My reactions as I read this book:
“Wow, what a premise! The allies lose WWII and the Axis take over the world!”
“All of Europe dominated by Germany? The US split in half by Japan and Germany? The whole world oppressed? This is going to be an amazing story.”
“Why are we focused on a store that sells historical knick knacks? Wait, we’re talking about jewelry now?”
“Oooh, racial tensions, and a woman who knows how to defend herself. This should be interestin—wait, why are we talking about truck drivers? And she just sleeps with him?”
“Are we really going to spend all this time talking about counterfeit antiques? And the spiritual impact of art?”
“So, none of the characters evolve in any way throughout the book? Is anything interesting actually going to happen here?”
“Wait, that’s it? The book is over?”
In short: an amazing premise, largely wasted on a strange story with boring characters.
Rating: 3 stars
Yevgeniy Brikman
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