erinbrenner's reviews
507 reviews

I enjoyed reading about Desroches-Noblecourt and about the saving of the Temples, but this was an odd mix of side stories, loosely connected.

The first third of the book was about Desroches-Noblecourt's beginningso, and I expected her to be the focus of the book. But the book goes down many rabbit holes of other people involved in her adventures. She almost disappears from the book completely when it discusses moving of the Abu Simbel temples, fascinating as it was. It spends entire chapters on other players who helped make the project happen. After the Temples are moved, we get speedy chapters about related events and breezy chapters about the rest of Desroches-Noblecourt's accomplishments and life.

This book isn't fully about Desroches-Noblecourt or Abu Simbel or any one thing, and it suffers for it. It's well written and researched, but because it lacked a cohesive topic, it felt longer than it was and it was hard to lose myself in it.

Ashes and Stones: A Scottish Journey in Search of Witches and Witness by Allyson Shaw

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Did not finish book. Stopped at 16%.

It's a well-written, engaging book, but I struggled with understanding whether Shaw was presenting the women's confessions as something she believed was fact. It's orienting and made it difficult to trust anything she was saying. Shaw is clearly passionate about her topic, angry with the Scottish government's memorializing of these women, and talented at writing narrative and scenery. But there's not nearly enough distance from her subject to make a clear narrative the reader can follow. It was disappointing, as I really wanted to learn more about these women.

The Last Heir to Blackwood Library by Hester Fox

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dark mysterious fast-paced