The Time of the Dragons

by Alice M. Ekert-Rotholz

This is a turbulent novel of East and West. . . A moving love story, and an exciting tale of war, espionage and international intrigue.

Genres: Fiction, Classics, Espionage, Germany

Hardcover

First published January 1, 1956

About the author

Alice Maria Augusta Ekert-Rotholz (Hamburg,1990-1995,London) was a German writer.

Reviews

[Aria Laurel · Rating 4 out of 5]

I feel lucky to have stumbled across this in a vintage book store. It's a complex and worldwide tale of political and personal intrigue set before, during, and after World War Two. Taking place primarily in China it tells the story of a Norwegian family and the wide array of friends and enemies they make over the years around the War.

It's not a perfect novel. The novel starts really slowly. There are times the time, perspective, or location of the narrative would change without warning. The author also has a habit of describing people based on their adherence to (or deviation from) cultural norms. She does this in a mostly unnoffensive way, but I grew weary of it fairly quickly.

However, the good in this book far outweighs the bad. The characters are deep and interesting, the wide variety of cultural sets are described vividly, and the progressive messages of cultural understanding and unity were quite effectively weaved throughout the story (if a bit heavy handed at the end). Overall I'd highly recommend giving this book a shot if you find a copy.

[Paula · Rating 4 out of 5]

Ein überraschend spannendes und unterhaltsames Buch über eine norwegische Familie in den 1920 - 1950ern, die nach und nach in die Fänge der japanischen Geheimpolizei während des Pazifikkriegs gerät.

Der Erzählstil ist sehr langsam mit detaillierten Beschreibungen, weshalb die Geschichte ab und an etwas langatmig war (...was auch daran liegen mag, dass das Buch 1956 geschrieben wurde). Der Handlungsverlauf hat das jedoch wieder ausgeglichen und ich wollte bis zum Ende dranbleiben, um zu erfahren was letztendlich die wahren Absichten der jeweiligen Protagonist:innen waren.🕵🏼‍♀️👀

Ein Stern Abzug gibt es neben der ab und an vorhandenen Langatmigkeit auch dafür, dass ich überhaupt nicht verstehen kann, warum mit dem Haupt-Bösewicht in der ganzen Geschichte am Ende Frieden geschlossen wurde. Meiner Meinung nach hat er zu viele schreckliche Dinge getan und echte Traumata bei Personen ausgelöst als dass ich das in irgendeiner Weise nachvollziehen könnte.🤨

[drew petersen · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting story, but the pacing is quite slow. I’d recommend this to history fans, but casual readers would fall asleep.

[Edmund Bloxam · Rating 5 out of 5]

This novel is so broad in scope, I at first didn't know how to describe it. There is an enormous amount that goes on in this work, and this economy of waffle made for an extraordinary reading experience.

But what is it about was, for a time, hard to describe, without listing all of said events. However, I realised that at the centre of this international tale: spanning complex and complicated situations in Japan-occupied China and Thailand, was an unusual family unit, buffeted by espionage, romance and general befuddlement.

The book is also about the clash of cultures, as completely different attitudes come into conflict: Chinese, Japanese, North European and the United States, all transfer misunderstandings to each other. By the end, those that survive (it is not a simple tale, if I hadn't made that clear yet), transfer perhaps a little more understanding: that of a general maturity that comes from age.

A surprising character keeps said unusual (and not necessarily related, or related in unusual ways, or...) family unit in a kind of stability, which matures and gives her own life added understanding and richness.

Just an extraordinary book on so many levels.

[Kim · Rating 5 out of 5]

I can't help wondering if this book would haveen more well known if ut were written by a man. This is an epic story of world events during the second world War. Such beautiful writing, so many deep and loveable characters. So much wisdom and truth. One of my favorite books.

[Aunt · Rating 1 out of 5]

Looked at this and decided I didn’t really want yo read this.
The book’s title is actually The Time of the Dragons.

[Isabel · Rating 2 out of 5]

Me quedé como en el 15% porque la historia no es mala pero es lentísima, larga y no termina de empezar, y mi tiempo de lectura es muy valioso para seguir intentando que me atrapara.

[Peony · Rating 5 out of 5]

Genauso hammer wie alle ihre Bücher 😍

[Harvee Lau · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love old historical books and what you can learn from them! See my full review:
https://bookdilettante.blogspot.com/2...

[Denise DeRocher · Rating 3 out of 5]

Fun fun fun to go back and read war stories written in the 1950s, in this case 1950s Germany!!

[Kylie · Rating 3 out of 5]

A nice book to read. It took me a while to get into it but over all it was very interesting.