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A review by actuallyjusthanne
The Bletchley Riddle by Ruta Sepetys
adventurous
informative
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
This was so fun! I used to love WWII historical fiction books, but haven't read one in ages, so when I learned that Ruta Septetys had a middle grade out, I picked it up right away!
I love a good codebreaker book, and this was exactly it, and I also loved the sibling relationship within this book. The characters and pacing were really well done, and there were several humorous sections that are only found in middle grade books like this. In a lot of ways, this book was very nostalgic and was such a perfect example of what really got me into historical fiction, and also reading at large.
There was a bunch of historical context that I learned from this book that I didn't really know before, and historical concepts like Bletchley Park and the Enigma were brought to life. I really enjoyed the author's note at the end where she pointed out all the scientists, concepts, and places that were true to life, and I liked seeing cameos of people like Alan Turing (who played a not insignificant role in this book). The Polish codebreakers and the work they did before Poland got invaded was a part of history I had not known before and was glad to have learned about.
I found the sister, Lizzie, very annoying and naive and I didn't like the chapters that she narrated. She was supposed to be the feisty, mischievous girl who got around rules because of her wiles, but instead she seemed to have total disregard of rules and go around Bletchley Park doing her own thing, despite the whole super secret code breaking thing. There was more than once scene where the importance of keeping secrets was imparted on her and she basically went "but it's SO HARD for me to keep my mouth shut!!! D:" mama, a WAR behind you stfu and go. Even when she was given a message to carry, she didn't seem to understand the importance of it and did too many things on impulse that one really shouldn't be doing when actual national secrets are at stake.
On the other hand, I really liked Jakob's character: maybe it's the older sibling, maybe it's because he had all the sense in the family. His work with the mathematicians and his explanation of the logic and the Enigma were so cool, and his narration voice was really good as well.
Overall it was a fun book and I think this may be getting me back into my WWII fiction era! Although this book didn't hit as hard for me as I had hoped, it was still really cool and fun to read, and I really think I would have loved it when I was younger.
I love a good codebreaker book, and this was exactly it, and I also loved the sibling relationship within this book. The characters and pacing were really well done, and there were several humorous sections that are only found in middle grade books like this. In a lot of ways, this book was very nostalgic and was such a perfect example of what really got me into historical fiction, and also reading at large.
There was a bunch of historical context that I learned from this book that I didn't really know before, and historical concepts like Bletchley Park and the Enigma were brought to life. I really enjoyed the author's note at the end where she pointed out all the scientists, concepts, and places that were true to life, and I liked seeing cameos of people like Alan Turing (who played a not insignificant role in this book). The Polish codebreakers and the work they did before Poland got invaded was a part of history I had not known before and was glad to have learned about.
I found the sister, Lizzie, very annoying and naive and I didn't like the chapters that she narrated. She was supposed to be the feisty, mischievous girl who got around rules because of her wiles, but instead she seemed to have total disregard of rules and go around Bletchley Park doing her own thing, despite the whole super secret code breaking thing. There was more than once scene where the importance of keeping secrets was imparted on her and she basically went "but it's SO HARD for me to keep my mouth shut!!! D:" mama, a WAR behind you stfu and go. Even when she was given a message to carry, she didn't seem to understand the importance of it and did too many things on impulse that one really shouldn't be doing when actual national secrets are at stake.
On the other hand, I really liked Jakob's character: maybe it's the older sibling, maybe it's because he had all the sense in the family. His work with the mathematicians and his explanation of the logic and the Enigma were so cool, and his narration voice was really good as well.
Overall it was a fun book and I think this may be getting me back into my WWII fiction era! Although this book didn't hit as hard for me as I had hoped, it was still really cool and fun to read, and I really think I would have loved it when I was younger.