What is the author's style in The House of the Spirits by Isabel Allende?

The novel was written and originally published in Spanish (1982) with the first English translation appearing in 1985. Since then numerous Spanish and English editions have been printed. The English language translation retains several Spanish words that are used throughout. For example, patron; the more the reader is familiar with the nuanced meaning of this word, particularly in the context of South American history, the more it becomes apparent why it was not casually translated. The English language version exclusively is reviewed here. Within the novel, language and meaning are fairly traditionally approached. The narrative is rich in metaphor, however, and the more the reader understands Chilean history and South American literary history the more the reader will derive from the narrative.