The demeaning way the locals, their culture and how they interacted was described left me with a very bad taste in my mouth and for me it crossed the line of racial discrimination. I can’t say I was too happy with how the local population was described though, nor how the main characters interacted with them. It made the Philippines come alive and gives this WWII fiction read an exotic vibe. I’ll try to explain below why.įirst of all I have to state that the description of the Manila and Zambales mountains settings is thorough and gives us insight in the local flora and fauna. Because while I still think that the premise of this story is fascinating, unfortunately I can’t say I enjoyed the execution all that much. I was looking forward to fully emerge myself in what I thought would be a new favorite story, but sadly fate had a different reaction for me in store. I admit I was sold as soon as I read the blurb of Along The Broken Bay, as you don’t often see a WWII fiction setting in the Philippines and Gina’s story of working in the resistance sounded absolutely fascinating. I have always had a weak spot for historical fiction, and especially if the story is set during WWI or WWII.

*** A copy of this book was kindly provided to me by Netgalley and Lake Union Publishing in exchange for an honest review. “Manila’s magic was gone, replaced by an undercurrent of fear potent enough to be sensed by an observer.” 2023 Netgalley And Edelweiss Reading Challenge.2017 Netgalley And Edelweiss Reading Challenge.I just want to stop the audio so she can catch her breath. It prevents the listener from appreciating the story when she pushes air out of her lungs harshly to get that helpless breathy tone. From now on, I will avoid all books with this narrator. I wonder if the writer intended to have a breathy, weak, pathetic female antagonist, I doubt it.

I've listened to audio books recorded by famous actors/actresses that do not over-act this way. She tries too hard and it turns out offensive. When I read a book I do imagine a small change in voice for characters but she's trying to turn it in to a soap opera. She has a nice voice for the main narration of the story but her over-acting of the characters is distracting. Whenever a woman is in a challenging situation the narrator blows out the most dramatic and helpless voice she can muster. I tried to like this book because the story is interesting but the narrator's panicked, breathy interpretation of female characters is too degrading. This narrator portrays women as weak & frantic.

A Pledge of Silence by Flora J. Solomon