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4.13 AVERAGE
4.13 AVERAGE
This is like the American Girl books all grown up. Two best friends in WWII do all they can to help Britain defeat the Nazis. One is a pilot in the civilian reserves, not allowed to be a fighter pilot because she's a woman. Another is a wireless operator and a spy. The story begins as her confession to her German captors of all she knows of England's war efforts.
The story starts slowly as Agent Verity tries to buy time by telling her pilot friend's story, dragging out her written confession as long as possible before she gets to the really sensitive information, so if you're not into historical fiction, it may be hard to get through the beginning. However, this is a story that rewards patience, and a lot is revealed piece by piece as the story of these girls' friendship and their role in the war is slowly unraveled. Some of this was because of my very pregnant (and therefore hormonal) state, but I bawled through the last several chapters as the story came to its wrenching conclusion.
The reason it feels a little like an American Girl book is that Wein clearly did research about how females were allowed to help the war effort in the 1940s and is eager to show it off. That isn't a bad thing, though, it only makes it hit home just how hard these girls' lives were, and how dangerous WWII was for everyone in Europe, not just those fighting on the front lines.
While the historical details are great, too, this book really worked for me as a story of friendship put to the test and the hard choices that are presented to people in the time of war. Definitely worth checking out.
The story starts slowly as Agent Verity tries to buy time by telling her pilot friend's story, dragging out her written confession as long as possible before she gets to the really sensitive information, so if you're not into historical fiction, it may be hard to get through the beginning. However, this is a story that rewards patience, and a lot is revealed piece by piece as the story of these girls' friendship and their role in the war is slowly unraveled. Some of this was because of my very pregnant (and therefore hormonal) state, but I bawled through the last several chapters as the story came to its wrenching conclusion.
The reason it feels a little like an American Girl book is that Wein clearly did research about how females were allowed to help the war effort in the 1940s and is eager to show it off. That isn't a bad thing, though, it only makes it hit home just how hard these girls' lives were, and how dangerous WWII was for everyone in Europe, not just those fighting on the front lines.
While the historical details are great, too, this book really worked for me as a story of friendship put to the test and the hard choices that are presented to people in the time of war. Definitely worth checking out.
challenging
dark
emotional
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Slow-starting but unbelievably riveting by the end, this affected me like few books do. I found the set up slightly implausible, but quickly got over that as the central relationship between the two women rings utterly true. The casual inclusion of Nazi torture probably makes this unsuitable for anyone below high school age.
adventurous
hopeful
informative
inspiring
mysterious
sad
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
dude. i originally rated this two stars but it’s been almost two months and i think i can admit i fucking hated it. i’m already not a fan of historical fiction but i am also not a white man i do not CARE about war! or planes!! there was so much fucking plane terminology i remember that more than the actual plot. but genuinely,, how do you make a book abt a spy being tortured and eventually being shot by her bffl boring ??? i had to read this for a class but even the nonfiction book was better than this LMAO
It took me a while to get into it but once I did, oh my...
I can see why everyone is gushing about this book. It's just terrific, is why. It tells a story I haven't often heard, about young women doing dangerous work during World War 2. The characters are so vivid. I'm not a historical fiction reader by any means, so I was prepared to feel meh about this but it was incredible.
I tried and tried. I just couldn't get into this book. The subject was very compelling; just slogged for me- if that is a way to use that word.
3.5
An intriguing story but I found it hard to get into and felt the side characters too lacking.
An intriguing story but I found it hard to get into and felt the side characters too lacking.
This book. It pulled me in, punched me in the gut and made me sob uncontrollably. It was such an amazing story and so well written that I read it in about 12 hours and a day later, I still feel like I'm in the middle of the story.
I won't spoil the insane and heart wrenching parts of the book, but I will say that it follows two female best friends who are doing remarkable work during World War II. Each character is remarkable in her own way and I was rooting for them and their friendship to win out, even though I knew that no matter what I hoped for, they crashed into Nazi Occupied France. I knew that Verity would end up being tortured and that's how the details of their friendship are revealed as she gives in and reveals all of her secrets to her violent interrogators. I knew from others who have read it that this book packs a punch, and they didn't lie. So I just spent the whole book hoping for the best possible outcome. I was amazed how invested I became within the first few pages of this book.
Dear lord everyone should read this book. Every. One. I want to read it again, but I think I have to recover first.
I won't spoil the insane and heart wrenching parts of the book, but I will say that it follows two female best friends who are doing remarkable work during World War II. Each character is remarkable in her own way and I was rooting for them and their friendship to win out, even though I knew that no matter what I hoped for, they crashed into Nazi Occupied France. I knew that Verity would end up being tortured and that's how the details of their friendship are revealed as she gives in and reveals all of her secrets to her violent interrogators. I knew from others who have read it that this book packs a punch, and they didn't lie. So I just spent the whole book hoping for the best possible outcome. I was amazed how invested I became within the first few pages of this book.
Dear lord everyone should read this book. Every. One. I want to read it again, but I think I have to recover first.