Book Review: A Darker Shade of Magic

A Darker Shade of Magic by V.E. Schwab

Title: A Darker Shade of Magic

Author: V.E. Shwab

Series: Shades of Magic #1

Publisher: Tor Books

Publication Date: February 24, 2015

Genre: Fiction; Fantasy; Historical Fiction; Adventure; Adult for Young Adult

Pages: 398

Format: Hardback

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Kell is one of the last Travelers—rare magicians who choose a parallel universe to visit.

Grey London is dirty, boring, lacks magic, ruled by mad King George. Red London is where life and magic are revered, and the Maresh Dynasty presides over a flourishing empire. White London is ruled by whoever has murdered their way to the throne. People fight to control magic, and the magic fights back, draining the city to its very bones. Once there was Black London—but no one speaks of that now.

Officially, Kell is the Red Traveler, personal ambassador and adopted Prince of Red London, carrying the monthly correspondences between royals of each London. Unofficially, Kell smuggles for those willing to pay for even a glimpse of a world they’ll never see. This dangerous hobby sets him up for accidental treason. Fleeing into Grey London, Kell runs afoul of Delilah Bard, a cut-purse with lofty aspirations. She robs him, saves him from a dangerous enemy, then forces him to another world for her 'proper adventure'.

But perilous magic is afoot, and treachery lurks at every turn. To save all of the worlds, Kell and Lila will first need to stay alive—trickier than they hoped.

Parallel universes, magic, London, London, and more London. How…intriguing.

Scene One: Red London. So saturated with magic, the inability to control the elements is considered odd. Scene Two: Grey London. Our London, aka the considerably less cool of all the Londons. Scene Three: White London. Oppressed by the cold, cruel, colorless Danes twins, this London is doomed to meet the unspeakable fate of Black London.

First of all, character building? Flawless. Lila, the bossest of characters I’ve read in 2016, was a hands down favorite (except, of course, the Danes twins, but we’ll get to that later…). Kell and Lila made the most fantastic team. The dynamic between the two was indispensable in creating the suspenseful nature withheld throughout the entirety of the novel. Let me explain:

Kell: Dreamy (emphasis on the dreammmyy). The pet of the Red London royal family. A good boy, except when he’s not. A curator of relics of other Londons and an unapologetically proficient black-market dealer, which happens to be a bit illegal. An Antari and one of the few remaining Travelers.

Lila: An all-round-good-for-everything badass. Dreams of adventure and escape, preferably of the pirate variety. A competent thief and incurably stubborn. Sarcastic, insensitive. A blast to read.

They fit together like two perfect pieces of a puzzle.

As they fight two villains who could possibly be two of my favorite villains of all time, they work in perfect harmony. I appreciate how Schwab doesn’t make their victory too easy. Those Danes twins were the most well-developed antagonists. With well-placed rumors of floors inlaid with the bones of their enemies, their wonderfully creepy appearances, and their insane, despicable dispositions, the Danes twins were entirely unlikeable (in the most likeable way).

Parallel universe settings are so easy to get wrong. Luckily, Schwab knows what she’s doing and does it right in every way. She cuts down on the potential confusion by focusing on one particular place throughout the entire novel with certain checkpoints to hold the three worlds together. She doesn’t go overboard with fifty worlds, nor does she lamely half-ass her attempt with only two worlds. She sticks with the nice, comfortable, simple number of 3 (or, technically, 4). She briefly mentions the differing surroundings of each world, but doesn’t go into too much depth.

Also, can we just take a second and look at this beautiful cover? Is it not stunning?

A Darker Shade of Magic was a job well-done. Every part of this book deserved the favorable reception it was given. I’ll be reading the sequel very soon.

“I’d rather die on an adventure than live standing still.”

A Gathering of Shadows

Conspiracy of Blood and Smoke Review

Conspiracy of Blood and Smoke by Anne Blankman

Title: Conspiracy of Blood and Smoke

Author: Anne Blankman

Series: Prisoner of Night and Fog #2

Publisher: Blazer + Bray

Publication Date: April 21, 2015

Genre: Fiction; Historical Fiction; Romance; Adventure; Mystery; Young Adult

Pages: 406

Format: ARC

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The girl known as Gretchen Whitestone has a secret: She used to be part of Adolf Hitler’s inner circle. More than a year after she made an enemy of her old family friend and fled Munich, she lives with a kindly English family, posing as an ordinary German immigrant, and is preparing to graduate from high school. Her love, Daniel Cohen, is a reporter in town. For the first time in her life, Gretchen is content.

But then, Daniel gets a telegram that sends him back to Germany, and Gretchen’s world turns upside-down. And when she receives word that Daniel is wanted for murder, she has to face the danger she thought she’d escaped-and return to her homeland.

Gretchen must do everything she can to avoid capture and recognition, even though saving Daniel will mean consorting with her former friends, the Nazi elite. And as they work to clear Daniel’s name, Gretchen and Daniel discover a deadly conspiracy stretching from the slums of Berlin to the Reichstag itself. Can they dig up the explosive truth and get out in time-or will Hitler discover them first?

*Sigh*Historical fiction is so great.

Gretchen Whitestone was once Adolf Hitler’s pet. She was the perfect niece, and she admired Hitler to the point of fault. After meeting Daniel Cohen, her world shattered, and she ended up in England, free from Hitler’s tight reign over her and Germany. She’s happy, and she sees the life she always wanted stretched out before her. However, when Daniel is captured in Germany, Gretchen must face her horrible past, and triumph over the once inescapable grasp of her Uncle Adolf.

Even though we all know how it ends (Hitler gains control of Germany and starts a war around the world), Anne Blankman still manages to keep me guessing. She writes like there’s a chance of Hitler’s defeat, even if there’s not. When I’m reading her work, I’m in Germany while the Nazis are rising. I’m watching the Nazi parade and seeing Hitler’s stupid little mustache. Her melding of history and fiction together is astounding and thoroughly entertaining. Her painstaking attention to detail is enough to send her novels over the moon.

I love how this book shines a totally new light on who Adolf Hitler was, and how his comrades in his quest for domination acted and thought. I love the historical value of Anne Blankman’s writing, and it totally makes this whole reading historical fiction thing worth it ten times over. Reading and learning are two of my favorite things, and both come in this 406 page package.

I maintain that the Prisoner of Night and Fog series is one of the best World War II novels written, among Code Name Verity and The Book Thief. If there is ever another book in this series, I would read in a heartbeat. 

Perilous Sea Review

The Perilous Sea by Sherry Thomas

Title: The Perilous Sea

Author: Sherry Thomas

Series: The Elemental Trilogy #2

Publisher: Balzer + Bray

Publication Date: September 16, 2014

Genre: Fiction; Historical Fiction; Adventure; Fantasy; Romance; Young Adult

Pages: 414                     

Format: Hardcover

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After spending the summer away from each other, Titus and Iolanthe (still disguised as Archer Fairfax) are eager to return to Eton College to resume their training to fight the Bane. Although no longer bound to Titus by a blood oath, Iolanthe is more committed than ever to fulfilling her destiny—especially with the agents of Atlantis quickly closing in.

Soon after arriving at school, though, Titus makes a shocking discovery, one that makes him question everything he previously believed about their mission. Faced with this devastating realization, Iolanthe is forced to come to terms with her new role, while Titus must choose between following his mother's prophecies—and forging a divergent path to an unknowable future.

Yep. Sherry Thomas still got it.

Iolanthe (how do you say that? EYE-OH-LANthhh? EEE-uh-LAWNT? I wish I knew. It would make the book so much better if I wasn’t always thinking “DAMMIT WHAT IS THAT NAME?”) and Titus come back together after spending a summer apart after the crazy events of The Burning Sky. Iolanthe is still acting under the pseudonym of Archer Fairfax. She and Titus continue to work together, reading spell books, practicing magic, and a little something extra, if you catch my drift (*wink wink*). Things are going good until Titus decides to have a realization that will ruin all their plans and their relationship. Way to go, Titus. You put the im- in impossible romance. Iolanthe aka Archer can no longer serve the purpose she was originally promised. Can she recover from being tossed aside after everything that’s happened?

I had doubts. It had been a while since I read The Burning Sky, and I wasn’t entirely convinced that I would remember all that I was expected to remember. Like when you go back to school after summer break. Unrealistic expectations of you retained from last year’s chemistry class is inevitable. Lucky for me, this book was very different from a chemistry class (thank God). The story was surprisingly easy to catch up on with skillfully placed reminders.

The sequel was just as fantastic as the first book. The key to a successful series is to write the separate installments as separate stories with their own personalized story lines. Otherwise, readers are stuck with a boring continuation of a story to which they already said goodbye. Readers want new, exciting, suspense. They can’t have that if they are caught into reading a prolonged conclusion to a washed-up plot line. Sherry Thomas knew this and played it up. Her Perilous Sea story was exciting and filled with its own set of problems. I was just as entertained with the dazzling magic in this book as the previous.

The characters were built and written fully. They were well rounded and complex. Their romance was held back just enough to keep my intrigue and left me wanting just the right amount of more. Respectfully clever and hard to put down, this novel an overall success. With the bar set to sky-scraping heights, I can’t help wonder if Sherry Thomas can keep up with the standards she’s set for the final book.

The Immortal Heights

October 13, 2015

Alias Hook Review

Alias Hook by Lisa Jensen

Title: Alias Hook

Author: Lisa Jensen

Series: None

Publisher: Thomas Dunne Books

Publication Date: July 8, 2014

Genre: Fiction; Historical Fiction; Fantasy; Retelling; Romance; Adventure; Adult

Pages: 368

Format: Hardcover

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"Every child knows how the story ends. The wicked pirate captain is flung overboard, caught in the jaws of the monster crocodile who drags him down to a watery grave. But it was not yet my time to die. It's my fate to be trapped here forever, in a nightmare of childhood fancy, with that infernal, eternal boy."

Meet Captain James Benjamin Hook, a witty, educated Restoration-era privateer cursed to play villain to a pack of malicious little boys in a pointless war that never ends. But everything changes when Stella Parrish, a forbidden grown woman, dreams her way to the Neverland in defiance of Pan's rules. From the glamour of the Fairy Revels, to the secret ceremonies of the First Tribes, to the mysterious underwater temple beneath the Mermaid Lagoon, the magical forces of the Neverland open up for Stella as they never have for Hook. And in the pirate captain himself, she begins to see someone far more complex than the storybook villain.

With Stella's knowledge of folk and fairy tales, she might be Hook's last chance for redemption and release if they can break his curse before Pan and his warrior boys hunt her down and drag Hook back to their neverending game. Alias Hook by Lisa Jensen is a beautifully and romantically written adult fairy tale.

When someone said “Peter Pan,” I used to conjure up feelings of warmth and love. Now, whenever someone brings up Peter Pan, the only words that come to mind are: “Dammit, that annoying little twit.” 

A twisted retelling of Peter Pan for adults, this story shines a light on the classic fairy tale of Peter Pan never seen before. James Hook is an adult in the rotten, cursed world of Neverland, and he is doomed to be haunted by that horrible Peter Pan over and over again. He can’t die, but his men can, and he must live with the burden of watching them fight to the death in an endless cycle. Only he can survive, even when what he wants more than anything is to die. He’s a living, breathing pawn of Peter Pan’s game, and there is no way out. Until, Stella Parish decides to make a surprise (and forbidden) appearance. Unsure of how she got to the world of Neverland, Hook is sure she was sent there for a reason. And that reason may just be his escape.

I never realized it until after reading this book that Peter Pan is a spoiled, ungrateful little brat who is too bloodthirsty for his own good. I love kids, but Peter Pan is not a kid. He is a monster who exists only to torture Captain Hook. Think about it: in the story, Peter Pan cuts off Hook’s hand and then feeds it to a crocodile. It’s kind of sick, actually.

Despite all the times I was this close to chucking this book across the room whenever Pan ruined things, I understood on some level the importance of his character and Hook’s characters. While they seem like foils in the original story, in this retelling, you see that they are the same. Pan is Hook, and Hook is, on some level, Pan. They are afraid of the same things and have different types of crippling innocence and guilt. They are both scared of growing up and moving on, but in the end, at least one of them learns how to do just that.

Everything was so unexpected and even when it seemed wrong, it worked out to be so right. There was the dark underbelly of Peter Pan, and then there was the soft side of the scary Captain Hook. You could finally understand his defeat, his loss of life when he was stolen and taken into the cruel world of Neverland. It was impressive, the emotion I felt alongside the characters of the story.

I was astounded by the artful remastering of J.M. Barrie’s classic, the phenomenal attention to detail in its remaking, and the addictive story line that hardly allowed me a moment’s break. This is still a tale of growing up, but it is also a story of defying your destiny.  

Crazy Review

Crazy by Linda Vigen Phillips

Title: Crazy

Author: Linda Vigen Phillips

Series: None

Publisher: Eerdmans Books for Young Readers

Publication Date: October 20, 2014

Genre: Fiction; Historical Fiction; Poetry; Disorders; Young Adult

Pages: 320

Format: Paperback

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Laura is a typical fifteen-year-old growing up in the 1960's, navigating her way through classes, friendships, and even a new romance. But she's carrying around a secret: her mother is suffering from a mental illness.

No one in Laura's family will talk about her mother's past hospitalizations or increasingly erratic behavior, and Laura is confused and frightened. She finds some solace in art, but when her mother, also an artist, suffers a breakdown, Laura fears that she will follow in her mother's footsteps. Left without a refuge, can she find the courage to face what scares her most?

Identity is an enigma for any normal fifteen-year-old. For Laura, she struggles with defining herself as she witnesses her mother being possessed by her mental illness. She fears her destiny has already been defined for her, and she sees it playing it out before her eyes as her mother is reduced to hysterics and erratic outbursts. Fear threatens to smother Laura, and she must find the courage to defy it.

Stories written as a series of poems are a strange thing. The poems themselves cannot stand alone, but when combined with others, it just works. Verse was a fitting choice for this book. Some things in life you cannot explain coherently in complete sentences; some things are just too messed up, and they don’t have a clear subject and verb and prepositional phrases. Verse gives the readers the opportunity to fully understand the turmoil going on inside of Laura’s head, the doubt, guilt, and fear she feels.

While Crazy is set in a time period when mental illness was all but taboo, the book is painfully honest on the hardships of suffering from a mental disorder and living with someone inflicted with this invisible illness. Laura is trapped in more way than one, not being able to talk about her fears or the way she feels towards her mom. The effort Phillips put into this book was visible in everything she wrote, and the readers could understand how important these topics were.

Crazy was an easy read with something important to say, and I’m glad I got the opportunity to hear it. 

The Inventor's Secret Review

The Inventor’s Secret by Andrea Cremer

Title: The Inventor’s Secret

Author: Andrea Cremer

Series: The Inventor’s Secret #1

Publisher: Philomel Books

Publication Date: April 22, 2014

Genre: Fiction; Fantasy; Historical Fiction; Steampunk; Romance; Young Adult

Pages: 368

Format: Hardcover
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In this world, sixteen-year-old Charlotte and her fellow refugees have scraped out an existence on the edge of Britain’s industrial empire. Though they live by the skin of their teeth, they have their health (at least when they can find enough food and avoid the Imperial Labor Gatherers) and each other. When a new exile with no memory of his escape  or even his own name seeks shelter in their camp he brings new dangers with him and secrets about the terrible future that awaits all those who have struggled has to live free of the bonds of the empire’s Machineworks.

The Inventor’s Secret is the first book of a YA steampunk series set in an alternate nineteenth-century North America where the Revolutionary War never took place and the British Empire has expanded into a global juggernaut propelled by marvelous and horrible machinery. Perfect for fans of Libba Bray's The Diviners, Cassandra Clare's Clockwork Angel, ScottWesterfeld's Leviathan and Phillip Reeve's Mortal Instruments.

Am I the only one that’s getting sick of the whole “steampunk” fad that’s going around right now?

It’s the nineteenth century—around the time the Revolutionary War should’ve happened but didn’t. Instead, the British have expanded into the dictatorial leaders us Americans always knew they would become, and things are worse than ever—especially the wealth and power of the rich.  And of course, they’ve invented super robots with terrifying powers and scary tools to track down and punish the Patriots. Charlotte is the younger sister of the one of the leaders of the rebellion, and she’s predictably juvenile and short-sighted. Her immaturity grated on my nerves, and she just never seemed to take a hint. And no one likes someone who can’t take a hint.

It’s not that I’m against steampunk. It’s just that it’s been talked about ad nauseam. Like, come on, get a new idea. It’s no longer cool. It’s been used too many times, and it’s getting old. Find some other type of “punk” to overuse and drive into the ground.

Usually I have a blind spot for romance. If a bad story has a really well formed romance, I usually give it more credit than it deserves. I really shouldn’t, but I can’t help it. In this case, the lovey stuff was good, but it wasn’t enough. It was too quick and too predictable. First of all, we started off with the whole “if he bullies you, it’s just because he likes you” thing going on. Because, as we all know, if a boy likes you, he has to be mean to you. I feel like the author tried to do a fake out on the reader of where the romance was leading, but failed miserably and just ended up falling on her face in the attempt. It was obvious. Strike one. Secondly, it happened too fast without any build up. Not enough conflict. It was too easy, and it’s really not fun to read a romance that’s too easy. It makes the readers feel like they didn’t work for it. What’s the point of continuing to read if we already know that boy gets the girl and good defeats evil? I mean, come on. Give me a little of anxiety while reading. Emotion make the world go round after all.  

So there were bad things. There were also good things too. There was humor. Point for Cremer. And the cover was pretty cool too. Not the best, but pretty cool, but only this cover. The other covers suck. And, if I’m being completely honest, the plot line was not a total fail. It was, however, one that I’ve read a million times and probably could recite in my sleep. Can we thing of another story line besides a tom boy turning into lady and getting the guy? And please, for the love of God, do not put it against a steampunk backdrop, whatever you do. I beg you.

Overall, it wasn’t so bad. Let’s just say it’s not my go-to book for recommendations. And I probably won’t read the sequel. 

The Conjurer’s Riddle

November 3, 2015

Out of The Easy Review

Out of the Easy by Ruta Sepetys

Title: Out of the Easy

Author: Ruta Sepetys

Series: None

Publisher: Philomel Books

Publication Date: February 12, 2013

Genre: Historical Fiction; Coming of Age; Romance; Young Adult

Pages: 364

Format: Hardback

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It’s 1950, and as the French Quarter of New Orleans simmers with secrets, seventeen-year-old Josie Moraine is silently stirring a pot of her own. Known among locals as the daughter of a brothel prostitute, Josie wants more out of life than the Big Easy has to offer.

She devises a plan get out, but a mysterious death in the Quarter leaves Josie tangled in an investigation that will challenge her allegiance to her mother, her conscience, and Willie Woodley, the brusque madam on Conti Street. Josie is caught between the dream of an elite college and a clandestine underworld. New Orleans lures her in her quest for truth, dangling temptation at every turn, and escalating to the ultimate test.

With characters as captivating as those in her internationally bestselling novel Between Shades of Gray, Ruta Sepetys skillfully creates a rich story of secrets, lies, and the haunting reminder that decisions can shape our destiny.

After reading Between Shades of Gray, I was hooked on Sepetys’ effortless recreation of historical settings and intriguing, untold story lines. She taught me about a part of Russian history that is rarely talked about, and, with her most recent novel, I have learned about the surreptitious happenings of the New Orleans underground.

After her mother abandoned her, Josie Moraine was raised by Willie Woodley, the harshest Madam of the French Quarter. Refusing to be sucked into the Big Easy and all that it has to offer, Josie has plans to escape the French Quarter and begin a life of her own, which includes further education. When a murder shakes up the Quarter and Josie, she must battle with her conscience and her dreams of a better future. Mesmerizing New Orleans soon turns into a battlefield as Josie Moraine defeats unforeseen encounters and defies all expectations.

Set in the sketchy recesses of New Orleans, away from the public eye, Out of the Easy is a creative, never-been-heard-before story of a girl who wishes to flee from the life she was born into. Sepetys takes the liberty of telling this story from the point of view of a character that no one has thought of before. I loved the way Sepetys created such a mystic and hypnotic New Orleans for her setting.

While this book captures its readers through its unique historical value, I quickly lost interest towards the last quarter of the book. The plot fizzled out, and, instead of making me turn the pages with curiosity, I was page-flipping with the sole purpose of finishing. The romance, which I don’t think was brought to its full potential, was underdeveloped. If it played more of a role in the plot, it would’ve added an element of suspense that this book was considerably lacking. I felt as if I was thrust into a high-speed story, and in the end, it fell short of the expectations I had set for it. Out of the Easy lacked a strong ending to match its powerful beginning.

The worth of Sepetys’ world building is priceless; I just wish that the plot line was as good as the setting itself. Sepetys’ previous novel Between Shades of Gray was more personal, and you could tell that the author was writing a story that she wanted to tell. Out of the Easy, while not absolutely horrible, was just…unremarkable. Creative, sure, but unfortunately unremarkable. 

Rose Under Fire Review

Rose Under Fire by Elizabeth Wein

Title: Rose Under Fire

Author: Elizabeth Wein

Series: Young Pilots #2

Publisher: Disney Hyperion

Publication Date: September 10, 2013

Genre: Historical Fiction; Young Adult

Pages: 368

Format: Hardback

Awards: Schneider Family Book Award for Teen (2014), Bank Street College of Education Josette Frank Award (2014), Golden Kite Award for Fiction (Honor Book) (2014), Carnegie Medal of Literature Nominee (2014), YALSA Best Fiction for Young Adults (Top Ten) (2014)
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While flying an Allied fighter plane from Paris to England, American ATA pilot and amateur poet, Rose Justice, is captured by the Nazis and sent to Ravensbrück, the notorious women's concentration camp. Trapped in horrific circumstances, Rose finds hope in the impossible through the loyalty, bravery and friendship of her fellow prisoners. But will that be enough to endure the fate that's in store for her?

Elizabeth Wein, author of the critically-acclaimed and best-selling Code Name Verity, delivers another stunning WWII thriller. The unforgettable story of Rose Justice is forged from heart-wrenching courage, resolve, and the slim, bright chance of survival. 

I had absolutely no idea that this book even existed until a few weeks before I read it. I know, I’m losing my game. I felt like I should have apologized to this book for not realizing it had been published and made available to me for so long before I noticed it. But thank everything good in the world that I did. Discover it, that is. It would’ve been very, very bad if I hadn’t. I would not have been exposed to the genius that is Elizabeth Wein’s Rose Under Fire, and that is something no one should have to go through.

Rose Justice, an American ATA pilot, decides to be an Allied soldier in World War II. Her mission was simple. Well, it was supposed to be simple. A quick, get in, get out, type of scenario. But, of course, that could not be the case. On her way back from freshly liberated Paris, Rose is captured by Nazi pilots. She is sent to Ravensbrück, an infamous women’s concentration camp. As she experiences unmentionable horrors, she meets incredible women, and forms bonds strong enough to withstand the cruelty she endures. Their friendship will help them survive even the most horrible of circumstances.

Even though Rose Under Fire is technically the sequel to Code Name Verity (another fabulous novel by Wein by the way – I would recommend it to anyone and everyone), do not make the mistake of thinking that it would be a continuation of Maddie and Queenie’s story, like I did when I first learned of this book’s existence. Rose Justice is another character with an entirely different story that is hard to look away from.

Before this novel I had never even heard of Ravensbrück or the Ravensbrück Rabbits. Ravensbrück was the only main concentration camp that was specifically dedicated to women. The “Rabbits” were female prisoners experimented on for the “good of science.” While Rose Justice’s story was false, the Rabbits’ is not. Many have survived, and Elizabeth Wein has published information on them on her blog. The information can be found here: http://www.elizabethwein.com/ravensbrueck-rabbits.

Like Code Name Verity, this book is filled to the brim with historical, accurate facts. I learned something new at every page turn. Wein intricately, and masterfully weaves facts with a riveting plot and heartfelt characters. Each woman in her book has an incomprehensible amount of courage within themselves. While most of the conflict in the book was the fight for survival and liberation, there was a part two to their battle. After escaping, the Rabbits had to see to it that their captures were served justice for what they had done. Many women could not find it within themselves to speak of what went on in the concentration camp. While many accepted the fact that the battle ended as soon as the prisoners found freedom, this book tells a different story.

I am a huge fan of Wein and her writing. You can see the amount of dedication she puts into her novels, and her hard work makes for a beautiful story. Everyone should read about Rose and Wein’s other characters because they tell stories that are sometimes left unheard. 

Black Dove White Raven

March 31, 2015

Prisoner of Night and Fog Review

Prisoner of Night and Fog by Anne Blankman

Title: Prisoner of Night and Fog

Author: Anne Blankman

Series: Prisoner of Night and Fog #1

Publisher: Balzer + Bray

Publication Date: April 22, 2014

Genre: Historical Fiction; Romance; Mystery; Young Adult

Pages: 401

Format: Hardback

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In 1930s Munich, danger lurks behind dark corners, and secrets are buried deep within the city. But Gretchen Müller, who grew up in the National Socialist Party under the wing of her "uncle" Dolf, has been shielded from that side of society ever since her father traded his life for Dolf's, and Gretchen is his favorite, his pet.

Uncle Dolf is none other than Adolf Hitler. And Gretchen follows his every command.

Until she meets a fearless and handsome young Jewish reporter named Daniel Cohen. Gretchen should despise Daniel, yet she can't stop herself from listening to his story: that her father, the adored Nazi martyr, was actually murdered by an unknown comrade. She also can't help the fierce attraction brewing between them, despite everything she's been taught to believe about Jews.

As Gretchen investigates the very people she's always considered friends, she must decide where her loyalties lie. Will she choose the safety of her former life as a Nazi darling, or will she dare to dig up the truth—even if it could get her and Daniel killed?

From debut author Anne Blankman comes this harrowing and evocative story about an ordinary girl faced with the extraordinary decision to give up everything she's ever believed . . . and to trust her own heart instead.

You read so many books about World War II, but you almost never read about Nazi Germany from a Nazi’s point of view. I’ve read my fair share of WWII-based books (it’s one of my favorite subjects to read about), but I have never read one like Prisoner of Night and Fog.

Gretchen Müller is the beloved princess of the National Socialist Party, favored by Adolf Hitler himself. Daughter of the famed martyr that saved Hitler’s life, Gretchen has little to question in her life. But when she meets Daniel Cohen, a Jew so unlike the enemy he is made out to be, she is forced into second guessing everything she’s ever been taught. About the Jews, about Hitler, even about her father’s death. This epic tale teaches us the difficulties of finding what’s right and wrong for yourself, and breaking free of an oppression you didn’t even know you were trapped under.

What made this book so great was not the plot (a bit predictable), the characters (who occasionally fell flat), or the setting (amazingly realistic). It was the fact that half of what Blankman was writing actually happened. According to the lengthy author’s note at the end, about half the characters actually existing and a lot of the pivotal events are ones that you could find in a history textbook. The politics of the Germany in that time were nothing if not complicated. This book untangled the mess of questions I’ve always had about WWII and Germany before Hitler’s reign.

It surprised me that Hitler’s character was as big as it was. He had a personality and dialogue in this book, which is so unlike anything I’ve ever seen. Usually he is minor character, mentioned briefly in passing for the effect of the setting or plot. He is almost never a flesh-and-blood (metaphorically speaking) character like he was in this book. Understandably, Hitler is one of the most mysterious historical figures of all time. Almost nothing is known of his past or who he was before becoming a German politician and eventually one of the most hated tyrants this world has ever seen. It’s honestly incredible how Blankman managed to capture such an ambiguous character.

While you get to know Hitler on an intriguing level, you also learn so much about the Nazi party, not just as a political faction that persecuted innocent people, but also as individuals who honestly believed what they were doing was right. You also discover people who brave enough to stand against the person who would ruin thousands of lives, who was, even then, terrifying and powerful.

It still astounds me that a person who was that obvious of a psychopath came into so much power. This book explores that subject and expands on your knowledge of what really happened during that time. Phenomenally interesting and hard to put down, definitely worth reading and reflecting over.    

Conspiracy of Blood and Smoke

April 21, 2015

Caminar Review

Caminar by Skila Brown

Title: Caminar

Author: Skila Brown

Series: None

Publisher: Candlewick Press

Publication Date: March 25, 2014

Genre: Poetry; Historical Fiction; Young Adult

Pages: 208

Format: Hardback

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Carlos knows that when the soldiers arrive with warnings about the Communist rebels, it is time to be a man and defend the village, keep everyone safe. But Mama tells him not yet — he’s still her quiet moonfaced boy. The soldiers laugh at the villagers, and before they move on, a neighbor is found dangling from a tree, a sign on his neck: Communist. Mama tells Carlos to run and hide, then try to find her. . . . Numb and alone, he must join a band of guerillas as they trek to the top of the mountain where Carlos’s abuela lives. Will he be in time, and brave enough, to warn them about the soldiers? What will he do then? A novel in verse inspired by actual events during Guatemala’s civil war, Caminar is the moving story of a boy who loses nearly everything before discovering who he really is.

“Forest sounds/all around/but on the ground/ the sound/ of Me/ grew. Echoed, / I heard a path I could not see.”

I have wanted to read this book for a very long time. I was even more excited to read it when I opened the first page and found a poem staring at me. I hadn't known until that moment that this book was written entirely in free verse poetry. The only other book that I have ever read in free verse poetry is Out of the Dust by Karen Hesse about the Great Depression. And, just like Out of the Dust, I thought this book was fantastic.

Poetry, to me, is more than written words on a page telling a story. It is an art form, really. It weaves words into beautiful lyrical songs and forms intricate art with the placement of the black ink on the page. While sentences in story books are coherent and structured, a poem’s verses mostly resemble the thoughts that run through our minds. They are ambiguous and hard to understand and difficult to interpret. They mean different things to different people with different minds. They are a stream of consciousness that transports you not just into the world of the book but also into the minds of characters. Poetry done right is a beautiful, wonderful thing.

“I could not see/ up. Could not see/ down. I/ could only see/ what was right in front of me.”

Caminar, which mean “to walk” in Spanish, is about a young boy yearning to become a man, when disaster strikes in his village in Guatemala. This story is not only about the horrible war in Guatemala, but also about a boy struggling to walk the path into manhood. Brown uses intriguing styles of writing to ensnare the reader into a story both breathless and surreal.

This book inspired me on so many levels. I knew little about the civil war in Guatemala until I read this book. It was mind-opening to read about it from a young boy’s point of view. While I was reading Caminar, I was not just reading Carlos’s thoughts, I was thinking them, living them. In a way the book ended too soon. It left me wanting more.

I enjoyed this book immensely. Caminar is an excellent short read that taught me many things. I loved the poetry in it, and the way the words created art on the pages. I enthusiastically recommend this book to anyone willing to read a short poetic story about the horrible and terrific happenings in Guatemala. This book is officially being shelved as one of the greats.

“When you open the door to hate, you will find/ it swallows you whole/ and there is no/ life left inside.”