All the World Beside
Conley’s book is... short on action, but without a compensating depth of character analysis ... There is promise in the idea of two families growing and warping around the secret of queerness, in such a time and place. Yet its development here is circular and shallow ... Sensibly, Conley doesn’t attempt to recreate the speech of 18th-century Puritans ... The issue with his dialogue is that it’s undifferentiated, every character sounding the same. And what can’t be forgiven is his profligacy with verbal cliché.
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Affecting if contrived ... Although the plot seems trite, Conley paces it well ... Conley is guilty of "presentism," the framing of past events and people through the lens of contemporary concerns ... But the novel’s assured rhythm enhances the interior struggles of Conley’s characters.
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...an evocative and mystical work of historical fiction ... Conley uses these female friendships to gently explore, with honesty and sensitivity, how the ripples of intolerance spread throughout the lives the lives of all involved parties ... as much a character-driven examination of the cost of suppression as a compelling dip into spiritual realism ... a contemplative depiction of the endurance required to survive religious intolerance that is probing, redemptive and brimming with compassion for the human race.
