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ameserole's review against another edition
4.0
I have received this ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
This Rebel Heart was a very interesting read. From the very beginning, I was completely hooked with the characters and the overall story. In it, you will meet Csilla. She is a young Jewish woman living in Hungary during the revolution of 1956. Due to her parents' untimely death, they were executed by the government, she sets off on a unique path with the angel of death by her side.
Now I won't lie. There were some parts of this book that broke my heart and others that gave me joy. The characters and what they go through was definitely a page turner for me. I seriously enjoyed meeting each and every one of them. Then there's the journey that they went on and it was definitely emotional and magical. Even if I was confused as to why certain things did happen throughout it.
In the end, I definitely enjoyed the heck out of this. I feel like I learned something new and fell in love with the representation of the characters. The ending also made me an emotional mess but in a good way. I'll definitely be on the lookout for Katherine's next book!
This Rebel Heart was a very interesting read. From the very beginning, I was completely hooked with the characters and the overall story. In it, you will meet Csilla. She is a young Jewish woman living in Hungary during the revolution of 1956. Due to her parents' untimely death, they were executed by the government, she sets off on a unique path with the angel of death by her side.
Now I won't lie. There were some parts of this book that broke my heart and others that gave me joy. The characters and what they go through was definitely a page turner for me. I seriously enjoyed meeting each and every one of them. Then there's the journey that they went on and it was definitely emotional and magical. Even if I was confused as to why certain things did happen throughout it.
In the end, I definitely enjoyed the heck out of this. I feel like I learned something new and fell in love with the representation of the characters. The ending also made me an emotional mess but in a good way. I'll definitely be on the lookout for Katherine's next book!
jess_um_griffith's review against another edition
3.0
I learned a lot about the Hungarian revolution, which was amazing! I guess I missed the memo that this contained magical realism tho bc I was confused as heck when I thought the river thing was a metaphor. Also the first half of the book was so hard to slog through—I blame the editor for that one.
rnfortier's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
informative
sad
slow-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? No
3.75
I found the beginning to be quite slow and superfluous. But the last quarter of the book was quite poetic and poignant, so I’m really glad I stuck it out.
tyrkysoveknihy's review
4.0
4,5 ⭐
Příběh Rebelského srdce se odehrává v poválečné Budapešti musím říci, že atmosféra, historie a styl psaní této knihy si mě vážně získaly. Hodně mi to sedlo
Příběh Rebelského srdce se odehrává v poválečné Budapešti musím říci, že atmosféra, historie a styl psaní této knihy si mě vážně získaly. Hodně mi to sedlo
shaundell's review against another edition
4.0
Wow! Just wow! Another fantastic book read this year. ❤️
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This Rebel Heart by Katherine Locke. An historical fiction story with hints of fantasy. Csilla, a Jewish girl, lives in Hungary in 1956; she survived World War II, but watched her parents be murdered by the secret police. She, along with other youth in Budapest, light a flame of protest across the city, strong enough for the Soviet Union to retreat for seven days, before it returned again to gain control of Hungary and keep the country behind the Iron Curtain for another 33 years.
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This is the second book I’ve read this year about Eastern European countries gaining freedom in the 1980s. The first was I Must Betray You by Ruta Sepetys.
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“Every moment is a turning point.” True words for individuals as well as nations.
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This Rebel Heart by Katherine Locke. An historical fiction story with hints of fantasy. Csilla, a Jewish girl, lives in Hungary in 1956; she survived World War II, but watched her parents be murdered by the secret police. She, along with other youth in Budapest, light a flame of protest across the city, strong enough for the Soviet Union to retreat for seven days, before it returned again to gain control of Hungary and keep the country behind the Iron Curtain for another 33 years.
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This is the second book I’ve read this year about Eastern European countries gaining freedom in the 1980s. The first was I Must Betray You by Ruta Sepetys.
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“Every moment is a turning point.” True words for individuals as well as nations.
sducharme's review against another edition
3.0
I wanted to love this because I lived in Budapest and love the city and its history. But for me this was an overwrought account of the '56 revolution with excessive mention of the Danube. I wish this had been edited down about 100 pages to be more appealing to teenagers (since that's the target audience, or at least it's supposed to be)
lyrareadsbooks's review against another edition
I have mixed thoughts on this book. I loved the plot, the magical-realism, and history. Touching on both the Holocaust and the Hungarian Revolution, this story tells an important part of history. The magical realism elements (the river, the color) worked well to keep the story engaging. There are two LGBTQ+ love triangles. One worked. The other relied too much on insta-love to be believable and the resulting emotional part of it was less real to me than a golem. The surface level relationship seemed at odds with the depth found elsewhere. Hard for me to decide on a star rating for this one.
joanareads's review against another edition
3.0
3.5 STARS
This book hits hard in 2022. The writing is beautiful, the characters are lovable and historical fiction meets fabulism is my favorite genre mashup. I had a few problems with the pacing as it lost my interest at a few points and I wish the last 20% or so had been stretched out, especially when it came to some folk and myth references.
This book hits hard in 2022. The writing is beautiful, the characters are lovable and historical fiction meets fabulism is my favorite genre mashup. I had a few problems with the pacing as it lost my interest at a few points and I wish the last 20% or so had been stretched out, especially when it came to some folk and myth references.
chmckinnon's review against another edition
2.0
I just finished I Must Betray You and even though it’s a different revolution/different time period, I enjoyed it much more than this story.
Magical realism. No thanks, but I loved The Book Thief. Loved.
Magical realism. No thanks, but I loved The Book Thief. Loved.