Over a span of ten years in Hong Kong, Will Truesdale falls in love with one woman before World War II and has an affair with another one after. When he arrives in society, he meets Trudi Canavan, an enigmatic, enchanting woman who somehow chooses him to take under her wing and they begin a passionate love affair. At the other end of the scale we have Claire Pendleton, a married piano teacher who generally reminded me of a mouse, and who can’t get enough of Will. It seems that Claire is merely a foil to get us to what happened with Will and Trudi during the war, which is where this story really lies.
I’ll be honest, I didn’t really enjoy this book much. It’s written in a spare style which I like very much and I thought the story was intriguing. I even grew to like Trudi over the period of the novel, though I didn’t at the beginning. I think the problem, however, was that Claire bothered me. Despite the fact that she steals from her employers and carries on an affair behind her husband’s back, she seemed spineless to me. To be honest, I didn’t like post-war Will either. They seemed empty, going through the motions to get the author’s plot where it was going by that point. The best parts were certainly those featured after the start of the war and the occupation of Hong Kong, at which point the novel develops into a very moving, human story about the unfortunate power of war.
Is it worth reading? Yes, but I really wish that the author had not chosen the dual narratives. They allow us to see the effects of the war, but it could have been done with someone more interesting than Claire, characters who had personality, or at least someone I could relate to in some way. Personal preference, and I’m sorry that such a thing marred my enjoyment of what could otherwise have been a stunning book.
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Thanks for this review. I’ve had this book on my radar for awhile. Now I can make a better-informed decision about reading it.
I saw mention of this book recently and was wondering if it was worth reading. Thanks so much for your great review, Meghan. It can be hard to connect with a book when you aren’t connecting with a character like you want to. I had that experience when a book I just finished reading. Now I’m doing everything but starting on my review. LOL
Good review. This is on my list for the Themed Reading Challenge. My theme is music.
I can’t wait to see what I think of it.
Thanks for the review. I think I read another not so raving review elsewhere…sometimes books just miss.
Meghan,
I gave you an award on my blog.
http://teddyrose.blogspot.com/2009/01/your-blog-is-fabulous-award-and-blog.html
Sorry this wasn’t that great for you. I still think I’d like to give it a try.
Sorry you didn’t like this one. Based on your review and a couple of others, I have to say my excitement over this book is pretty much gone. Thanks for your honest opinion.
I have to review this one, so I have to read it…your review makes me want to put it off for awhile though.
Thanks for the honest review. I might check this one out still. Would it be okay to link to this review on War Through the Generations?
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