The Feast of the Goat

I’d love to give this book a better rating but I just can’t for a number of reasons. 1. The first 200 pages (50%) of the book is so boring. There is not enough character development for me to feel a connection or affection for any of the characters, especially Urania. There are long lists of names which are not especially important to the plot. And there is so much repetition of behaviour that a good 30% could be left out with no loss of coherence. 2. After learning of many of the atrocities perpetrated by Trujillo and his regime I found myself less forgiving towards Urania. Her cruelty, while justified, seemed to lack a sense of understanding of the world in which she and her father lived. It also seemed that through her life she never made any attempt to really process what happened to her. Despite her learning and achievements she never got, or tried to get, beyond the emotional capacity of a 14 year old girl. Now the part I did like. The second half of the book was much more exciting. There was less repetition and more action. I would actually have really liked most of the book to be told from the view of Balaguer as he was the most fascinating character in my opinion.