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runningonwords415's review
3.0
Happy book birthday, "Orphan Monster Spy"!
Thank you to Penguin Random House LLC for an advanced copy of this book!
Sarah, abandoned at a checkpoint in Nazi Germany because her mother was shot and killed (a really thrilling first chapter, I must say), finds refuge with a man she soon refers to as Captain (ORPHAN). In his company, she is able to channel her survival skills in order to help prevent a bomb from destroying most of Europe (SPY). During her mission, however, she is presented with multiple situations that lead her to the verge of dying, and is presented with many life or death choices (MONSTER).
While many chapters had me flipping pages constantly, most of the book drug on for me. The parts I found interesting were often the quickest to be passed over, and I felt many questions were left unanswered - What about Mouse? How did Sarah actually feel toward the Ice Queen? Stern?...hello?? - and the ending was quite abrupt for how much build up there was leading up to it. It was a pleasing read and sparked many questions from students (it's a striking cover), but left much to be desired along the way. It did meet my espionage and thriller quota for the month, though! High marks in those categories, for sure.
Thank you to Penguin Random House LLC for an advanced copy of this book!
Sarah, abandoned at a checkpoint in Nazi Germany because her mother was shot and killed (a really thrilling first chapter, I must say), finds refuge with a man she soon refers to as Captain (ORPHAN). In his company, she is able to channel her survival skills in order to help prevent a bomb from destroying most of Europe (SPY). During her mission, however, she is presented with multiple situations that lead her to the verge of dying, and is presented with many life or death choices (MONSTER).
While many chapters had me flipping pages constantly, most of the book drug on for me. The parts I found interesting were often the quickest to be passed over, and I felt many questions were left unanswered - What about Mouse? How did Sarah actually feel toward the Ice Queen? Stern?...hello?? - and the ending was quite abrupt for how much build up there was leading up to it. It was a pleasing read and sparked many questions from students (it's a striking cover), but left much to be desired along the way. It did meet my espionage and thriller quota for the month, though! High marks in those categories, for sure.
joyousreads132's review
4.0
This book will have you engrossed from the get go. From the time you realize that Ursula is more than your average teen, she’s already outwitted Nazi soldiers and have found herself working as a spy for the British government. All these at a tender age of 15. And considering her life hasn’t been the easiest and was only going to get worse, Sarah/Ursula is indeed a remarkable young woman.
I supposed a true mark of a legendary spy in the making is one’s ability to quickly overcome emotions to avoid certain death or just even to survive. Ursula passed every single test that came her way. She used her freshman acting abilities to get away from a strange man soon after witnessing her mother’s murder. She then followed her instinct to saved the same man from the soldiers by playing as his daughter.
Captain Floyd easily saw exactly how intelligent, multi-talented, and useful she could be to their cause. And he didn’t hesitate to take advantage of her. Ursula was only too willing to be used as life has left her an orphan without a choice or a future. And that’s how she found herself in a nightmare disguised as a boarding school. It is a boarding school that knows no kindness, just cruelty; gives no education, just Aryan ideology.
But nothing could diminish Ursula’s courage and strenght. Not the tortorous hands of teachers and students alike; not a music teacher whose admiration left her cold. Not even a fellow student’s father who used his own daughter to lure girls like Ursula to drug them and rape them. And not especially when she found out that Captain Floyd knew beforehand just what kind of monsters she had to deal with on her first mission.
This book was difficult to read most of the time. But oh, it’s so good. I couldn’t stop reading. My stomach churned at every turn. But I was glued to the pages because I was wholly vested in what happens to Ursula. I was happy for her when she met Captain Floyd. I thought she was saved. But like Ursula, I was duped. This novel is indeed about monsters. The obvious ones whose cruel intentions are visible, and the ones whose inhumanity is hidden in the facade of kindness.
I supposed a true mark of a legendary spy in the making is one’s ability to quickly overcome emotions to avoid certain death or just even to survive. Ursula passed every single test that came her way. She used her freshman acting abilities to get away from a strange man soon after witnessing her mother’s murder. She then followed her instinct to saved the same man from the soldiers by playing as his daughter.
Captain Floyd easily saw exactly how intelligent, multi-talented, and useful she could be to their cause. And he didn’t hesitate to take advantage of her. Ursula was only too willing to be used as life has left her an orphan without a choice or a future. And that’s how she found herself in a nightmare disguised as a boarding school. It is a boarding school that knows no kindness, just cruelty; gives no education, just Aryan ideology.
But nothing could diminish Ursula’s courage and strenght. Not the tortorous hands of teachers and students alike; not a music teacher whose admiration left her cold. Not even a fellow student’s father who used his own daughter to lure girls like Ursula to drug them and rape them. And not especially when she found out that Captain Floyd knew beforehand just what kind of monsters she had to deal with on her first mission.
This book was difficult to read most of the time. But oh, it’s so good. I couldn’t stop reading. My stomach churned at every turn. But I was glued to the pages because I was wholly vested in what happens to Ursula. I was happy for her when she met Captain Floyd. I thought she was saved. But like Ursula, I was duped. This novel is indeed about monsters. The obvious ones whose cruel intentions are visible, and the ones whose inhumanity is hidden in the facade of kindness.
joaosampaio's review against another edition
4.0
Uma ameaça em grande escala, dois espiões, um enredo cheio de energia e bem desenhado.
Que poderemos encontrar numa escola Hitleriana – Rothenstadt - na Alemanha, em 1934?
Fácil. As raparigas da mais pureza ariana, regras rigidíssimas, o ódio pelo povo judeu, os ensinamentos da cultura germânica, auxiliares corruptos, professores insanos e exigentes, com auxiliares de memória (cajados). Um local que ensina as meninas a serem boas mulheres alemãs, aprendendo músicas em louvor à Alemanha e ao Partido Nacional Socialista. Um típico local para uma lavagem cerebral.
Pois aqui, encontramos a frequentar esta escola uma rapariga judia, Sarah Goldstein, de quinze anos. Colocar esta menina, recentemente órfã, neste ambiente assustador, a tensão torna-se palpável.
Não sendo um livro muito gráfico, os mais sensíveis poderão encontrar algum desconforto em certas descrições. Descrições de violência, comportamentos de antissemitismo e, de um modo mais específico, nos motivos por detrás de um convite de um amável cientista, pai de uma sua colega da escola. Hans Schafer, mais focado na ciência do que nos sonhos de Hitler tem um foco oculto, sombrio.
As habilidades de Sarah enquanto ginasta e atriz, tornam-na especialmente eficaz naquilo que faz.
Durante as suas ações enquanto espia, Sarah tem vislumbres, laivos da sua falecida mãe que a ajudam a ultrapassar os obstáculos e dificuldades com que se vai deparando.
No final do livro, Killeen adicionou uma nota do autor sobre a sua pesquisa. Embora Sarah, o capitão Floyd e a missão de se infiltrar numa escola não fossem verdadeiras, muito do que foi escrito baseou-se na verdade. Escolas como Rothenstadt existiram.
Órfã, Monstro e Espiã é um romance de ficção histórica, tenso, mergulhado num período terrível da história mundial – a II Grande Guerra Mundial.
Com diálogos realísticos e pequenos apontamentos humorísticos, foi uma leitura rápida e muito agradável. Gostei!
Que poderemos encontrar numa escola Hitleriana – Rothenstadt - na Alemanha, em 1934?
Fácil. As raparigas da mais pureza ariana, regras rigidíssimas, o ódio pelo povo judeu, os ensinamentos da cultura germânica, auxiliares corruptos, professores insanos e exigentes, com auxiliares de memória (cajados). Um local que ensina as meninas a serem boas mulheres alemãs, aprendendo músicas em louvor à Alemanha e ao Partido Nacional Socialista. Um típico local para uma lavagem cerebral.
Pois aqui, encontramos a frequentar esta escola uma rapariga judia, Sarah Goldstein, de quinze anos. Colocar esta menina, recentemente órfã, neste ambiente assustador, a tensão torna-se palpável.
Não sendo um livro muito gráfico, os mais sensíveis poderão encontrar algum desconforto em certas descrições. Descrições de violência, comportamentos de antissemitismo e, de um modo mais específico, nos motivos por detrás de um convite de um amável cientista, pai de uma sua colega da escola. Hans Schafer, mais focado na ciência do que nos sonhos de Hitler tem um foco oculto, sombrio.
As habilidades de Sarah enquanto ginasta e atriz, tornam-na especialmente eficaz naquilo que faz.
Durante as suas ações enquanto espia, Sarah tem vislumbres, laivos da sua falecida mãe que a ajudam a ultrapassar os obstáculos e dificuldades com que se vai deparando.
No final do livro, Killeen adicionou uma nota do autor sobre a sua pesquisa. Embora Sarah, o capitão Floyd e a missão de se infiltrar numa escola não fossem verdadeiras, muito do que foi escrito baseou-se na verdade. Escolas como Rothenstadt existiram.
Órfã, Monstro e Espiã é um romance de ficção histórica, tenso, mergulhado num período terrível da história mundial – a II Grande Guerra Mundial.
Com diálogos realísticos e pequenos apontamentos humorísticos, foi uma leitura rápida e muito agradável. Gostei!
evaseyler's review
This book was so good to start with, and then it completely and utterly fell apart, to my great disappointment.
julietaricci's review against another edition
3.0
* 3.5 ⭐️
Como todavía no tengo las ideas muy organizadas respecto a esta lectura, voy a empezar por lo positivo. Si bien (como se notará) tardé más de lo usual en leerlo, no se me hizo una lectura pesada. La prosa se me complicó todo el libro, pero eso lo hizo más fascinante. Tiene un estilo narrativo que encuentro muy único, como relatando una película por la forma en la que salta de escena a escena y que hasta que no terminas de leer no entendes en dónde estás parado ni qué está pasando. Las descripciones de sentimientos lo mismo, me encantaron.
Sarah, nuestra protagonista, me pareció alucinante. Es muy astuta, muy capaz y determinada. No estoy en posición de juzgar si es realista o no, pero la inteligencia que tiene para tener 15 años me asombra. Pareciera ser que la vida que tuvo que llevar a causa de ser judía en la Alemania nazi le enseñó cosas que como niña no debería saber, pero que la ayudan a lo largo de la historia. Es lo mejor de la historia. Como utiliza todo lo vivido y sufrido para luchar por lo que cree y para ayudar al resto es destacable.
Ya hablando de la trama en si, fue un libro que me enganchó y que disfruté de leer. Me intrigaba bastante la premisa de la Segunda Guerra Mundial a punto de estallar y de los famosos nacionalsocialistas. Objetivamente, es muy bueno. Pero como la opinión de una obra no se basa únicamente en esto, tengo que plasmar lo que sentí yo.
Es de esos libros que te gustaron, obvio que si, no podes decir lo contrario, pero que no te volaron la cabeza. Quizá no es mi fuerte este género o simplemente no fue la historia para mí. Sufrí como una desgraciada con las escenas finales, y quienes lo leyeron sabrán a qué me estoy refiriendo, me destrozó el corazón. No me esperaba que apareciera un tema así, aunque lo intuía o desconfiaba de todos. Fue muy duro de leer, de asimilar, más como mujer. Siento que eso le dio el toque sentimental que me faltaba. Sin embargo, como cuando tus favoritos son tus favoritos sin poder explicar el porqué, tengo la misma sensación a la inversa. Es raro porque no puedo afirmar que no me gusta, sería mentirme a mi misma porque recuerdo los momentos y en serio lo disfruté, pero no destaca y puede que sea eso lo que me contrarresta lo demás.
Lo volvería a leer? Quizá si, me entretuvo bastante y tal vez en un futuro me guste aún más. Leería la secuela? No ahora, pero no me cierro a la idea (cuando se traduzca al español claro está). Lo recomiendo? Por supuesto que si, es una obra excelente que para quienes disfruten más la ficción histórica, quieran leer sobre la Alemania nazi o simplemente les intrigue, viene muy muy bien.
Pd: no puedo no decir que LE FALTARON NOTAS AL PIE!!! La de cosas que tuve que buscar (lo cual me encanta) me cortaron mucho la lectura y se soluciona con un par de aclaraciones de términos y fechas :)
Como todavía no tengo las ideas muy organizadas respecto a esta lectura, voy a empezar por lo positivo. Si bien (como se notará) tardé más de lo usual en leerlo, no se me hizo una lectura pesada. La prosa se me complicó todo el libro, pero eso lo hizo más fascinante. Tiene un estilo narrativo que encuentro muy único, como relatando una película por la forma en la que salta de escena a escena y que hasta que no terminas de leer no entendes en dónde estás parado ni qué está pasando. Las descripciones de sentimientos lo mismo, me encantaron.
Sarah, nuestra protagonista, me pareció alucinante. Es muy astuta, muy capaz y determinada. No estoy en posición de juzgar si es realista o no, pero la inteligencia que tiene para tener 15 años me asombra. Pareciera ser que la vida que tuvo que llevar a causa de ser judía en la Alemania nazi le enseñó cosas que como niña no debería saber, pero que la ayudan a lo largo de la historia. Es lo mejor de la historia. Como utiliza todo lo vivido y sufrido para luchar por lo que cree y para ayudar al resto es destacable.
Ya hablando de la trama en si, fue un libro que me enganchó y que disfruté de leer. Me intrigaba bastante la premisa de la Segunda Guerra Mundial a punto de estallar y de los famosos nacionalsocialistas. Objetivamente, es muy bueno. Pero como la opinión de una obra no se basa únicamente en esto, tengo que plasmar lo que sentí yo.
Es de esos libros que te gustaron, obvio que si, no podes decir lo contrario, pero que no te volaron la cabeza. Quizá no es mi fuerte este género o simplemente no fue la historia para mí. Sufrí como una desgraciada con las escenas finales, y quienes lo leyeron sabrán a qué me estoy refiriendo, me destrozó el corazón. No me esperaba que apareciera un tema así, aunque lo intuía o desconfiaba de todos. Fue muy duro de leer, de asimilar, más como mujer. Siento que eso le dio el toque sentimental que me faltaba. Sin embargo, como cuando tus favoritos son tus favoritos sin poder explicar el porqué, tengo la misma sensación a la inversa. Es raro porque no puedo afirmar que no me gusta, sería mentirme a mi misma porque recuerdo los momentos y en serio lo disfruté, pero no destaca y puede que sea eso lo que me contrarresta lo demás.
Lo volvería a leer? Quizá si, me entretuvo bastante y tal vez en un futuro me guste aún más. Leería la secuela? No ahora, pero no me cierro a la idea (cuando se traduzca al español claro está). Lo recomiendo? Por supuesto que si, es una obra excelente que para quienes disfruten más la ficción histórica, quieran leer sobre la Alemania nazi o simplemente les intrigue, viene muy muy bien.
Pd: no puedo no decir que LE FALTARON NOTAS AL PIE!!! La de cosas que tuve que buscar (lo cual me encanta) me cortaron mucho la lectura y se soluciona con un par de aclaraciones de términos y fechas :)
jennifermreads's review
2.0
Received advanced reader copy from publisher via Baker & Taylor book supplier
After her mother is killed, an Aryan in appearance but very Jewish Sarah is taken in by a man who has many accents, more names, and an uncertain past. She agrees to help him on a mission he is having a hard time completing: get into the home of a top scientist who has the plans for a bomb that could decimate Germany’s enemies. Using the years of training her actress mother passed along to her, Sarah enters a boarding school to try to befriend the scientist’s daughter – and get to those plans before the bomb is completed.
I love first lines of books. A fantastic one can grip readers from the first word; a mediocre one makes me proceed with caution. This book’s first line? “Finally, the car came to a stop.” Um. Yeah. Not a real suck-you-in kind of line. Luckily the first scene did what the first line did not: quick action with amazing pictures being painted while our heroine goes on the run.
And then? Sputtering. The middle of the book was just ok and felt very disjointed. It seemed to take an eternity for Sarah to get where she needed to be. And then? Ewwwwww!
The ending was decent – and. But when I closed the cover for the last time, I had the immediate thought of “Huh. How could that have happened and Sarah didn’t …?” A big enough plot hole that I was left feeling very uncomfortable.
World War II and Holocaust historical fiction is a favorite of mine. So picking this up from my massive pile of ARCs was a no brainer. But by the end, I was just left feeling “meh” and that plot hole was hard to suspend and let ride. If there is more Sarah, I’m not going along for the ride.
After her mother is killed, an Aryan in appearance but very Jewish Sarah is taken in by a man who has many accents, more names, and an uncertain past. She agrees to help him on a mission he is having a hard time completing: get into the home of a top scientist who has the plans for a bomb that could decimate Germany’s enemies. Using the years of training her actress mother passed along to her, Sarah enters a boarding school to try to befriend the scientist’s daughter – and get to those plans before the bomb is completed.
I love first lines of books. A fantastic one can grip readers from the first word; a mediocre one makes me proceed with caution. This book’s first line? “Finally, the car came to a stop.” Um. Yeah. Not a real suck-you-in kind of line. Luckily the first scene did what the first line did not: quick action with amazing pictures being painted while our heroine goes on the run.
And then? Sputtering. The middle of the book was just ok and felt very disjointed. It seemed to take an eternity for Sarah to get where she needed to be. And then? Ewwwwww!
Spoiler
The scientist is a pedophile? And his daughter brings girls home knowing what will happen? Plain creepy, 100% disgusting. But, I guess, necessary in order for the plot to move where the writer took it.The ending was decent – and
Spoiler
left a door open for the author to write more about SarahSpoiler
Sarah was near the gates/guards when the bomb blast hit (went “white,” then “red,” then she was at the barrier at a canter on the horse when the sound hit. So, if the guards at the house got radiation poisoning, how did Sarah avoid it?World War II and Holocaust historical fiction is a favorite of mine. So picking this up from my massive pile of ARCs was a no brainer. But by the end, I was just left feeling “meh” and that plot hole was hard to suspend and let ride. If there is more Sarah, I’m not going along for the ride.
natcatsbookishcafe's review
2.0
1.5 stars
I have to admit I could have DNF this book at any point and wouldn't have been left wondering what happened. I just never could fully invest in the story. If I have to hear the term "Dumme Schlampe" one more time, I'll lose my mind.
This book focuses on a very tiny part of the war, it doesn't discus the fighting or the internment camps, which is fine, not all WWII books need to include those things, but at the same time this book felt like it was just taking advantage of this time in history to tell a triggering story. Lots of the horrible things that happened seemed liked they were for shock factor and so I feel it didn't really honor the lives of those who suffered at the hands of the Reich.
The audiobook narrator did a good job, the story was good background noise.
TW: death of parent, discussion of discrimination and death of Jews, bullying, abuse of students, pedophilia, incest, murder of a person with autism.
I have to admit I could have DNF this book at any point and wouldn't have been left wondering what happened. I just never could fully invest in the story. If I have to hear the term "Dumme Schlampe" one more time, I'll lose my mind.
This book focuses on a very tiny part of the war, it doesn't discus the fighting or the internment camps, which is fine, not all WWII books need to include those things, but at the same time this book felt like it was just taking advantage of this time in history to tell a triggering story. Lots of the horrible things that happened seemed liked they were for shock factor and so I feel it didn't really honor the lives of those who suffered at the hands of the Reich.
The audiobook narrator did a good job, the story was good background noise.
TW: death of parent, discussion of discrimination and death of Jews, bullying, abuse of students, pedophilia, incest, murder of a person with autism.
spacerkip's review against another edition
challenging
dark
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Brutal and disturbing, and delightfully fast-paced. I found Sarah to be ruthless and clever, and her reactions to everything that happened to her wholly human. A teenager forced to adapt to horrible situations, but in heartbreaking moments, still just a kid.
Expected warnings for antisemitism, violence, and fascism, but HUGE tw for child abuse and attempted (but unsuccessful) and referenced CSA.
Expected warnings for antisemitism, violence, and fascism, but HUGE tw for child abuse and attempted (but unsuccessful) and referenced CSA.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death of parent, Hate crime, Injury/Injury detail, Physical abuse, Sexual harassment, Religious bigotry, Violence, Bullying, Death, Antisemitism, Blood, and Child abuse
Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Vomit, Ableism, Cursing, Fire/Fire injury, Alcoholism, Classism, Genocide, and War
Minor: Misogyny and Panic attacks/disorders
madelinelurene's review
adventurous
challenging
dark
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0