up in the Revolution. Will Charlotte and her noble-born family be able to escape the violence?
I loved the romance of this story and the gradual increase in tension and suspense as things get progressively worse. All of the historical detail is terrific, you can tell the author did a lot of research (which she mentions in her author's note). A grand, epic tale, great for middle school and up. I read an advance reader's copy provided by the author.
I loved the romance of this story and the gradual increase in tension and suspense as things get progressively worse. All of the historical detail is terrific, you can tell the author did a lot of research (which she mentions in her author's note). A grand, epic tale, great for middle school and up. I read an advance reader's copy provided by the author.
thatbibliobabe1's review
4.0
3.5 stars. I liked the bones of this book, but it could’ve have been filled out more and packed more of an emotional punch. I really loved Charlotte, which is why I kept reading. Overall, it was very interesting, but there were a couple plot points that made me ???
leahbrarian's review
3.0
I really appreciated the period and location details - it really brought a specificity to the narrative. I will say that things went at an absolutely breakneck pace. This did feel authentic to Charlotte's character as the person juggling a million plates mostly on her own, as well as reflecting the upheaval and rapid changes of the Russian Revolutionary period, but it also didn't leave much time to settle into the story or connect with most of the characters. (At one point Celeste tells Charlotte that she's "like a daughter to her" and I was like, "really??") Even Dmitri was pretty lightly characterized, especially for a love interest. He was nice, somewhat intellectual and/or revolutionary, and showed up whenever Charlotte was in trouble, but I couldn't help but feel that she liked him mostly because he was the only person who seemed to actually look to help her with things. There was a vagueness to their ending, as well as the ending in general (is the family safely reunited? How do they feel about the longterm change of Russian society? Does Miles last long enough to find effective treatment) but I actually didn't mind it. I was more off-put by the way there seemed to be hints that plotlines would flower into something more (Miles and Raisa, the reporter and his whole bit) that never really did. Overall an interesting read from a historical standpoint but hard to fully engage with on a character level.