I went into this with such high hopes… I’ve loved many of Larson’s previous books – he has a distinct talent for writing non – fiction that reads like fiction. He’s a marvelous storyteller and a detailed researcher – unfortunately, in this one, I think he over – emphasized the latter at the expense of the former. There is a ton of detail about what people wore, furnishings in their rooms, and genealogy and family relationships. And I felt like it was presented in minute detail, when what I really wanted was the focus on the Blitz that the description promised. It made the story a much tougher and slower read than I expected – there was never a moment when this one felt like fiction to me… Perhaps that’s where my issue comes in the most – I wanted a narrative ala Devil in the White City or In the Garden of Beasts, but felt more like I was reading assigned classroom reading… Larson is a great writer, so it was still interesting – but not engaging in the way I hoped it would be.
Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for my obligation-free review copy.
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