Reviews

Islands of Mercy by Rose Tremain

ferluna's review against another edition

slow-paced

• Strong character development? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes

2.5

alyssarider's review against another edition

1.0

finallyyyyyy

5 stars for katie mcgrath loml, 1.5(¿?) stars for the book itself. im sure it couldve been worse But..

trishd's review

3.0

Islands of Mercy was my first Rose Tremain and I am torn. There are far too many stories crammed into this novel. The Borneo plotline seemed so unnecessary and at times was very uncomfortable to read. The description of the labourers was specifically unsettling. Many of the characters are unlikable and that is something I tend to find interesting but in this case there was no complexity or personal growth. They were very one dimensional, evil for evil's sake. The novel seemed to shine whilst focusing on female familial relationships. I enjoyed Clorinda's chapters, especially the brief bits spent with her niece. And Jane's chapters with her aunt, Emmeline was a touching look at a mutually supportive relationship. I wanted to know how the story concluded for the characters and found it a quick read. Overall I give it a 2.5 stars.

rubystarkyy's review

3.0

3.5 ending was weird and confusing asf. Didn’t like the dual povs, nonetheless was written beautifully and was interesting at parts.

techigeekchic's review against another edition

challenging emotional slow-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

3.5

katcic's review against another edition

3.0

Not up to the standard of Restoration. The story and the writing are good but somehow it just never comes together to make you really care about any of the characters.

kittyp3777's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

2.5

andieceofreading's review against another edition

5.0

Katie McGrath brought me here with her narration of the book, but I was glad the combination of stories was really captivating. The story of Jane was the most interesting in my personal opinion and it was also the most attention grabbing and I think that her story was what carried the whole book. On the other hand, the stories unfolding in Borneo seem to lack the spark that Jane's story has. A very good book on the whole! I personally recommend the audiobook because Katie's voice make the story so much enthralling.

fatinallen's review against another edition

adventurous emotional reflective medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.75

shriyaa's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional inspiring sad 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

5.0