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This is a sequel to Daughter of Fortune, a bridge to House of Spirits and not quite as good as either. Portrait in Sepia is written as a memoir of Aurora del Valle, granddaughter of the intrepid Eliza Sommers and formidable Paulina del Valle from Daughter of Fortune. Allende uses her usual style of intense character development and lyrical descriptions to tell us what happened to all our favorite characters from that book, but her heroine is a lack luster vehicle. To me Aurora came off as a "poor little rich girl." Sure she was orphaned, but raised by people who loved and cherished her. She watched a horrible tragedy as a child that gave her nightmares, but lived a life of luxury and intellectual indulgence. Even in an unhappy marriage, she found refuge in sympathetic and loving in-laws who did nothing to curb her eccentric behavior or limit her in any way. I'm not denigrating the psychological effects of witnessing a personal tragedy, just saying that it didn't make for compelling reading in this particular book. The most interesting parts, for me, were catching up with the characters from DOF and seeing the seeds planted for HOS. I would recommend it for folks who want the whole story, but not as a stand alone read.

Going to Friends of Cortelyou Library for a charity booksale. Good luck, Book. Hope you find a wonderful home!