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What Members Thought
Absolute word candy. Captivating from the first page to the last. I am tempted to flip the cover and start all over again.
December 2018: Just as good the second time around. Easily in my top 10 of all time.
January 2020: Each time I revisit the Metropol and Count Rostov, I am swept away. This will be a favorite forever and ever. I can't wait to pick it up again next winter. ...more
December 2018: Just as good the second time around. Easily in my top 10 of all time.
January 2020: Each time I revisit the Metropol and Count Rostov, I am swept away. This will be a favorite forever and ever. I can't wait to pick it up again next winter. ...more
Easily one of my favorite books of all time. Count Alexander is under house arrest in the beautiful hotel Metropol, and manages to create a very fulfilling and meaningful life under circumstances that seem enviable, but that were forced upon him. It is hard to not gush over his writing - I would gladly read any plot line written by Amor Towles, but it is his character development that outshines even his prose. The Count has become one of my good friends, and when I eventually make it to dinner a
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There is this interesting experience when you go to a book that has been recommended to you by people you like and admire (not unlike going to a movie under similar circumstances) and the rave reviews eliminate the ability of the art to live up to one's expectations, which in part is what happened to me with this book.
I understand the appeal of the book with the themes of choosing relationships over self-interest, but that simply makes the happy espionage ending seem quite a bit forced, especia ...more
I understand the appeal of the book with the themes of choosing relationships over self-interest, but that simply makes the happy espionage ending seem quite a bit forced, especia ...more
The only reason this isn't getting five stars from me is because it took me about 75 pages to get into!
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In 1922, Count Alexander Rostov is put under house arrest in the Metropol hotel of Moscow, due to his status as an aristocrat. There, he spends the majority of his life.
This is one of the best books I have ever read. It took a pure genius to create such a riveting story that, in its majority, takes place in one location over the course of many years. But the characters are so lovingly drawn, most notably that of the Count, that he and his friends and family will remain with the reader for years ...more
This is one of the best books I have ever read. It took a pure genius to create such a riveting story that, in its majority, takes place in one location over the course of many years. But the characters are so lovingly drawn, most notably that of the Count, that he and his friends and family will remain with the reader for years ...more
Towes conjures the upper crust with skillful aplomb. The sights and smells and sounds and scents of the early 20th C European landed class really come to life, particularly those surrounding food and drink. It’s also often a genuinely heartwarming story. Characters are perhaps a bit too simple: the count’s wit never fails him, the bishop is never anything but a scumbag. And he doesn’t aim for much beyond an interesting tale, well told. Both of which I think leave this somewhat behind Hillary Man
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Dec 12, 2016
Amy Nielsen
is currently reading it
Jul 20, 2017
Jen
marked it as to-read
