Jennifer's Reviews > The Bungalow

★★★½
The Bungalow is a standalone, women's fiction novel written by author Sarah Jio. In an interview I found HERE with Ms. Jio, she briefly described the premise of the book as: "At the end of her life, a woman confronts the tragedy and love -- and the Bora Bora beach bungalow -- that have haunted her for a lifetime." In The Bungalow, Ms. Jio incorporates a number of elements: history, culture, art, friendship, romance, war, mystery, and crime. She also offers a beautiful past/present timeframe which I enjoy when reading historical fiction. It's always nice to see the whole "where are they now" follow-up in my opinion.

Overall, I liked The Bungalow. The historical aspect transported me to 1940's war-ready Bora Bora, and I love it when an author can make history come alive like that. This part was perfect. But my frustration grew a bit as I witnessed painfully preventable interactions negatively affect the romance element. Deceit, misunderstandings, and a few unfinished conversations had me almost yelling at the book in an effort to prevent our sweet Anne from living a different life than the one love set out for her. On the plus side, the fact I emotionally responded as such is a credit to the very engaging writing :) In the last quarter of the book though, the discoveries and secrets revealed were quite predictable in my opinion...and when it comes to mystery, I'm typically shocked by everything lol. Maybe the predictability was intentional?

Overall, I enjoy Ms. Jio's writing and am always interested in reading her books when I see them at the library. The Bungalow was no exception. I bumped up my 3 stars to 3.5 just for the time and place components which I loved the most. If you enjoy the combination of women's fiction and historical fiction, or if you are just a fan of Sarah Jio, I encourage you to take a look at this one.

My favorite quote:
"You can never play a part in life, especially not in love."

I couldn't find a photo online anywhere that really does the setting justice, but I thought this image translates a bit of the tranquility the characters found during their moments together at the isolated bungalow.


If interested, you can view Sarah Jio's book trailer for The Bungalow AT THIS YOUTUBE LINK.