The House of Spirits Read-Along: Final Recap

House

Below is the chapter breakdown, with links to all the previous recaps.  I’ll do an overall review of the book tomorrow.

This final recap is for Chapters 13 and 14 and the Epilogue.  If you’re a little behind, that’s ok!  I’ll clearly mark any spoilers.

This week’s chapters put everything that happened previously into perspective; however, a handful of sentences in Chapter 13 made me so angry that I almost didn’t finish the book.

*Spoilers* A military coup takes place, and once they’ve seized power, they decide not to let it go.  Jaime is killed along with other supporters of the government, and from that point forward, people are regularly arrested and tortured.  Esteban helps Blanca and Pedro Tercero flee to Canada after he becomes disillusioned by the new regime.  The military eventually arrests Alba for associating with Miguel and helping people on the government blacklists to escape the country. She is tortured and raped by Colonel Esteban García, the son of Esteban Trueba’s and Pancha Garcia’s illegitimate son, and his men.  Alba decides she wants to die but changes her mind when she’s visited by Clara’s spirit.  Esteban gets Alba freed with the help of Miguel and Tránsito Soto, and after helping Alba write their memoir, he dies.  Alba explains that she will not seek revenge on Esteban Garcia and his men in the hopes of ending the cycle of hate. *End Spoilers*

I’m still too angry to discuss exactly why I feel that way as well as all the other problems I have with this book, so I will leave that for tomorrow’s review, in which I will also include the quote that angered me so much.  Suffice it to say that I’m glad I’m done with this book, and since it’s a physical copy, I can now put it in my book box to be sent to the used bookstore, the funds of which will go towards The Outlandish Companion, Vol. 2 by Diana Gabaldon when it comes out this October.  I can also cross it off my Classics Club list and add it to several of the challenges I’m participating in this year.  Silver lining.

What did you think of these final chapters?  All comments about the book are welcome, but please mark any spoilers.

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