Rating: 3 stars

Cliff Notes: This book felt like it took forever to read. Her books are always dense and the translation and foreign names are harder to catch onto.

Full Summary: This author’s books are so well researched about topics that are fascinating yet not broadly written about. I like to read about the interpersonal stories, but I got bogged down in the stories about the actual conquering of Chile.

What I love most about Isabel Allende’s writing is her turn of phrase, even through the translation. Perhaps this is just my mood after Season 3 of The Handmaid’s Tale and listening to the best podcast about THT, but I am super fed up with the patriarchy. Anyway, here is a sample:

“Courage is a virtue appreciated in a male but considered a defect in our gender. Bold women are a threat to a world that is badly out of balance, in favor of men. That is why they work so hard to mistreat us and destroy us. But remember that bold women are like cockroaches: step on one and others come running from the corners.”

Inés of My Soul Isabel Allende