Genre: Historical Fiction
Length: 336 pages
First Published: 2022
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Rachael’s Review
I received a complimentary copy of this book from Ballantine Books. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.
As she turns one hundred, Violeta Del Valle writes a letter to her true love telling how the upheavals of the last century have shaped her life. Born in 1920 as the Spanish flu ravages her South American homeland, Violeta’s childhood is marked by the Great Depression. As she grows older, Violeta’s life is shaped by the world events that rage around her – the struggle for women’s rights, the rise and fall of dictators, even a second pandemic.
If I just told you the basic plot points of Violeta, you’d think it was this epic read. But you couldn’t be furthest from the truth. Instead, Violeta read like the Wikipedia article of someone’s epic life. Told with the dullest storytelling ever, I felt absolutely nothing as I read the book. The dispassionate writing style kept you at a remove from the characters, not allowing you to share in their joy or sadness or frustration. Violeta ended up being an absolute waste of my time.
Publisher’s Description
The epic story of Violeta Del Valle, a woman whose life spans one hundred years and bears witness to the greatest upheavals of the twentieth century.
Violeta comes into the world on a stormy day in 1920, the first girl in a family with five boisterous sons. From the start, her life is marked by extraordinary events, for the ripples of the Great War are still being felt, even as the Spanish flu arrives on the shores of her South American homeland almost at the moment of her birth.
Through her father’s prescience, the family will come through that crisis unscathed, only to face a new one as the Great Depression transforms the genteel city life she has known. Her family loses everything and is forced to retreat to a wild and beautiful but remote part of the country. There, she will come of age, and her first suitor will come calling.
She tells her story in the form of a letter to someone she loves above all others, recounting times of devastating heartbreak and passionate affairs, poverty and wealth, terrible loss and immense joy. Her life is shaped by some of the most important events of history: the fight for women’s rights, the rise and fall of tyrants, and ultimately not one, but two pandemics.
Through the eyes of a woman whose unforgettable passion, determination, and sense of humor carry her through a lifetime of upheaval, Isabel Allende once more brings us an epic that is both fiercely inspiring and deeply emotional.
About Isabel Allende
Isabel Allende is the author of more than twenty-three novels, including Violeta, The House of Spirits, Daughter of Fortune, The Wind Knows My Name, and A Long Petal to the Sea. When not writing, she devotes her time to championing human rights. She currently lives in California. Visit the author’s website →
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