I honestly still cannot decide how many stars to give this book. It's a strange, dreamy book. Definitely not plot-driven, but the language is so beautiful and lyrical that I still enjoyed the ride. Until the end, that is. The growth of the heroine is followed through well enough, but the author leaves holes everywhere else. I hoped some of the confusion and tangents and development of other characters along the way would lead to some sort of ah-ha moment at the end, but there was nothing.

Really enjoyed this. It's historical fiction and based on real people. It's part mystery/part historic and it's beautifully written. It jumps about a little but an utter joy.

I love this writer. I don't want to ruin anything about this book for you, so I'll just say that it takes place in San Francisco in the Gilded Age and that all the really interesting characters are women. How often do you get to read a book like that?

Since the imagery and characters are so fascinating, I feel this novel could have benefitted from more work on the story itself. There are so many different threads of the storyline, it is not clear if they have to do with each other. I read to the end hoping for a satisfying conclusion, but was disappointed. I give it 3 stars because the language is sometimes evocative and the characters so arresting I was rooting for them...but nothing much happened to any of them in the end.

Some really exceptional writing, but as a whole this didn't come into focus for me (which to be honest could be because a lot of it depends on remembering a bunch of people who might or might not have had children and who also have changed their names and I'm not sure I have the bit of your brain that tracks that kind of thing).

Mysterious and compelling, an examination of gossip and casual racism in 1890s San Francisco. The best book I have read this year.

The language was lyrical. At times poetic and reason enough to read the book once. The book has wonderful historical facts. The problem for me- too many characters. Many not intregal to the storyline or plot to keep track of. I knew we were in trouble, when there were just a few pages left and the story was not going to wrap up except for one or two characters. We were just left hanging, as if the author got tired of writing the book. One thing I truly appreciated about the book was it's accurat...

I was going to give this book 4 stars until I read the 2 and a half pages that Karen Joy Fowler wrote on her writing if sister noon. It explained a lot and made me realise why she wrote it like she did. I think that she is such an amazing author. The research that goes into her work and the way the reader is completely transported to a different time and place. I really, really enjoyed this book with all its strangeness and ambiguity. Fantastic!!

"You can do anything you want. You don't have to be the same person your whole life."I really liked this tale focusing on the elite of early San Francisco in the mid 1800s. Fowler writes of Lizzie Hayes, an unmarried well off woman who works as the treasurer for a white orphanage, the Brown Ark; and Mary Ellen Pleasant, a wealthy Black woman who has everyone in the Bay Area wrapped around her finger. One day, Mary Ellen drops off Jenny Ijub, a young child who she claims came from a rich family w...

3.5 I chose to read this, out of interest, as it has the lowest goodreads rating of all the unread books I own. As someone who tends to pick books with 4+ star ratings, Sister Noon turned out to be a pleasant reminder that reviews aren't everything :) It was a quiet book looking at societal norms, gossip/rumours, reputation, racism and women's place in society all in the setting of 1890s San Francisco. I loved the setting- it was so different to anything I've read before, and the nuances and con...

Given my recent reading drought the fact that I finished this in two days is a testament to how readable and enjoyable I found it. Karen Jay Fowler is a slick clean kind of writer, who gets the historical pitch right with an occasional rye touch that makes the novel also seem fresh and modern. I’m surprised by the poor ratings it’s got on here. I was intrigued by the 1890s San Francisco setting and the full bodied female characters at its heart: the elusive Mary Ellen Pleasant and the romantical...

"An interesting woman that may have existed."The description of San Francisco in 1890 is fascinating and so is all the information on the period, but I found the plot to be disappointing as so much of the book is based on rumors and innuendo that it feels slippery and forced to stay together.Ellen Pleasant.is the main character in the soul of the book, but she also is the mistery almost and amalgamation of a mithical woman; black, white, married, rich, poor, servant, mistres, murderer all of thi...

My favorite of Fowler's books so far. I'm usually much more of a plot person, but her words are just fun to read. The way she writes makes the littlest thing seem interesting.

Wonderful writer, but somehow her endings always leave me dissatisfied. I liked this best of the 3 I've read (Sarah Canary years ago and Wit's End very recently).

A real genre buster! Interesting characters and some great descriptions of San Francisco 1850-1900, complete with prostitutes and the gold rush population. But, not straightforward historical fiction. It's also supernatural, full of social comment and satirical. But...too 'clever' and at times, bewildering; unforgivable really to confuse your reader.

I did enjoy this, but couldn't help feeling that it was a story told from the wrong perspective, in that Lizzie's life only really goes anywhere in the last few pages and Mrs Pleasant's character is far and away the most interesting one in the book. I felt like the book was only just getting started right up until around 85% - every subplot and relationship felt on the brink of developing into something significant when I realised it couldn't, because it was ending. I think you can still detect

I found it a little confusing regarding some of the characters. Each time I picked up the book I found myself reviewing what I read previously. I love the references to San Francisco in the 1800's, but a difficult book to follow due to the character development.

It was a lovely, nothing really happens story. I really liked Lizzie and could identify with her.

I just couldn't get into this one.

Sister Noon is just a lovely novel from start to finish, a story of growing pains, both Lizzie Hayes's and the city of San Francisco's. Fowler has a wonderful way of drawing characters who aren't larger than life, but are instead every bit as frail and small as everyday, while still being moving and compelling. Lizzie Hayes doesn't start stretching herself until half her life has passed her by, and only has a limited reach, but it's a brave struggle.