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A review by strawberrymivvy
The Lipstick Bureau by Michelle Gable
informative
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Didn't really enjoy this book, but was interesting to read about yet another facet of European WWII history.
The characters fell flat and despite the author saying in the notes that she had "pared back" the number of people involved in the team, it still felt there were too many names and people who added nothing to the narrative. Paloma's chapters were totally unnecessary, as were the 1989 chapters for the most part - a lazy way to tell us a lot of information.
At times the description of the propaganda that was being distributed was confusing and there seemed little rationale as to what was written and when. I know this was a fictionalisation of a real woman's life, but those of us interested in this type of novel are interested in the facts and reasoning.
Was almost a DNF for me, there are far better historical fiction writers out there
The characters fell flat and despite the author saying in the notes that she had "pared back" the number of people involved in the team, it still felt there were too many names and people who added nothing to the narrative. Paloma's chapters were totally unnecessary, as were the 1989 chapters for the most part - a lazy way to tell us a lot of information.
At times the description of the propaganda that was being distributed was confusing and there seemed little rationale as to what was written and when. I know this was a fictionalisation of a real woman's life, but those of us interested in this type of novel are interested in the facts and reasoning.
Was almost a DNF for me, there are far better historical fiction writers out there