The Luminaries

"There is just something about this book that I loved and it’s hard to put into words but I need to read it again it was that good!"

"DNF...So I actually read an article the other day that was advocating for not finishing books. One of the books mentioned that had very high “unfinished” rates? You guessed it: this one. For the record only about 19% of the people who download this book finish it. I am sadly one of the majority that stopped reading, but I would actually revisit the story in the future in a more conducive reading environment than the one I started it in. I picked up this book as a result of a Condé Nast Travel article that had book suggestions for long flights. Unsurprisingly, this was listed as the perfect book for the 13hr flight from LA to New Zealand, since it is set in historical Kiwi-land. What the article doesn’t mention is that trying to read a 830 page book on a flight you really should be trying to sleep on doesn’t compute. And then I actually got to NZ and was way too busy cavorting around, you know, seeing the sites I flew 13hrs for, to really focus on a really long and hugely complex novel. So you see my dilemma. I made it about 22% through it (which is actually 180 pages, basically half of your average 350 page Book I might add) before realizing it just wasn’t going to happen. I did read it any time I had a chance to in NZ, and it was hugely educational regarding the history of the country. I have always felt that it’s really cool to read about cultures and places you actually get to see with your own two eyes at the time you’re reading it.<br/><br/>I really loved what I read, so I’m rating it as a 4 as a note to myself to come back and visit this when I’m not jet setting around the world. Next time I travel I’m sticking with a Jojo Moyes book or something."

"Wow, finally finished this one! Real life book club choice for October, only two people managed to finish it by the deadline!<br/><br/>The good? Epic descriptions of New Zealand during the gold rush. Victorian Dickens-esque attention to detail and elaborate intricate plots. Great cast of characters.<br/><br/>The bad? The experiential design and postmodern feel grew wearying. Pace is too slow. The last quarter of the book finally tells you what you need to know. By the time you get there, you just don't care that much.<br/><br/>"

"This is one of my favorite books I've ever read. I go back and reread it every year and pick up more of the story every time!"

"This is a hard read, and overall I would have to say that I am really not the target audience for this one. My sister would probably love this since she was an English major and could spend hours analyzing it. First, this book is really slow up through about page 300 (yes, page 300 - the first 1/3 of the book!) so I had to struggle through to get to what I thought was where "things started to happen". I enjoyed the plot of the story. Apparently all of the zodiac signs/titles at the beginning of the chapters mean something related to how the story is going, but it was lost on me since I have no real knowledge of astrology. The chapters also shorten towards the end to represent the phases of the moon (learned that on Wikipedia)so overall I am impressed on how much thought went into the style of this book. Overall, I can appreciate how this book was constructed, and after the first third of the book, I really enjoyed the story."

"Best read in big chunks - it’s very long but worth every word."