I enjoyed this book a lot. It was nice to get out Ohio for a bit and enjoy some African terrain. This is only the second book I've read by Shreve, after Stars Are Fire (which I also recommend). I'm not sure why it's taken me so long to discover her. She writes rich, believable characters. I'll seek out more. ( )

I can't say that I cared for this book very much. The protagonist was constantly dithering in her mind trying to second guess her husband and other people. There were loose ends at the book which I would have like to seen resolved. ( )

Review to follow ( )

Two and half stars. This book was okay. There is an odd sense of urgency and impending doom in Anita Shreve's writing (or maybe it was just in the narrating, as I was listening to the audio book) that I don't quite enjoy or connect with. This story struck me as somewhat disjointed, and overall I just didn't love it. ( )

I think, reviewers, you have got it right. This is worth 3.5 stars. The book is promising as we travel with Patrick and Margaret to Kenya, But for it me, the book had potential and nothing more till the hike was underway, more than 1/3 of the way through the audiobook. I was interested in how Margaret felt during this expedition most of all - being left behind by her fellow hikers, looking for comfort where she could, and so forth. I liked that there was a kind of Conrad-esque sense of menace about the climb, but this was not sustained unfortunately. My impression of Margaret's personality was very much shaped by narrator Anna Stone's tonality: pleasant, somewhat innocent and feminine. ( )