A sequel to "The Year the Swans Came," this novel follows the path of a now nineteen year-old Magrit "Maidy" Bader as she travels the Atlantic to - unsuccessfully - flee the plight of the swans. This duology (I did not read the accompanying Trilogy preceding) is, simply put, a Tragedy. It is not meant to be an uplifting bildungsroman where Maidy suddenly finds life easy now that she has grown into her beauty. The novel is full of tortured artists in their many forms: painter, writer, craftsman, actor/actress, dancer. Each one plagued with some demon that follows them even across seas. In fact, the curse of the swans is just one of many curses found in this novel. The curse of one's past, war, beauty, fame, art, perfection, jealousy, are all thrown under a magnifying glass for reader interpretation. As Maidy hopes to create a work of art through a novel one day, I would similarly consider this novel a piece of art, even with some of its flaws...

I definitely recommend this book for its excellent prose and style, as well as the worlds created throughout Maidy's travel. This is not, however, a book for someone in a reading slump or for someone who needs quick plot developments. This is a slow-burn tale of the "human condition," which, at its very core, is full of beautiful flaws, much like the swans.

The writing style grew with Maidy since the first book, feeling older in the flow and more involved imagery. She was no longer as naive, finding a backbone - albeit a fragile one - during those three years. This was a relief because I was afraid Ruth, a most powerfully selfish individual who I truly found myself loathing, would dominate Maidy's story again. Thankfully, she was just one of the many pawns critical to act out this classic literary Tragedy. The writing style also successfully conveyed the feeling and urgency of different parts of the novel. First, the pace was very slow due to Maidy's repetitive life and boredom, with lots of commas and descriptive language to fill the void of action. Later on in the story, following New York and then France, the sentences were slightly shorter overall and conversation became the focus and driver. By the end, it was quite fast-paced, and honestly, I felt like it was a little too rushed at the end. This was definitely intentional, but it left me with some wanting for closure that cannot be satiated.

Some things that prevented me from giving this artwork a 5 star review include the missed opportunity to include more mythology in the explanation of the plight of the swans and the solution to the curse. It was left a little ambiguous - intentionally, I suppose, as the book preferred to focus on the physical truths of the world - but it didn't provide me with enough answers or context personally. I truly liked the characters more in the second book of this duology, feeling more connected to Maidy now that she was older, which made the epilogue, simply, even sadder. It was bittersweet, and necessary for the end of this Tragedy, fully exposing the flaws of being human (or part), but now that I was really rooting for certain characters and had some hope for their happiness, I ached for more positive closure.

While not necessarily riveting, this story called to me in a very natural and endearing way. Give this story a chance and you will be swept up in wings of beautiful colors and words.

Very beautifully written, with a story that is easy to follow. Maidy's life is haunted by what happened to her brother Pieter, three years prior to the story starting. In this book, we see Maidy grow up and grow differently from her friends and family. While I really enjoyed reading this book, I feel that it ended quite abruptly, and not enough loose ends were tied for me to feel fully satisfied.