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This book was exactly what I needed it to be: pure escapist pleasure in mid-winter. No one can help falling in love with Piet Barol, including the reader. Loved the details of turn-of-the-century Amsterdam and focus on interpersonal relationships. A lovely little dream of a book. It's not changing any lives, but it's utter lack of a dark side made it seem fairly refreshing as a piece of fiction. Some might call it bubble gum, but I maintain that this sort of book has uses: delight first among th
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Reading this book was a pleasant way to while away a few hours on a rainy day. For someone so ambitious, Piet isn’t unlikable at all. I cheered for him all throughout as he fooled and played mind games with those around him in small and big ways. There is nothing particularly deep here, but Richard Mason writes pretty well (the pacing was good, the characters were vivid, and the ambience of the period was on point), and that’s enough for me. Another book that will pick up where this one ends, fo
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