I get why Eça de Queiros create Amaro as he was, I do. But damn it, enjoying 503 pages about a character I loathe more than any character I've met before is just not possible. Not for me at least. And there's no redemption for Amaro. The hypocrisy, the lies, the manipulation, the gaslighting. I understand why, but I can't appreciate it. And the partinalistic behaviour Amaro had with Amélia freaked me out.

The we have João Eduardo (or whatever is his name) who I am still not sure if he is meant to be a victim or just another idiot. Which is a problem because he is clearly a walking red flag just like Amaro and I highly doubt that was the point.

Oh and let's not forget Amélia. Or maybe we should forget her, because there's nothing about her worth remembering. She is just bland.

The only enjoyable character was Ferrão and he was there for less than a third of the book, so it can't really count.

But I did enjoy the description of the society, which Eça had already proven to me that he could do brilliantly when I read Os Maias. And I can't say I like the ending, but I do understand why it ended like that and I can appreciate what was done.

Full review coming soon!