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lehc1984's review against another edition
hopeful
informative
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.5
savetris's review against another edition
3.0
this historical tale alternates between two perspectives: verity, a modern academic, and beatrice, a medieval french artist, with occasional chapters from the pov of christine de pizan's, a real-life 14th century french-italian proto-feminist writer.
cities of women explores understanding women's history and pursuing one's passions. in verity's quest to prove that the illustrations in christine's manuscripts were by a woman rather than a man, she uncovers the life and experience of a woman in medieval history.
“The assumption everyone made that the master artists of medieval manuscripts were men seemed as unfounded as the prejudices Christine had castigated with her prose. As if men were the only architects of beauty, as if vision had only one sex.”
the writing was descriptive and well paced, and beatrice's narrative, though slow, fit the historical context. the perspective shifts were a bit confusing though, and i surprisingly related more to verity's. but overall the book was engaging (for the most part) and informative, a testament to the author's commitment to the research done for this novel.
rating: 3.25⭐
cities of women explores understanding women's history and pursuing one's passions. in verity's quest to prove that the illustrations in christine's manuscripts were by a woman rather than a man, she uncovers the life and experience of a woman in medieval history.
“The assumption everyone made that the master artists of medieval manuscripts were men seemed as unfounded as the prejudices Christine had castigated with her prose. As if men were the only architects of beauty, as if vision had only one sex.”
the writing was descriptive and well paced, and beatrice's narrative, though slow, fit the historical context. the perspective shifts were a bit confusing though, and i surprisingly related more to verity's. but overall the book was engaging (for the most part) and informative, a testament to the author's commitment to the research done for this novel.
rating: 3.25⭐
kleonard's review against another edition
1.0
Remember my #1 complaint about people in books dealign with delicate/old manuscripts: WE DON'T WEAR COTTON GLOVES. Moreover, and despite the author being an academic, the whole "abandon one research specialization for another when you're up for tenure and then get more funding for the new project" is also NOT a thing. C'mon. Also not good in this book: the multiple but voices that all read the same; the forced, no-chemistry-at-all romance between the protagonist and a really unpleasant and controlling person--didn't the protag leave Regina for the same exact traits?; and a lot of wishful thinking about how art history works in the academy. It was also, I'm sorry to report, boring. How you could make Christine de Pizan boring is beyond me, but in omitting a lot of context about her and her world, Jones instead gives us an overwrought housewife. Does she not think readers are smart enough to get the philosophy of the City of Women and other books? Ugh.
guatastic's review against another edition
informative
inspiring
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? N/A
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.5
juliesinstaricelife's review against another edition
The narration is too annoying to listen too. It was like a hushed/whisper/reverence that I could not get past to get into the story.
theablibrary's review against another edition
4.0
A captivating read featuring parallel stories. I felt inspired and connected while reading this. Highly recommend!
Thank you NetGalley for the ARC!
Thank you NetGalley for the ARC!
kate66's review against another edition
2.0
On the face of it this is an interesting book of historical fiction looking at the the intersection between the lives of Christine de Pisan and an illuminator called Anastasia.
Verity Frazier is the professor who, bored with her book concerning the Paris Commune women, comes across some interesting research that may mean a woman illuminated the work of Christine de Pisan. So, following advice, she heads to London to find more material to support her theory.
And it is at this point (or shortly after) most of the book descends into a romance of such excruciating farce with the most tortured dialogue I ever heard, that it almost ruins the set pieces with Christine and Anastasia.
I'd have no problem moaning for several pages about what irritated me about the romance but I'll list a few of the worst - Anastasia (because Verity just happens to meet someone of the same name as her illuminator - what are the odds?) has a nails down a chalkboard accent that even Queen Elizabeth would laugh at, while Verity constantly seems to be on the point of tears; both women consistently blow up for no reason, pouting and stomping off like children; the places they visit (which Anastasia seems to have the keys to and know everyone - quelle surprise!) are consistently mispronounced (this also happens with names and poor Lizzie Siddall had her name pronounced 3 different ways in 2 sentences). Now the muspronunciations wouldn't be so bad but it's the Brit who does it. Lacock Abbey (pronounced Laycock) and Salisbury (pronounced Saulsbury) being the worst offenders.
There I'm done. The history parts were interesting and I've no doubt that some illuminators were women. Christine certainly stamped her mark on history without the help of a man. However the romance utterly ruined the book for me and I ground my teeth through it.
I gave it 2 for the third of the book that was good.
Thanks to Netgalley and Dreamscape Media for the advance review copy.
Verity Frazier is the professor who, bored with her book concerning the Paris Commune women, comes across some interesting research that may mean a woman illuminated the work of Christine de Pisan. So, following advice, she heads to London to find more material to support her theory.
And it is at this point (or shortly after) most of the book descends into a romance of such excruciating farce with the most tortured dialogue I ever heard, that it almost ruins the set pieces with Christine and Anastasia.
I'd have no problem moaning for several pages about what irritated me about the romance but I'll list a few of the worst - Anastasia (because Verity just happens to meet someone of the same name as her illuminator - what are the odds?) has a nails down a chalkboard accent that even Queen Elizabeth would laugh at, while Verity constantly seems to be on the point of tears; both women consistently blow up for no reason, pouting and stomping off like children; the places they visit (which Anastasia seems to have the keys to and know everyone - quelle surprise!) are consistently mispronounced (this also happens with names and poor Lizzie Siddall had her name pronounced 3 different ways in 2 sentences). Now the muspronunciations wouldn't be so bad but it's the Brit who does it. Lacock Abbey (pronounced Laycock) and Salisbury (pronounced Saulsbury) being the worst offenders.
There I'm done. The history parts were interesting and I've no doubt that some illuminators were women. Christine certainly stamped her mark on history without the help of a man. However the romance utterly ruined the book for me and I ground my teeth through it.
I gave it 2 for the third of the book that was good.
Thanks to Netgalley and Dreamscape Media for the advance review copy.
amobrien's review against another edition
I made it 30% into this book, but I just couldn't get into it. It's clearly well researched and written well, but my attention wasn't grabbed by it.
Thank you Netgalley for providing a digital ARC.
Thank you Netgalley for providing a digital ARC.
ddnreads's review
emotional
informative
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
3.0
The premise was very promising, and the book turned out to be beautifully written.
It started with dual POV and dual timeline (which I don't mind). We're introduced to Verity, a historian who focused on women's contribution in medieval era.
I enjoy the dual POV so much especially diving into Beatrice's mind thousands years ago.
I admitted that the book is well researched. However, some ppl might not enjoy the info dumping (I don't mind).
The pace is quite inconsistent to my liking.
If the premise suits your taste, give it a go.
It started with dual POV and dual timeline (which I don't mind). We're introduced to Verity, a historian who focused on women's contribution in medieval era.
I enjoy the dual POV so much especially diving into Beatrice's mind thousands years ago.
I admitted that the book is well researched. However, some ppl might not enjoy the info dumping (I don't mind).
The pace is quite inconsistent to my liking.
If the premise suits your taste, give it a go.