Find out what Mumsnetters thought of The Bones of Grace by Tahmima Anam

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Introducing… Tahmima Anam and her latest novel, The Bones of Grace. Find out how Tahmima uses literature to make sense of these dark times.

Zubaida is on a journey to unearth the past; a journey that takes her away from the comfort of the corridors of Harvard to the scorching deserts of Pakistan. Her travels carry her back to her hometown of Bangladesh, and the dark horrors of a ship-breaking yard. Here, deep inside a beached ocean liner, lies the key to her story.

The Bones of Grace is a story of lost love and conflicted identity; of the urgent need to discover who we are before we can truly belong anywhere, and love anyone.

We ask all winners to share their thoughts about the book on this discussion thread. However, you don't have to win a free book to take part in the discussion - you're welcome to grab a copy of The Bones of Grace and post a review on this thread.

Everyone who posts detailed feedback on the book by midday Monday 20 March will be entered into a prize draw to win a £100 Love2shop voucher.

This giveaway is sponsored by Canongate

I bought this as I wanted to take part in the discussion, and while I found it hard to get going, I started to enjoy it, but this book really does go deep into the ol' descriptives! This can be a bit annoying for me, as I like a story to carry me along, yet I am finding myself slipping sometimes. I am very near the end, and finding myself getting more used to Tahmimas style of writing. Yes, I would buy more of her books now, but it does take a while. The story is strong, very pulling and luckily though this is the third book in the series, the books are only loosely related, so the only spoilers you get is who will grow old and who doesn't!
I am going to buy the other two books as I have come this far, and its dragged me in! Thanks for the recommendation! x

Still haven't finished this but due to lack of time not lack of enjoyment. I've found myself drawn in to the story, and desperate to know how it all plays out. I think the way it is written to a character we've met but are only getting hints as to what's happened with in the meantime is clever and keeping me hooked, although I can't work out where it's all going, there seem to be so many different strands.

I'm currently feeling very sorry for Rashid who seems to have got a bad deal through no fault of his own - he seems to have been nothing but a good bloke. Clearly this may change....

I was intrigued to discover it's not the first book about Zubaida - I hadn't picked that up from the writing. I'll probably go back and get hold of the others at some point.

Jumped around far too much for me, gave up reading it half way.

Sounds fantastic. Can't wait to get hold of a copy.

I haven't read this one but have read the first in the trilogy and can highly recommend. The author,is very good at painting a picture because she is very descriptive. After reading these reviews I'm going to head out and buy this xx

Thanks Canongate and Mumsnet for my copy of the book. I found it difficult to connect with the story, it seemed to flit all over the place with nothing really happening in the first section of the book despite being introduced to lots of characters. I've yet to finish the book so I don't know if it improves but to date I've found it boring, I put it down after 30 pages and I've not picked it up since.

The title really grabs you, interesting read.

I am struggling with this book and haven't finished it yet. I am on Anwar's story.

It is beautifully written, descriptive but requires a lot of concentration. It jumps back and forth through time scales and stories. I also feel it needs a glossary at the back as some of the terms I was unfamiliar with, especially around the wedding and the clothing worn.

I am having to push myself to finish reading this as I usually only read a few pages at a time and then are lost when I pick the book back up. The dig was interesting and I would have liked more of the book spent here and less at the shipyard and the documentary film as this part was boring and at this point of my reading I am unsure of the relevance of Zubaida's time at the shipyard.

I also feel sorry for Rashid, he seems to have got a poor deal, and that she was pinning a lot of hope on Elijah, who she had only known for a short while.

With hope that the story becomes clearer after Anwar's story I will give this 3.5 out of 5. It is recommended for readers who enjoy a sweeping family saga, but not if you enjoy fast paced books such as thrillers.

Thanks for all your feedback on The Bones of Grace.

Congrats to NeverNic who is the winner of the Love2shop voucher!

Tried a few times and just couldn't get into it :(

Brilliant, thank you. I have just emailed you!

As I started this book I didn't know it was part of a trilogy - but it doesn't matter. It is easily read as a stand alone book. The story centres around an adopted daughter of a loving Bengali family. The text is beautiful and lyrical, each sentence is musical yet thoroughly conversational - almost like the narrator is singing the story, it is atmospheric, rich, intense and captivating, written with a melancholic elegance. It feels like someone is reading you the secrets of their soul, a halting emotional confession. It is such a personal story I often had tears in my eyes. Towards the end of this book I slowed down my reading as I didn't want it to end! From the moment you start reading you know there can be no 'fairytale' ending - there is just too much 'human' in this story for any 'convenient' happy ending. The only thing I have against this book is that it did feel like it was dragging at times and because of such descriptive writing it was hard to follow often. But it was a great read - and I am going to check out the other two!

Finally finished it, to the detriment of my ability to stay awake today! I really enjoyed it, and it got me thinking about all sorts of things: the contrasts between those who have much and those who have nothing, and the degree to which the former are aware of the latter; the extent to which we blame our current situation on our past; the cultures around the world about which I know so little.

I was a bit disappointed that the story of the whale didn't really tie in with everything else enough for me, it was all a bit philosophical. And I wanted happy endings for some of the characters (not Zubaida whose difficulties are largely of her own making) who didn't get them. But overall I thoroughly enjoyed it and will search out the other two in the trilogy.