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Violeta

Isabel Allende

Start date: April 1, 2022

Finish date: April 30, 2022

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Chapter Chick Reading

September-October 2025: The River Knows Your Name
By Ƹ̴Ӂ̴Ʒ Jenn Ƹ̴… , Founding Retro Chick · 1 post · 9 views

last updated Aug 23, 2025 07:26PM

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What Members Thought

Feb 20, 2022 Brina rated it it was amazing

Shelves: chile, family-saga, historical-fiction, isabel-allende

My annual midwinter break read of an Allende book. With my busy life I will give the author and book justice later but as usual Allende brings me a warm heart and both a smile and tears to my face. Having read her for most of my life Violeta is yet another intimate cup of tea with an old friend.

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Apr 09, 2022 Maureen rated it liked it

I loved House of Spirits and Daughter of Fortune, but struggled with this one.
I enjoyed the first half, the characters were well developed and engaging.
I didn’t really care for Justin, I thought he was out of character for the strong willed Violeta. The second half of the book dragged on too much for me.
I know I am the outlier for this one. So many loved it.

Violeta del Valle was born during the Spanish Flu epidemic and lived 100 years until COVID-19 pandemic hit.She led an interesting life.
Viol ...more

42 likes · Like · see review

Dec 02, 2021 Celia rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: 2022-pub, 2021-read, historical-fiction-read, fantasy-magical-realism, netgalley, 2021-kindle-counted

The inimitable style that Isabel Allende provides is available to us once again.

I have read 6 books by this author previous to this one. The average rating of those is 4.5.

This book has similarities to my all time Allende favorite (and first Allende read): The House of the Spirits. Both take place in South America, for instance. This book falls a little short of that masterpiece, but still worthy of a read.

Violeta: sixth child and first girl. Born in 1920. The ripples of the Great War are still ...more

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Feb 11, 2022 Joanne rated it liked it

Shelves: historical-fiction-read

Violeta tells her life story, in what appears to be a letter (or journal ?) to "the one she loves most" Was it the epistolary style that disagreed with me? I never felt connected to anyone but her in the long list of characters in this book. Or was it that I did not feel her emotion as she led us through her long, and event filled life? I don't know. I just don't know.

Normally I love Allende's descriptive writing, this time it dragged the story down for me. Author's are human too, I must tell my ...more

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Jan 30, 2022 Ƹ̴Ӂ̴Ʒ Jenn Ƹ̴Ӂ̴Ʒ Schu rated it really liked it · review of another edition

I have read several books by Isabel Allende and her latest story about Violeta does not disappoint. Allende weaves a beautiful and captivating novel about the life of Violeta, a woman that experiences hardship, heartache, and love while experiencing the events of her life from the 1920 Spanish flu to political unrest in her South American homeland. In this novel, Violeta recounts her life events to someone very special to her (won't say, spoilers) and readers can definitely feel the love in Viol ...more

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Dec 28, 2021 Tasha rated it it was amazing

Shelves: netgalley

4.5 rounded up to 5

Gosh this woman can write, the words just flow effortlessly and beautifully. If you like/love Allende's writing then you will no doubt love this one as well, maybe even more so than her other works. While I enjoyed the story, for me it's the writing that drew me back each time to this story. It's the writing that also bumps this 4.5 star read to 5 stars. I loved that we followed Violeta from her start in to the world to her exit from this world and everything in between; her l ...more

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Jul 29, 2024 Lory Sakay rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Allende does it again. Beautiful ode and memoir from a grandmother to a grandson. I switched to listening to this in her Native Spanish because it just added such an inexplicable essence to her writing and to the story. This book reminded me of the memoir, Paula, Allende wrote about her daughter. Life, loss, and intimate reflection over a full lifetime. Although Violeta was fictional it was equally touching and engaging. I'd close my eyes, hear her words as she reminisced on the twists and turns ...more

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Apr 04, 2022 Kelly rated it really liked it

Shelves: fiction

4.5 stars

Loved it except for a small plot question in the middle of the book... where in the world did he come from and, wait, what? (If you know, you know.)

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