Sophia C. reviewed on + 289 more book reviews
Helpful Score: 3
How could I resist a book that starts with A typewriter shattered my destiny? The opening line of María Dueñas debut novel pulled me into the world of Sira Quiroga which spanned Spain and Morocco in the 1930s. Raised by a seamstress single mother, Sira was an apprentice in the same workshop until the said typewriter has her leaving her civil servant fiancé to follow a rogue lover to Morocco. Abandoned in Tangiers, Sira returns to dressmaking to reverse her fortunes in the Spanish Protectorates capital of Tetouan. Attracting important haute couture clients, Sira is recruited to return to Madrid to spy on them for the British intelligence service during the start of WWII.
Although I enjoyed Siras story told in the grand old tradition, the fact that this is Dueñas first novel shows. A professor by day, she has a tendency to list many details. Perhaps they mean something to the original Spanish audience, but I feel that 20% of the copy in this 600-page story could have been safely omitted. It was also unclear what type of story this aims to be. Is it a fictional memoir of a strong, independent woman? A wartime espionage thriller? A grand love story? Up to part IV, I feel it had potential to be all three, but the sentimental, unrealistic ending did not seem to satisfactorily tie up all the loose ends. The Time in Between seemed like a first fitting for what can be a great piece.
Although I enjoyed Siras story told in the grand old tradition, the fact that this is Dueñas first novel shows. A professor by day, she has a tendency to list many details. Perhaps they mean something to the original Spanish audience, but I feel that 20% of the copy in this 600-page story could have been safely omitted. It was also unclear what type of story this aims to be. Is it a fictional memoir of a strong, independent woman? A wartime espionage thriller? A grand love story? Up to part IV, I feel it had potential to be all three, but the sentimental, unrealistic ending did not seem to satisfactorily tie up all the loose ends. The Time in Between seemed like a first fitting for what can be a great piece.
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