Reviews tagging 'War'

The Island of Sea Women by Lisa See

125 reviews

kellyeweber's review

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emotional reflective sad medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5


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markcollison's review

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challenging dark reflective sad tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A

4.75

Having read another of See’s books, I knew I would fall in love with the characters, however I was not expecting to be gut-wrenchingly torn from them. This is a brilliantly written example of just one woman’s story among the life on Jeju Island and the massacre that occurred there. The depth of the novel emerges when one realises that each resident of the island had their own story, that was just as detailed and heartbreaking as this one. 

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tonisecelecticlibrary's review against another edition

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dark emotional informative reflective sad tense slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? N/A
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.0


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emlee92's review

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adventurous emotional reflective sad tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

Although it took a while to get used to the language and cultural references, this book showed the truth of friendship, love, loss, forgiveness and grief. I learned a lot about the history of Korea through the characters and their journeys.

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raybudbury's review

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dark emotional informative medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

Actually finishes the book club book before the meeting this month damn! 

This one was fine. I got a little emotional by the end as it’s about friendships and forgiveness (or lack thereof) spanning decades though I don’t know much about Jeju Island / much of Korea’s history the writing felt well-researched. I feel like I learned a lot from this book actually. The haenyeo diving and matriarchal culture and the massacre that took place on the island were new information to me. 

The beginning was slow for me personally but started picking up rapidly as the chapters (years) passed. Highly rec if you are looking for historical fiction related to Korea.

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epruta's review

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challenging emotional hopeful inspiring reflective sad medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75


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katyps78's review

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adventurous dark emotional informative sad tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

Beautiful epic historical fiction about 2 women/friends/wives/mothers and their lives.

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palejandro's review

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emotional hopeful inspiring reflective sad medium-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

4.5


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jayneejohnson's review

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dark sad medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75


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melbell016's review

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challenging dark emotional sad tense fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

This is a sad and heartwrenching story. The atrocities are nausea-inducing. But it is also a beautiful story of friendship, strength despite immense loss, courage, and the difficulty and pain of finding forgiveness. 

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