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threegoodrats's review against another edition
3.0
3.5 This book felt a lot shorter than it is. I liked that it switches perspective between some of the more elite Puritan inhabitants of Plymouth and some former indentured servants who are still looked down upon and treated unfairly. In Alice Bradford's opinion, the Billingtons are trouble and can't be trusted; in the opinion of Eleanor and John Billington, the Bradfords and others like them are dishonest hypocrites who mistreat those they find inferior, from the Billingtons to their Indian neighbors.
Questions arose about the death of William Bradford's first wife, formerly a dear friend of Alice. During much of the novel, Alice spends time thinking about Dorothy: their friendship, Dorothy's marriage to William, and of course her death. We even get some chapters from Dorothy's perspective.
At the heart of the novel is a crime, one which is forewarned numerous (I might say too many) times in the first part of the book. I wonder if we are meant to feel conflicted about this crime, as it further highlights the factions in the community, but I did not feel conflicted.
All in all, a fairly light novel - serious themes, but a quick and easy read.
Questions arose about the death of William Bradford's first wife, formerly a dear friend of Alice. During much of the novel, Alice spends time thinking about Dorothy: their friendship, Dorothy's marriage to William, and of course her death. We even get some chapters from Dorothy's perspective.
At the heart of the novel is a crime, one which is forewarned numerous (I might say too many) times in the first part of the book. I wonder if we are meant to feel conflicted about this crime, as it further highlights the factions in the community, but I did not feel conflicted.
All in all, a fairly light novel - serious themes, but a quick and easy read.
madelynnfish's review
adventurous
dark
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
khornstein1's review
4.0
Well, I have a few complaints. But at the same time, I just sort of loved this whole book and the style in which it was written.
rmperash's review against another edition
dark
informative
reflective
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child death, Death, Suicidal thoughts, Blood, Grief, Infertility, Injury/Injury detail, Trafficking, Xenophobia, Religious bigotry, Violence, Miscarriage, Adult/minor relationship, Suicide, Murder, Gun violence, and Colonisation
mollyjordan's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
informative
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
timna_wyckoff's review
3.0
Hmm. Read for book club. I wanted to enjoy this more, and I appreciate the idea (both content and format), but the whole thing just felt....forced?
gkelch's review
3.0
While this book was a little too slowly paced for me, fans of historical fiction of this era will enjoy reading from different points of view. I received a free ARC of this title from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
ceejeffe's review
dark
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? N/A
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.5
Unfortunately, this book was a real let down.
- We got very little emotional depth and given all the horrors depicted in this book, that was disappointing.
- There was pretty graphic depiction of child SA that is really and TRULY only shown to illustrate how horrendous it was to be a girl and “low class” people in the 1600s but I PROMISE the rest of the story depicts that without a young girl needing to be r*ped on page. It had ZERO ties to the plot and was so unnecessary.
- The Climax of this story was anticlimactic but, also, there was very little build up to it so, I guess?
- The ending was basically an info dump, which I always dislike but, in a 266 page book? Why?
Content Warnings
Graphic: Colonisation, Hate crime, Miscarriage, Pedophilia, Rape, Religious bigotry, Sexual assault, Slavery, and Suicide
CW: Capital Punishment and Corporal Punishmentkangaruthie's review
4.0
This is a unique book that tells the story of the first pilgrim colony in Plymouth. I liked how the author elevated the voices of the female characters in the story, and it was interesting to learn more about the history and what life was like in that time. The plot did move slowly, though, and it felt like it was building up the entire time to a huge climax that ended up feeling a little lackluster. It also could have been a richer story with more inclusion of Native American perspectives.