Ariel Djanikian

Mixed feelings on this book - it had some highly compelling moments, but I couldn't find a single character I liked or even found remotely relatable. Two intertwined timelines, separated by more than century, unfold in this book, one focused on the Klondike Gold Rush of the 1890s and one in the recent past about a family grappling with generational wealth. I wanted to like Alice, who journeys north in the Gold Rush to help care for her sister but dreams of a fortune for herself, but she kept manipulating her own family members and her own motivations felt flimsy. The more contemporary characters felt two-dimensional, and as much as I applaud the social justice sentiments of Anna, I lost sympathy for her when her grandfather died and she's still completely focused on his money and how he never really worked for it. Overall, this novel had the bones of a good story, but I think better characters might have made the book more relatable.… (mehr)

The essence of a good book lies somewhere inside The Prospectors by Ariel Djanikian, but it gets crushed under the weight of too many words. The book tells the fascinating true story of the Bush and Berry families who made a fortune in the Klondike Gold Rush and uses Alice Bush — the plain, middle daughter — as the central figure. Djanikian’s writing moves from decent to good throughout the book, but it could easily lose 50-100 pages and be no worse for the telling as many parts grow redundant, preachy, and boring. Still, readers who enjoy historical fiction and family sagas may want to slog through the long parts for the interesting story of wealth, family, betrayal, and reparations.… (mehr)