“Not since Lord of the Flies has a novelist written with such perceptiveness about the potential for harm that lurks within the innoce...
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reviews
May 17, 2010
Lindalee
rated it: 
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Oct 10, 2011
Sara
rated it: 
A perfectly engaging story, but not, as promised by my local bookseller, well-written, Woolfian prose. Okay, admittedly, promising that I'll like a book because it's like Woolf sets the bar pretty high for me, and so maybe I went into it with unfair expectations, but I actually found this book to be surprisingly poorly written. I kept feeling like I could see the machinations of Benedict's prose, as she worked extra hard to make sure all the plot pieces fit together: The people tasked to watch
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Jan 04, 2010
Sadly, because I didn't think this book was absolutely great, the review has been shelved and likely won't be published. So, here it is:
Helen Benedict’s paradisial edge is as rugged and complex as the borders of her characters’ native islands. The most apparent dark side of eden is the negative affects of colonialism on both the colonized and the colonizers. But Benedict’s fiction also does not hide from the very real contrasting sides to love—jealosy, hate, regret—and the depth of t More...
Helen Benedict’s paradisial edge is as rugged and complex as the borders of her characters’ native islands. The most apparent dark side of eden is the negative affects of colonialism on both the colonized and the colonizers. But Benedict’s fiction also does not hide from the very real contrasting sides to love—jealosy, hate, regret—and the depth of t More...
Jan 25, 2010
Paula
rated it: 
this is a really interesting take on the fish out of water theme. we watch a very unlikable english family, including their two very young daughters, disintegrate after being relocated by the home office to an equatorial island between madagascar and india. combined with voodoo, racial stigma, and an excellent grasp of the native culture, it is really good story, and keeps your interest throughout.
Mar 06, 2010
Allyson
rated it:
I thought this book a true page-turner and was not at all sure how it would end. Zara and Marguerite were very well developed characters and the author had fine descriptive skills. I felt I was right there living the story. The date of 1960 seemed incongrous but there were many such aspects that could have been better, but I quite enjoyed it.
Nov 02, 2011
Joe
rated it:
Fascinating story of a British family relocated to The Seychelles islands in the 1960s
What happens to a conservative British politician and his wife when they move to a tropical island..talk about Island Fever. Add in jealousy, sex and intrigue.
What happens to a conservative British politician and his wife when they move to a tropical island..talk about Island Fever. Add in jealousy, sex and intrigue.
Jun 13, 2010
Linda
rated it: 
Well, I read 177 of the 301 pages in this book and decided that I just didn't want to read anymore! I wasn't really interested in the characters or the story. Very disappointing. Time to move on!!
May 07, 2010
Denny
rated it: 
Lyrical and insightful descriptions of the Seychelles combine with a torpid atmosphere of deceit, magic, and misunderstanding to create a marvelous read. Highly recommend.
May 03, 2010
Ann
rated it:
Beautiful descriptions of the Seychelles but the end of the book was unfulfilling and generally a disappointment.
Feb 02, 2010
Andrea
rated it:
This was only ok. It was a fairly interesting story, but it had way too much sexual content for my taste.
I finished it thinking... so... what? Not my favorite. Wouldn't recommend it... sorry!
I finished it thinking... so... what? Not my favorite. Wouldn't recommend it... sorry!
Dec 28, 2011
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