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4.14 AVERAGE
4.14 AVERAGE
emotional
inspiring
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Great writing and honesty from the author. I love the idea of getting so involved in research that it consumes you and you can imagine yourself being there, much like reading a great book can. I kind of thought it strange the author notes she dreamt of being Violette and of being attacked, but then I thought of Paul McCartney dreaming up “Yesterday.” This book is equal parts reality, fiction, magic, and good old-fashioned serious writing that many eschew.
adventurous
dark
informative
inspiring
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
Great subject matter and, having read in-depth on the two women in the book, I was looking forward to this. However, despite the plethora of information available to the Author, that could have made this a truly outstanding read, it felt more like snooping though their personal diaries. I really didn't like the writing style used in this novel, and put it down after a few chapters.
This book is only ok. I love historical fiction, but this just missed the mark for me. While the story was ok, I just couldn't get into it. This writing was missing something that made me want to keep turning the pages. I found myself bored while reading at times. I don't know if I'll pick up another book by this author. 2.5*
Such an amazing story of 2 real women, one in the SOE and the other, a French resister hiding and smuggling out Allied airmen stuck in France. The book itself was admittedly very slow, and that and the primarily narrative style with only little intermittent dialogue is not my favorite. But the story itself was so inspiring, what the humans spirit is capable of and how much these women and so many others sacrificed.
adventurous
emotional
inspiring
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
informative
sad
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
This book was one of 12 I am reading this year based on recommendations from friends. It is way outside my normal reading genre. It too awhile to get through and I did put it down for over a week and read something else before coming back to it. It's an interesting story and I didn't realize that it is based on two women that actually existed. I still thought it was overly wrong and dragged quite a bit.
dark
medium-paced
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
inspiring
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Having dreamed of leaving Florida for years, Virginia finally seizes her opportunity to travel to France. Soon she falls for Phillipe and settles into happy married life. All is turned upside down when German troops seize control of France and Virginia turns down the opportunity to return to the safety of America in order to stay with her husband and do what she can for her adopted country.
Violette remembers leaving France in a hurry during the first world war. Born of a French mother and British father, she is headstrong and feels destined for adventure. As war breaks out, she meets and marries French soldier Etienne who is soon deployed to North Africa. Despite her role as a new mother, Violette feels drawn to risk everything to fight for the fate of both of her countries.
This novel is based on what is known of two real women whose deeds during the war lead them to internment at Ravensbruck Concentration Camp. I wish I had known that from the start, as it may have helped me connect with the characters more fully and I certainly would have been more in awe of them while reading. I also would not have minded the length as much had I known that almost all of the events detailed in the book actually happened. However, I didn’t know that going in and I felt that the story dragged a bit and never felt overly connected to either woman.
I also found the accent the narrator used for Violette to be incredibly grating which further dulled my enjoyment. Still, I appreciate WW2 novels that highlight the bravery of real women and think there is much to recommend this book to historical fictions buffs. It just wasn’t a particular favorite of mine.