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zanthewitch
Busy babbling when should be reading
Joined: 22 Jul 2006
Posts: 409
Birthday: 6th May
Location: Midlands
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 Posted: Mon Aug 18, 2008 1:38 pm Post subject: Empress Orchid by Anchee Min |
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First let me say I will read anything about China in the past. So when I picked this up off ebay it went to the top of my TBR pile. I’d give it a 6/10, which might be a bit mean of me as it was very well researched and true to history as far as I can tell. However, it SHOULD have grabbed me by the shoulders and said “it’s a wet weekend…curl up and READ ME”. Sadly this was not quite the case. Whilst it is an enjoyable read, and you just HAVE to complete it to find out what happened in the en, it’s by no means a compelling read. I found it lacked sparkle and did not make me hungry to read more when I put it down. The descriptive passages were missing something, you would never have visualised the Forbidden City in all its glory and vastness if you did not already have some knowledge of it. It did capture the essence of life in the imperial family, and I found her characterisation of the eunuch An-te-hai brilliant. It would make a great movie, and has not put me off reading further works by Anchee Min. You may well read it and enjoy every word! So do not be put off by my 6/10….after all I simply adore Stephen Kings Dark Tower, and a lot of you guys hate the mention of it even……LOL
ZaN
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The blood of Elves - Andrzej Sapkowski
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blueflower
Babbling for Britain
Joined: 29 Jul 2006
Posts: 4137
Birthday: 12th December
Location: Cumbria
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| Posted: Mon Aug 18, 2008 6:43 pm Post subject: |
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Had this for ages but never got around to reading it yet.
Have you tried The Russian Concubine - despite the title it is set in China in the 1920's. I quite enjoyed it but don't know accurate it is as I haven't read much about China. I would be interested to know your thoughts on it. |
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zanthewitch
Busy babbling when should be reading
Joined: 22 Jul 2006
Posts: 409
Birthday: 6th May
Location: Midlands
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| Posted: Tue Aug 19, 2008 9:47 am Post subject: |
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I have not read it yet - I'm glad you pointed out the title is a tad misleading...or I might have passed it by.
I'll look out for it and let you know what I think.
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The blood of Elves - Andrzej Sapkowski
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