Beryl W. reviewed on 2/24/2010 + 44 more book reviews

Helpful Score: 8

I am a fan of historical fiction and have never read a book about Soviet Russia. This was a book club choice so I was interested in learning about Russia during Stalin's reign and communism. The facts of the times were chilling, especially parts about everyone watching your every move and informing on you, which could result in death or a sentance to a Gulag, which is where part of this story took place. Incarcerated in a Gulog, two women form a fierce friendship, managing through all odds to help eachother stay alive. Yet Anna becomes very sick, and Sophia is convinced that she must escape and find Anna's long lost love ( 15 years lost) convince him to return with her to the Gulog and free Anna. That's possible isn't it? That is only the first of the many things that the author asks us to believe to make this story credible. There are many, many more. I am usually willing to accept some incredulity in the interest of a good story, but here even I had to stop and say, really? really? This historical fiction was light on the history and heavy on the fiction/romance/fantasy. A woman who has spent long years in a gulog, overworked, starved, frozen and then tramps on foot across Russia after escaping is not "beautiful" or "luminous" no matter who she is. Nor is one who is so ill she is coughing up blood and on the verge of dying. There were major inconsistencies that were to hard to believe, and when you are reading a book of almost five hundred pages, you WANT to believe! The only reason I finished it was becouse it was for book club. Though the history was interesting, the story left much to be desired.

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