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<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/5207.Daughter_of_Fortune?utm_medium=api&amp;utm_source=blog_review" style="float: left; padding-right: 20px"><img alt="Daughter of Fortune" border="0" src="http://s3.amazonaws.com/photo.goodreads.com/books/1165518289m/5207.jpg" /></a> <a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/5207.Daughter_of_Fortune?utm_medium=api&utm_source=blog_review">Daughter of Fortune</a> by <a href="http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/2238.Isabel_Allende">Isabel Allende</a> 
 <a href="http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/3850679?utm_medium=api&utm_source=blog_review"><h3>My review</h3></a>
 rating: 4 of 5 stars Orphan Eliza Summers was found as an infant squalling on the doorstep of a British merchant family in Valparaiso Chile. Raised to be a lady by the spinster sister of the household, given exotic treasures by the adventurous sea captain brother, and learning to cook by using her sensitive sense of smel under the tutelage of the Indian cook Mama Fresia, Eliza grows into a skilled and adventurous young woman with many talents - including that of 'disappearing'. The latter stands her in good stead when she falls in love with an unsuitable young man and decides to follow him on his journey to California during the Gold Rush. 
 
 The story also follows the life of the Chinese physician Tao Chi'en from his childhood in the provinces in China unappreciated by his family, his apprenticeship to a wise physician, his marriage and when he is shanghaied into Captain Summers' crew for a trip around the world. 
 
 I found the language highly evocative - of the hardships and the little joys of the life in California always on the run, of the feelings of first love - and the unsettling discovery that one may only have been in love with love itself rather than with the other person. I enjoyed the sensual descriptions of food, nature, sex, and some of the beauty and misery of San Francisco. I loved the subtleties and hints at the outcome throughout the novel. 
 
 Most entertaining to me were the references to Joaquin Murieta, Three-Fingered Jack and Captain Love. I'm not sure whether they were real historical figures (I assume so), but it kept reminding me of The Mask of Zorro and Antonio Banderas (clearly a good thing) - so now I'm itching to get my fingers on Allende's version of Zorro!
 <a href="http://www.goodreads.com/review/list/216057?utm_medium=api&utm_source=blog_review">View all my reviews.</a>

Alana's review
rating:
bookshelves: fiction, historical

Orphan Eliza Summers was found as an infant squalling on the doorstep of a British merchant family in Valparaiso Chile. Raised to be a lady by the spinster sister of the household, given exotic treasures by the adventurous sea captain brother, and learning to cook by using her sensitive sense of smel under the tutelage of the Indian cook Mama Fresia, Eliza grows into a skilled and adventurous young woman with many talents - including that of 'disappearing'. The latter stands her in good stead when she falls in love with an unsuitable young man and decides to follow him on his journey to California during the Gold Rush.

The story also follows the life of the Chinese physician Tao Chi'en from his childhood in the provinces in China unappreciated by his family, his apprenticeship to a wise physician, his marriage and when he is shanghaied into Captain Summers' crew for a trip around the world.

I found the language highly evocative - of the hardships and the little joys of the life...more

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message 1: by Daniel

10/02/2007 12:21PM

another neat review.