 |
| source |
- Title: China Dolls
- Author: Lisa See
- Publisher: Random House
- Publication Date: February 25, 2015
- Pages: 416
- Genre: Historical Fiction
- Recommended Age(s): 16+
- First Read: 2015
- Source: Goodreads Giveaway
- Rating: 2.5 / 5.0 stars
I was very excited to receive this book after I won it on a Goodreads Giveaway and had very high hopes for it. As you can see by my rating however, it did not fulfill my expectations.
It started out well enough; the author does a great job of describing the time period and I could tell she extensively researched her history and I greatly appreciated that. She also concocted very interesting back stories for each of the three main characters, Grace, Helen, and Ruby so I thought that the plot would intertwine and blow my mind away in such a way that I would not be able to hold in all my different emotions. Did it do that? Well, no.
The biggest problem I had with this book was not the setting ( which was actually my favorite aspect of this book) nor the premise, but the characters themselves. I often felt confused about the characters' intentions because they would say one thing and act in a completely different way than what their words indicated. One minute they were screaming bloody murder at each other, yet come and comfort each other at the same time. It was highly inconsistent. I did not really understand why these three girls stayed friends because they honestly had nothing in common other than the fact that they all danced in the same night club. And honestly, just because you work with someone doesn't mean that you have to be their "true-heart friend" to quote Helen's ridiculous term to justify her intentions.
I also was often confused as to who was narrating a particular chapter unless I glanced at the chapter name, as there was almost no differentiation between each of the girls so I felt like the characters were extremely flat. None of them really learned from their mistakes; they just made more elaborate versions of essentially the same mistakes. And their voices never matured, never took on that tone that comes with the gaining of more wisdom. All they did was fall into their old traps.
Grace, Helen, and Ruby never did grow on me either. Usually, as you read more of a book, you end up identifying with a character and falling in love with her. In this case, I had no love for any of them, and I was very disappointed about that. At first, I thought that I would come to love Grace, Helen, or both. But as time went on, I realized Grace would never grow out of her naivety and Helen would never develop past the surface. Ruby, who I did not like from the beginning, was also just as shallow and did not become the woman she ought to have become, considering her circumstances.
It's like that feeling when you receive a beautifully wrapped present, but upon opening it, discover only a single paper clip in that giant box.
It started out well enough; the author does a great job of describing the time period and I could tell she extensively researched her history and I greatly appreciated that. She also concocted very interesting back stories for each of the three main characters, Grace, Helen, and Ruby so I thought that the plot would intertwine and blow my mind away in such a way that I would not be able to hold in all my different emotions. Did it do that? Well, no.
The biggest problem I had with this book was not the setting ( which was actually my favorite aspect of this book) nor the premise, but the characters themselves. I often felt confused about the characters' intentions because they would say one thing and act in a completely different way than what their words indicated. One minute they were screaming bloody murder at each other, yet come and comfort each other at the same time. It was highly inconsistent. I did not really understand why these three girls stayed friends because they honestly had nothing in common other than the fact that they all danced in the same night club. And honestly, just because you work with someone doesn't mean that you have to be their "true-heart friend" to quote Helen's ridiculous term to justify her intentions.
I also was often confused as to who was narrating a particular chapter unless I glanced at the chapter name, as there was almost no differentiation between each of the girls so I felt like the characters were extremely flat. None of them really learned from their mistakes; they just made more elaborate versions of essentially the same mistakes. And their voices never matured, never took on that tone that comes with the gaining of more wisdom. All they did was fall into their old traps.
Grace, Helen, and Ruby never did grow on me either. Usually, as you read more of a book, you end up identifying with a character and falling in love with her. In this case, I had no love for any of them, and I was very disappointed about that. At first, I thought that I would come to love Grace, Helen, or both. But as time went on, I realized Grace would never grow out of her naivety and Helen would never develop past the surface. Ruby, who I did not like from the beginning, was also just as shallow and did not become the woman she ought to have become, considering her circumstances.
It's like that feeling when you receive a beautifully wrapped present, but upon opening it, discover only a single paper clip in that giant box.
No comments:
Post a Comment
Behind the Secret Bookshelf encourages friendly interaction between everyone so have fun but please do not be rude or offensive.
Spam and offensive comments against myself or anyone else will be deleted.
I make an effort to read and reply to every comment I receive so be sure to check back to read my replies by clicking the little "notify me" box!
Have fun and don't be shy! :)