Customer Reviews

Sands of Time

5 star:		(22)
4 star:		(9)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

I have read almost all of Sheldon's books, and this one is one of my favorites. Sheldon creates 4 exciting, vivid and very different heroines and sends them on an adventure of romance, excitement, murder and betrayal set in the lush valleys, little villages and picteresque buildings of the Spanish countryside. Fun all the way! Definitely a must-read if you enjoy sweet'n'sexy all rolled into one! Appropriately named, this novel focuses on 4 nuns who are riden out of their safe and very strict convent in a little town in Spain due to an attack brought on by the Spanish Army who are searching for Basque leaders and believers; who in their eyes are terrorists. The 4 nuns set out to deliver a sacred cross to another convent, but on the way meet Jaime Miro, the charismatic Basque leader and his men. Along their journey they became friends, remember their pasts, and fall in love with the men they are forbidden to love. An excellent and exciting book!

Set in a time of political unrest in Spain, four nuns find themselves running for their lives from a ruthless tyrant who holds a lot of political power. All four women have secrets that help complicate matters as they flee their once safe haven, and they all learn very important lessons about who they were, and who they will soon become.

This is a wonderful novel that I would recommend to anyone. It has action, adventure, romance, intrigue and of course style which is something Sindey Sheldon's books never lack.

THE SANDS OF TIME is a great book that has something for everyone. It is filled with action, intrigue,danger, and a hint of romance. This is the story of four nuns in Spain who are driven from their convent (they are Trappists one of the strictest orders of nuns)and forced to make a long journey to another convent for safety. Taking the only thing of value (a gold cross) with them, they set out on this journey, and face a world that will bring back memories for each. This journey is the focus of this grand novel.

This book is vividly described and takes us around the world. Sheldon does a great job providing a wonderful story in war-torn Spain. If you love Sidney Sheldon's works or just a fantastic novel, Sheldon's THE SANDS OF TIME is a book you should read. It's well worth the money, so buy it today.

This really does read like a super opulent soapie...perhaps it has been put on film and, if it was, it must have looked gorgeous. In the turbulent days of the seventies following Franco's death and the return to the throne of the Spanish royal house, bitter fighting still continued between the members of the Basque underground, ETA, and the Spanish army. Killings occurred on both sides with reprisals being swift and horrifying, especially the manner of execution by the Government...the garrotte, a brutal, slow and inhumane method of death. Under the command of Colonel Ramon Acoca, the Spanish army is searching for the leader of the resitance, Jaime Miro, and in his determination to capture Jaime, Acoca orders the search and desecration of a convent. Some nuns are killed, others raped and four of the nuns escape the slaughter under the protection of Jaime. The nuns are hoping to reach the sanctuary of another convent some distance away, with the exception of one of them, who is the daughter of an Italian Mafiosa, who has been hiding from the police in the convent, biding her time to escape to Switzerland. Romances flourish, traitors are exposed and lots happen on their trek through the hills of the Spanish countryside. Perhaps it's predictable fiction but it was a fun read in vivid Technicolour !

This book is entertaining. It is not as enthralling like other books Sheldon has written such as The Conspiracy Theory, The Stars Shine Down or Nothing Lasts Forever. I found myself bored at times when reading this and then in a "can't put it down" mode at other times. If you are a Sheldon fan, it is worth reading, but if you are new to this author try a different title first. He is an exceptional story teller.

Wonderfully written, this book portraits you to a world unlike any other. That was the first book by Sidney Sheldon I read, a long time ago, and it's still my all time favorite.

The story, full of twists make you seat on the edge of the chair the whole time. You suffer, laugh, run and have fun with the characters. It's the kind of book that Mr. Sheldon seem to have forgotten how to write. The adorable scenarios in Spain are only a little thing of the whole that the book shows. Believe me, reading this book it's like watching a movie, like the ones we watch and never forget and want everyone we know to watch it too. That's the way I feel about that book and I guarantee you that's the way you will feel after taking this piece with you to bed.

Marco Aurelio.

I have read and loved every book Sidney Sheldon has ever written. But this is by far his best, I have read it 3 times!! This is a story that stays with you, you have to read it again and again.

This book was for sure, one of his best. It had everything, and his writing was so well done you would believe you were there. You can almost feel the emotion come off the page, with each turn. This is an astonishing book that did get the recognition it deserved.

Sidney Sheldon's potboiler dwells on a compelling subject matter: the turmoil of a nation embroiled in a bloody civil war. Set against the timeless and haunting landscape of Spain, Sheldon weaves intricate strands of Spanish history and politics into a tangled tapestry of adventure and romance. By depicting the enigmatic and rugged Spanish terrain with broad but deft strokes of colours, Spain comes across as a colourful juxtaposition of the past and present, a land of eternal passion and unceasing bloodshed. He is adept at capturing a historical ambience and the nuances of affinities between people thrown together by circumstances....

The Sands of Time has a dramatic poignancy that demonstrates Sheldon's measured writing style, which through sheer imagination succeeds in creating a drama of political intrigue. There was no dearth of dramatic punctuation and the narrative was not bloated with extraneous dialogue; his dialogue is irrefragably excellent for the revelation of characters and his command of the idioms of ordinary speech permits him to achieve a fine naturalness.

The Sands of Time deals with the tragedy of a land torn by strife, unfolded with an insight into the characters that people the vast Spanish landscape. It pricks and provokes...a people and their ideals, beliefs and freedom, and at the same time delves into the subtle territory of forbidden love. Much of the novel is a joy to read and it may linger in our minds long after other easily assimilated pulp of the same genre have passed beyond our memory. This is also Sheldon's last well-written novel; his more recent flaccid potboilers have somehow become a reviewer's nightmare.

This was a good reading experience. Sheldon had me flipping page after page, and I devoured this book in no time. I loved the flashback style and riviting story line. I thank the author for introducing the readers to the fact/history behind the story. In all, it was great entertainment.