Daughter of Fortune : A Novel

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Summary: A book which absorbs you from the first line!
Review: When I read the first line of "Daughter of Fortune" I had no qualms weather I should buy it or not. She describes the Anglo-saxon world, South American world and Chinese world with such vivacity it feels as though she is actually writing an autobiography. The variation of moods present in the novel ensure excitment, and a sense of guilt came over me when ever I put it down. My first Isabelle Allende, I will now read her earlier works with dedication. In short it's a book I thoroughly recomend, and wish there where more like them.

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Summary: I'd like to buy a vowel... and this book!
Review: I'm no Pythagoras, but I know a good book when I read one. And this chilling tell-all about the roller-coaster career of virtuoso letter-turner Vanna White is just that. From her love-hate relationship with Master Sajak to her addiction to the letter "r", this book is not afraid to get into the grit. My only complaint is the author's decision to spend 65 pages describing the various ceramic dalmations awarded as prizes in the early shows.

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Summary: More than you'll ever want to know....
Review: ...about the California gold rush and race relations in 1800's California. Aside from the portions that dealt with these issues, ad nauseum, this book was a decent read. This was my first Isabel Allende book and from the reveiws I have seen,The House of the Spirits must be better. I found the narrative somewhat uneven but the character development was excellent. By the end of the book, I felt a kinship with Eliza and the other major characters.

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Summary: Daughter of Mediocre Fortune
Review: Isabel Allende is a charming writer when she sticks to Chilean culture, and writes about what "she knows." Cliched as that may sound, when she ventures into writing about Americans, her books break down. She loses confidence, her descriptions dwindle, she doesn't follow up on plot lines; Daughter of Fortune suffers from all of these ills. Allende seems to be writing to pay the bills. The novel is formulaic and dull, and the ending... well, I won't ruin it for you, but to call it an ending is like calling an appetizer dessert.

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Summary: Is there a stronger word than 'disappointing' for this novel
Review: 'Brilliant' says The New York Times! Did they give this novel to an Editorial Assistant to review? They can not be serious surely? Daughter of Fortune is written with no warmth and where is the beautiful prose-like words that we have become accustomed to with Allende? Nowhere to be seen. The characters were so compellingly boring that, can I admit to you dear Amazon surfers, after the first 38 pages, I returned the novel to my bookstore and asked for a refund. The general consensus seems to be with so-called respected media reviewers that they hail a novel just because the author has been revered in the past. Surely someone out there must agree with me that this story does not belong to Allende - the words are empty. I wouldn't even recommend this novel for the beach - trust me.

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Summary: Daughter of Fortune is another Allende winner
Review: Daughter of Fortune was a magical book. While it lacked the depth and spirituality of some of Allende's other works, it was a wonderfully executed novel. The characters she created were alive and real. They had depth, and behaved in a way that reflected their time and their circumstances brilliantly. While undoubtedly a romance, this in no way detracts from the quality of Allende's prose or the quality of the book as a whole.

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Summary: Another Oprah Winner!
Review: I found this book to be a really good read, and very informative - learned a lot about Chile and California in 1849 and the gold rush.

Rating:
Summary: Where's the beef?
Review: I started this novel with high hopes. The author has a great way of drawing you in, weaving a story, creating characters but to what end? Nada. The descriptions are fascinating especially in the Gold Rush period. But I felt no connection to these characters except for one (the aunt) and we never found out what made her tick. I read on and on, waiting for key that would bring it all together and be the emotional center for this story. It never came and so, sadly, I cannot recommend this book.

Rating:
Summary: Daughter of Fortune
Review: Loved what Isabel Allende did with the ending.

Rating:
Summary: Very disappointing
Review: Isabel Allende, who is usually a marvelous writer, has this time written nothing more than a tepid romance novel. Also, she fills the second half of this book spitting out facts about the California Gold Rush, giving the impression that she is trying to woo us with all the research she did on this period in history. I do not recommend Daughter of Fortune.