Tuesday, June 8, 2010

Blog Tour: The Art of Devotion

Book Description:

In the tradition of bestselling authors Ian McEwan and Anne Enright, Samantha Bruce-Benjamin's brilliant and timeless debut unveils the dark side of human nature as four women share the poignant tale of love, obsession, and ultimate betrayal that binds them forever.

Have we all not wished to keep forever the one person we love the most?

The secluded beaches of a sun-drenched Mediterranean island are the perfect playground for young Sebastian and Adora. Emotionally adrift from their mother, Adora shelters her sensitive older brother from the cruelties of the world. Sophie does not question her children's intense need for one another until it's too late. Her beloved son's affections belong to Adora, and when he drowns in the sea, she has no one else to blame.

Still heartbroken years later, Adora fills her emptiness with Genevieve, the precocious young daughter of her husband's business associate and his jealous wife, Miranda. Thrilled to be invited into the beautiful and enigmatic Adora's world, the child idolizes her during their summers together. Yet, as the years progress, Genevieve begins to suspect their charmed existence is nothing more than a carefully crafted illusion. Soon, she too is ensnared in a web of lies.

Stunningly told in the tragic voices of four women whose lives are fatefully entangled, The Art of Devotion is evocative and haunting, a story of deceit, jealousy, and the heartbreaking reality of love's true power.


My Review:

I'll say this first and foremost: I loved the way this book was written. I loved the way the words flowed from the pages all beautiful and descriptive. The characters haunt the pages like pretty weeping angels. The story is touching and tragic. All of the characters have their flaws and passions. Each is real and human. Beautiful.

However, I didn't however, enjoy the flip flopping of the viewpoints. Each chapter is told from one character's perspective. Also, I'm not a big fan of two page chapters, and there were a lot of those in this book. These are the only real problem that I had with this book. Everything else is peachy keen!

Okay, that is my grumping over and done with! This book was emotionally epic with tons of torment and despair woven in with happiness and joy! Each character was interesting and real. I hated/loved each and every one of them! This tale isn't one that you can just put down. After you crack this book open you should be prepared to devote a good chunk of time to reading this!

I loved this book. Confusing character shifts* and whatnots aside, this book was very prettily written, and very good!

I give it a 4/5!

**the confusing character shifts could just be me and my elderly brain...**




Other Tour Participants:

The Art of Devotion: Tuesday, June 8th

All About {n}: http://www.bookwormygirl.blogspot.com/
The Book Tree: http://thebooktree.blogspot.com/
Books Gardens & Dogs: http://maryinhb.blogspot.com/
Arms of a Sister: http://armsofasister.com/
Booktumbling: http://booktumbling.com/
A Room Without Books Is Empty: http://detweilermom.blogspot.com/
Literarily Speaking: http://literarilyspeaking1.blogspot.com
Busy Julie: http://busyjulieblog.blogspot.com/
The Down Home Diva: http://thestuffyouneedtoknow.blogspot.com/
Teresa’s Reading Corner: http://www.teresasreadingcorner.blogspot.com/
Me, My Book, and the Couch: http://memybookandthecouch.blogspot.com/
Starting Fresh: http://startingfresh-gaby317.blogspot.com/
Frugal Plus: http://frugalplus.com/
Avid Reader: http://www.tarmyblogspot.blogspot.com/
Marta’s Meanderings: http://martasmeanderings.blogspot.com/
Eclectic Book Lover: http://www.eclecticbooklover.com
Not Quite Susie: http://notquitesusiehomemaker.blogspot.com/
Books and Needlepoint: http://booksandneedlepoint.blogspot.com/
Books with a Cup of Coffee: http://bookswithcoffee.wordpress.com/
Knitting and Sundries: http://www.jewelknits.blogspot.com/
The Girl from the Ghetto: http://thegirlfromtheghetto.wordpress.com/
Just Another New Blog: http://justanothernewblog.blogspot.com/
Simply Stacie: http://simplystacie.net/
Must Read Faster: http://mustreadfaster.blogspot.com/
Booksie’s Blog: http://booksiesblog.blogspot.com/
Reminder List: http://reminderlist.blogspot.com/
My Five Monkeys: http://www.tableforseven-julie.blogspot.com/
My Book Views: http://my-book-views.blogspot.com/
A Musing Reviews: http://www.amusingreviews.blogspot.com/
This Book For Free: http://thisbookforfree.com/
Chick with Books: www.chickwithbooks.blogspot.com
Taking Time For Mommy: http://takingtimeformommy.blogspot.com/
Lucky Rosie’s: http://www.luckyrosiescreations.blogspot.com/
I Heart Book Gossip: http://juniperrbreeeze.blogspot.com/
Book Junkie: http://myfoolishwisdom.blogspot.com/
Jeanne's Ramblings: http://www.jeannesramblings.com
Readaholic: http://bridget3420.blogspot.com/
Bella’s Novellas: www.bellasnovella.com
CuzinLogic’s Blog: http://cuzinlogic.wordpress.com/

Rundpinne: http://www.rundpinne.com

3 comments:

  1. Thank you, Melissa, for being so honest yet so kind in your review of my book. I just love hearing reader's thoughts and coming from a background in publishing, it's precisely such insights and differences in opinion that make for such great discussions of books. So, I am thrilled that, even in spite of what grated on you, you ultimately loved the book. I really take that as a huge compliment! Very best wishes and thank you! Samantha

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  2. Thank you Samantha for visiting my humble blog! It looks as if I may the only one that had trouble with the shifting viewpoints, so it probably was just a personal problem of mine! I can't wait to read more of your work! :)

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  3. Thank you so much. I can't wait to write it for you! Thank you again so much for taking the trouble to do this; readers like you make everything worthwhile!

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