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Liked It3 of 3 members found this review helpful “I had heard friends raving about this book, but for some reason (maybe the cover?) I was never that interested. Luckily, I gave it a try last week and WOW: the book caught my interest to such a degree that I polished it off in four days! Here's the basic premise: A group of wealthy businessmen...” see full review » see other reviews » |
Didn’t Like It “liked this sort of. kinda slow, like an opera.” see full review » see other reviews » |
Newest Reviews
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“Lyrical and charming.”
Kate Castle wrote this review 3 days ago. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
“A wonderful read with laughter, love and tragedy. This was a great book to read on my secluded vacation.”
Kat wrote this review 12 days ago. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No“liked this sort of. kinda slow, like an opera.”
rhl wrote this review 2 weeks ago. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
“A good premise. It started off really well, dragged a lot in the middle and then there was the shock! ending. The main problem with the book, other than the fact that everyone was a good, decent human being, was the epilogue. I just wish that hadn't been tacked on like it was.”
Chaitra Ganesh wrote this review 3 weeks ago. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
“My daughter and I loved this hostage crisis meets love story cross-over. The novel is filled with suspense, and moves rapidly as the situation escalates to a compelling ending.”
Debbie Wellslager wrote this review 4 weeks ago. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
“Beautiful! An unexpected little gem, with interesting and touching characters. A disparate group of people are held hostage in a house for several months. Their histories, crises, romances and conflicts are played out, becoming entangled with one another and their kidnappers, too, to various degrees. Ann Patchett has such a way with words, it's a slim book but there's so much in it. I would recommend this to everyone!”
MissLebowski wrote this review Monday, April 30, 2012. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
“I read this in two nights. Only put it down when I couldn't see any longer. I loved it--it was five stars all the way--until the ending. The ending is hinted at in the flyleaf but still, I wasn't prepared for it. Also, still, it was well worth reading.”
Rita M wrote this review Friday, April 27, 2012. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No“I liked it, but it seems a little overrated to me. The beginning was interesting, but the middle was quite slow. It seemed unrealistic in spots, particularly some of the relationships. After the slow middle, the ending seemed rushed, and there's a few things that just don't make sense. ”
Mick L wrote this review Saturday, April 14, 2012. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No“I really liked this story. The writing was wonderful and the characters were great. Some really funny parts and some really sad parts. You didn't need to be an opera fan to appreciate the story.”
C-Jane wrote this review Tuesday, April 10, 2012. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
“This is a novel infused with music and danger. A hostage situation creates the heights of tension. The characters in Bel Canto must live for the moment, since their situation is uncertain and death could come at any time. They find that under these circumstances, they crave love and friendship. The specter of death also sharpens the characters’ appreciation of beauty and art. In spite of the authors's lovely prose I was disappointed with this novel. The operatic theme made it somewhat more attractive for me, however I found the plot contrived and, in spite of being based on actual events, I did not find the characters believable either.”
jwhenderson wrote this review Saturday, April 7, 2012. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
