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16th out of 83 books
—
252 voters
The Island
The Petrakis family lives in the small Greek seaside village of Plaka. Just off the coast is the tiny island of Spinalonga, where the nation's leper colony once was located—a place that has haunted four generations of Petrakis women. There's Eleni, ripped from her husband and two young daughters and sent to Spinalonga in 1939, and her daughters Maria, finding joy in the ev
...morePaperback, 473 pages
Published
April 10th 2006
by Headline
(first published 2005)
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I had great hopes that this would be a good book.
But life can be disappointing at times. This was one of the worst written books I have read in a long time. Chunks of unnecessarty exposition, character motivations eplained to the nth degree, dialogue avoided like...well, like it was leprosy.
If you like your characters spoon fed to you, and every meaningful scene ducked (I mean, why didn't we get to see the last evening she and her husband had together? What exactly did they say?), well, this is...more
But life can be disappointing at times. This was one of the worst written books I have read in a long time. Chunks of unnecessarty exposition, character motivations eplained to the nth degree, dialogue avoided like...well, like it was leprosy.
If you like your characters spoon fed to you, and every meaningful scene ducked (I mean, why didn't we get to see the last evening she and her husband had together? What exactly did they say?), well, this is...more
17 likes · like · see review
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The story line of this book is pretty good... but it is the most poorly written book I've read in awhile. She explains things - emotions, plot lines - to a level where she's beating you over the head with it and every sentence has about three adjectives too many. You'll want to finish it to find out what happens, but her writing style will drive you nuts while you do.
18 likes · like · see review
I enjoyed the book - partly because the island that the story centers on was the view from our terrace during our honeymoon but also because of the unique topic of the story. It was a quick and enjoyable read though I think was weak in a few ways. As with many novels that combine the past and the present with the past being the focus, the scenes in the present were not as well written and lacked depth and development. I thought Alexis' struggle over her relationship with Ed was totally irrelevan...more
Surprised me. It sat on my reading shelf for three years and I kept rejecting it when I needed a new book. Couldn't put it down once I had started it, though. It intrigued me because I have visited D'arcy Island, near Victoria, which was a leper colony for Vancouver Island.
The background to this story is so well researched that you feel as if it is a truthful account of events surrounding the lives of those suffering from leprosy in Crete during the Second World War, and their families and friends. There is love and tragedy, betrayal and loyalty, deceit and courage.
Thankfully, both medicinal science and the attitude of society to serious illness have made massive advances since those days.
Once you have started reading this book, you will become captivated, and wil...more
Thankfully, both medicinal science and the attitude of society to serious illness have made massive advances since those days.
Once you have started reading this book, you will become captivated, and wil...more
This book was awesome. I read it on my honeymoon, while I was laying on the beach, and I couldn't put it down. I read the whole thing in two days. I would recommend this book to anyone interested in European history. I learned a ton about leprosy and the stigma associated with the disease. I think we all know a bit about leprosy, but it was really enlightening about the overall topic, especially since it is still an epidemic in many third world countries. The female characters were also very int...more
7 likes · like · see review
The story is about a young career girl who is headed to Greece with her boyfriend on a vacation, but her mother's family and past is from, but never discussed at home. Being so close to her mother's past Alexis asks her mother for permission to go and find out about her past, she is lead to the small village of Plaka and the village tavern keeper, an old family friend who tells Alexis the story of her family for the past three generations. The rest of the book is about the past. We follow Eleni,...more
Još jedna od meni dražih uredničkih kupovina... Nesvakidašnja knjiga, tema o kojoj ranije ništa nismo znali, a sada zahvaljujući ovoj knjizi i seriji koja je prikazivana prošle godine i mi nešto više znamo o tom periodu iz grčke istorije...
Nažalost, u Srbiji knjiga nije odmah "zaživela" zbog neadekvatnih korica (koje nisu bile moj izbor, promenjene su za drugo izdanje), dok je u Hrvatskoj odmah postala hit... Ono što je meni kao uredniku uvek najdraže jeste to da je priča o njoj kružila od usta...more
Nažalost, u Srbiji knjiga nije odmah "zaživela" zbog neadekvatnih korica (koje nisu bile moj izbor, promenjene su za drugo izdanje), dok je u Hrvatskoj odmah postala hit... Ono što je meni kao uredniku uvek najdraže jeste to da je priča o njoj kružila od usta...more
5 likes · like · see review
Helen for www.bigbooklittlebook.com
I have heard a lot about how good this is and have also very much enjoyed Victoria’s ‘The Return’, so I started out with high expectations and I have to say I wasn’t disappointed.
The story begins with Alexis, a girl wanting to discover her history. She is in a place in her life of uncertainty, not knowing which direction to move in and is wondering about her roots. She heads for Crete to unravel the mysteries of her families past. As she arrives in Greece the s...more
I have heard a lot about how good this is and have also very much enjoyed Victoria’s ‘The Return’, so I started out with high expectations and I have to say I wasn’t disappointed.
The story begins with Alexis, a girl wanting to discover her history. She is in a place in her life of uncertainty, not knowing which direction to move in and is wondering about her roots. She heads for Crete to unravel the mysteries of her families past. As she arrives in Greece the s...more
I have mixed feelings about this book.
The primary subject matter of the book was well researched and very interesting and original - that of the fate of Leprosy sufferers in pre-war and wartime Greece. I found this aspect of the book very interesting, the experimental treatments, the descriptions of how they organised their lives on the island and set up a democracy, the emotions surrounding being forcibly taken away from your families and made to live in isolation. I didn't know a lot about le...more
The primary subject matter of the book was well researched and very interesting and original - that of the fate of Leprosy sufferers in pre-war and wartime Greece. I found this aspect of the book very interesting, the experimental treatments, the descriptions of how they organised their lives on the island and set up a democracy, the emotions surrounding being forcibly taken away from your families and made to live in isolation. I didn't know a lot about le...more
Este foi o segundo livro de Victoria Hislop que li, depois de diversas meninas dos fóruns me terem persuadido a ler, especialmente a Vera Neves, afirmando ser ainda melhor que o A Arca. Mas uma vez tiveram razão. Antes de mais devo congratular a autora pelo seu exaustivao trabalho de pesquisa acerca da lepra. Todos nós já ouvimos falar da lepra, nem que tenha sido, como eu, na catequese e na leitura da Bíblia ou, se recordam do pai de um dos personagens de Braveheart, não me recordo agora o nome...more
I have never written a review or reccomendation before & i wont tell the story line because there are many revews here that have already done that, not to mention the blurb. Instead i will tell you why it s one of my all time favourites (another being Birds Without Wings by Louis de Berniere) & why I recommend it to anyone who will listen, even my husband who also loved it! So anyone who might give it a miss thinking its a chick-lit don't! it does have romance but it's much more than tha...more
6 likes · like · see review
I really liked the idea for this book, I found it really interesting, but I found the story poorly written. Set on a Greek Island, the excuse for the main character to go to the former leper colony was contrived, and didn't make much sense to me. Why her mother would have simply cut off contact with everyone she knew I didn't really understand; I didn't engage with any of the characters as I felt they had little substance behind them. They seemed to be very clear cut; one was 'good' and one was...more
This is a book that has been on my shelf for some years. My sister gave it to my father and I had gotten to read it twice and abandoned. Today I don't know why I left the reading of those times, because the book is so simple and has a story so incredible, that can hold any reader.
The scenary of this book is the village of Plaka (Greece) and its surroundings, including the island of Spinalonga, in times before and after the Second World War, coming to our time.
Alexis is a young woman of today, wh...more
The scenary of this book is the village of Plaka (Greece) and its surroundings, including the island of Spinalonga, in times before and after the Second World War, coming to our time.
Alexis is a young woman of today, wh...more
Beautifully imagined, well-researched and evocatively told, Victoria Hislop’s The Island recreates a leper colony of the 1930s and follows its inmates and neighbors on the Island of Crete through the Second World War to the present day. The theme of searching for identity is well-served as the author follows characters whose identities have been stolen by disease—some losing their physical self-image, others half-destroyed mentally by loss of family and friends. The agony of ostracism, the fear...more
The story begins with Alexis, a modern-day woman who embarks on a holiday with her boyfriend, hoping to create some major changes in not only her own life but her relationship as well. She has decided to go to Plaka in Crete, where her mother, Sofia, grew up. Her mother has always shrouded her past and refuses to speak of it, causing an aura of mystery that entices Alexis rather than push her away. Once her mother discovers her daughters plans, the most she can summons is a letter for Alexis to...more
On reading the synopsis on the back cover, I thought The Island was going to be a fab read. Sadly it did not live up to my expectations.
The intro was a trifle long-winded and a poor reason for getting the storyline started. Once we had the flashback to the previous 1 or 2 generations, the story began to get better and more interesting. The middle was almost riveting in parts and I began to get absorbed into the story better.
However, once things began to change (for the better) for the lepers in...more
The intro was a trifle long-winded and a poor reason for getting the storyline started. Once we had the flashback to the previous 1 or 2 generations, the story began to get better and more interesting. The middle was almost riveting in parts and I began to get absorbed into the story better.
However, once things began to change (for the better) for the lepers in...more
1 like · like · see review
I enjoyed this novel so much that halfway thru it I ordered Victoria Hislop's next book. The writing style is fantastic. The descriptions are eloquent without being pompous or overdone. The characters are like everyday people, if a bit exagerated. It starts with Alexis, a young woman trying to get to the bottom of her mother's strange and mysterious past while vacationing in Crete. I would like to note here that it is NOT like the "Forgotten Garden" for those of you that are not fond of time jum...more
The novel begins in present day London where Alexis is about to go on holiday and to decide on major changes to her life. She’s going to Plaka in Crete, the place where her mother, Sofia, grew up. Her mother refuses to speak about her past but she gives Alexis a letter to give to an old friend, Fortina who will tell her the story.
As she questions her mother’s friend, Alexis uncovers the family secrets and her mother's, her grandmother's, and her great-grandmother's past and their connection with...more
As she questions her mother’s friend, Alexis uncovers the family secrets and her mother's, her grandmother's, and her great-grandmother's past and their connection with...more
Wow I really loved this book. It's a multigenerational story that takes place on Crete. Great historical fiction. I'd never taken an interest in leprosy before but this book made me feel for everyone who has had it, and helped me udnerstand what life with it would have been like. The story was told about the women, Anna and Maria, sisters, their mother eleni who got leprosy from her student (9 yr old) Demitri and they both were banished to the island of spinaloga, right across the water from the...more
Alexis, on holiday in Crete, goes on holiday to Crete and seeks out an old friend of her mother's. Her mother would never talk about her past, growing up on Crete, and Alexis hopes to get some answers. She travels to Plaka, and while there is transfixed by the island of Spinalonga, a former leper colony.[return][return]This is a really great book. I was interested in the character of Alexis immediately, however the majority of the book was a flashback to more than 50 years ago, telling the story...more
This was an absorbing and thoroughly enjoyable read. I loved the setting, Crete and the island of Spinalonga, a leper colony until 1957. I didn’t know much about the history of leprosy in more recent times, and found that extremely interesting.
Alexis Fielding has been raised in England and her mother, Sofia, has always been secretive about her past. Alexis travels to Greece where a family friend reveals the history of her great-grandparents and their family. I found the stories of Eleni and Mar...more
Alexis Fielding has been raised in England and her mother, Sofia, has always been secretive about her past. Alexis travels to Greece where a family friend reveals the history of her great-grandparents and their family. I found the stories of Eleni and Mar...more
Mar 27, 2010
Khaya
rated it
1 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Recommended to Khaya by:
Ayala
Shelves:
bookclub
"You must pay the rent!" the evil villain roared, twirling his diabolical mustache. He was her landlord, and he was an impatient man.
"But I can't pay the rent!" swooned the beautiful, hapless heroine. She was his tenant. Her breathtaking beauty was matched only by her saintliness. She was always being taken advantage of by the wicked people around her, yet she was committed to remaining good.
"You must pay the rent!"
"But I can't pay the rent!"
"I'll pay the rent!" shouted the mysterious stranger....more
"But I can't pay the rent!" swooned the beautiful, hapless heroine. She was his tenant. Her breathtaking beauty was matched only by her saintliness. She was always being taken advantage of by the wicked people around her, yet she was committed to remaining good.
"You must pay the rent!"
"But I can't pay the rent!"
"I'll pay the rent!" shouted the mysterious stranger....more
This was a book club pick that started out pretty slow. In fact, I almost abandoned it. I'm glad I didn't because the second half definitely redeems it in excitement. A British young woman travels to Greece to investigate her mother's mysterious past and the book splits itself between the present and the story of this woman's grandmother's family.
However, here are my beefs:
1. The author's writing drove me a little batty. I'm pretty sure she never used a thesaurus during the entire writing proce...more
However, here are my beefs:
1. The author's writing drove me a little batty. I'm pretty sure she never used a thesaurus during the entire writing proce...more
Good story, shame about the writing. The first word that sprang to mind as I started to read this book was "pedestrian", easy-to-read but less than satisfying, certainly more of a wafer than a main course. I continued with it because the plot looked good. Yet throughout the book, the writer's insistence on explaining every nuance in infinite detail became increasingly irritating. The characters seemed a bit too clean, the women were all beautiful and Spinalonga appeared rather too quaint and pic...more
Very divided views on this novel; it attracts as many low votes as high, and I have scanned through quite a few of them, and more than a few rip into the scientific facts of leprosy and forget, I feel, that this is a work of fiction and not, a medical journal.
If I am to be super critical in this area, then I would say yes, it was a tad light on the explanation and description of leprosy, BUT as a work of fiction, I thoroughly enjoyed this original story, set in Plaka, Crete and the Island of Sp...more
If I am to be super critical in this area, then I would say yes, it was a tad light on the explanation and description of leprosy, BUT as a work of fiction, I thoroughly enjoyed this original story, set in Plaka, Crete and the Island of Sp...more
This is the first book by this author that I have read and I thoroughly enjoyed it. The story follows those suffering from leprosy in Crete during the Second World War. It also shows their families and friends and how the shame of leprosy touched the lives of all affected family members, as well as the wider community. People with leprosy were exiled to the leper colony of Spinalonga. This meant being torn from family and friends and sent away. The story details how people felt when they saw the...more
This is yet another novel that languished on my bookshelves waiting to be read for far too long. A fictional story of a families ties to a real life setting.
Sofia and her daughter Alexis are not the heroines of this book as the blurb on the cover might lead you to believe but the descendants of this mother and daughter most certainly are the real protagonists. Sofia had always felt humiliated by her past and kept it hidden from her husband and children for many years. It is only after Alexis exp...more
Sofia and her daughter Alexis are not the heroines of this book as the blurb on the cover might lead you to believe but the descendants of this mother and daughter most certainly are the real protagonists. Sofia had always felt humiliated by her past and kept it hidden from her husband and children for many years. It is only after Alexis exp...more
I know that some people will think 5 stars may be too much as it is only a 'beach read' but I really do think it's amazing, it's a story within a story, which I just love, beach read kind of implies that it's easy and you don't have to think too much but last summer I was reading Angel and Demons on the beach and that is definitely not a beach read so that theory is stupid.
The characters are amazing and I find I constantly switch allegiances to different characters which I think proves how they...more
The characters are amazing and I find I constantly switch allegiances to different characters which I think proves how they...more
I did enjoy this book. However I did not think that it was deserving of 5 stars. Personally I like books with a bit more mystery. Yes, it did have some but the end was not unexpected, I was not shocked. Exactly what I wanted to happen happened. I think that what makes a good book is the ending, when the reader gasps and says 'No way'. Thats what made Rebecca and Jane eyre brilliant and the even more obvious Agatha Christie! All of her books are about the ending, the fact that no matter how hard...more
| topics | posts | views | last activity | |
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| The Island | 8 | 79 | Feb 24, 2013 11:28am |
Victoria Hislop read English at Oxford, and worked in publishing, PR and as a journalist before becoming a novelist. She is married with two children.
Her first novel, The Island, held the number one slot in the Sunday Times paperback charts for eight consecutive weeks and has sold over two million copies worldwide. Victoria was the Newcomer of the Year at the Galaxy British Book Awards 2007 and wo...more
More about Victoria Hislop...
Her first novel, The Island, held the number one slot in the Sunday Times paperback charts for eight consecutive weeks and has sold over two million copies worldwide. Victoria was the Newcomer of the Year at the Galaxy British Book Awards 2007 and wo...more
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“After the endless disappointing cups of Nescafé, served as though the tasteless dissolving granules of instant coffee were a delicacy, Alexis felt no cup of coffee had ever tasted as powerful and delicious as this.
It seemed that nobody had the heart to tell the Greeks that Nescafé was no longer a novelty – it was this old-fashioned thick and treacly fluid that everyone, including her, craved.”
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It seemed that nobody had the heart to tell the Greeks that Nescafé was no longer a novelty – it was this old-fashioned thick and treacly fluid that everyone, including her, craved.”
