An interesting book historically spanning the lives of three women. Compelling background of historical detail kept the story alive, but it was a bit tough going at times.

Three women tell their stories of life and love. Jenny's story is first, then her daughter Camilla and last is Natalia, her granddaughter. They are women who live their own lives, unique and determined.
The harsh politics of Portugal is presented as background and this gives the reader an interesting comparison to the romance and energy of the women.

I really wanted to enjoy this novel, but unfortunately it was not for me.

Perhaps it was the translation, but I found the lack of a clear narrative very off putting.

These stories centering around three generations of women in a Portuguese family are lushly told and concentrate on the internal as much as the external. All of this is lovely to read yet somehow the stories are less compelling than I expected. The historical background is fascinating, and so are all of the characters - each with their quirks - and in a way there seemed to be too much of everything. Many times I was looking for narrative drive to make me want to keep reading. Persistence does pay off, and this evocation of a world gone forever is both beautiful and sad.

This was a fine book, first published in 1997 and recently republished, this book was filled with philosophy and history centred in Lisbon commencing in 1935 and progressing into the 90’s, the first story begins during the Salazar regime a time of oppression and conformity. The book incorporates important themes of family, race, sexuality and gender identity while giving an insight into the complicated Portuguese political history. Three separate but linked stories of three generation of women, all three women coming up against society’s expectations and fighting against societal norms, each rebelling in their own individual ways. Jenny fighting to keep up appearances in an ultra conservative era, working hard to protect and keep hidden her unconventional marriage, Camila raising her biracial daughter as a single mother and also a product of her unusual upbringing and Natalia, trying to navigate a world that tries to judge her by her gender and her skin colour. Each of these women struggle but ultimately triumph, as all the women grow strong even against all the challenges, and the love that links and unites them through their shared adversities, their family secrets and strong willed female characteristics. Not all sections of the book worked, I grew tired of Natalia’s story being partly written through letters to Jenny, but the feminist in me loved this book.

Three generations of Portuguese women tell their stories. From the 1930s to the 1990s, set against Portugal’s often turbulent history, they each embark on a quest for love, fulfilment and freedom. In the first section we meet Jenny, caught in an unorthodox relationship with 2 men, one of whom has a daughter, Camila, whose reminiscences of her time in revolutionary Mozambique make up the 2nd part. And the 3rd is in the form of letters from her daughter Natalia, an architect. The writing is quite dense and the characters complex, but I didn’t find the book drawing me in to the narrative. I appreciated reading about the historical background but the women remained opaque to me and I couldn’t relate to them. An interesting book, but not one I found particularly enjoyable.

A story of love and loss, and the ways that we try to protect ourselves, In Your Hands (AmazonCrossing, written by Inês Pedrosa, translated from Portuguese by Andrea Rosenberg) tells the stories of three generations of Portuguese women navigating their way through life in the 20th Century. Jenny, whose society wedding in 1935 opens the book, appears to live a picture-perfect life, but the diaries she writes for her adopted daughter, Camila, and Camila’s daughter, Natália, betray a loneliness and hurt that has been suppressed for years.

In her diaries, Jenny speaks directly to António, her beloved husband, while also explaining that, on her wedding day, she learned her marriage was merely a sham, to cover the love affair between António and his life partner, Pedro. Conventionality again turns on its head when Jenny is presented with Camila, Pedro’s love child with a woman who has been deported and murdered by the Nazis. Coming of age in the post-war years, Camila then spreads her wings, falling in love with a freedom fighter in Mozambique, who gives her Natália, a daughter of her own.

For all three women, their men are central, but absent, figures in their lives. Husbands, partners, fathers all loom large in the women’s narratives, but through emotional distance, death, disinterest or intentional self-preservation, have limited physical presence. In their own way, and more particularly their own time, each character is a feminist, defying societal expectations about who and what a woman should be. Jenny maintains an independence from her husband and freedom to do as she pleases – even if her choice to remain with António at times appears incomprehensible. Camila’s overtly political life pushes her into situations that many men would be afraid to face, and this demonstrates both her immense strength and the cause of her greatest pain. In the modern day, Natália’s life appears perhaps the most ordinary, but in turning away from her mother’s renegade path finds herself asking important questions about the quest to have it all.

There is a parallel structure between the chapters written by Jenny, in diary form, and those of Natália, whose life is narrated in letters back to her grandmother. These two literary women bookend the chapters narrated by Camila, who is a photographer. Her story is therefore presented in snapshots: discrete events with clearly defined borders that leave the reader wondering about what the camera hasn’t captured. Given her place in the family, the history of which she appears to have known little in her childhood, Camila’s chosen artistic medium and disjointed narrative reflect a disconnect from the family that is also part of her identity. Through the passage of time, the reader is invited to explore the ways that each successive generation responds to, and is shaped by, those who came before.

At times frustrating for the reader, both in terms of the characters themselves and the style of the narrative progression, In Your Hands is nevertheless a compelling read that blends together family secrets, broken relationships, and the indomitable search for love.

A lyrical , at times poetic novel charting the stories of three generations of women in the Portugal ,from the 1930's to the 1990's through political and personal turbulence and drama. I particularly liked how the author allowed each of the women to tell their stories in different ways, We are first introduced to the matriarch of the family, Jenny through her diaries, where we learn about her unconventional marriage , her difficult relationship with her daughter Camila, and her love and support for her granddaughter Natalia. Camila is a photographer, and tells her stories through a series of snapshot images, each of which is special to her in some way , and each of which reveals another part of her tale. This section was probably my favourite of the book as a whole, every image was so vividly brought to life on the page. The final section of the book is a series of letters from Natalia to her grandmother, and they are among the most beautifully written parts of the book.
A beautiful book, with an unusual and unique way of revealing the stories of these remarkable women.
I read and reviewed an ARC courtesy of NetGalley and the publisher, all opinions are my own.

Unlike anger, which writers can call to readers mind by making us think about the physical symptoms—pounding heart, clenched muscles, etc.—we’ve all felt, love is harder to evoke. Not all of us have felt the all-encompassing, possibly life-ruining love that the three protagonists have in Inês Pedrosa’ In Your Hands (translated by Andrea Rosenberg). The protagonists do their best to explain their feelings, from familial love to friendship to companionship to erotic passion. Some of the types of love shown here baffled me; this novel has permutations that I’ve never seen before in fiction. But by the end, even without being able to call on common experiences or symptoms of love, I think In Your Hands is successful in its explorations.

The novel opens with Jenny remembering her wedding day in 1935, when she married the great love of her life, António. On the very next page, we learn with a shock that the great love of António’s life is Pedro. Though she was upset, Jenny decided that being close to António and sharing a part of his life was enough. There were several chapters when my ire rose on Jenny’s behalf. António is no prize. He gambles. He’s jealous of Pedro. He’s temperamental. But by the end of her section, I lost my pity for Jenny. She chose her life and never changed her mind.

Part of what helped Jenny was that she had a child to care for. Camila is not Jenny’s biological child, but Jenny raised her up after the girl’s mother was deported and murdered by Nazis. While Jenny’s section is very much of the old world, Camila comes of age after World War II. She has options her adopted mother didn’t have. But when love comes for her, Camila is smitten hard and her life is disrupted just as much as Jenny’s was. The last part of the novel is narrated by Camila’s daughter, Natália, who saw how much love derailed her mother and grandmother’s lives and turned away from her great love to marry a safe man. But, by playing it safe, Natália’s life grows hollow. Her life makes us wonder if an all-consuming love is worth the price of pain and loss that her forbearers felt.

Andrea Rosenberg’s translation is wonderful throughout; she ably translates the slippery language about emotion and preserves the distinct voices of each of the narrators. Overall, In Your Hands is one of the strangest love stories I’ve ever read. It’s definitely not about falling in love. It’s narrated by women looking back on their lives. One has no regrets. One is sad but has made peace with her past. The last has to decide if she wants to take the plunge again. I wasn’t sure about it when I started reading it, but In Your Hands rewards the persistent.

This is a little gem of a book - the intertwining story of three generations is compelling and makes you want to go on reading to see what happens in the end. I loved the almost elegiac tone of the book, as well as the way the reader gets immersed into the Portuguese background.

This book is a little Portuguese treasure that has been translated into English for the first time since its original publication in 1997. Two things really stood out for me. 1) The writing is simply beautiful and while I'm happy to give credit to the author for that, I suspect the translator has done a wonderful job too. 2) The structure is quite unique - I've certainly never read anything like it before.

The story belongs to 3 generations of the same Lisbon family, covering the period from the 1930s through to the 1990s. Jenny, Camila and Natalia are all strong, relatable figures who deal with their joys and tragedies in their own ways. Jenny tells her story via her journal, Camila talks us through key photos in her family album and finally Natalia writes letters to her grandmother, up to and beyond the latter's death. While I enjoyed the novelty of this, I thought Jenny's journal was the least successful, as it was sometimes difficult to keep track of who she was writing for (usually her husband Antonio, but occasionally her daughter).

I know very little about Portugal and its modern history, and as this story covers the revolutionary years I had hoped to learn a bit more than I actually did. There were references to it, and even more allusions, but not a lot of detail. I think if the reader knows the basics, they will probably get more out of this than I did. Still I enjoyed it very much for the characters and their ability to reflect on and analyse their own actions and choices.

In Your Hands is a lovely book and told in an interesting, captivating way.


First we read from Jenny’s journals, about her life, beliefs, and desires. She is a fascinating woman in an unusual situation at a time of political unrest and in an unconventional marriage. Her journals draws the reader in to her very human story among all of the interesting circumstances of her life.


Next we read Camila’s, Jenny’s daughter, thoughts on photos she is looking at in an album. We get to know her and her upbringing in Jenny’s world. We learn about the unique challenges that Camila faced as political turmoil took over.


Finally, there are Natalia’s, Camila’s daughter, letters to her grandmother. These round off the lives, ambitions, and values of the three generations. We see how things have changed in Portugal and what a woman’s life was like, the choices she had, and how these three interesting women made their way.


I enjoyed the writing and the translation of this book, and getting to know all three generations of strong women. It was thoughtful and the three different ways of telling the story really worked for each character.
Note: I received an advanced copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

I loved the writing in this book. It tells the story of one family through three generations of women. I highly recommend it.

I would like to thank Netgalley and the publisher for providing me with a review copy of the book. All opinions expressed are my own.

In your hands by Inês Pedrosa is a story about three generations of women. The book is divided into three sections for each of the women. The story begins with Jenny’s (who is the oldest of the women) point of view. She is married to António, a gay man and she has to live with his lover, Pedro who has a daughter called Camila. It is a life of isolation and heartbreak even if the character sees it differently. I honestly don’t understand how she got through it.

Her story is told through entries into her diary which she addresses to her now deceased husband. She tells him about her life now that she is old. She talks about the past and her present, occasionally speaking about the other main characters, Camila and Natália. At a glance, and this was honestly my first impression of Jenny, one would think that she is weak but this is far from the truth. It takes certain strength for her to have lived the life she had and to have survived it. She could have easily become bitter and angry but she chose to remain and make the best of her life and even going as far as raising Pedro’s daughter.

The second section of the book is about Camila, whose life is plagued by one problem after the other. Unlike Jenny the events in her life make her cynical and withdrawn and a little bitter. Her daughter Natalia is the youngest of the trio. Her point of view is written as letters to Jenny. She talks about her failed marriage and her difficult relationship with her mother. Through Natália we get to see that Jenny was the one who held their relationship and their family together and in her absence it is not the same.

In Your Hands is a realistic depiction of the problems faced by women no matter the generation. Jenny was my favorite character even though I would never make any of the choices she did. I recommend this to people who enjoy contemporary and women’s fiction.

It was a very engaging read. With three different perspectives to the same characters and the same strange family history, it was one of a kind. I really liked the letters, all of the three parts by the three generations. The confusing love lives, and relationships intrigued me till the end. The narrative was just beautiful. Almost poetic. A reader's delight indeed.

This is the first English-translated work from this particular Portuguese author and I hope it’s the first of many. It’s a story of love, relationships and families against the backdrop of horror and war. There’s many references to “Make Love Not War” and problems of the time explored such as interracial relationships and long lasting marriages. The women in this story each have a story to tell and lines blur between each generation forming an interesting picture of war and endurance.

It’s a character driven novel on a historical stage and very emotional to read.

To tell a story such as this is quite a feat and to have a translator take that story and make it as clear and as lyrical as this is a great achievement.

Hoping to be transported into a kaleidoscope of Portuguese history, culture and society, In Your Hands didn’t disappoint. Straddling the years 1935 to 1994, it covers three generations of strong-willed women - each blazing their own paths in their time. Starting with Jenny in 1935 - caught in a love triangle that she cannot expose to society, Camilla - a photojournalist during the revolutionary years and Natalia - an architect, whose heritage creates another layer of complexity as she makes her mark on modern Portugal and explores her family’s past. The story is told in the first person by each of the three women - for me this didn’t work as well as potentially varying the voices could have, but it didn’t take too much away from the overall experience. The depth of the writing is impressive, the analogies intriguing and I wonder what it would be like to read the novel in the language it was originally written - Portuguese. There are many wonderfully strung sentences that say so much.

Examples: “The Portuguese soul was made by tile, painted and chipped.”
“Love doesn’t have doors that we can open and shut, or secret passageways to a cellar where we can take a break from it.”
“We are used to treating love affairs like appliances: when they break down, we go to the store to buy a new one identical to the other one. Fix it? It’s not worth it: repairs are expensive, plus it’s hard to know where to get replacement parts.”
About Mozambique - Portugal’s colony for more than four centuries - and its capital: “ Maputo looks like the capital of a possible future that has been shelved, a suspended experience shrouded in the crumbling colors of an unreal past. When you stop to look closer, the romantically surreal cityscape takes on the hellish contours of hyperreality."

If readers want to delve into “the Portuguese soul” from the 1930s to the 1990s, this would be a great book to turn to - a highly recommended read - five stars! Thanks to NetGalley and AmazonCrossing for the early read.

What a surprise to find this little gem that came as the first English-translated work from this particular Portuguese tongue. This novel proudly transcends boundaries & delves deeply into relationships. I was transfixed with the references of “Make Love Not War” and interracial relationships. Memories from 50 years ago were dreamily brought to mind. The novel spans three generations while concurrently blurring lines.

Thank you NetGalley for the opportunity to read this ARC with only the courtesy of an honest review.

In Your Hands by Ines Pedrosa and translated by Andrea Rosenberg looked like an interesting book. So I requested to get a copy. I must’ve said the magic word because my request was granted.

It follows the lives of three Portuguese women-Jenny, Camila, and Natalia- through collections of diaries and letters.

Jenny is married to Antonio who is really in a relationship with Pedro. They were married in 1935 so it was pretty uncommon to have a polyamorous marriage. Jenny was the third wheel – a wealthy third wheel. She stays married to Antonio even if it’s just for appearances. I would not be so calm about it. I don’t even think she has a guy on the side.

Camila is Pedro’s daughter from a one-night stand. Her birth mother left her with Pedro so she could fight the Nazis. Jenny raises her as her own daughter.

Natalia is Camila’s daughter with Xavier, an African soldier.



They all have their secrets. I can’t tell you all of them. You should read the book and find out for yourself.

The publication date is October 16, 2018. You can pre-order it on Amazon.



In Your Hands on Amazon

*I received an ebook from NetGalley in exchange for doing a review. All opinions are my own. Obviously.

Splendid and lucid voice telling us the history of several generations of very different women - all sharing a family connection, and a certain head strongness. An unusual set up starts the novel: and triggers the women involved hiding their secret lives, and living oppressed lives they try to find fulfilling - and there is a certain bravado (and desperation ) to that - our first voice lives with two men who are lovers ... her precious daughter is handed over to her by her husband's lover, his biological child in a move designed to arouse jealousy in her husband, Antonio - beloved by her. Camilla, the daughter, is stubborn and political - contrary - and her daughter Nathalie is as well - each in their own times ... I liked thevoices and the strong women and the utterly unconventional but liveable way they managed. inspiring in those times of depredation of women. The ending is a resolution of sorts - I found I truly wanted to know what happened to each and also what each thought of the others. Really a draw - the writing is allusive and filled with emotion - very successful.