I received this book as one of my monthly selections for Book of the Month Club for February 2025. I felt that the description that the app offered for the book was pretty accurate; highbrow literary fiction about family drama, war, and loss. 

I think that I’m among some other reviewers in saying that the book did feel somewhat hurried. From point A to point B in certain storylines was very quick, and the book truly would have benefited from a slightly slower pace. I think that the storyline of the mother’s spiritual evolution was a somewhat one-off mention that could have really been elaborated on.  

I thought the way that the character of the father, Fidelis, as the central character who’s trauma moves the narrative along, was a very artfully written character. The balance of wistfulness, trauma, mental illness, care for his family, and confused identity. The choices that he makes trying to protect his daughter (and, by extension, the memories of his sister) are often baffling, often seemingly inexcusable. At the same time, the author imbues him with such tenderness and humanity, such an empathetic hand. His love for his family, his sensitivity and poetic soul make him easy to have a soft spot for. 

I think that this book is heartfelt, ambitious, and a hard description of a life defined by violence. However the execution was somewhat inconsistent and that some of the elements could have really been improved with more elaboration. 

3.25/5 stars with the reservation that I did really enjoy the things that were executed in a detailed way.