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The jacket description on Sarah LarkÂ’s A Hope at the End of the World left me positively giddy. I mean, how often do you see historic fiction set in New Zealand? This isn't a base question people, I'm one hundred percent serious. You see, the unfortunate reality is that the big publishing houses have this annoying habit of vetoing everything that isn't a guaranteed sell. If it isn't trending, they ain't biting, and according to the pain-in-the-ass people who dictate the majority of the American market, New Zealand doesn't make the cut. Am I bitter? Just a bit. I want fresh fiction, but mainstream publishers think 'new' means 'risky' and throw those kinds of stories in the grey cylindrical receptacles under their desks to prevent them from ever seeing the light of day. For people me, this is basically a 'fuck you' and I for one am tired of it.

Enter AmazonCrossing. You read that right folks, I am shamelessly giving a shout out to a publisher, but hear me out. Un most of the big houses, this platform is doing great things for new authors and unsung stories by bridging the gap between the old and new markets. Think I'm crazy? Take a closer look at A Hope at the End of the World. Author Sarah Lark was born in Germany and lives in Spain. Her work was translated by D. W. Lovett. Think about that. When was the last time you read a translated fiction huh? I'm willing to bet most of you can tally your total on one hand. I'll grant that WWII fiction is trending at the moment so it's entirely possible that subject matter helped grease some wheels here, but this story intrigued me for a number of reasons and while I know readers hate long winded , I refuse to apologize for hick-jacking my own commentary to say thank you to Lark for writing something unique and thank you to AmazonCrossing for making it possible for a book Lark's to find its audience.

Getting off my soapbox, I am gonna come right and say that I am not a fan of this cover. The jacket gives me too many fuzzy wuzzies, but in all fairness that vibe is entirely in keeping with the tone of Lark's narrative. A Hope at the End of the World may be set against WWII, but it is first and foremost a romance. Lark touches on some fascinating historical footnotes, but the sweetly chaste relationship between Luzyna and James takes center stage. I personally had a hard time accepting this fact, but I'm a WWII junkie who enjoys witty banter, sarcastic dialogue and intense dogfights. Should I have known what I was getting myself into? Yes. Did it stop me? No. Don't appreciate my comments? Take a number.

Because I know someone will ask, I should probably note that I loved Lark's use of POW camps and the refugee transport to New Zealand. I also thought she made great use of Maori culture and tradition. Though limited in scope, I enjoyed the unique landscape of the novel and was surprised by the appearance of small yet fascinating details such as the wartime experiences of the Neumanns. That said, I found the characterizations one dimensional, the plot twists predictable, and I was decidedly frustrated by how neatly everything was resolved. At the end of the day I don't see myself recommending A Hope at the End of the World as a war fiction, but I would put it out there to those readers who appreciate light historicals and sweet romance.
historic-fiction-1900s15 s Cititor Necunoscut470 86

Cartea continua oarecum povestea inceputa in trilogia In tara norului alb, dupa ce au trecut ceva ani, Gwyneira a murit pe cand James, personajul principal avea 3 ani, iar Kiward Station este condusa de Gloria si Jack, a caror poveste de dragoste a incheiat trilogia. De data aceasta ne aflam la sfarsitul Celui de-al doilea razboi mondia, Helena si Luzyna se afla intr-o tabara de refugiati in Iran, orfane si exilate din Polonia natala. James este pilot, dar este trimis acasa din pricina presiunilor familiei familiei si a incapacitatii lui de a asculga orbeste ordinul de a trage in civili. Insa din tabara de refugiati doar Helena pleaca spre NZ, insa drumul ei spre noua viata nu este deloc usor. Soarta personajelor feminine ale Sarei Lark nu difera cu nimic in decursul celor 100 de ani pe care ii descrie.

Cartea este mult mai scurta fata de ce ne-a obisnuit autoarea, dar acest lucru nu este neaparat negativ.13 s Krist?ne635 1 follower

T?ds naivums un kartona varo?i nebija las?ti kopš Ra?ko p?d?j? gabala. Sižetisk?s lažas ar? kaitin?ja - meitene M?NESI p?c dzemd?b?m j?j uz zirga. You wish!

Bet! Diezgan daudz uzzin?ju par maoru kult?ru.13 s Constantine957 257

Rating: 3.0/5.0

This was not a bad read. I have read many historical fiction books so my expectations are always high for this genre because it is my most favorite one. This is the first book I read for Sarah Lark. It follows the story of two Polish refugee sisters Helena and Luzyna.

Helena betrays her sister and takes up her identity to get out of the refugee camp and go to New Zealand for a better life. In her journey to NZ she will submit to a man who knew that she is not Luzyna and gets her pregnant. In New Zealand, she faces more challenges.

There are many historical facts the book. I feel it makes a good read for those who want to know more about refugee camps during the war. The reading was simple and the story was easy to grasp. I personally did not feel much about the characters. When I read a book I want to love loving a character or love hating it! Here nothing that happened. I felt more effort could have been done by the author in making the characters more relatable.

I won this book by participating in a Goodreads giveaway and this is my honest and nonbiased review for it.giveaway-read x-3-star z2018-038 s Steffi3,115 178

Dieses Buch hat mir klar gemacht, dass ich wieder viel öfter was aus diesem Genre lesen sollte, denn ich finde es unheimlich spannend exotische Länder und fremde Kulturen kennen zu lernen.

Ich habe bereits einige Bücher von Sarah Lark gelesen, die mir alle gut gefallen hat, so auch "Eine Hoffnung am Ende der Welt". Ich fand die Geschichte von Helena sehr bewegend und mitreißend, denn ich war stellenweise völlig in dem Buch versunken und habe gar nicht mehr mitbekommen wie viel Zeit vergangen ist. Das ist immer ein gutes Zeichen.
Die Charaktere fand ich sehr sympathisch und es hat mich gefreut wieder einige "bekannte" Namen zu hören.

Ich muss aber sagen, dass mir die Bücher der Autorin aus dem 19. Jahrhundert noch einen Tick besser gefallen haben. Vermutlich macht dies die Welt noch ein wenig fremder und interessanter. Der Schreibstil der Autorin ist sehr packend und flüssig zu lesen. Man merkt die intensiven Recherchen der Autorin und man lernt immer wieder etwas neues über die Maori-Kultur.
favourites-2016 neu-2016 onleihe ...more9 s Marta G. Mas157 59

3/5

Un bonito retorno a la saga de "En el país de la nube blanca" que consigue que se te dibuje una sonrisa nostálgica en el rostro, pero que no logra estar a la altura de los tres primeros libros.

Básicamente esto es lo que he sentido al leer "Una promesa en el fin del mundo": me ha gustado, lo he disfrutado y por supuesto no me arrepiento de haberlo leído, pero si buscáis una historia al nivel de las anteriores, no la vais a encontrar, y creo que eso es algo a tener en cuenta antes de adentrarse en la historia de Helena.

Ahora bien, para leerlo de la forma en la que lo he hecho, dejando más de seis meses entre el tercer libro "El grito de la tierra" y este, me parece un reencuentro precioso con los personajes, Nueva Zelanda y la autora, Sarah Lark. De verdad, me ha encantado tener esta oportunidad de "despedirme" de una saga que me ha enamorado de principio a fin. Disfruto mucho de la narración de S. Lark y esto lo he disfrutado como si fuera un regalo.

Por otra parte, esto es opinión personal, pero habría agradecido que alguien me lo hubiera aclarado en su momento porque yo tuve muchas dudas a la hora de hacerme con él, así que allá va:

- ¿Se puede leer este libro como un autoconclusivo?: Sí.

- ¿Me recomiendas empezar por este libro de la autora?: NO. Pese a ser una lectura amena, entretenida y que engancha, está muy por debajo del resto de sus libros en todos los aspectos: ambientación, construcción de personajes, descripciones, trama y subtramas (muy predecibles todas, por cierto). Es decir, como poder, puedes empezar, pero yo no te lo recomiendo: ha sido escrito como cierre por algo.

- Y si quiero leer la trilogía de "En el país de la nube blanca", pero por lo que sea tengo solo tengo este en casa, ¿puedo leerlo o me voy a comer "spoilers"?: Pues DEPENDE y me explico: las tramas de los tres libros anteriores están prácticamente resumidas en este, pero de forma tan superflua que, al leer este el primero no me ha dado la impresión de que alguien que no conozca los personajes de antemano pueda recordar/ubicar las tramas en los libros, ni enlazar los nombres y las relaciones, aunque con algo sí que te puedes quedar, por lo que ACONSEJO, desde mi más humilde opinión, que si vuestro caso es el que he expuesto, dejéis correr un par de meses o un par de libros entre medias de este y el primero de la saga para que cualquier dato relevante se os diluya un poco en la mente. Así que, considero que se puede leer como el primero mientras no se lean al momento los siguientes.

- Entonces, ¿vale la pena leerlo?: Sí, pero como ya he dicho antes, creo que lo mejor es leerlo el último y dejar pasar el tiempo y no ir con las mismas expectativas que con los tres anteriores, porque no te vas a encontrar algo tan bueno, aunque no sea malo para nada.

Y como no podía ser de otra forma, os dejo por aquí tres frases de esta secuela, para haceros los dientes largos en caso de que todavía no hayáis leído este cierre de saga.

"Sus grandes ojos azules como la porcelana parecían contar toda una historia."

"Helena asintió, cogió la figurilla que colgaba de su cuello y acarició también el árbol "manuka" al pasar junto a él en el caballo. Su áspera corteza pareció amoldarse cálidamente a su mano, como si el espíritu que había percibido en el "marae" de los ngati rangitane volviera a saludarla."

"Con el aire frío pero diáfano, las siluetas oscuras de la montaña y el cielo estrellado en lo alto, Helena podría haber sentido algo similar a la felicidad."

¿Lo habéis leído o queréis hacerlo? ¿Qué os ha parecido? Si habéis leído algún otro de la autora decidme, porque yo solo me he leído esta saga, así que aún tengo pendientes toooooodos los restantes y necesito alguna recomendación por la que comenzar.

¡Nos leemos!

Link a la reseña de "En el país de la nube blanca" en GoodReads: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

Link a la reseña de "La canción de los maoríes" en GoodReads: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

Link a la reseña de "El grito de la tierra" en GoodReads: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...8 s Ieva1,128 86

Man gan nav san?cis daudz t?das las?t, bet esmu iev?rojusi, ka trilo?ij?m, tetralo?ij?m un daudvair?klo?ij?m nereti pa vidu da??m vai nedaudz v?l?k tiek izdoti garst?sti (vai noveles? k? pareiz?k b?tu tulkot "novella"???), kas paipildina pamata s?riju un b?t?b? paredz?ti ?stiem faniem. T?ds k? autora fanfiks par savu darbu. Š? paties?b? ir "Balto M?ko?u zemes" t?da gr?mata. M?s uzzin?m šo to par jau paz?stamo t?lu n?kamo paaudzi un t?l?kaj?m gait?m, sen?kie t?li tik piesaukti un atg?din?ti, bet šis notiekti nav atsevi?š, labi izstr?d?ts rom?ns, ko b?tu v?rts las?t jebkuram. Nu vai ar? autore uzrakst?ja skeleti?u ceturtajai da?ai, un steidza to izdot, neapaudz?jot to ar miesu (bet š?di tas vi?as b?rns nav dab?jis ar? dv?seli, t?li palkani b?d?s pa Jaunz?landes karti, lai var?tu notikt tas, ko autore iecer?jusi, bet tie neieg?st nek?du ?pašu raksturu un visi notikumi p?r?k ?rti un uzkr?toši saliek?s, k? vajag).7 s Viktoria Hjelle23 8

No no no no no no..
What happened to Sarah Larks writing? I loved the New Zealand Saga and got really excited when I read that we would reunite with some of the characters from the series. That turned out to be a smart move, because the old characters where the only reason this book turned out ok.

I read the book in Norwegian, so maybe the translation is partly to blame. But still.. The writing was not even half as good as the New Zealand Saga and the overall story just left me disappointed.read-in-norwegian7 s L?ga Balode166

Š? nu gan bija t?da nek?da gr?mata. Š?iet, ka S?ras Larkas a?ents uzst?jis, ka j?uzraksta atkal k?da gr?mata, un tad nu autore, lai atkrat?tos no apnic?g?s telefona un e-pasta džinksto?as, kaut ko t? pa ?tro uzskrib?jusi. Jaunz?lande asin?s, par to var rakst?t kaut ar aizv?rt?m ac?m, un san?k tieš?m labi. J?pieliek vien k?di neb?t cilv?ku t?li - un aiziet!
Nuj?, t?li tieš?m nek?di - galven? varone po?u emigrante Hel?na, kura nok??st Jaunz?land? savas m?sas Lucinas viet?, pa ce?am uz Jaunz?landi piedz?vo ilgstošu seksu?lu vardarb?bu, baid?s sevi aizst?v?t, l?dz dz?ve piespiež atgriezties piedz?votaj? un atjaunot taisn?gumu. Visu laiku gaid?ju intrigu, sarež??jumu, vismaz k?du saistošu deta?u varo?u dz?v? - un nek? - vilšan?s.
V?rdu sakot, ja pat?k t?risma ce?vedis par Jaunz?landi, ir v?rts las?t. Ja gaidi interesantu sižetu un sp?c?gus t?lus - nekav? laiku, ir daudz v?rt?g?ku gr?matu sarakst?ts.
Lai man piedod S?ra Larka un Jaunz?lande :) 4 s Mis Lecturas284 1 follower

En realidad 3'5 ?libros-leídos-en-20174 s carola25 33

08/09/2018

solid 3.5/5 stars2018 historical-fiction5 s Ksenia (vaenn)438 243

?????? ???? ???? ???? ?????????? ??????? ??? ????? "? ??????? ? ??????? ??? ????????". ?? ???????? ??????????? ???????? ???? ??? ??????????? ?? ????? ????????. ??? ???? ???????? ? ??? ???????? ???????. ??? ??????????? - ??, ??-???????.

????? ???? ??????? ??? ???????? ???????-???????, ?? ????????? ?? ???????? ?????? ?????? ?????? ????? ????????? ?????-???????-???????-??????????. ???, ??????? ??? ???????????? ? 1939-??. ??, ??? ????????? ???????? ???????? ????? ?? ??????, ? ?? ???? ?? ???????? ??? ?????????? ???????, ?? ??????? ????????? ?? ??????????.

???? ????? ???????? - ???? ???????????, ?? ??????? ?????? ? ?????????? ??????????, ??? ???? ??????????? ? ??????????????? ????? ?? ???? ???? ?????? ?? ?????????? ????????? ????????? ????? ?? ?????????? "?????????? ????????", ? ?? ? ????????? ?????????? ????????? ???????????? ????????????? ?????????? ?????????? (??????? ? ???????, ?? ??????? ?????? ? 1930-?), ??????? ???????? (??? "???????????? ????? ??????? ????? ??? 50 ?????!" ?? "?? ????? ????????? ?????????? ????? ???? ?????? ????") ?? ????????? ?????? ?????????? ???????????? ?????. ???? ?????????... ???????? ??????? ?? ???? ???????? - ???????? ???? ? ?????????? "?????? ?????" ????? ?????????? ??????? (???. ????????? ??? ??????) ?? ?????????? ????????? ?????? - ?????? ????????, ?? ?????? ???? ? ??????? ?? ?????????. ??? ?????? ?????? ?? ????????? ?????? ?????? ? ???? ?????? ????????? ?????????? ???? ???? ?? ?????. ? ?? ? ?? ??? ?? ??? ?????? ? ???????? ????? ??????????.damsel-in-distress polynesia short-xx ...more3 s Alana5

There are authors you love, and you pick them up and you know youÂ’re in for a treat. Sarah Lark is one of those authors for me. Although the usual length of her books always intimidates me (weÂ’re talking 800 pages plus), I know that IÂ’m going to inhale her stories.
Yes, all her stories are more or less always build on the same formula and will have a happy end, but thatÂ’s what IÂ’m expecting from her: A world that completely absorbs me and leaves me back with a smile.

So I picked up “A Hope At The End of The World” after a series of books that disappointed me, expecting that THIS finally will the book that makes me happy again. And the premises were great: It’s only 400 pages, it has illustrations and it’s the 4th part of the New Zealand Saga. I mean THE FOURTH PART of my all-time favorite saga!

But man, I am sooooo disappointed. Sarah Lark, what happened to your writing? While many of the on Goodreads assume that maybe something got lost in translation, I can assure you: No. I read the book in German and it was just not the novels I read before.
The story is set during WWII in New Zealand and revolves around polish refugee Helena Grabowski. This is, by the way, the major difference to LarkÂ’s other novels: itÂ’s just about Helena. Helena and Luzyna (her little sister) live in a refugee camp near Teheran, where one of the sisters is given the unique opportunity to live in an American refugee camp for polish children in New Zealand (sounds weird, but apparently this camp really existed). After Luzyna being Luzyna misses the transport older Helena takes her place, and identity. After the arrival of our protagonist in Polish Camp things donÂ’t get better, Helena discovers she is pregnant, mild Spoiler ahead: tries to kill herself and ends up living on Kiward Station under the protection of Gloria and James.

I donÂ’t think the story was boring, but it neither was exciting. There were just so many issues:

1. Helena is one-dimensional and so pessimistic. Sure, you canÂ’t expect a character her to be happy and optimistic. Her family was deported to Siberia, her parents died, her sister is a little brat, she was abusedÂ… I get it, but it was a bit annoying that Lark made it so plain obvious in her story that everything will be okay. For me Helena had no personality.

2. That ending? Skip this point if you donÂ’t want to be spoilered!
Why? I mean really why? This boy and this mine had nearly nothing to do with the rest of the story. Surely it connected to HelenaÂ’s History in Siberia, she lives through the darkness and fear before she truly gets revelated and her daughter is born. But still. It feels so out of place. And WHO lets a woman so advanced in pregnancy enter an unstable old mine?

3. The new characters were way more interesting than Helena. I would have loved to get to know more about Miranda. Or Moana. Not James, he just seemed a mix of old characters.

4. The love story between James and Helena was cute, but nothing more. A bit too smooth, a bit too boring.

5. Overall there were too many ideas for 400 pages (again spoilers): The Persian refugee camp, the Polish Camp, the abuse by the teacher, the internment of the Neumann family, MoanaÂ’s Story, WiremuÂ’s Story (nice to mention him, but why was he back in the village?), the fate of the Maori culture, MirandaÂ’s Story, what happened to Natalia, and especially: What happened to Luzyna (She was way too present in the story without being part of it)?

6. Not really part of the story: The illustrations. It was nice to have the picture of Christchurch, but the others, I guess they depicted the Grabowski family and their history, but an explanation in form of a title would have been nice.

I`ve read the book in an afternoon, it was a fast and easy read. It didn’t let me behind with a smile, Helena and her story didn’t really touch me. At the end I was happy I finally finished it. Rating it as boring would be too harsh, but clearly not as thrilling and exciting as I am used to. Big parts of the story are just revisiting the New Zealand trilogy, AHATEOFT (terrible acronym) gives a glimpse into the future of the characters after the events of the last part, but ultimately fails to satisfy. It was too short for all the ideas Mrs. Lark had, and too long for the “I wonder what happened to all my beloved characters”- thing. But to be honest, only the appearance of the old characters made the story somehow enjoyable.

If you intend this to be your first Lark: Don’t! This is the weakest of all her novels I read so far, start with “The Land of The Big White Cloud”. And if you’re looking for a continuation of the New Zealand Saga: Don’t get your hopes up too high, this book lacks nearly everything that made the Saga so wonderful.
3 s Oliviana Georgescu315 22

Cartea, pe lâng? decorul preferat al pove?tilor scrise de autoare, respectiv Noua Zeeland?, reia o tem? des întâlnit? în c?r?ile sale: plecarea pe meleaguri îndep?rtate, în c?utarea unei vie?i mai bune, a unor noi începuturi. Totodat?, povestea este o continuare a trilogiei În ?ara norului alb - extraordinara saga de familie plin? de culoare petrecut? în minunatele ?inuturi din Nou? Zeeland? -, de?i nu face parte oficial din aceasta. ”O speran?? la cap?tul lumii” este ?i de o întindere mai mic? decât celelalte c?r?i ale autoarei, îns? ac?iunea este bine închegat? ?i nu am sim?it c? ar lipsi ceva, din acest punct de vedere, de?i recunosc c? mi-ar fi pl?cut o poveste mai ampl?.
E o poveste despre suferin??, r?zboi, pierdere, sacrificiu, maturizare, prietenie, dragoste ?i reg?sire. Despre pre?ul libert??ii, dar ?i al alegerilor pe care le facem în via??.
Dac? v? plac c?l?toriile, c?r?ile de aventur?, c?r?ile de fic?iune istoric?, dac? v? place s? visa?i cu ochii deschi?i la t?râmuri îndep?rtate ?i la iubiri delicate, aceast? carte va fi cu siguran?? pe placul vostru! Mie mi-a pl?cut, o recomand!
https://www.delicateseliterare.ro/o-s...3 s Sidonia321 51

Mi-a placut si nu prea, e cam de 3* jumatate. Daca stau bine si ma gandesc, singura carte care mi-a placut mult de tot a S. Lark a fost " In tara norului alb", toate celelalte au fost mult mai slabe. Cea de fata nu e rea, dar nici nu te tine lipit de pagini. Insa mi-a placut sa ma intorc la Kiward Station si in Canterbury Plains. E o lectura usurica si placuta, dar nu impresionanata. Oricum daca ai citit pana acum toate cartile ei, nu ai cum sa o ratezi pe asta. sarah-lark3 s Bookish49 3

Meticulously Researched, But Lacking ...

I'm a huge fan of historical fiction, particularly WWI and II. I'm also a New Zealander, of Ngai Tahu descent. I had never heard of my country taking in Polish refugees, nor are stories around my culture common, so this book intrigued me instantly.

Learning about that part of our history was enlightening. But, while the book was meticulously researched, the depiction of Maori and Maori culture lacked insight and depth. I couldn't get past some of the Maori character names, which I'd never heard before. They didn't make sense to me, and as I was reading them with Maori pronunciation, they refused to roll off my tongue. wise, certain terms. I've never heard "manuka myrtle", for example. It's just manuka. Hei-tiki is just tiki. Baskets are traditionally woven from flax, not reeds. And it's iwi, not tribe. These little things added up and ruined the book for me. Perhaps a little unfairly, but I couldn't help it.

On top of that, I found Helena unsympathetic and tired quickly of her whiney "poor me" attitude. But, it could just be that my difficulty in finding personality in the depiction of my culture affected my ability to empathize with the characters.

That said, "A Hope At The End of the World" was well written and I can't deny that the author did her homework, although it was less of a wartime story, more of a historical romance (with predictable romance plot twists). It's my first Sarah Lark novel, and while I may skip anything to do with my heart home, I'd be willing to give her another chance.3 s Babel2,197 189

Como fuente documental, es una novela que vale la pena leer. Cuenta algunas de las penurias impensables que sufrió la población polaca cuando fue deportada por los rusos durante la Segunda Guerra Mundial en su plan de anexión territorial para hacer espacio a sus propios ciudadanos. Acabaron en diversos campos de trabajo y campamentos de los que muchos no salieron vivos.

La protagonista es Helena, la hermana mayor de una chica irresponsable a la que ansía cuidar, pero a quien finalmente traiciona para hacer su sueño realidad. Cuenta su travesía hasta Nueva Zelanda con el programa para 700 huérfanos que fueron acogidos mientras durara la guerra.

Sus peripecias y sufrimiento no acaban nunca, pero también descubre su destino en el que tienen cabida la incertidumbre de su situación, la forma de vida de los ganaderos neozelandeses, la cultura maorí en toda su espiritualidad y gloria pasada junto a su caída en contraste con el resto de colonos.

Hay un pequeño romance y siempre está pasando algo, enseñando algo, descubriendo algo. Interesante.3 s Tabniss203 5

Wieder ein guter Sarah Lark Roman entgegen der relativ schlechten Meinungen. Mir hat die Stimmung an sich gefallen und fand es schön, dass der Roman an die Wolken-Trilogie anschließt, meiner persönlichen Favoriten-Reihe. Zwar zeigt sich auch hier wieder, dass man sich das Leben auch selbst schwer machen kann, insbesondere wenn man nicht mit den Menschen in seiner Umgebung redet und stattdessen einfach voreilige Schlüsse zieht. Aber trotzdem wieder eine schöne Geschichte!:)3 s Leer En el Sur491 119

Una novela mas corta de lo usual a lo que nos tiene acostumbrados la autora, sin embargo suficiente para volver a reencontrarnos con algunos personajes de la trilogía de La nube blanca. Una bonita novela mezcla de romance, historia y paisajes, y una preciosa edición que nos regala Ediciones B, sin duda la recomiendo.3 s Linda Rendina9 1 follower

Interesting Maori Culture

I enjoyed this book for one reason- I learned something about the Maori culture. The writing was poor. If Helena was "happy" one more time, I thought I would need to put the book down. There are lots of synonyms for happy and this author needs to use a Thesaurus. This would be good reading for 6th to 8th graders.3 s Shannon1,101 35

3.5 stars. A good read but so so short. Not just short in page count, but shallow on story. I enjoyed the book but it ended so abruptly and we didn't get the depth of character stories that were in the other books. Everything just felt so rushed.2 s Elaine1,751 1 follower

I won a Kindle copy of A Hope at the End of the World from a Goodreads Giveaway.

This is the first book I've ever read by Ms. Lark and from the brief summary, I was expecting a story about war but it is less about the war itself than about the repercussions and tragic aftereffects of those displaced by Stalin and Hitler.

Also, it was way less romance-y than the cover led me to believe, thank God, but there are hints of romance throughout.

A Hope at the End of the World is about a young Polish refugee, Helena and her younger sister, Luzyna.

After betraying her sister by pretending to be her in order to get shipped out of the internment camp and on to a better life in New Zealand, she finds herself in the horrific position to submit to a rapist on her journey when he discovers her true identity.

Not long after her arrival, she discovers she is pregnant, alone and abandoned by her abuser who refuses to acknowledge her precarious condition.

Salvation comes to her in the form of James, the charming and chivalrous cousin of her caretaker, Miranda, who proposes she travel with him to his family farm to deal with her pregnancy in peace and away from prying eyes.

What enfolds is Helena settling into her new life in an environment steeped in the richness of Maori culture and heritage, their influence and rituals on New Zealand.

She is introduced to the natives and their beliefs and how it impacts the way they view the world and their lives in it.

She begins to adapt and learns to love her new homeland and toward the end of her pregnancy, she is called back to deal with her past and finally come to terms that she is not at fault for what had been done to her.

A Hope at the End of the World was chock-full of historical facts about the lives of Polish refugees when Stalin and Hitler rose to power; their internment in Siberia, their emigration to New Zealand to seek a better life and the difficulties in adjusting and adapting to a new culture and life.

Then, there was the history of Maori culture I found fascinating since I know very little about it but I felt it was too much information, sometimes it felt I was reading a history textbook.

I didn't the characters, especially Helena, who I felt was a whiny, traitorous brat for what she did to her little sister, nor did I ever warm up to James, a kind and compassionate man and only in a romance would such a man offer shelter to a compromised woman and then, of course, fall in love with her at the end.

This wasn't a bad read, just not for me, genre-wise.first-reads-giveaways kindle war-stuff2 s Taylor242 26

Posted at my blog: Babbling Books

*I received this book as a Read Now through NetGalley from AmazonCrossing*

Full disclosure I only made it through 50% of this book so please take this review for what it is considering I did not finish the book.

I will admit, this book did not pull me in at all. I kept going hoping that it would pick up at some point but it just didn't.

The main character Helena felt too one sided and boring to me, she betrays her sister, horrible things happen to her and then all she thinks about is these horrible things and ending her own life. Now don't get me wrong, I get why she would be a somber character, but I've read about somber characters before without them making me feel miserable as well and all Helena makes you feel when you read this book is misery.

Even when she meets James I don't even really feel a pull to his character at all. Most of the characters are just too one-note.

I was looking forward to this book as I really WWII books and with the romance plot it seemed a good mix, but I couldn't get past the dreary first half. Even if the book picked up later there really wouldn't be much of it left when the first half drags it down so far.

I will say that this could be a good read for someone interested in New Zealand life or culture back around that time period because while I was utterly confused I'm sure there are some people who would enjoy the cultural context in which the book is set.

So overall I thought the book had a good premise and had lots of potential, but in the end I just didn't feel it was the right choice for me to continue reading.dnf netgalley2 s Margaret1,303 62

What drew me to this book was the settings. Most books pertaining to World War II involves a European setting and it's a very rare thing to reach Iran or New Zealand. It's a world war so it only stands to reason that the effects reach the farthermost corner of the globe.

Beginning at an orphanage in Iran we meet two sisters separated from their parents. Even though I struggled to connect with these girls it wasn't hard to see the raw deal life threw at them. From Poland to Siberia and now in Iran their lives have been one terrible thing after another. The Iran setting is just a small part of this story as it the journey to New Zealand, but it is an important one that propels this book.

One of the things I love about historical fiction is learning new things, with A Hope at the End of the World I was not aware that the actual events took place. The author notes do a great job of explaining the things and I found that very interesting and a great way to end the book.

There were times I found the story predictable and to me it had more of a young adult feel. The conflict with the Maori people was interesting. The story had a good premise and will appeal to those that lighter historical fiction and young adult books.

Thanks to AmazonCrossing for an advanced copy (via Netgalley).2017 for-review historical ...more1 Butterfly25071,165 55

Habe es nach einigen Seiten abgebrochen. Ich fand Helena unausstehlich. So sehr dass mich ihre (spätere) Story noch nicht mal interessiert. Luzyna war okay wobei sie mir auch ein bisschen auf die Nerven ging. Schade.2 s Kayla Tornello1,479 13

I loved all the historical detail in this story. It follows Helena, a Polish girl, who was sent to Siberia and then released to a refugee camp in Iran. This story follows her journey to begin a new life in New Zealand. It was an interesting viewpoint for the immediate aftermath of WWII. I also d learning about the tensions between the Maori and the white settlers in New Zealand. The only thing that I didn't was the romance angle of the book. It felt too forced and stilted.

I received this book as a Goodreads Giveaway. Yay!adult giveaways historical-fiction2 s Jeanette1,129 58

A very interesting novel! I must admit to knowing nothing about children who had sadly found themselves as War orphans and selected to go to New Zealand. So much detail was packed into this touching story. It is the first time that I have read any novels by this author and based on this novel alone, I hope to read more by Sarah Lark.

My thanks to Netgalley and the Publishers. This is my honest review.2 s January Gray727 16

This book suited me perfectly! Astounding and well written. My post is scheduled for early March on my blog2 s Noa224 5

"Eine Hoffnung am Ende der Welt" ist der vierte Band der Neuseeland-Reihe und fällt im Vergleich zu den ersten drei Bänden leider ein wenig ab. Die Geschichte ist auf jeden Fall lesenswert, dennoch haben mir hier einige Punkte gefehlt, die ich bei den ersten drei Bänden so sehr mochte.
Zum einen ist der Aufbau des Romans ein wenig anders. Anstatt die Geschichte von zwei verschiedenen Frauen zu erzählen, handelt der Roman diesmal nur von Helena. Helena mochte ich gerne und ich konnte mich gut in sie hineinversetzen. Auch den geschichtlichen Hintergrund und die Bezüge zum zweiten Weltkrieg fand ich sehr interessant. ich hatte auch diesmal wieder das Gefühl, das die Zeit, in der die Geschichte spielt, wieder sehr authentisch umgesetzt wurde. Insgesamt fehlte es mir diesmal leider ein wenig an Spannung. Zwischenzeitlich plätscherte die Geschichte ein wenig dahin, was ich bei den Vorgängern nie hatte, obwohl die Bücher doppelt so viele Seiten hatten.
Ich hätte mich sehr gefreut, wenn man im Laufe der Geschichte noch mehr über Luzyna erfährt, die Helena in Persien zurück gelassen hat. Auch über Miranda hätte ich gerne mehr gelesen, da ich ihre selbstbewusste und quirlige Art sehr mochte. Schön fand ich allerdings, dass sowohl Lilian als auch Gloria und ihre Ehemänner wieder vorgekommen sind. Wie auch die anderen Bücher kann man aber auch dieses ohne jegliche Vorkenntnisse lesen. historische-romane1 Sandra Uribe94 4 Read

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