I requested this book because I thought the author was the one who had written The Secret River (who turned out to be Kate Greville), a mistake I regretted. This, sadly, was just chick lit and not an especially engaging example of the genre. The quite serious topic of illicit theft of archaeological remains is just used as background to a simplistic treatment of Greece’s complicated recent history, which in turn is just used as background for a tale of a naive young woman’s revenge on an ex-lover. The writing is pedestrian, the plotting stretches credulity, and the main character is not especially likeable. Don’t bother - I wish I hadn’t.

I felt like I was in Greece myself with the fabulous descriptions. Family, history, intrigue and romance everything I love in a book and Victoria Hislop didn't dissapoint.

I have previously really enjoyed Victoria Hislop's books, but I found this one harder to get into than most. I enjoyed the storyline overall, and liked the characters, but I felt there was quite a lot of unnecessary detail that didn't add to the plot. I did enjoy this book, but not as much as some of Hislop's other novels.

A fantastic read.A really interesting story as we follow Helena's journey from her first visit to Athens as a young girl, where she visits her grandparents and soon realises her grandfather has many secrets and is not nice man and he's the reason her mother left home as soon as she could and never returned to eventually discovering the truth about him many years later. Loved the location and all the interesting historical fiction that makes this a perfect read

I found the story very slow in the beginning- it didn’t really grab my interest until half way through. That said, I enjoyed the subject and found the descriptions of Athens and the smaller Greek islands really interesting. The historical element and the descriptions of archaeology and the trade in stolen artifacts was fascinating. Overall I would recommend this book.

Such an engaging read from the get go!

I honestly loved this one! I loved the writing style and the characters!

In this story, we meet Helena when she is 8 years old. She begins visiting her grandparents every summer in Greece. As each year passes, she begins to learn more about her family history and the troubles in Greece. As Helena grows up, she begins to put the wrongs of certain people in her life right.

It was lovely to read the descriptions of Greece while here on holiday. I loved all the threads in this story and how they connected. I also loved learning about the history (clearly well researched). For me, the story was quite long and at times felt padded out. I wasn’t overly keen on Helena and the way dialogue was written for her. She came across too perfect at times.

All in all, I enjoyed this book, it’s worth a read but for me it’s not Hislop’s best book. I was lucky enough to receive an early copy of this, it’s out now!

I enjoyed the latest novel from Victoria Hislop and savoured her beautiful descriptions of life in Greece. I felt at times as if I was in Athens, having coffee or wine with friends. It was a really immersive read.

It was interesting to follow Helena’s journey. As a child she visits her grandparents in Athens and although she enjoys most of her holidays there, there are sinister happenings which she doesn’t at first understand. Later she returns and tries to right the wrongs of her grandfather. The narrative flows at a steady pace, allowing us to experience Greece with Helena and meet some wonderful characters. The Figurine is a very interesting and well-researched novel. It has made me want to return to Greece as soon as I can!

I've just read this book whilst on holiday in Crete. That gave the story even more poignancy. A great story told very well.

The latest novel doesn't disappoint and based in background of the Junta in Greece with an Anglo-Greek family and ancient treasure always a mixture of a love story and betrayal to but keeps the reader involved and carried them along.

I love Victoria Hislops writing, she captivates the feeling and atmosphere of the places in her stories so well and in The Figurine she continues with this - in the early chapters you are transported to Athens in the late 60's and 70's, seeing the city through the eyes of the young Helena. Cocooned within the priveleged life her grandparents live, sheltered from the politics and injustice that is happening in Greece during this period and trying to figure out why her mother never returns or really talks about her childhood.
I found the start of part three, once Helena is at university a bit slow and predicatable but then the story picks up pace again although still a bit predictable.

A good read, and at over 500 pages a long one - I think it could have been a great read if shorter.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publishers for allowing me to read The Figurine.

Helena is 8 years old when she flies to Athens on her own to meet her Greek grandparents for the first time. Her mother left Greece when she went to University and never returned or has seen her parents since that day. Why did her mother leave and why did she never go back?
Another enchanting read from Victoria Hislop.

Dealing with the issue of cultural treasure and the book deals with items her grandfather has taken. It was a little slow for me and not my favourite Victoria hislop book

I'm a huge fan of Hislop so was eagerly anticipating the opportunity to read her latest title. Another successful story with complex characters on a journey to discover the sins of the past. A four star read, perfect for holidays.

I really enjoyed reading this book, I loved following Helena on her journey in Greece. The descriptions are beautiful and you really feel like you’re there . This is mainly set in Suffolk and Greece and we follow Helena whose grandparents live in Athens. After their death the story starts to get interesting. Helena meets several characters some of whom are unsavoury and untrustworthy . It is an epic read and it is full of Greeces history and it’s hidden treasures. There isn’t much plot to the story , however it is a gentle read that you can absorb yourself in. You get to know the characters and are hoping that everything gets resolved. I have read Victoria Hislop’s novels before and if you’re a fan this will not disappoint. In my opinion it is a slow read and it is also a bit too long. However if you want transporting to a place full of history and beautiful scenery then this is for you.

I have previously read books by Victoria Hislop so had high expectations for this new title. The story is set between Scotland and Greece as Helena travels to stay either her maternal grandparents at the age of 8 years and follows on until the death of her grandparents and later her mother. She returns after completing her degree to meet her boyfriend and then to visit her grandparents home. Until this point I found the story a little slow although the feelings and emotions of those involved are well described. I liked the descriptions of Greece a place I haven't been to. As the pace picks up and more issues are uncovered through the history of Greece and the local archaeology, I was hooked. The issues were complex at times but they are very much pertinent for our times.
Great research has produced an excellent story.

Expectations are always high for a Victoria Hislop novel and my expectations were certainly more than met by this book. The descriptive language, whether is it is of characters, landscape, city streets, village life, antique artifacts, emotional turmoil, political upheaval, family relationships, love or loss leaves me enthralled. It is so easy to actually imagine oneself in the situation, or location, in the UK or Greece.

As well as enjoying the fiction and the plot, the author also manages to educate the reader about wider issues involving Greek society and history. I have visited Spinalonga since reading The Island and now feel like it is time to see more Greek islands. A great read.

I’ve been a huge admirer of Victoria Hislop’s writing since I first read The Island and fell in love with her beautifully descriptive writing style and her passion for the country of Greece. I’ve read all of her books and have loved them all.

The Figurine is as meticulously researched and steeped in history as always. The novel opens in 1968 as eight year old Helena visits her maternal grandparents in Greece for the very first time. Her mother left home many years before and has not been back to Greece since, saying very little to Helena of her childhood or indeed of Helena’s grandparents, but it seems quite apparent that the years she spent there were not always happy ones.

We then follow Helena as she spends several summers in Greece with her grandparents. Her grandfather is a stern military man who has very little time for his half Scottish granddaughter, other than to find fault with everything from her red hair to her lack of a baptism. So when he dies, Helena can’t help but feel a sense of relief as her visits become more carefree and happy, with her mother even relenting and planning a visit to go back and visit her childhood home.

Victoria Hislop’s beautiful writing weaves an incredibly powerful and intricately detailed story that brings both Greek history and an emotionally charged fictional tale seamlessly together. As Helena grows up she begins to understand more about the history of her family, eventually attempting to make amends for some of her grandfather’s actions, including his questionable acquisition of certain cultural treasures.

The beautiful and conflicted country of Greece is brought vividly to life as, after her grandmother’s death, Helena’s desire to find answers about her heritage develops into a fascination for archaeology that is sparked into life by a summer spent with volunteers on a dig on an Aegean island. What happens there fuels her determination to protect what she has found – as she begins to understand where her grandfather’s collection originated from – and exactly what human price was paid for them…

Victoria Hislop is a born storyteller and her love and passion for Greece comes through loud and clear with every word she writes. A beautiful, moving and thought provoking story, The Figurine is a stunning read that I would highly recommend.

I have read most of Victoria Hislop's books, this one was rather slow to get into, and a few parts about the theft of antiquities from archaeological sites were very similar to another book I had read by her.

Set in Suffolk and Greece, Helena whose mother was Greek started visiting her estranged grandparents when she was about 9 years old, her grandmother showed a lot of love, but her grandfather was a stern political army general who ruled with an iron rod.

When the grandfather dies, he leaves everything to his nephew, his wife had a will to leave everything to Helena.

10 years after her death, lawyers in Athens agree her grandmother's will is valid, and everything passes to Helena... that is when the story comes to life!

I’ve been a fan of Victoria’s books for many years now – my first being The Island about the leper colony at the island of Spinalonga, off the coast of Crete.

In The Figurine, we are back in Greece, though this time it’s mainland Athens, plus a few smaller Greek Islands I’d never heard of, and London. Helena is a child at the beginning, and at aged 12, she goes to Athens to stay with her Greek grandparents. She goes alone, even though she has never met them. Her mother left Greece 25 years ago and has never returned.

Her grandfather is a stern, formidable man, with a cruel streak that she recognises even at such a young age. He was a general in the junta when Greece was under a brutal military dictatorship and anyone who didn’t agree could be made to disappear. Her grandmother, however is kind and generous, but she never defies or criticizes her husband.

Helena returns every year and we follow her life from the premature death of her mother, her time reading chemistry at Oxford, her relationship with the charismatic Nick, and her budding interest in archaeology.

But I don’t want to retell the story. You can read it for yourselves. I want to draw attention to what this book is really about. It’s partly about Helena’s attempts to right the wrongs perpetrated by her grandfather, but it’s mainly about the relics that have been looted from Greece – and other countries – the most famous being the Elgin Marbles, removed from the Parthenon, and now in the British Museum. They are said to ‘represent perhaps the most disputed pieces of cultural heritage’ ever. Many artefacts were also sold overseas for vast sums of money to private collectors. This book discusses the rights and wrongs, with the addition of fictitious heroine Helena to add interest and romance to the story. I really loved it.

Many thanks to @annecater for inviting me to be part of #RandomThingsTours, to NetGalley for an ARC, and to The Pigeonhole, the author and my fellow Pigeons for making this such an enjoyable read.