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fionarose96's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
pam2375's review against another edition
4.0
I love books by Jamie Ford and this one is no different.
We follow the story of a half Chinese orphan boy from the early 1900's to the early 1960's. This story is filled with a lot of heartache, loneliness and love.
My thanks to Netgalley and Ballentine Books for this advanced readers copy.
We follow the story of a half Chinese orphan boy from the early 1900's to the early 1960's. This story is filled with a lot of heartache, loneliness and love.
My thanks to Netgalley and Ballentine Books for this advanced readers copy.
suvata's review against another edition
3.0
I had high expectations for this book because I enjoyed The Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet so much. Unfortunately, this book did not hold my attention as well as the former. 3/5 stars
roseleaf24's review against another edition
4.0
It took me awhile to get into this one, but I'm not sure if that's a result of my state of life at the moment, or that it switched time periods a little too quickly in the beginning for me to settle into the story. I enjoyed this view of the underside of Seattle and its first world's fair. I found it a bit odd that the author's now acted as if this was all in the past
nderiley's review against another edition
2.0
I had to force myself to finish this one. The premise of the story was interesting but its execution was lacking to me. There are only 3 characters who get any sort of personality, a whole swath is just referred to as 'the Gibson girls' over and over. Even those 3 characters aren't really flushed out, I never really cared about or connected to any of them. It was also a very unrealistic portrayal of a whore house. Everyone gets along! And is happy! And LOVES working there!
clurkudi's review against another edition
2.0
I could tell you a lot about what the buildings looked like but nothing about the characters.
ewheather's review against another edition
emotional
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
geekwayne's review against another edition
3.0
'Love and Other Consolation Prizes' by Jamie Ford is another historical fiction book that takes place in the Seattle area.
The story spans the two world's fairs that took place in Seattle. When the story opens, Ernest Young is dropping people off at the 1962 fair. His daughter, a reporter, wants to do a story about Ernest, which causes him to remember what happened at the Alaskan - Yukon - Pacific Exposition of 1909.
Ernest Young was forced to leave China when he was very young. Surviving the ocean crossing was just the beginning. Once he has lived in Seattle a while, he is auctioned off at the fair to the highest bidder. He ends up in a high end brothel working as a servant. His life there is better, and he ends up befriending a Japanese girl named Fahn, and the brothel owner's daughter Maisie. Their lives will change in the short years ahead.
I felt like this was a pretty by-the-numbers story. I didn't feel particularly surprised by anything that happened. Seattle names and landmarks are liberally sprinkled throughout the story to the point where it felt like a bit too much. This author has written better characters and stories before this one.
I received a review copy of this ebook from Ballantine Books, Random House Publishing Group, and NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Thank you for allowing me to review this ebook.
The story spans the two world's fairs that took place in Seattle. When the story opens, Ernest Young is dropping people off at the 1962 fair. His daughter, a reporter, wants to do a story about Ernest, which causes him to remember what happened at the Alaskan - Yukon - Pacific Exposition of 1909.
Ernest Young was forced to leave China when he was very young. Surviving the ocean crossing was just the beginning. Once he has lived in Seattle a while, he is auctioned off at the fair to the highest bidder. He ends up in a high end brothel working as a servant. His life there is better, and he ends up befriending a Japanese girl named Fahn, and the brothel owner's daughter Maisie. Their lives will change in the short years ahead.
I felt like this was a pretty by-the-numbers story. I didn't feel particularly surprised by anything that happened. Seattle names and landmarks are liberally sprinkled throughout the story to the point where it felt like a bit too much. This author has written better characters and stories before this one.
I received a review copy of this ebook from Ballantine Books, Random House Publishing Group, and NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Thank you for allowing me to review this ebook.
thepirsky's review against another edition
Slow….it didn’t really have a plot, character development was poor
shannonw19's review against another edition
5.0
i loved this book. ernest will stay with me for a long time.