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bookish79's review
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
trudyd's review against another edition
5.0
The War Pianist needs more stars. A lot more stars. I am obsessed with historical fiction stories because they helps me learn about the past. The fiction aspect adds to the history making for enjoyable read instead of the usual textbook struggles. The author weaves an amazing tale bringing the two aspects together into a story that touched my heart. The War Pianist has left a lasting impression that I hope never to forget.
The fiction side of The War Pianist sucked me into the story. I became addicted to the characters, the drama, and the unexpected twists. The War Pianist became my companion until I reached the end. The author wrote a story filled with the scary aspects of World War 2. Her descriptions took me back to the a war I had only heard about. I felt their struggles. I could imagine the smells that surrounded Marnie in the shelters and in the streets. The author's words brought it all to life.
The War Pianist is a story of the need to survive and save the people of Holland. Willem has escaped and is now in London working to create the resistance in Holland. Marnie becomes Willem's War Pianist, his connection to Corrie on the other end of the transmitter.
The dramatic aspect took me deeper. Spies are everywhere. How does one learn to trust? They must rely on strangers to keep them safe, to help the transmit in safety. Danger is around every corner as they dodge bombs and flying debris.
When circumstances take them to Holland; risks grow exponentially. Marnie has travelled from a free country, Britain, to an occupied Holland. With the help of the resistance she travels through dangerous territories risking everything to help Willem save Corrie. The glimpses into the horrors and the dangers of those surrounding Marnie were terrifying. I learned so much as Marnie discovered the realities of war in Holland.
The author had me researching so many things as she tied the historical facts with the dramatic fiction. She made me realize that I have so much more to learn, so much more to discover. I, no, we owe it to those that suffered the atrocities of World War 2 to keep learning, to keep talking.
I am grateful to have been able to read such an enlightening story. I look forward to reading more stories by Mandy Robotham.
The fiction side of The War Pianist sucked me into the story. I became addicted to the characters, the drama, and the unexpected twists. The War Pianist became my companion until I reached the end. The author wrote a story filled with the scary aspects of World War 2. Her descriptions took me back to the a war I had only heard about. I felt their struggles. I could imagine the smells that surrounded Marnie in the shelters and in the streets. The author's words brought it all to life.
The War Pianist is a story of the need to survive and save the people of Holland. Willem has escaped and is now in London working to create the resistance in Holland. Marnie becomes Willem's War Pianist, his connection to Corrie on the other end of the transmitter.
The dramatic aspect took me deeper. Spies are everywhere. How does one learn to trust? They must rely on strangers to keep them safe, to help the transmit in safety. Danger is around every corner as they dodge bombs and flying debris.
When circumstances take them to Holland; risks grow exponentially. Marnie has travelled from a free country, Britain, to an occupied Holland. With the help of the resistance she travels through dangerous territories risking everything to help Willem save Corrie. The glimpses into the horrors and the dangers of those surrounding Marnie were terrifying. I learned so much as Marnie discovered the realities of war in Holland.
The author had me researching so many things as she tied the historical facts with the dramatic fiction. She made me realize that I have so much more to learn, so much more to discover. I, no, we owe it to those that suffered the atrocities of World War 2 to keep learning, to keep talking.
I am grateful to have been able to read such an enlightening story. I look forward to reading more stories by Mandy Robotham.
gray5217's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
reflective
sad
medium-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? It's complicated
4.75
biggaboy's review
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
2.0
gailcarroll's review
adventurous
informative
sad
tense
slow-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? No
2.5
laura_etc3's review against another edition
slow-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
2.5
I’m so disappointed to say I didn’t enjoy this book. I liked the first of this author’s books I read (The Berlin Girl) and I hoped that this would be more of the same. Unfortunately I found this one difficult to get in to, as the pace was quite slow. I enjoyed her portrayal of life in London during the Blitz but I struggled to connect with any of the characters and ultimately found the story quite unbelievable. This one just wasn’t for me.
lucyp747d4's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.5
smalltownbookmom's review against another edition
4.0
A moving WWII story about two women radio operators sending secret codes to one another only for one to be captured by the Nazis spurring the other to try to help mount a rescue. I knew a little about mobile radio operators (aka pianists) from another book but this was still an interesting read with some twists I didn't see coming at the end and well done on audio. Definitely recommended if you like WWII stories featuring brave women spies/morse code workers.
daisey4's review
4.0
Being a regular piano pianist I was expecting something totally different. I enjoyed the story. Didn’t appreciate the few swear words that were totally unnecessary.