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Quint Chronicles
The Small Fortune of Dorothea Q
Thirty years of family secrets. Three generations of women. One family heirloom that could change everything.
When she ran away from her childhood home in Guyana, Rika swore that she would never return. Cut off from her family, she has fought hard to make a life for herself and daughter, Inky, in London.
Now, over thirty years later, Rika’s cantankerous, wheelchair-bound mother, Dorothea, arrives in London. But as old wounds re-open, Dorothea and Rika are further apart than ever.
Inky soon learns that her grandmother is sitting on a small fortune. As she uncovers the secrets of the past one by one, she unravels the tragedy that tore her mother and grandmother apart. But nothing can prepare her, or Rika, for Dorothea’s final, unexpected revelation.
An epic, mesmerizing tale of tragic loss, the strength of words left unspoken, and the redeeming power of love.
When she ran away from her childhood home in Guyana, Rika swore that she would never return. Cut off from her family, she has fought hard to make a life for herself and daughter, Inky, in London.
Now, over thirty years later, Rika’s cantankerous, wheelchair-bound mother, Dorothea, arrives in London. But as old wounds re-open, Dorothea and Rika are further apart than ever.
Inky soon learns that her grandmother is sitting on a small fortune. As she uncovers the secrets of the past one by one, she unravels the tragedy that tore her mother and grandmother apart. But nothing can prepare her, or Rika, for Dorothea’s final, unexpected revelation.
An epic, mesmerizing tale of tragic loss, the strength of words left unspoken, and the redeeming power of love.
480 pages, Paperback
First published October 1, 2014
144 people are currently reading
1019 people want to read
About the author
Sharon Maas
21 books337 followersSharon Maas was born in Georgetown, Guyana in 1951, and a sense of adventure has followed her around the world. In 1971 she spent a year backpacking around South America, followed by a few months with pioneering friends in the Guyana rainforest, followed by an overland trip to India, followed by a year in a Hindu Ashram.
She settled in Germany where she married, studied, worked, and raised children.
Officially retired, she continues to write from her new home in Ireland.
Her first novel was published by HarperCollins in 1999, followed by two more in 2001 and 2002. At present, she has 10 published works with the digital publisher Bookouture.
She has one self-published work, a retelling of the magnificent Indian epic Mahabharata: a project of love that took her over 30 years to "get right", written under the pen name S. Aruna.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 45 reviews
December 13, 2023
Book one in The Quint Chronicles series which at time of posting is available on Kindle Unlimited.
A family saga spanning three generations tackling the role of women, racism and of course love.
Set between Guyana and London this book is split into 3 timelines. Dorothea in the 30's, Rika is the 60's and Inky in the 00's. The story of 3 women coming of age in complicated worlds.
As with most multi timeline books I found myself invested more in one time period than in others. I especially enjoyed the earliest timeline and wasn't overly fussed with the most recent.
I will continue this series; I'm invested and interested to find out more about the Quint family.
Four stars.
A family saga spanning three generations tackling the role of women, racism and of course love.
Set between Guyana and London this book is split into 3 timelines. Dorothea in the 30's, Rika is the 60's and Inky in the 00's. The story of 3 women coming of age in complicated worlds.
As with most multi timeline books I found myself invested more in one time period than in others. I especially enjoyed the earliest timeline and wasn't overly fussed with the most recent.
I will continue this series; I'm invested and interested to find out more about the Quint family.
Four stars.
November 27, 2015
The Small Fortune of Dorothea Q is the fourth original novel by Guyanese-born author, Sharon Maas. When Dorothea Quint, the grandmother from Guyana that she has never met, comes to London to stay, Inky Temple is intrigued as to the cause of the thirty-year estrangement that has existed between her mum, Rika, and Dorothea. But Rika is tight-lipped, and Dorothea is less than forthcoming.
Stubborn and cantankerous, Dorothea, with a crafty glint in her eye, shows Inky the family heirloom, an old Guyanese stamp that she claims is “worth a small fortune”. A sceptical Inky does some research and is surprised about the value of this dirty-looking scrap: “And I felt it, gnawing at my insides like a virus, the little rodent of greed”.
Tasked with cooking for Dorothea (her mum being a hopeless cook), Inky discovers a thriving Guyanese community right there in London, and while the church services are a bit overwhelming, she finds herself completely swept away by the community’s friendliness and by all this delicious Guyanese food. “A proper Guyanese! She eats everything but rope, soap and iron!”
Maas uses three narratives to tell her tale: the narrative from Dorothea’s point of view describes events during the nineteen-thirties, forties and fifties; the sixties are told from Rika’s perspective; and Inky’s first person narrative relates the events at the beginning of the twenty-first century, the noughties.
Maas gives the reader an interesting cast of characters, characters with very human flaws, who develop and mature so that we slowly learn how an unhappy teenaged Dorothea becomes a fiery activist for women’s rights, how budding novelist Rika ended up rejecting all things Guyanese to become a vegetarian TV script writer, and finally, exactly why Rika has refused all contact with her mother for over thirty years.
This novel, with a few twists and surprises, examines the (sometimes tragic) effects of powerful emotions on lives: blame, guilt, grief, resentment, fear of loving, contrition, pride, and forgiveness are all very much part of the story. As are greed and the sometimes insane values we assign to material things by virtue of their rarity: “’When you think about it, Inky,’ she said to me, ‘All it is, is a scrap of paper. A tiny little scrap of paper any normal person would chuck in the rubbish. Isn’t it crazy, that people run around like headless chickens over a scrap of paper? Isn’t it fascinating, the way we fixate on a thing, and out of our own minds, out of desire, instil it with value?’”
While this is fiction, it is apparent from the authentic feel of this wonderful tale that Maas has drawn on her own experiences, her Guyanese heritage, and her family history. Readers who enjoy this novel will be pleased to know that there is a companion volume, The Secret Life of Winnie Cox, which expands on the life of one of the more endearing characters of this novel, Ma Quint. This is another superb offering from this talented author.
Stubborn and cantankerous, Dorothea, with a crafty glint in her eye, shows Inky the family heirloom, an old Guyanese stamp that she claims is “worth a small fortune”. A sceptical Inky does some research and is surprised about the value of this dirty-looking scrap: “And I felt it, gnawing at my insides like a virus, the little rodent of greed”.
Tasked with cooking for Dorothea (her mum being a hopeless cook), Inky discovers a thriving Guyanese community right there in London, and while the church services are a bit overwhelming, she finds herself completely swept away by the community’s friendliness and by all this delicious Guyanese food. “A proper Guyanese! She eats everything but rope, soap and iron!”
Maas uses three narratives to tell her tale: the narrative from Dorothea’s point of view describes events during the nineteen-thirties, forties and fifties; the sixties are told from Rika’s perspective; and Inky’s first person narrative relates the events at the beginning of the twenty-first century, the noughties.
Maas gives the reader an interesting cast of characters, characters with very human flaws, who develop and mature so that we slowly learn how an unhappy teenaged Dorothea becomes a fiery activist for women’s rights, how budding novelist Rika ended up rejecting all things Guyanese to become a vegetarian TV script writer, and finally, exactly why Rika has refused all contact with her mother for over thirty years.
This novel, with a few twists and surprises, examines the (sometimes tragic) effects of powerful emotions on lives: blame, guilt, grief, resentment, fear of loving, contrition, pride, and forgiveness are all very much part of the story. As are greed and the sometimes insane values we assign to material things by virtue of their rarity: “’When you think about it, Inky,’ she said to me, ‘All it is, is a scrap of paper. A tiny little scrap of paper any normal person would chuck in the rubbish. Isn’t it crazy, that people run around like headless chickens over a scrap of paper? Isn’t it fascinating, the way we fixate on a thing, and out of our own minds, out of desire, instil it with value?’”
While this is fiction, it is apparent from the authentic feel of this wonderful tale that Maas has drawn on her own experiences, her Guyanese heritage, and her family history. Readers who enjoy this novel will be pleased to know that there is a companion volume, The Secret Life of Winnie Cox, which expands on the life of one of the more endearing characters of this novel, Ma Quint. This is another superb offering from this talented author.
December 8, 2014
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
January 18, 2015
I received this book as a digital ARC from the publisher through Net Galley in return for an honest review.
This is the first book written by Sharon Maas I've read and I really liked it.
This is a family saga’s story with the central plot around an original British Guiana One Cent 1856 stamp printed in black on magenta.
Through this valuable stamp, the author describes the life of three generations of women: Rika, who run away from Guyana and went to live in London where she raised her daughter Inky; after thirty years, Rika’s mother - Dorothea - arrives in London, to meet her daughter and her grand-child.
Even after a long separation period between mother and daughter, their differences and their old wounds are still coming up.
When Inky learns about the old stamp, she decides to find out the hidden secrets of her family, specially the tragic events that felt apart mother and daughter.
The book is very well written with a nice description of the Guyanese people and costumes. By also living in a colonized country, I do know how the local people has to struggle sometimes against their own origins. And once you start to read this book, you will be entangled in the life of these three amazing women.
Location 2301:
If you turn everything into money you don’t know you lose the past? An’ if you lose the past don’ know you lose your soul?
For further information about this most expensive stamp ever found, please visit the link below:
Red-letter day for most expensive stamp - The Telegraph
December 23, 2015
I am slowly learning about the importance of choosing the right circumstances under which to read a book. This one I read while traveling with family, and I found its brand of lively melodrama perfect for semi-distracted, oft-interrupted reading. Judging from Of Marriageable Age, which I read years ago, had this book received my full attention, it likely would have irritated me; as is, I enjoyed it. That said, it is quite similar to Of Marriageable Age, and if you loved that one to pieces you should go ahead and read this.
The Small Fortune of Dorothea Q follows three generations of Guyanese women: there’s Dorothea, a tough and outspoken crusader; her daughter Rika, a sensitive and socially awkward artist; and Rika’s daughter Inky, a modern teen who grows up in London. The story begins when the elderly Dorothea comes to live with Rika and Inky, opening old wounds and bearing a precious antique stamp. While it begins with Inky’s first-person narrative, the bulk of the novel uses the third person to trace Dorothea’s and Rika’s pasts in Guyana.
The novel is entertaining and well-paced, though predictable and cliché. It has all the elements you’d expect from a good soap: love triangles, secret parentage, accidents followed by tearful epiphanies at hospital bedsides, amnesia, characters presumed dead only to reappear, Big Misunderstandings that could be cleared up in under 5 seconds if the characters actually spoke to each other, important letters that aren’t read… you get the idea. That said, this novel is an above-average version of that; Maas develops the story well, and Dorothea and Rika are well-drawn and sympathetic characters. (I can’t say the same for Inky, who is a stereotypically self-centered modern teen without any interesting qualities. Inky’s interpretation of the ending also seemed to me dead wrong. Perhaps it was Maas’s intent that Inky doesn’t understand people nearly as well as she thinks she does; it’s hard to tell.) The setting is also interesting and we learn a bit about Guyanese history and culture.
This isn’t great literature, but it is an entertaining family saga. It would make great airplane, beach, or doctor’s office reading. Don’t assume from the page count that it will last, though; it goes by quickly.
The Small Fortune of Dorothea Q follows three generations of Guyanese women: there’s Dorothea, a tough and outspoken crusader; her daughter Rika, a sensitive and socially awkward artist; and Rika’s daughter Inky, a modern teen who grows up in London. The story begins when the elderly Dorothea comes to live with Rika and Inky, opening old wounds and bearing a precious antique stamp. While it begins with Inky’s first-person narrative, the bulk of the novel uses the third person to trace Dorothea’s and Rika’s pasts in Guyana.
The novel is entertaining and well-paced, though predictable and cliché. It has all the elements you’d expect from a good soap: love triangles, secret parentage, accidents followed by tearful epiphanies at hospital bedsides, amnesia, characters presumed dead only to reappear, Big Misunderstandings that could be cleared up in under 5 seconds if the characters actually spoke to each other, important letters that aren’t read… you get the idea. That said, this novel is an above-average version of that; Maas develops the story well, and Dorothea and Rika are well-drawn and sympathetic characters. (I can’t say the same for Inky, who is a stereotypically self-centered modern teen without any interesting qualities. Inky’s interpretation of the ending also seemed to me dead wrong. Perhaps it was Maas’s intent that Inky doesn’t understand people nearly as well as she thinks she does; it’s hard to tell.) The setting is also interesting and we learn a bit about Guyanese history and culture.
This isn’t great literature, but it is an entertaining family saga. It would make great airplane, beach, or doctor’s office reading. Don’t assume from the page count that it will last, though; it goes by quickly.
January 30, 2015
Sharon Maas recreates her storytelling magic with ‘The Small Fortune of Dorothea Q’. Her writing sparkles as usual and right from the first page you are drawn into the story and absorbed in the wonderful world and characters Sharon has created with such aplomb. I loved Inky, her name, her exuberance, her innocence and her fierce protectiveness of her mother. Rika reminded me of myself as a child. I could relate to Rika. I loved Dorothea’s feisty character, her loyalty and especially loved her as a cantankerous old lady and the interaction between her and Inky. This story had so many facets, so much wisdom. I loved this book so much that I couldn't bear to be parted from it, going so far as to download it onto my phone so I could take it everywhere with me. Another absolutely fabulous offering from the brilliant Sharon Maas.
January 30, 2015
The Small Fortune of Dorothea Q has such a beautiful cover and intriguing title that I instantly wanted to read it without even glancing through the blurb. I only discovered the delights Bookouture offer late last year and was highly impressed with The Poets Wife by Rebecca Stonehill so I had high expectations for this new novel by Sharon Maas. This is a big story spanning three generations of women from the Quint family from the 30’s right up until the 00’s.With such a huge timespan and three very different women to focus on the book only really got going in the second half but once it did I was racing through the pages of this beguiling, thought provoking and at times puzzling story. This is a book about much more than a stamp of major historical importance. It explores the lives, loves, loss and misunderstanding that circle around many families and how elements of the past always have a bearing on the future.
Set in Guyana (formerly British Guiana) it was wonderful to read a book which was set in a really different country to where I live,where I knew nothing of their culture or even where the country was (I do admit to looking it up on Google), these sections were well written and I got lost in the stories of Dorothea and Rika although they did take quite a while to get going. In general, I found I did trudge through the first half I thought I wasn’t getting anywhere and I think this was mainly because there was so much setting up to do with so much backstory to give in relation to the three main characters Inky, Rika and Dorothea. There were lots of links to establish and plots to lay the foundations for that many of these storylines only really beared fruit in the second half .
I admit I was tempted to give up, after being so eager to read this I was disappointed that I wasn’t gripped straight away but now I am ever so glad that I persisted because once I got to the halfway point everything started coming together and things made more sense. I began to realise why characters acted and felt the way they did and the whole book appeared more cohesive I felt the story really gathered pace and strength. The chapters were shorter and more to the point and each left you hanging wanting to know what was in store.
Focusing on three female members of the same family Dorothea, Rika and Inky the book jumps back and forth quite often as we learn of Dorothea’s childhood in Guyana as she navigates the world of growing up and falling in love and how war changes everything. We met Rika in the 60’s she is Dorothea’s daughter and cannot understand why she is not loved in the same way as her siblings .Rika feels neglected and unloved and there is open bitterness and almost hostility towards her. She loves reading and writing and uses this as her escape but at the same time she wants to be what she feels is normal like all the other girls and a situation brings forth the harsh realities of having your emotions fooled around with. Inky is Rika’s daughter, she has never met any of her mother’s family until they are forced to take in her Gran from Guyana and care for her. Inky seemed the least developed of the three and I felt I didn’t know or care for her as much as the other two women but the other two storylines made up for this.
Rika has had no contact with her family for many years and it is a big step up for her to take on her mother once again and care for her in her old age. A stamp seems to connect them all but there is so much more going on here than just a piece of paper.The author really made me like Dorothea when I read about her story in the 30’s but in the 60’s and 00’s she appeared a totally changed woman and in a way a mean and slighted hated person who had lost her warmth and compassion. I was eager to keep reading to see what had caused such a turnaround in a character that had seemed to have her whole life ahead of her but somehow things had not gone to plan.
There are way too many twists and turns and unexpected events and surprises in this book to attempt to go into here. This book is rich in detail and emotion and has the most beautiful and real description of loss I have ever read. Despite initial hesitations with this book I am glad to have discovered a new author who in the end successfully had me turning the pages to reach the end of a well written compelling tale.
Set in Guyana (formerly British Guiana) it was wonderful to read a book which was set in a really different country to where I live,where I knew nothing of their culture or even where the country was (I do admit to looking it up on Google), these sections were well written and I got lost in the stories of Dorothea and Rika although they did take quite a while to get going. In general, I found I did trudge through the first half I thought I wasn’t getting anywhere and I think this was mainly because there was so much setting up to do with so much backstory to give in relation to the three main characters Inky, Rika and Dorothea. There were lots of links to establish and plots to lay the foundations for that many of these storylines only really beared fruit in the second half .
I admit I was tempted to give up, after being so eager to read this I was disappointed that I wasn’t gripped straight away but now I am ever so glad that I persisted because once I got to the halfway point everything started coming together and things made more sense. I began to realise why characters acted and felt the way they did and the whole book appeared more cohesive I felt the story really gathered pace and strength. The chapters were shorter and more to the point and each left you hanging wanting to know what was in store.
Focusing on three female members of the same family Dorothea, Rika and Inky the book jumps back and forth quite often as we learn of Dorothea’s childhood in Guyana as she navigates the world of growing up and falling in love and how war changes everything. We met Rika in the 60’s she is Dorothea’s daughter and cannot understand why she is not loved in the same way as her siblings .Rika feels neglected and unloved and there is open bitterness and almost hostility towards her. She loves reading and writing and uses this as her escape but at the same time she wants to be what she feels is normal like all the other girls and a situation brings forth the harsh realities of having your emotions fooled around with. Inky is Rika’s daughter, she has never met any of her mother’s family until they are forced to take in her Gran from Guyana and care for her. Inky seemed the least developed of the three and I felt I didn’t know or care for her as much as the other two women but the other two storylines made up for this.
Rika has had no contact with her family for many years and it is a big step up for her to take on her mother once again and care for her in her old age. A stamp seems to connect them all but there is so much more going on here than just a piece of paper.The author really made me like Dorothea when I read about her story in the 30’s but in the 60’s and 00’s she appeared a totally changed woman and in a way a mean and slighted hated person who had lost her warmth and compassion. I was eager to keep reading to see what had caused such a turnaround in a character that had seemed to have her whole life ahead of her but somehow things had not gone to plan.
There are way too many twists and turns and unexpected events and surprises in this book to attempt to go into here. This book is rich in detail and emotion and has the most beautiful and real description of loss I have ever read. Despite initial hesitations with this book I am glad to have discovered a new author who in the end successfully had me turning the pages to reach the end of a well written compelling tale.
January 29, 2015
Review originally posted on my blog www.LivingLifeWithJoy.com
The Small Fortune of Dorothea Q was a touching story that was filled with intriguing characters and important real-life issues. Because it was the first novel I’ve ever read by Sharon Maas, I went in with an open mind to the type of story she had written. It’s not my general type of novel because it wasn’t chick-lit filled with drama, laughs and love. Every so often I like to step outside my comfort zone and read a novel that has a bit more depth than the average rom-com. What I got from this novel [that could be classified as women’s fiction], was a wonderful story filled with important topics. I’m not a fan of the novel’s style of going back and forth between past and present, but it did lend a certain element of surprise that would not have been possible if the story was told in order from beginning to end. Although it was a slower read for me, I thoroughly enjoyed every minute spent reading it.
There were many passages throughout the novel that were thought-provoking and philosophical. Some of the most important concepts involved love, racism, and respect. One of my favorite lines from this novel was that “Love isn’t a duty“. Love is earned and given and it is one of the most precious things in existence. It is with love that we care for others and it is with love that we sometimes retreat from those that matter most in order to protect them. It is also with love that we learn to move on from tragedy and embrace the good things in our lives. This story is filled with tragic love and family ties that are bound in secrets and misunderstandings. These situations and issues were all wrapped up in a foundation of love.
Throughout the novel, there are numerous situations where white people are treated as though they are superior to black people. It was sad to read that being white could ever ‘make’ someone better and that behaving, dressing and speaking like white people was something to aspire to. It’s unfortunate that we ever had such prominent racism in our world, but what’s even more upsetting is that it still exists today.
One of my favorite messages in the book was to be yourself. It takes more strength to be true to yourself than to simply follow the horde of what everyone else is doing. This idea went back to racism and standing up for yourself and what is right and just. It also correlated to staying true to who you are and not dressing or acting a certain way because it’s perceived as cool or will make you popular.
The Small Fortune of Dorothea Q was a wonderful story with powerful messages about love, life and learning to let things go in order to be happy. It was a beautiful story about tragic love and ultimately about forgiveness. I highly recommend this novel if you are interested in reading a story about overcoming difficult situations, with a few laughs and some interesting characters along the way. “Freedom and happiness come with letting go.”
The Small Fortune of Dorothea Q was a touching story that was filled with intriguing characters and important real-life issues. Because it was the first novel I’ve ever read by Sharon Maas, I went in with an open mind to the type of story she had written. It’s not my general type of novel because it wasn’t chick-lit filled with drama, laughs and love. Every so often I like to step outside my comfort zone and read a novel that has a bit more depth than the average rom-com. What I got from this novel [that could be classified as women’s fiction], was a wonderful story filled with important topics. I’m not a fan of the novel’s style of going back and forth between past and present, but it did lend a certain element of surprise that would not have been possible if the story was told in order from beginning to end. Although it was a slower read for me, I thoroughly enjoyed every minute spent reading it.
There were many passages throughout the novel that were thought-provoking and philosophical. Some of the most important concepts involved love, racism, and respect. One of my favorite lines from this novel was that “Love isn’t a duty“. Love is earned and given and it is one of the most precious things in existence. It is with love that we care for others and it is with love that we sometimes retreat from those that matter most in order to protect them. It is also with love that we learn to move on from tragedy and embrace the good things in our lives. This story is filled with tragic love and family ties that are bound in secrets and misunderstandings. These situations and issues were all wrapped up in a foundation of love.
Throughout the novel, there are numerous situations where white people are treated as though they are superior to black people. It was sad to read that being white could ever ‘make’ someone better and that behaving, dressing and speaking like white people was something to aspire to. It’s unfortunate that we ever had such prominent racism in our world, but what’s even more upsetting is that it still exists today.
One of my favorite messages in the book was to be yourself. It takes more strength to be true to yourself than to simply follow the horde of what everyone else is doing. This idea went back to racism and standing up for yourself and what is right and just. It also correlated to staying true to who you are and not dressing or acting a certain way because it’s perceived as cool or will make you popular.
The Small Fortune of Dorothea Q was a wonderful story with powerful messages about love, life and learning to let things go in order to be happy. It was a beautiful story about tragic love and ultimately about forgiveness. I highly recommend this novel if you are interested in reading a story about overcoming difficult situations, with a few laughs and some interesting characters along the way. “Freedom and happiness come with letting go.”
February 9, 2015
The Small Fortune of Dorothea Q by Sharon Maas
“An epic, mesmerizing tale of tragic loss, the strength of words left unspoken, and the redeeming power of love. Thirty years of family secrets. Three generations of women. One family heirloom that could change everything.
The Small Fortune of Dorothea Q is a multi-generational story of Dorothea Quint, her daughter Rika (Frederika), and grand-daughter Inky (Inca). We skip back and forth through the decades, discovering the loves and dramas of the three women, in colonial British Guyana (South America), post-colonial Guyana, and modern London. The three protagonists of this story are wonderful women with a very strong character but very different from each other. Dorothea, grandmother, Rika, her daughter, and Inky, Rifka’s daughter.Inky is 18 years old was born and raised in London and has never visited the country from which her mother, Guyana. Rika has not seen her mother for more than 30 years: she has run away from home very young and since she is a proud woman has never apologized, so her mother. She married the wrong man: drunk, unfaithful, irresponsible. She is now widowed and in debt. Dorothea has always lived in Guyana, lately no longer self-sufficient, living on a wheelchair and her daughter Marion takes care of her. But now Marion wants to go live with her daughter who is about to give birth and she can no longer care for her mother. The other two sons of Dortohea have their wife too busy in their career to manage a nagging mother-in-law in a wheelchair. The only that can take care of her is Rika, her brothers will help her financially with the costs. Inky will see for the first time grandmother, her only grandma: she has never known, they have written letters only when she was very small but then their communications were reduced to a Christmas card. Inky is hoping to finally find out what is the awful secret that it did quarrel mother and grandma so hard as not to see each other for 30 years. Another protagonist of the story is a family heirloom, a stamp that seems to be unique in the world.” Maybe it is timing or maybe it just hit all my personal “like” buttons but loved this book
“An epic, mesmerizing tale of tragic loss, the strength of words left unspoken, and the redeeming power of love. Thirty years of family secrets. Three generations of women. One family heirloom that could change everything.
The Small Fortune of Dorothea Q is a multi-generational story of Dorothea Quint, her daughter Rika (Frederika), and grand-daughter Inky (Inca). We skip back and forth through the decades, discovering the loves and dramas of the three women, in colonial British Guyana (South America), post-colonial Guyana, and modern London. The three protagonists of this story are wonderful women with a very strong character but very different from each other. Dorothea, grandmother, Rika, her daughter, and Inky, Rifka’s daughter.Inky is 18 years old was born and raised in London and has never visited the country from which her mother, Guyana. Rika has not seen her mother for more than 30 years: she has run away from home very young and since she is a proud woman has never apologized, so her mother. She married the wrong man: drunk, unfaithful, irresponsible. She is now widowed and in debt. Dorothea has always lived in Guyana, lately no longer self-sufficient, living on a wheelchair and her daughter Marion takes care of her. But now Marion wants to go live with her daughter who is about to give birth and she can no longer care for her mother. The other two sons of Dortohea have their wife too busy in their career to manage a nagging mother-in-law in a wheelchair. The only that can take care of her is Rika, her brothers will help her financially with the costs. Inky will see for the first time grandmother, her only grandma: she has never known, they have written letters only when she was very small but then their communications were reduced to a Christmas card. Inky is hoping to finally find out what is the awful secret that it did quarrel mother and grandma so hard as not to see each other for 30 years. Another protagonist of the story is a family heirloom, a stamp that seems to be unique in the world.” Maybe it is timing or maybe it just hit all my personal “like” buttons but loved this book
May 12, 2015
This book follows three generations of the same family in Guyana and London. Rika left Guyana 30 years ago and said that she’d never be back. She now lives in London with her daughter Inky. She had a very difficult life in Guyana and escapes the past. Inky has never met any of her relatives until they have to take her Grandma in to look after her. Rika finds it hard to cope with her mother- old wounds haven’t healed and she’s not an easy character.
Inky discovers what happened to make her mother flee from her past, there are lots of surprises revealed throughout the book.
It’s wonderful to read about other countries in such a beautifully described setting. Loved the images produced by losing yourself in the pages.The cover on this one is so beautiful and would make me pick the book up to discover more.
Many thanks to the publisher and Net galley for the chance to read this book.
Inky discovers what happened to make her mother flee from her past, there are lots of surprises revealed throughout the book.
It’s wonderful to read about other countries in such a beautifully described setting. Loved the images produced by losing yourself in the pages.The cover on this one is so beautiful and would make me pick the book up to discover more.
Many thanks to the publisher and Net galley for the chance to read this book.
March 21, 2016
Great story, nicely written. Sharon Maas has a warmth to her style that allows you engage with the characters. I liked the multiple narration and timelines, thank heavens for the signposting or I would have been really confused.
Story rattles on at a fair old pace but the plot doesn't really develop until the 2nd half of the book.
It felt like a modern saga with many layers to be peeled away. The ending wasn't as shocking as I think the author hoped for but I loved the descriptions of "home" very compelling - even the colours and smells of Brixton market made it sound appealing!!
Well Worth a read, not too deep, not scary but interesting interplay between members of a family - and deals with history and estrangement in a gentle fashion.
4* because it was good!
Story rattles on at a fair old pace but the plot doesn't really develop until the 2nd half of the book.
It felt like a modern saga with many layers to be peeled away. The ending wasn't as shocking as I think the author hoped for but I loved the descriptions of "home" very compelling - even the colours and smells of Brixton market made it sound appealing!!
Well Worth a read, not too deep, not scary but interesting interplay between members of a family - and deals with history and estrangement in a gentle fashion.
4* because it was good!
June 6, 2015
First and foremost, I'd like to say that this was a fascinating read in terms of highlighting the culture and history and country of Guyana which I must confess I knew pitifully little about previously. Reading this made me really want to go there! I hugely enjoyed this three-generational tale, revolving around three women whom Maas succeeds in rendering utterly unique and believable. I particularly enjoyed the voice of Dorothea herself as an older women, she was a wonderfully warm, sparky character. I'd definitely recommend this novel to people who enjoy learning about new places whilst also enjoying a cracking good yarn.
August 23, 2015
Dear Sharon,
Thanks for another masterpiece - your best so far. Maybe because of the aurobiographical links you describe at your blog.
I not just learned about (British) Guyana, I also learnt about life, love and family. The characters seemed to become alive and told their stories themselves. I lived with them, laughed with them, cried with them. After finishing the book I am happy they have found peace but also sad I had to say goodbye to them.
Thanks for your novel, I am looking forward to your next one!
Thanks for another masterpiece - your best so far. Maybe because of the aurobiographical links you describe at your blog.
I not just learned about (British) Guyana, I also learnt about life, love and family. The characters seemed to become alive and told their stories themselves. I lived with them, laughed with them, cried with them. After finishing the book I am happy they have found peace but also sad I had to say goodbye to them.
Thanks for your novel, I am looking forward to your next one!
February 3, 2015
Another beautiful book by Sharon Mass. I was initially drawn in by the cover, but everything about this story shines. It features the story of three strong female characters, Dorothea, grandmother, Rika, her daughter, and Inky, her niece. A very touching story which brings you on a journey of loss, love and discovery.
March 12, 2015
An absolute gem ! Loved this story of three generations of Guyanese women and the tragedies that linked and estranged them. The characters were really well drawn and the movement between the three different generations worked really well. Vivid descriptions of Guyana made it come alive. Definitely recommend!
February 25, 2015
Another great book by Sharon Maas! I loved learning more about Guyana, the history and the people. The characters in the novel—three generations of women from the same family—were wonderfully flawed and beautiful.
January 30, 2015
Small Fortune of Dorothea Q
by Sharon Maas
THE BLURB
Thirty years of family secrets. Three generations of women. One family heirloom that could change everything.
When she ran away from her childhood home in Guyana, Rika swore that she would never return. Cut off from her family, she has fought hard to make a life for herself and daughter, Inky, in London.
Now, over thirty years later, Rika’s cantankerous, wheelchair-bound mother, Dorothea, arrives in London. But as old wounds re-open, Dorothea and Rika are further apart than ever.
Inky soon learns that her grandmother is sitting on a small fortune. As she uncovers the secrets of the past one by one, she unravels the tragedy that tore her mother and grandmother apart. But nothing can prepare her, or Rika, for Dorothea’s final, unexpected revelation.
An epic, mesmerizing tale of tragic loss, the strength of words left unspoken, and the redeeming power of love.
WHAT I SAY
Wow what a very touching story that was filled with super characters and important real-life issues.
This is the first book I’ve read by Sharon Maas, I was not sure what it was going to like but i loved it i got another new author now
The story so easy to follow but was a bit slow at the start but this help you to understand the characters it was a wonderful story filled with lots of important topics.
The book told by going back and forth between past and present, but it did lend to a few element of shock i did like the way the story flowed the chapters are very short and left you wanting more which was good it did need to go back and forward you understand the heart arches the three main character felt more
The book has some hard topics to deal with love, racism, and respect i like the way they were all put a cross and the way they were dealth with .
This story is filled with tragic love and family ties that are bound in secrets and misunderstandings. Love brings them together
The book just such a wonderful story with powerful messages about love, life and learning to let things go in order to be happy. It was a great story about tragic love and ultimately about forgiveness. It wrote with such passion it packed with twists and turns it got lots of unexpected events and it was a very emotional read as you read you get absorbed into the story
All the characters are so powerful and strong dorothea was very feisty at times she made me smile i loved hearing all about her life
Inky her daughter was she never met any of her mum family why ?we do find out why
Her mum Rika i loved her she likes to read and writhing that her escape i felt we find out so much and her family
The book just so thought provoking it lovely read as i said keep reading it as the beginning a bit slow but then the plot just hooks you it so clever a very wonderful story of family love
4 dolls
Thank for letting me read and review net gallery
by Sharon Maas
THE BLURB
Thirty years of family secrets. Three generations of women. One family heirloom that could change everything.
When she ran away from her childhood home in Guyana, Rika swore that she would never return. Cut off from her family, she has fought hard to make a life for herself and daughter, Inky, in London.
Now, over thirty years later, Rika’s cantankerous, wheelchair-bound mother, Dorothea, arrives in London. But as old wounds re-open, Dorothea and Rika are further apart than ever.
Inky soon learns that her grandmother is sitting on a small fortune. As she uncovers the secrets of the past one by one, she unravels the tragedy that tore her mother and grandmother apart. But nothing can prepare her, or Rika, for Dorothea’s final, unexpected revelation.
An epic, mesmerizing tale of tragic loss, the strength of words left unspoken, and the redeeming power of love.
WHAT I SAY
Wow what a very touching story that was filled with super characters and important real-life issues.
This is the first book I’ve read by Sharon Maas, I was not sure what it was going to like but i loved it i got another new author now
The story so easy to follow but was a bit slow at the start but this help you to understand the characters it was a wonderful story filled with lots of important topics.
The book told by going back and forth between past and present, but it did lend to a few element of shock i did like the way the story flowed the chapters are very short and left you wanting more which was good it did need to go back and forward you understand the heart arches the three main character felt more
The book has some hard topics to deal with love, racism, and respect i like the way they were all put a cross and the way they were dealth with .
This story is filled with tragic love and family ties that are bound in secrets and misunderstandings. Love brings them together
The book just such a wonderful story with powerful messages about love, life and learning to let things go in order to be happy. It was a great story about tragic love and ultimately about forgiveness. It wrote with such passion it packed with twists and turns it got lots of unexpected events and it was a very emotional read as you read you get absorbed into the story
All the characters are so powerful and strong dorothea was very feisty at times she made me smile i loved hearing all about her life
Inky her daughter was she never met any of her mum family why ?we do find out why
Her mum Rika i loved her she likes to read and writhing that her escape i felt we find out so much and her family
The book just so thought provoking it lovely read as i said keep reading it as the beginning a bit slow but then the plot just hooks you it so clever a very wonderful story of family love
4 dolls
Thank for letting me read and review net gallery
June 9, 2015
I received an e-arc of this book from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for my honest review.
Take one terrible family secret, add a pinch of tension spanning generations, finish with an immensely valuable family heirloom and... voilà! You now have a truly satisfying read. This is what I found in The Small Fortune of Dorothea Q. I was initially intrigued by the title and the absolutely gorgeous cover (honestly, it's so pretty it is worth picking up this book for the cover alone!), but I was soon captivated by the story and the colourful characters. True, the beginning I found quite slow, and I did have a little trouble following the narration, as it is divided between the three female protagonists (Dorothea, Rika and Inky), and the action in the three different decades. But as I got further into the story, I was completely sucked in and found myself wondering what the big, terrible secret was. And I'm quite pleased to say that, even though I had called a part of it early on and had been right, the author still managed to surprise me with the way she developed it (I know this sounds very cryptic, but it's incredibly hard trying to avoid any spoiler at this point!). I also liked getting snippets of Guyanese history and culture throughout the book, which I thought added an interesting layer to the story.
As I already mentioned, I wasn't too keen on the split narration initially, but it actually ended up being quite a strong point in the book for me as I progressed in the reading. Seeing the events unfold through the eyes of one or the other of the wonderful women in this book made me connect with them on a much deeper level, and actually avoided the terrible 'big-plot-revelation-through-an-incredibly-long-character-speech' pitfall. The character development was also truly well done. I didn't care much for any of the characters in the beginning, since they pretty much all seemed very annoying and/or incredibly bossy. But as the story progressed and I started figuring out all the things that had happened to them, I understood why the characters acted the way they did, and my judgment on them substantially improved. I still didn't care very much for Inky, as I found her just a little too self-centred for my liking, but that's just me being very judgmental about book characters.
Overall, this was a very entertaining read, at times sweet, at times sad. If you like family mysteries mixed with romance and tragedy, I really suggest you check this out.
Originally posted on Book For Thought.
Take one terrible family secret, add a pinch of tension spanning generations, finish with an immensely valuable family heirloom and... voilà! You now have a truly satisfying read. This is what I found in The Small Fortune of Dorothea Q. I was initially intrigued by the title and the absolutely gorgeous cover (honestly, it's so pretty it is worth picking up this book for the cover alone!), but I was soon captivated by the story and the colourful characters. True, the beginning I found quite slow, and I did have a little trouble following the narration, as it is divided between the three female protagonists (Dorothea, Rika and Inky), and the action in the three different decades. But as I got further into the story, I was completely sucked in and found myself wondering what the big, terrible secret was. And I'm quite pleased to say that, even though I had called a part of it early on and had been right, the author still managed to surprise me with the way she developed it (I know this sounds very cryptic, but it's incredibly hard trying to avoid any spoiler at this point!). I also liked getting snippets of Guyanese history and culture throughout the book, which I thought added an interesting layer to the story.
As I already mentioned, I wasn't too keen on the split narration initially, but it actually ended up being quite a strong point in the book for me as I progressed in the reading. Seeing the events unfold through the eyes of one or the other of the wonderful women in this book made me connect with them on a much deeper level, and actually avoided the terrible 'big-plot-revelation-through-an-incredibly-long-character-speech' pitfall. The character development was also truly well done. I didn't care much for any of the characters in the beginning, since they pretty much all seemed very annoying and/or incredibly bossy. But as the story progressed and I started figuring out all the things that had happened to them, I understood why the characters acted the way they did, and my judgment on them substantially improved. I still didn't care very much for Inky, as I found her just a little too self-centred for my liking, but that's just me being very judgmental about book characters.
Overall, this was a very entertaining read, at times sweet, at times sad. If you like family mysteries mixed with romance and tragedy, I really suggest you check this out.
Originally posted on Book For Thought.
February 6, 2015
Ever since I read Sharon Maas’s ‘Of Marriageable Age’ almost 15 years ago (it’s original release was in 2000!), it has remained one of my favourite books of all time. Periodically I would check on Google and Amazon to see if I’d missed a new book that she’d written, and finally, my long wait has been rewarded, and does not disappoint! Thank you to Bookouture for sending me this ARC.
The Small Fortune of Dorothea Q is lyrical, atmospheric and poetic in its beauty! I stretched out the reading so as not to finish it too quickly, and so that I could drink in and retain all of it. It is a dense and multifaceted story and I felt the need to completely surround myself with it in order to fully appreciate it.
The story unwinds in both Guyana (previously British Guiana) and London, and alternates between three generations of the same family. There’s cranky, stubborn grandmother, Dorothea, her daughter Rika, and her granddaughter Inky.
Rika left Guyana 30 years previously, swearing she would never go back. But the past has a way of coming to find you, no matter how hard you leave it behind. Consequently, Inky has never met any of her mother’s family until Dorothea is deposited with them! It is a surprise for her to learn of family she’s never heard about, and to learn about her family’s history. Most of all about Dorothea’s closely held inheritance – a rare stamp – that she refuses to part with no matter what! Her incredulous question ‘You don’t know what an heirloom is?’ goes a long way to showing the disparity between the generations.
We are led through the lives of rebellious, strong-willed, independent Dorothea, whose own family can’t seem to forgive her for being more of a Quint (that rowdy, tempestuous bunch!), than one of her own; quiet misfit Rika, destined never to find her mother’s favour; and young, free-spirited Inky, struggling to understand the underlying currents flowing between her mother and grandmother. Gradually we come to understand the history that binds these generations together: the long-held disappointments and resentments, the jealousies and misunderstandings, and most of all the love and longing for what they’ve lost, and also for what can be re-built.
This is a powerful tale that reminds us that even though we may leave our birthplace and all that is familiar to us to forge new paths our roots remain as strong as ever, no matter how hard we try to plant new ones in new places. It reminds us that blood really is thicker than water, and that no matter how far we may roam, we always carry home with us in our hearts.
The Small Fortune of Dorothea Q is lyrical, atmospheric and poetic in its beauty! I stretched out the reading so as not to finish it too quickly, and so that I could drink in and retain all of it. It is a dense and multifaceted story and I felt the need to completely surround myself with it in order to fully appreciate it.
The story unwinds in both Guyana (previously British Guiana) and London, and alternates between three generations of the same family. There’s cranky, stubborn grandmother, Dorothea, her daughter Rika, and her granddaughter Inky.
Rika left Guyana 30 years previously, swearing she would never go back. But the past has a way of coming to find you, no matter how hard you leave it behind. Consequently, Inky has never met any of her mother’s family until Dorothea is deposited with them! It is a surprise for her to learn of family she’s never heard about, and to learn about her family’s history. Most of all about Dorothea’s closely held inheritance – a rare stamp – that she refuses to part with no matter what! Her incredulous question ‘You don’t know what an heirloom is?’ goes a long way to showing the disparity between the generations.
We are led through the lives of rebellious, strong-willed, independent Dorothea, whose own family can’t seem to forgive her for being more of a Quint (that rowdy, tempestuous bunch!), than one of her own; quiet misfit Rika, destined never to find her mother’s favour; and young, free-spirited Inky, struggling to understand the underlying currents flowing between her mother and grandmother. Gradually we come to understand the history that binds these generations together: the long-held disappointments and resentments, the jealousies and misunderstandings, and most of all the love and longing for what they’ve lost, and also for what can be re-built.
This is a powerful tale that reminds us that even though we may leave our birthplace and all that is familiar to us to forge new paths our roots remain as strong as ever, no matter how hard we try to plant new ones in new places. It reminds us that blood really is thicker than water, and that no matter how far we may roam, we always carry home with us in our hearts.
December 25, 2015
The three protagonists of this story are wonderful women with a very strong character but very different from each other. Dorothea, grandmother, Rika, her daughter, and Inky, her niece.
Inky is 18 years old was born and raised in London and has never visited the country from which her mother, Guyana. Rika has not seen her mother for more than 30 years: she has run away from home very young and since she is a proud woman has never apologized, so her mother. She married the wrong man: drunk, unfaithful, irresponsible. She is now widowed and in debt. Dorothea has always lived in Guyana, lately no longer self-sufficient, living on a wheelchair and her daughter Marion takes care of her. But now Marion wants to go live with her daughter who is about to give birth and she can no longer care for her mother. The other two sons of Dortohea have their wife too busy in their career to manage a nagging mother-in-law in a wheelchair. The only that can take care of her is Rika, her brothers will help her financially with the costs. Inky will see for the first time grandmother, her only grandma: she has never known, they have written letters only when she was very small but then their communications were reduced to a Christmas card. Inky is hoping to finally find out what is the awful secret that it did quarrel mother and grandma so hard as not to see each other for 30 years. Another protagonist of the story is a family heirloom, a stamp that seems to be unique in the world ........
The characters are all realistic and very well characterized, both the main and secondary: in addition to the protagonists I am very fond of Freddy and Sal, I wish I had an aunt like Marion and a mother-in-law as Ma Quint. Very exciting the idea of telling the story by jumping back and forth between past and present, and alternating the point of view of three women. Most of the story is told in first person by Inky and other parts are from the point of view of the mother and grandma but are written in third person. There is Dorothea teenager in Guyana colonized who fight for the rights of black people. Rika girl in the 60s in the post colonial Guyana and finally Inky teenager in modern London.
I loved everything about this novel: the plot, the places, the characters, the cover.
It 's a sweet romance, romantic, exotic, about family and forgiveness.
I want to thank the author because thanks to this book I got to know and "visit" a great nation that I didn't know.
Inky is 18 years old was born and raised in London and has never visited the country from which her mother, Guyana. Rika has not seen her mother for more than 30 years: she has run away from home very young and since she is a proud woman has never apologized, so her mother. She married the wrong man: drunk, unfaithful, irresponsible. She is now widowed and in debt. Dorothea has always lived in Guyana, lately no longer self-sufficient, living on a wheelchair and her daughter Marion takes care of her. But now Marion wants to go live with her daughter who is about to give birth and she can no longer care for her mother. The other two sons of Dortohea have their wife too busy in their career to manage a nagging mother-in-law in a wheelchair. The only that can take care of her is Rika, her brothers will help her financially with the costs. Inky will see for the first time grandmother, her only grandma: she has never known, they have written letters only when she was very small but then their communications were reduced to a Christmas card. Inky is hoping to finally find out what is the awful secret that it did quarrel mother and grandma so hard as not to see each other for 30 years. Another protagonist of the story is a family heirloom, a stamp that seems to be unique in the world ........
The characters are all realistic and very well characterized, both the main and secondary: in addition to the protagonists I am very fond of Freddy and Sal, I wish I had an aunt like Marion and a mother-in-law as Ma Quint. Very exciting the idea of telling the story by jumping back and forth between past and present, and alternating the point of view of three women. Most of the story is told in first person by Inky and other parts are from the point of view of the mother and grandma but are written in third person. There is Dorothea teenager in Guyana colonized who fight for the rights of black people. Rika girl in the 60s in the post colonial Guyana and finally Inky teenager in modern London.
I loved everything about this novel: the plot, the places, the characters, the cover.
It 's a sweet romance, romantic, exotic, about family and forgiveness.
I want to thank the author because thanks to this book I got to know and "visit" a great nation that I didn't know.
March 5, 2015
Thirty years of family secrets. Three generations of women. One family heirloom that could change everything.
This was a great book, telling the stories of Dorothea, her daughter Rika and Rika's daughter Inky. Beginning in present day London, Rika and Inky's lives are thrown into turmoil with the arrival of Rika's wheelchair bound mother from Guyana. Rika has not seen her mother for thirty years since she ran away from home in Guyana, and Inky has never met her grandmother, or known why her mother ran away.
The arrival of Dorothea inevitably stirs up lot of emotions and the friction is heightened with the discovery that the heirloom she has brought with her is literally worth a small fortune.
The story is brilliantly told by means of flashbacks of both Dorothea's and Rika's lives so we are finally party to why Rika ran away. I loved the fact that it was set in Guyana and not Britain because it gave the story an additional cultural and historical interest that helped set it apart from the typical troubled mother/daughter tales. The characters are all well drawn and very believable and it is very easy to get drawn in to the plot.
The story is essentially one about love, relationships, dealing with loss and learning to forgive. It is very touching, tragic and full of surprises with an ending that I had not anticipated.
If you want a read that is entertaining, romantic, tragic and thought provoking then I thoroughly recommend this book.
I recieved an ARC via NetGalley in return for an honest review.
This was a great book, telling the stories of Dorothea, her daughter Rika and Rika's daughter Inky. Beginning in present day London, Rika and Inky's lives are thrown into turmoil with the arrival of Rika's wheelchair bound mother from Guyana. Rika has not seen her mother for thirty years since she ran away from home in Guyana, and Inky has never met her grandmother, or known why her mother ran away.
The arrival of Dorothea inevitably stirs up lot of emotions and the friction is heightened with the discovery that the heirloom she has brought with her is literally worth a small fortune.
The story is brilliantly told by means of flashbacks of both Dorothea's and Rika's lives so we are finally party to why Rika ran away. I loved the fact that it was set in Guyana and not Britain because it gave the story an additional cultural and historical interest that helped set it apart from the typical troubled mother/daughter tales. The characters are all well drawn and very believable and it is very easy to get drawn in to the plot.
The story is essentially one about love, relationships, dealing with loss and learning to forgive. It is very touching, tragic and full of surprises with an ending that I had not anticipated.
If you want a read that is entertaining, romantic, tragic and thought provoking then I thoroughly recommend this book.
I recieved an ARC via NetGalley in return for an honest review.
February 4, 2015
I really enjoy Sharon Maas' writing, and The Small Fortune of Dorothea Q is my favourite novel of hers so far. The three lead characters are fascinating - so different, and yet so similar. The story weaves their lives together effortlessly, never giving too much away, and the characters and relationships are complex and well developed. Sharon Maas' descriptions of time and place are mesmerizing and it is so interesting to read a novel set in an interesting place like Guyana. Definitely a must-read.
February 19, 2015
I received a copy of this book from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for my honest review.
This is a story of generations and the damage trauma can do to the psyche. I enjoyed learning about Guyana, a country I've never read in fiction before. I felt the Guyana chapters were the books strength.
Sharon Maas crafts her characters with depth and nuances, which give them a realistic richness. To me the story of the stamp was secondary to the stories of Dorothea, Rika and Inky.
4/5
This is a story of generations and the damage trauma can do to the psyche. I enjoyed learning about Guyana, a country I've never read in fiction before. I felt the Guyana chapters were the books strength.
Sharon Maas crafts her characters with depth and nuances, which give them a realistic richness. To me the story of the stamp was secondary to the stories of Dorothea, Rika and Inky.
4/5
February 9, 2015
A well written saga of three generations of women. Inky never knew her Grandma but as a cantankerous old lady. Her mother Rika and her grandmother had been on the outs for years but when Dorothea comes to live with them she learns a whole different history behind the force of her grandmother and the secret to why mother and daughter, Dorothea and Rika have not spoken for years.
March 2, 2015
Very enjoyable
March 29, 2018
This is a beautiful well written story. It melts reality away and spans the journey of three different generations of women and how their stories link together. Although the story often fluctuates from one era to another it works in a pleasant way always leaving you hungry for more. I absolutely love Sharon Maas clear, distinct storytelling in such an eloquent way. She depicts such a graphic account of Guyana history as it was that one feels absolutely drawn in to the picture of its landscape along with the characters in the story. Just Love her work.
March 3, 2019
Depending on who you ask, Guyana either does or doesn't fit within the "Latin America" label. It also tends to be labeled as culturally Caribbean. So I've just put it on both shelves for my purposes (tracking where I read).
A nice look into the culture of Guyana in the 1960s, though very little about contemporary culture. It does make me more interested in the country and want to read more. The storytelling seems a little too contrived to me and the ends wrap up really neatly, but relationships are more important in the story than the plot.
A nice look into the culture of Guyana in the 1960s, though very little about contemporary culture. It does make me more interested in the country and want to read more. The storytelling seems a little too contrived to me and the ends wrap up really neatly, but relationships are more important in the story than the plot.
September 21, 2017
Touched Home
Finally a book that describes the beauty of Guyana along with a strong character, Dorothea. However I was disappointed by the meaness in which she came to London. Disappointed that the author made her a manipulative woman and made Rika at fault for leaving home not knowing about Rajan. I felt the ending chapters could have told a better story.
Finally a book that describes the beauty of Guyana along with a strong character, Dorothea. However I was disappointed by the meaness in which she came to London. Disappointed that the author made her a manipulative woman and made Rika at fault for leaving home not knowing about Rajan. I felt the ending chapters could have told a better story.
November 4, 2018
Mesmerising!
I could not put this book down, this is the second book I have read of Sharon Mass and I have just ordered the next. Beautiful characters, sweeping stories, vivid descriptions. Just mesmerising
I could not put this book down, this is the second book I have read of Sharon Mass and I have just ordered the next. Beautiful characters, sweeping stories, vivid descriptions. Just mesmerising
July 19, 2023
This book gave me joy, sorrow, and an appreciation for life as it is, with all of its love and tragedy and misfortune. I definitely cried. I only gave it four stars because of its predictability and cliche-ness, but a great read none the less.
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