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mpbookreviews's review against another edition
5.0
Graphic: Death, Gun violence, Torture, Violence, Blood, Medical content, Grief, Gaslighting, War, and Injury/Injury detail
theliteraryagenda's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.75
Graphic: Gore and Violence
Moderate: Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Cancer, Death, Emotional abuse, Gun violence, and Grief
Most of the gore and violence content comes in the last half of the book, once the revolution begins. It is easy to skim over if necessary.lyzz's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
This book is set on the cusp of the Romanian Revolution in 1989. Starting this book, I knew next to nothing about Romania aside from them having great gymnasts. The book focuses on a teenager named Cristian who is recruited to be part of the spy network run by the Romanian government.
This is a fantastic book. It was informative, fast-paced and thoughtful. I learned so much about the country of Romania in this book. It makes me want to learn more about their history and their culture. This was a different type of historical fiction for me - historical thriller. I *loved* the pacing of this book. There are short chapters and the book clips along. Sometimes books that focus on pacing are short on character development - but I thought the author did a thoughtful amount of development of the main character and his family members.
Overall, I would highly recommend this book. This would be a perfect book for someone trying out historical fiction or a seasoned reader.
Graphic: Confinement, Death, Gun violence, Physical abuse, Torture, Violence, Blood, Excrement, Police brutality, and War
Minor: Sexual assault and Sexual violence
haley49's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
Graphic: Confinement, Death, Physical abuse, Violence, Police brutality, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Cancer, Gun violence, Torture, Murder, Gaslighting, and War
Minor: Misogyny, Sexism, and Sexual harassment
pkane01's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
Graphic: Child death, Death, Gun violence, Violence, Police brutality, and War
hazel_t23's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
Graphic: Gun violence and Violence
Moderate: Death, Genocide, Blood, Grief, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Gore, Terminal illness, Excrement, and Vomit
Tread carefully with this book, as with most of the content of Ruta’s book. Deffo be in the right headspace to read it though, because it needs to be read.kennyscoffee's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
The book becomes violent at 75% of the way through but the tense, stiflingly environment the characters live in is clear from the start. I thought the main character was good and gave a good POV to follow through the confusion and struggle of 1980's Romania. The plot twists/information reveals had me gasping several times.
Graphic: Death, Gun violence, Torture, Violence, and Police brutality
Moderate: Blood, Excrement, and Mass/school shootings
kimveach's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Graphic: Bullying, Cancer, Child abuse, Confinement, Death, Emotional abuse, Genocide, Gore, Gun violence, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Suicidal thoughts, Terminal illness, Torture, Toxic relationship, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Blood, Police brutality, Medical content, Grief, Mass/school shootings, Medical trauma, Murder, Toxic friendship, War, and Injury/Injury detail
katrinaburch's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.75
Minor: Death, Gun violence, Physical abuse, Torture, Violence, Blood, Police brutality, Grief, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail
padawan17's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.25
Graphic: Confinement, Death, Emotional abuse, Genocide, Gun violence, Physical abuse, Torture, Violence, Mass/school shootings, and Murder
Moderate: Gore, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Terminal illness, Blood, Excrement, Medical content, and Sexual harassment
Minor: Addiction, Child death, Cursing, Suicide, and Antisemitism