The Snow Gypsy

I don’t usually write book reviews. This was historically interesting and a unique story line. Couldn’t put it down. This was a good book and I recommend it.

Historically well researched giving a glimpse into a country I am not overly familiar with (Spain), and the terrible acts of the genocide of Gypsies by both the Nazis (WW2) and Spain’s Franco (Spanish Civil War). I very much loved the characters of Rose and Lola. This is a somber tale of two women dealing with pain, loss, fear, and betrayal—struggling with forgiveness, faith, trust, and hatred, but also realizing the extraordinary power of selfless love for children regardless of how they were conceived. This was not like other Ashford novels I’ve read. Construction, organization, and writing are excellent. But this is not a tale of joy. There is positive resolution under the circumstances, but not something to read if you’re sad. Not a traditional HEA story. (Language was not too bad. Some sex, but not graphic.)

Informative and attention capturing. Highly recommend. Absolutely enjoyed her ability to give perspectives on history from different cultures. Definitely worth the read.

The Snow GypsyLindsay Jayne AshfordLake Union Publishing, Feb 2019332 pages, ebook, hardcover, paperback, audible bookWomen’s Lit, Historic Cultural Fiction✮✮✮✮✮The cover is very nice with its vivid picture of Lola dressed for the dance against the backdrop of Granada. It captures her intense inward focus while she’s dancing. And it matches the description of the costume in the book.The story is complex and interesting. One young woman is searching for something. And the other young woman is running from something. Both have suffered loss, and neither of them has all the answers to their losses. Rose is a Jewish Brit looking for answers into the question of her brother’s disappearance after the war. He was involved with the resistance, but she doesn’t know if he’s dead or alive. Where he might be or if he left anyone behind. She’s not even really sure where to start to find him. But she has his picture, his last letter, and hope as she and her Afghan hound, Gunesh head off into Spain with more questions than information.Lola is a city Romany who has declared that she will never go back to the town where she was born. What she saw puts her in danger and if she goes back, the faceless man will kill her. She knows who he is, but not what he looks like so she has no way to avoid him. She’d escaped with her life and one other. A newborn life, a child who was given to her by the dying mother while her lifeblood still pumped through the umbilical cord. She now claims her as her own child, Nieve.Nieve is the factor that draws Rose and Lola together and binds them. Both love her as they are drawn together in an effort to protect her and find a life for themselves without prejudice. Lola wants to dance and escape the reach of the faceless man. Rose wants her answers and a life without so much prejudice. Both want a place that Nieve can grow up to be a woman in charge of her own life. Before they can find peace and a resting spot they must once again face the worst of their fears and almost lose what they treasure most. They face jail, dishonest police commandants, resentful widows, life-threatening illness, Gypsies who resent educated Brits, Spanish citizens who won’t tolerate dirty Gypsies, and even one of Hitler’s own.The characters are so real in their pain and fear, their love and happiness. They are all genuine and believable. The ones that are too good to be true, are too good to be true. They all have a story to tell.The pace is smooth and the tension hums along keeping you wondering what else can happen to this little group and who will survive to the end. I highly recommend you pick this one up and travel along with Rose to Spain and meet the whole group, good and bad, and fall into their story. Definitely for readers of post-WWII historical novels. Lake Union Pubs did it again!The Snow Gypsy was in the Top Twenty the week of Jan 30th on Amazon!

I acquired this book through Amazon First Reads and chose it only because it looked like the most interesting selection for that particular month. Otherwise, I wouldn't have probably every chosen a novel with this kind of subject or setting . But I'm glad I chose it! It's quite well-written with an interesting tapestry of relationships with strong female characters, especially for the time period. Ashford's descriptive prose is very visual and evocative, but neither sentimental nor overly sensual. I appreciate her descriptions of the coast of Provence in France, remote areas of southern Spain, various local religious customs and festivals, gypsy culture, herbal medicine, and especially Flamenco dancing. Whether these depictions are truly "accurate" in comparison with the real places isn't important in a work of fiction--I was there in the settings and the story and joined in the lives of types of peoples and places I'll likely never encounter in real life.The pacing of the story is also engaging, with enough mystery and drama, the necessary secrets revealed at appropriate times, and plot twists (for which Ashford drops suitable hints if you're paying attention) that leave you hungry for resolution. The final chapter of the book, an epilogue of 56 years later, is touching, with the very last sentence wrapping up the story beautifully.Thematically, I appreciate the subtle exploration about questions of forgiveness and how God works in this world. The main character, Rose, carries with her the story of the British nun, Julian of Norwich, whose phrase, "All shall be well, all shall be well, and all manner of things shall be well" continually challenges Rose to see past appearances. "How could she believe that?" Ashford, writes. "How could anyone believe it, faced with the imminent death of someone they loved?" Rose wonders about the lost that the nun must have experienced in her own life and asks, "If that was true, how could she go on believing?" Thus, the story is really about having courage to fight through despair, finding what needs to be done in the moment. These themes might be a bit understated, and I would have liked to see them brought out a little more strongly, but understatement leaves the reader with something to think about.

4 stars as it was a page turner. An uncomplicated Summer read...although the basis of the subject is gruesome and shocking.Based on a real person's experiences from 1936-47..mostly set in post civil war Spain. Well documented but from a non Spaniards interpretation. I've lived in Spain for 50 years....and spotted a few errors.I didn't like the glorifying of Spain's most depressed and poor area..especially in the post war...it all sounded like a 'bees and honey' fairytale surroundings.A recommendable read with interesting information...one unexpected part actually left me with my mouth open !!!rare for me.Will read the highly claimed..The Woman On The Orient Express by this author#Review

A really lovely story, hard to put down

This is the second book from Lindsay Jane Ashford that I have read, the first being about the woman on the Orient Express. I didn’t enjoy this one as much as the previous one, as some of the characters I disliked, although perhaps that was meant to be. It was an okay story, hence the “3 star rating”, but not one of those that I felt sorry that it had come to an end. The main character, Rose, seemed a strong woman one minute but in the next lost her heart and head to several men she encounters on her travels looking for her brother Nathan after his last letter to her eight years previously. I think I was expecting the same enjoyment from this novel that I got from the previous one I had read. I would read another book from the author, and hopefully will enjoy that one as much as the first I’d read which I raved about to several friends to read.

Très bonne lecture! Personnages bien étudiés. Description des paysages et des plantes très belles.Je recommande ce livre à tous ceux qui aiment les romans historiques.

I like the characters and plot is accessible. Many thoughtful and deep ponderings. I also learnt some history of Spain.