Reviewed: Bohemia by Veronika Carnaby

During December I was approached by the very friendly Veronika Carnaby and asked whether I would be interested in writing a review of her debut novel, Bohemia (*). Being someone who loves to have my nose in a book constantly I was more than happy to oblige :)

"In her debut novel, Veronika Carnaby picks up where the Beat Generation left off. Set in 1960, Bohemia chronicles a group of twenty-somethings who defy the “ideals” of a mid-twentieth century society to seek creative fulfillment. In the process, they spotlight the creative path that artists of all mediums tread, all the while depicting the challenges faced by youth in the decade that changed the world."  book description as found on amazon.com.

From the very start the book is fast paced and really draws you in to the constantly evolving world of the characters. Written in a style reminiscent to a memoir of the main character "V" you easily become very involved with the plot, and I found that I almost felt like part of the group.
One of my favourite parts of reading is being able to build up an image of the setting where the story is taking place. There is a lot of description given in this book, perhaps a little much for some peoples liking, however I found it great for building up that picture in the way I like to do.
The main characters have all been clearly developed and have a clear personality and identity however my one slight criticism would be that as so many sideline characters come into the plot along the way, at times it took a little while to re-grasp who they are. Maybe this is more down to my habit of reading at bedtime though when my mind is a little slow hehe :)

Over all, I really enjoyed reading Bohemia. It is very well written, and carried me away to "V"'s lifestyle of dancing, art and traveling the world. If you're someone interested in history, culture and are after a bit of nostalgia then definitely give it a read. I wouldn't hesitate to recommend this book to friends and I'm definitely going to prod Daniel into reading it :)

Annie xx

(*)I was sent this book for review purposes but have as always been totally honest in my review.