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tabatha_shipley's review
5.0
What I Didn’t Like:
-Content warning: abuse of a child, pedophilia, and graphic violence.
-Some convenient luck. If this bothers you in stories, be warned. The MC tends to land herself in perfect situations or manage to avoid trouble on more than one occasion.
What I Did Like:
-I’ve read a lot of WWII fiction in my lifetime but this one still managed to give me angles and stories I haven’t heard. I love that!
-Sarah. She’s exactly the kind of determined, driven, dedicated teen that I love to see in books.
-Voice. The inner monologue belonging to Sarah gave you a perfect picture of what was happening while also tapping into how difficult this was for her. You were right there with her trying to remember her tasks and what secrets had to be kept quiet. It made the entire book beautifully immersive.
Who Should Read This One:
-Historical fiction fans (specifically WWII era).
-Readers who like strong females in their YA fiction.
-If you’re a fan of Enola Holmes, I think you’ll like this vibe.
The Verdict: 5 Stars. This one will appeal to people who don’t normally read the genre. It has a lot going for it!
-Content warning: abuse of a child, pedophilia, and graphic violence.
-Some convenient luck. If this bothers you in stories, be warned. The MC tends to land herself in perfect situations or manage to avoid trouble on more than one occasion.
What I Did Like:
-I’ve read a lot of WWII fiction in my lifetime but this one still managed to give me angles and stories I haven’t heard. I love that!
-Sarah. She’s exactly the kind of determined, driven, dedicated teen that I love to see in books.
-Voice. The inner monologue belonging to Sarah gave you a perfect picture of what was happening while also tapping into how difficult this was for her. You were right there with her trying to remember her tasks and what secrets had to be kept quiet. It made the entire book beautifully immersive.
Who Should Read This One:
-Historical fiction fans (specifically WWII era).
-Readers who like strong females in their YA fiction.
-If you’re a fan of Enola Holmes, I think you’ll like this vibe.
The Verdict: 5 Stars. This one will appeal to people who don’t normally read the genre. It has a lot going for it!
theliteratureladies's review
3.0
It’s no secret your literature ladies love WWII fiction. While I have found myself personally tapering off some on this genre in recent years (needed some books a little less heavy, anyone with me?), I still enjoy stepping into this pivotal and monumental part of history from time to time, especially via a fictionalized narrative. Orphan, Monster, Spy by Matt Killeen certainly fit the bill.
Readers join Sarah, a Jew, who goes undercover as the niece of a prominent “German” (he’s actually a spy), enrolls in school with the other daughters of Nazi elite, and collects information she feeds back to her “uncle.” Sarah’s physical features allow her to blend in seamlessly, and her late mother’s career as an actress (and subsequent training of Sarah to do the same) equip her to play the part well.
While I found myself immersed in the story, I didn’t feel it entirely wowed me. I felt Sarah was a likable enough character, but I didn’t love her. We don’t spend enough time with many other characters (apart from a select few) for me to feel any strong attachment one way or the other. The overall story was interesting – learning about the German school, the highlights on Nazi disorganization, the way the youth were so indoctrinated with the ideals of Nazi Germany…the glimpse into the education system was interesting, but it was just a glimpse. It really only provided a backdrop for the drama between the school girls (which again, was the point of the novel, but still).
My biggest beef with the story was I felt Killeen could have varied up his word repetition. He used a certain German phrase constantly, and that got old to me pretty quickly. He also had Sarah referencing being a “good monster” pretty frequently. I felt his writing style just wasn’t my favorite, and the lack of word variety (a pet peeve of mine) took away from the story just a touch.
Overall, this was a good book. I enjoyed the story, I wanted to see how it ended, and I read it fairly quickly (all marks of a decent read for me these days). It wasn’t extraordinary, but it was interesting and did a meaningful job of highlighting some of the many atrocities of WWII – from the persecution of certain people groups to the abuse of the young women they were raising up to continue the race.
www.theliteratureladies.com
Readers join Sarah, a Jew, who goes undercover as the niece of a prominent “German” (he’s actually a spy), enrolls in school with the other daughters of Nazi elite, and collects information she feeds back to her “uncle.” Sarah’s physical features allow her to blend in seamlessly, and her late mother’s career as an actress (and subsequent training of Sarah to do the same) equip her to play the part well.
While I found myself immersed in the story, I didn’t feel it entirely wowed me. I felt Sarah was a likable enough character, but I didn’t love her. We don’t spend enough time with many other characters (apart from a select few) for me to feel any strong attachment one way or the other. The overall story was interesting – learning about the German school, the highlights on Nazi disorganization, the way the youth were so indoctrinated with the ideals of Nazi Germany…the glimpse into the education system was interesting, but it was just a glimpse. It really only provided a backdrop for the drama between the school girls (which again, was the point of the novel, but still).
My biggest beef with the story was I felt Killeen could have varied up his word repetition. He used a certain German phrase constantly, and that got old to me pretty quickly. He also had Sarah referencing being a “good monster” pretty frequently. I felt his writing style just wasn’t my favorite, and the lack of word variety (a pet peeve of mine) took away from the story just a touch.
Overall, this was a good book. I enjoyed the story, I wanted to see how it ended, and I read it fairly quickly (all marks of a decent read for me these days). It wasn’t extraordinary, but it was interesting and did a meaningful job of highlighting some of the many atrocities of WWII – from the persecution of certain people groups to the abuse of the young women they were raising up to continue the race.
www.theliteratureladies.com
hijinx_abound's review
2.0
Very flat and dry. The story in itself, was a good one but the way it was told was boring and the characters were so flat.
h0eforb00ks's review
adventurous
challenging
dark
funny
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
cmstein's review
adventurous
dark
emotional
informative
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
maciecret's review
4.0
all right boys and girls, I am effing back after 3 years of suffering in college and still in college, I started to indulge in my habit of reading again. And i don't regret it, my life has been a mess immediately after I stopped reading, such hiatus is not recommended. Reading makes me productive, it took my free time away from shallow entertainment like social media, and now since I started, my situation became either I read or study. Anyway, not the point, let's go to this thrilling book Orphan Monster Spy
The cover and title don't do justice to the content of the book. The plot is exciting but I was skeptical due to the cover. It gives a parody type of feeling.
This was reviewed as "Disturbingly good, violent and thrilling" but as I read and came to almost half of the book, I find it light and a fine read. The violent and thrilling part did not come until... don't want to say it, just read and see or feel how this book will leave anyone hanging in the air.
All throughout the book, I kept asking myself, how would someone end this story, given that it is a stand-alone novel, (or not)?? It offers a lot since it was based on the history of violence on Jews under Nazi. It would be a difficult read. But the author really considered his audience/ or readers. He made it into a read that anyone can go along with.
Sarah, for one, is bullied yet the fierce type of protagonist. She has this character of I might be weak but I can do anything as long as I believe in myself and..girl, I tell you, she trusts herself. Because maybe, there's no one to be trusted other than herself.
**to be continued**
The cover and title don't do justice to the content of the book. The plot is exciting but I was skeptical due to the cover. It gives a parody type of feeling.
This was reviewed as "Disturbingly good, violent and thrilling" but as I read and came to almost half of the book, I find it light and a fine read. The violent and thrilling part did not come until... don't want to say it, just read and see or feel how this book will leave anyone hanging in the air.
All throughout the book, I kept asking myself, how would someone end this story, given that it is a stand-alone novel, (or not)?? It offers a lot since it was based on the history of violence on Jews under Nazi. It would be a difficult read. But the author really considered his audience/ or readers. He made it into a read that anyone can go along with.
Sarah, for one, is bullied yet the fierce type of protagonist. She has this character of I might be weak but I can do anything as long as I believe in myself and..girl, I tell you, she trusts herself. Because maybe, there's no one to be trusted other than herself.
**to be continued**