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jenniferrkent's review against another edition
2.0
Struggled with how it was written. Read the last 5/6 chapters in one night. Good ending though
jubaju's review against another edition
2.0
I'm taking off an entire star based on the fact that the main character calls herself a "dumb slut" at least fifty times in this book. If I have to read "dumme Schlampe" published in a YA book with my own two eyes one more time... And yes, it reflects her relationship with her mother, or you can interpret it any other way: as a loss of innocence in a young child, as how she sees herself after being neglected and called names by her mother, as proof of the book's dark themes; anything can have meaning if you want it to. Fact remains that I am 100 pages into the second book in this series and that it hasn't come up once; this is either a continuity problem or someone brought it up to the author. Also, it annoyed me.
Other than that, I didn't like the fact that some snippets were written in German. If you want the reader to be transported into 1939 Berlin, transport your reader, don't switch languages and use that as a crutch. Furthermore, does writing swear words in foreign languages keep the book's rating from going towards NA? There were a lot of those in a book marketed as YA. Not that it bothered me per se, it just felt cheap.
The plot itself dragged until the last 100 pages, and I didn't connect with the characters at all. Sarah was a bit of a Mary Sue while also being overly emotional in situations where a self-described "good spy" would have been cool and level-headed. Everything went well too often and she gave herself credit for surviving situations that were unrealistic. She should have died at least twenty times in this novel. And she was. What an amazing agent.
Matt Killeen tried to explore some very dark themes but never went in depth into any of them, while also glossing over most of the action. This book lacked something for me and left me disappointed. I will be reading book two because it'll be quick to get through and I want to see if thee is any maturing to the style and characterization.
Other than that, I didn't like the fact that some snippets were written in German. If you want the reader to be transported into 1939 Berlin, transport your reader, don't switch languages and use that as a crutch. Furthermore, does writing swear words in foreign languages keep the book's rating from going towards NA? There were a lot of those in a book marketed as YA. Not that it bothered me per se, it just felt cheap.
The plot itself dragged until the last 100 pages, and I didn't connect with the characters at all. Sarah was a bit of a Mary Sue while also being overly emotional in situations where a self-described "good spy" would have been cool and level-headed. Everything went well too often and she gave herself credit for surviving situations that were unrealistic. She should have died at least twenty times in this novel. And she was
Spoiler
drunk during the main mission and got saved by an under-developed side characterMatt Killeen tried to explore some very dark themes but never went in depth into any of them, while also glossing over most of the action. This book lacked something for me and left me disappointed. I will be reading book two because it'll be quick to get through and I want to see if thee is any maturing to the style and characterization.
kwbat12's review against another edition
4.0
I have resisted many a WWII book, but as part of my challenge, I picked this one up. I didn't anticipate the twist and the heavy theme in the middle, and was impressed with the prose and the subjects.
alexblackreads's review against another edition
4.0
This book was so good! I'm super picky about what I rate 5 stars because that pretty much only goes to books that are absolute all time favorites, and this was about as close as it could get without quite making it. I adored reading this.
Sarah's character was so well developed and I loved the story. A lot of action can often feel formulaic to me, but it flowed so smoothly here. I was invested right up until the end, and was honestly kind of bummed this was a standalone. I just never wanted it to end. If you like YA historical fiction about spies, I highly, highly recommend checking out this book. It's so incredibly worthwhile.
The thing that kept it from being a full 5 stars was that at times it felt a little too convenient, a little too coincidental, a little too over the top. I know to some degree all books rely on this, but I struggled a bit with suspending my disbelief at parts. And that's a small criticism. On the whole, this was utterly fantastic.
Sarah's character was so well developed and I loved the story. A lot of action can often feel formulaic to me, but it flowed so smoothly here. I was invested right up until the end, and was honestly kind of bummed this was a standalone. I just never wanted it to end. If you like YA historical fiction about spies, I highly, highly recommend checking out this book. It's so incredibly worthwhile.
The thing that kept it from being a full 5 stars was that at times it felt a little too convenient, a little too coincidental, a little too over the top. I know to some degree all books rely on this, but I struggled a bit with suspending my disbelief at parts. And that's a small criticism. On the whole, this was utterly fantastic.
dandi's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
aprater's review against another edition
4.0
I enjoyed the twists and turns and the pretense of the pretend. The ending felt a little rushed, there was so much detail in the beginning, I really wanted it in the end too.
abbehmelinda's review against another edition
DNF @ page 186. Over time, the story got a little confusing and I lost interest. I put off picking it up and wasn’t excited to read it anymore. Holocaust/WW2 era historical fiction are usually my favorites to read, but this one just didn’t mesh with me. I may pick it up and try again some time in the future, but I can’t say for sure.
erincharp's review against another edition
4.0
This was a great read! Sarah, a Jewish girl during WWII, meets up with a British spy following the death of her mother. Although he's reluctant to take her in at first, she saves his life leaving the two inextricably tied. As Sarah looks Aryan, he convinces her to work as a spy in a Nazi-run boarding school. Very engaging plot and I loved that the plot shied away from the usual "teenage war love" genre.
eokamoto's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.25