A precocious young girl, an ancient prophecy, and an empire in decline—classic elements of historical fiction. But the setting (late 19th-century Ottoman Romania and Istanbul) is unusual; the heroine, Eleonora Cohen, beautifully portrayed; and the ending satisfying. My one complaint is that even an ...
Dedication: To my siblings -Adam and Anna, Coleman and Allison -for reminding me what matters;and to Hayley,for everything.Acknowledgements at the front; what a gentleman.Opening Quote: 'Ah, Stamboul! Of all the names that can enchant me, this one re,mains the most magical.' Pierre Loti.Opening: Ele...
Wow. Beautifully written. The author uses the most delicious metaphors, and I found myself breaking off reading at times to re-read & savour some of the more striking ones. Not quite sure why it's taken my 3 weeks to read this - it's not a difficult book by any means, and the story was a bit thin in...
I was ready to be charmed. After reading too much violence and gore lately, I was ready for history and subtle intrigue. Unfortunately, The Oracle of Stamboul was flat and lifeless for me. The descriptive writing was nice in places, but I never felt the heartbeat of the characters. They moved about ...
Started out not too badly, then around halfway through the story stalled, and I began to care less and less about the characters, and the story continued to flounder...eventually I gave myself permission to go read something else.
I have such mixed feelings about this book. I really liked the writing style throughout, and the characters were very interesting. However, the plot felt a bit lacking, the repeated references to an imaginary literary work became frustrating, and the ending was just so disappointing ("that's it?!")....
This book was really good, however, it seems like it ended in the middle. There are so many unresolved scenes and characters. It's a shame, because it had the potential to be a really great read. As it stands, it is very unsatisfying. This seems to be the new style in literature - end it in the ...
I won this book from a goodreads giveaway and let me just say.. holy moly. It came in this awesome book case and the presentation of the book overall was just amazing. But it's whats on the inside that counts, right? This book did not disappoint. I was enthralled from the beginning to end.
I received this book free through the Good Reads First Reads program.I really enjoyed this lovely little story, and it's gotten me hooked on wanting to know more about the history of this region where the story takes place. Although I don't feel like it really wrapped up some of the loops of the st...
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