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3.57 AVERAGE
3.57 AVERAGE
Much better than its hideous cover.
(Seriously, this is the best they could come up with?!)
(Seriously, this is the best they could come up with?!)
I was a little worried when I started reading that this was going to turn into a book I wouldn't like, but I actually quite enjoyed it. Historical spy novels with spunky heroines are apparently my jam.
This is an incredibly funny book with fantastic writing style. I’ve never seen a writing style like this, especially how the chapters are titled. Plus, the font was really cute as well. It’s little details like these that make a book stand out amongst the rest, and are things I really appreciate. It really put me in into that world, which in England during the reign of King George I.
This was in a period that I wasn’t very familiar with but is it fascinating. It’s mostly set in the royal British court and highlights what is was like to be there during that time. It even goes into detail the type of dress they wore, with humor of course. If your unfamiliar with the time period it’s okay, the author describes what is happening during that time period, so that you understand everythi9ng better.
The story if full of shady characters and no one is who they seem. I liked that this was actually really good at not letting you know what really was happening until the very end. So many books now are predictable and that takes away part of the fun. Peggy is a fantastic leading lady, and is someone who you can root for the whole book.
This was in a period that I wasn’t very familiar with but is it fascinating. It’s mostly set in the royal British court and highlights what is was like to be there during that time. It even goes into detail the type of dress they wore, with humor of course. If your unfamiliar with the time period it’s okay, the author describes what is happening during that time period, so that you understand everythi9ng better.
The story if full of shady characters and no one is who they seem. I liked that this was actually really good at not letting you know what really was happening until the very end. So many books now are predictable and that takes away part of the fun. Peggy is a fantastic leading lady, and is someone who you can root for the whole book.
Content Note: Sexual assault, sexism, casual racism
My, after listing out that content note I really can't believe this is a book recommended for 12+. And when I say "sexual assault", I mean a rather upsetting and serious depiction of assault. It's possible that a good portion of my low rating has to do with how cavalierly this is dealt with and how absolutely unnecessary it was. Here's the impetus for the plot:
We have our spirited heroine, Peggy, an orphan living off the "generosity" of her uncle. She is betrothed to a young man who it turns out is quite vile. He viciously assaults her at a party and the next day appears at her uncle's house to assert that Peggy behaved with impropriety and must be reprimanded. When she refuses and insists that she was assaulted by this man, her uncle literally throws her onto the street. With nowhere else to turn, Peggy answers the call of a mysterious man who claims to have known her mother and has a proposition for Peggy himself.
For having suffered such a serious attack and finding herself homeless in the space of about 12 hours, Peggy shows an inhuman resilience. She does not dwell or even really think on what has happened to her that landed her in this spying predicament. I understand that this is not a book about assault and dealing with the ramifications of such, but it is extremely bothersome to me when a character suffers a traumatizing event that is played off so casually. Especially so when it happens in YA. It is merely a matter of plot, a way to get from A to B, and nothing more. There were a variety of ways to get Peggy into the spy scenario. Why have your character attacked in such a serious and damaging way? And then have her never think on it again?
Now, the casual racism...Here's the most glaring example:
"Nonsense, Peggy. No one would dream of sending an English girl to the tropics. You'd be sick in an instant, not to mention brown as an Indian." Pale skin was regarded as one of the many signs of rank and virtue, and therefore must be strictly cherished. We good English girls were constantly warned that ruination accompanied turning the least bit brown.
Are you kidding me?? Yes, it's the 18th century, I get it. People were racist as all get out. Why do you have to put this in YA? It would be a different matter entirely if the explanation provided after the quoted character remarked on how such a comment itself is the real nonsense. That it is not a sentiment with which our heroine agrees. I really don't understand why such an anecdote needs to be included at all. The book could have easily been written without it. It is not essential to the plot or character development unless we are developing Peggy negatively. If the goal is to portray the awfulness of racism in society then make that clear, not neutral or ambivalent.
Another point that kept me from enjoying the story: Peggy is posing as another young woman in the company of those who knew her well, some very well even. She pulls this off without question. A character who knows neither Peggy, nor the girl she is impersonating, particularly well catches this instantly, though. Perhaps I am meant to suspend my disbelief as a reader and just go with it but I really just couldn't. I should hope that if I was suddenly replaced by an imposter that my loved ones and colleagues would recognize that a look-a-like is not the real me.
Other than that, the plot never really drew me in. I often found myself bored and actually daydreaming while reading. This is never a good sign. All of the above mentioned did keep me from throwing myself into this one as much as I had hoped. I was simply never really interested in who was or wasn't a Jacobite spy or even what had happened to Francesca. Oops.
On the plus side, I simply adored the time and setting of the book. I'm an anglophile through and through and a history nerd to boot so any British historical fiction is hard for me to turn down. The descriptions of life at court are certainly interesting as are the political machinations and intrigue. Peggy is an enjoyable MC; smart, capable and witty. Her romantic interest is also quite the decent and wholesome young man though this is a book with only the barest hint of any actual romance.
This had so much potential. Unfortunately, it just fell flat. The writing is actually quite good and done in an authentic and amusing style. I'm sure this is a very enjoyable book in the right hands. Sadly for me, all I listed above kept such hands from being mine.
My, after listing out that content note I really can't believe this is a book recommended for 12+. And when I say "sexual assault", I mean a rather upsetting and serious depiction of assault. It's possible that a good portion of my low rating has to do with how cavalierly this is dealt with and how absolutely unnecessary it was. Here's the impetus for the plot:
We have our spirited heroine, Peggy, an orphan living off the "generosity" of her uncle. She is betrothed to a young man who it turns out is quite vile. He viciously assaults her at a party and the next day appears at her uncle's house to assert that Peggy behaved with impropriety and must be reprimanded. When she refuses and insists that she was assaulted by this man, her uncle literally throws her onto the street. With nowhere else to turn, Peggy answers the call of a mysterious man who claims to have known her mother and has a proposition for Peggy himself.
For having suffered such a serious attack and finding herself homeless in the space of about 12 hours, Peggy shows an inhuman resilience. She does not dwell or even really think on what has happened to her that landed her in this spying predicament. I understand that this is not a book about assault and dealing with the ramifications of such, but it is extremely bothersome to me when a character suffers a traumatizing event that is played off so casually. Especially so when it happens in YA. It is merely a matter of plot, a way to get from A to B, and nothing more. There were a variety of ways to get Peggy into the spy scenario. Why have your character attacked in such a serious and damaging way? And then have her never think on it again?
Now, the casual racism...Here's the most glaring example:
"Nonsense, Peggy. No one would dream of sending an English girl to the tropics. You'd be sick in an instant, not to mention brown as an Indian." Pale skin was regarded as one of the many signs of rank and virtue, and therefore must be strictly cherished. We good English girls were constantly warned that ruination accompanied turning the least bit brown.
Are you kidding me?? Yes, it's the 18th century, I get it. People were racist as all get out. Why do you have to put this in YA? It would be a different matter entirely if the explanation provided after the quoted character remarked on how such a comment itself is the real nonsense. That it is not a sentiment with which our heroine agrees. I really don't understand why such an anecdote needs to be included at all. The book could have easily been written without it. It is not essential to the plot or character development unless we are developing Peggy negatively. If the goal is to portray the awfulness of racism in society then make that clear, not neutral or ambivalent.
Another point that kept me from enjoying the story: Peggy is posing as another young woman in the company of those who knew her well, some very well even. She pulls this off without question. A character who knows neither Peggy, nor the girl she is impersonating, particularly well catches this instantly, though. Perhaps I am meant to suspend my disbelief as a reader and just go with it but I really just couldn't. I should hope that if I was suddenly replaced by an imposter that my loved ones and colleagues would recognize that a look-a-like is not the real me.
Other than that, the plot never really drew me in. I often found myself bored and actually daydreaming while reading. This is never a good sign. All of the above mentioned did keep me from throwing myself into this one as much as I had hoped. I was simply never really interested in who was or wasn't a Jacobite spy or even what had happened to Francesca. Oops.
On the plus side, I simply adored the time and setting of the book. I'm an anglophile through and through and a history nerd to boot so any British historical fiction is hard for me to turn down. The descriptions of life at court are certainly interesting as are the political machinations and intrigue. Peggy is an enjoyable MC; smart, capable and witty. Her romantic interest is also quite the decent and wholesome young man though this is a book with only the barest hint of any actual romance.
This had so much potential. Unfortunately, it just fell flat. The writing is actually quite good and done in an authentic and amusing style. I'm sure this is a very enjoyable book in the right hands. Sadly for me, all I listed above kept such hands from being mine.
adventurous
funny
hopeful
inspiring
lighthearted
mysterious
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
The main character is AMAZING!
Content Warnings
Minor: Sexual assault
mysterious
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
A few places the verb tenses threw me out. I found parts of the story a little convoluted, and the main character wasn't as easy to relate to as I'd hoped.
I really liked this! (Is it just me or does it seem like many times the best books have some of the worst/least-fitting covers?)
PROS:
>>> Spies. Do I need to say anything more? Anything about spies intrigues me and I felt like the way the author dealt with the spy life and the baby spy herself was done rly well. Peggy was going into a situation pretty blindly and the author described it as such.
>>> The palace is terrifyingly full of trickery and bets and messy alliances. Nothing is completely as it seems.
>>> Just the way the clues and the story were unfolded was just wow. Much impressed.
>>> I liked Peggy. She was smart and dealt with everything really well. Unlike some heroines who mix it up with a little dramatic sobbing on the shoulder of their lover. Would I feel like crying? Probably. But that's not something a person in her situation could afford to do, and she didn't. ^^ So happy.
>>> Even if you find someone who looks a lot like someone else, there are going to be differences (unless they're identical twins). Not everybody will notice, but some will. I like that some people noticed.
>>> The headings under the chapter titles held a sense of humor.
CONS:
>>> Once again, I'm harshest on the romantical aspects. I don't hate the love interest but I fell like...ugh I hate to keep saying this but it felt darned cliche. Oh there's someone I really shouldn't like but I can't help it and not only is he extremely talented but also good looking. Just can we step out of the mold of the ideal "hero" please?
>>> I do kind of wish the whole Francesca>Sophy>Robert circle was explained in a little more detail.
>>> That said, the book was wrapped up SUPER neatly and left out what I felt like were some important details.
*full review to come*
PROS:
>>> Spies. Do I need to say anything more? Anything about spies intrigues me and I felt like the way the author dealt with the spy life and the baby spy herself was done rly well. Peggy was going into a situation pretty blindly and the author described it as such.
>>> The palace is terrifyingly full of trickery and bets and messy alliances. Nothing is completely as it seems.
>>> Just the way the clues and the story were unfolded was just wow. Much impressed.
>>> I liked Peggy. She was smart and dealt with everything really well. Unlike some heroines who mix it up with a little dramatic sobbing on the shoulder of their lover. Would I feel like crying? Probably. But that's not something a person in her situation could afford to do, and she didn't. ^^ So happy.
>>> Even if you find someone who looks a lot like someone else, there are going to be differences (unless they're identical twins). Not everybody will notice, but some will. I like that some people noticed.
>>> The headings under the chapter titles held a sense of humor.
CONS:
>>> Once again, I'm harshest on the romantical aspects. I don't hate the love interest but I fell like...ugh I hate to keep saying this but it felt darned cliche. Oh there's someone I really shouldn't like but I can't help it and not only is he extremely talented but also good looking. Just can we step out of the mold of the ideal "hero" please?
>>> I do kind of wish the whole Francesca>Sophy>Robert circle was explained in a little more detail.
>>> That said, the book was wrapped up SUPER neatly and left out what I felt like were some important details.
*full review to come*
adventurous
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
This didn't grab me until about 60% of the way through. The scene at the beginning put me off of the book and it took a while for me to move past it mentally.
Mr. Reade is a dream and carried the last half of the book. I do not think I will seek out the second one at this time, but if I came across it in a few months, I might say, "What the heck," and give it a go.
Mr. Reade is a dream and carried the last half of the book. I do not think I will seek out the second one at this time, but if I came across it in a few months, I might say, "What the heck," and give it a go.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Sexual assault
Minor: Sexual content
Fast-moving, exciting undercover spy novel set in the early 1700s - a nice change from the usual Regency/Victorian setting. I devoured it and am off to find the sequel.