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mbenzz's review against another edition
DNF....I made it 47% of the way through, but just couldn't go on. This was our book club pick this month, but I wasn't able to make it to the meeting last night, so thankfully, I was able to quit this book. I just didn't care. Neither of the two main characters were very likable, and in the end, I couldn't care less what happened to Charlie (I imagine she ended up keeping the baby and got together with Finn, but that's just a guess).
It's a very well written book, and an interesting story, but just not my cup of tea.
It's a very well written book, and an interesting story, but just not my cup of tea.
lisakerd's review against another edition
2.0
The first 1/3 of the book is interesting, then the pace plateaus and becomes quite boring. I was also annoyed by Charlie’s obsession with Rose.
deanashuman's review against another edition
4.0
A very good read that becomes a nail-biter in the last 15 chapters. Excellent descriptions- this is definitely one of those books that makes you feel that you’re in the room with the characters at many points. Interesting how real characters from WW2 were woven into the narrative at various points. Highly recommend!
alexgoldstein4's review against another edition
5.0
Amazing! The writing made me feel like I was watching a movie. One of my new favorites
sarasreads's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
informative
inspiring
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
jenhurst's review against another edition
4.0
I read a lot of historical fiction as a kid but as an adult I don’t pick it up because typically all adult historical fiction is WW2 and just incredibly depressing. But I kept hearing out good Kate Quinn’s books were so I decided to pick this one up and I’m glad I did. I will be reading the rest of her books. I was so engaged in Eve’s story as a spy and the Alice network. I loved the pacing and finding out what happened with the alternating timelines.
amycanread_'s review against another edition
3.0
3.75/5
Really interesting WW1/WW2 historical fiction with 2 different POV timelines that weave together as the story progresses. Although both POVs are necessary to the other, one of them was significantly more interesting than the other which made almost half the book feel slow.
1915 Young Eve is newly recruited as a wartime spy for England. She uses the traits that would have otherwise made her weak in society - her speech impediment, innocence, femininity - to gather intelligence in a German-friendly French restaurant. Captivating thrill of the espionage and the eventual fallout.
1947 Charlie is an unwed, newly pregnant American college girl. She’s kind of a hot mess. Her war veteran older brother just shot himself, she’s being brought to Europe by her mother for an abortion, and she runs away desperately looking for her cousin who went missing after WW2. She finds and recruits a much older, much more traumatized Eve to help her search through France. I found myself more interested in seeing how younger Eve reconciled with older Eve than Charlie’s search for Rose.
Really interesting WW1/WW2 historical fiction with 2 different POV timelines that weave together as the story progresses. Although both POVs are necessary to the other, one of them was significantly more interesting than the other which made almost half the book feel slow.
1915 Young Eve is newly recruited as a wartime spy for England. She uses the traits that would have otherwise made her weak in society - her speech impediment, innocence, femininity - to gather intelligence in a German-friendly French restaurant. Captivating thrill of the espionage and the eventual fallout.
1947 Charlie is an unwed, newly pregnant American college girl. She’s kind of a hot mess. Her war veteran older brother just shot himself, she’s being brought to Europe by her mother for an abortion, and she runs away desperately looking for her cousin who went missing after WW2. She finds and recruits a much older, much more traumatized Eve to help her search through France. I found myself more interested in seeing how younger Eve reconciled with older Eve than Charlie’s search for Rose.
kpiel's review against another edition
adventurous
hopeful
sad
tense
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? Yes
4.0
I’m torn about how many stars to give this. I think it was a solid book, with easy to follow “acts”, divided amongst two storylines sets 30+ years apart. The end was very satisfying and happy, which was a nice way to end a book about the casualties of war, suicide, sexual harassment, and PTSD. I learned to love the 3 main characters, who were all broken and traumatized in their own way, and it was an exciting, emotional adventure to follow them along.
That being said, the book wasn’t anything insanely unique, and went on a bit longer than it should’ve. But that may just be the fact that I am just getting into historical fiction and it has a different pace than the other books I’ve read recently. I’m not a very big history buff, but the author definitely seemed to do her research and likely stayed true to the inspiration behind this fiction (a women of no importance - which I’m excited to read at a later date as well!)
That being said, the book wasn’t anything insanely unique, and went on a bit longer than it should’ve. But that may just be the fact that I am just getting into historical fiction and it has a different pace than the other books I’ve read recently. I’m not a very big history buff, but the author definitely seemed to do her research and likely stayed true to the inspiration behind this fiction (a women of no importance - which I’m excited to read at a later date as well!)