Reviews

Between Shades of Grey by Ruta Sepetys

kqyyeet's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional inspiring mysterious sad tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

lilyr2023's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional informative inspiring tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.0

ksreads14's review against another edition

challenging emotional sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

I truly love all of Ruta books. In this book there are some inappropriate scenes, however i think any age could read this as long as they are not afraid to know the truth of the past. As always a beautifully written book!

bibliomich's review against another edition

dark emotional sad 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? No

4.5

Between Shades of Gray was my first introduction to Ruta Sepetys, and it made me fall in love with both her writing and (perhaps) historical fiction, a genre I previously mostly avoided. Sepetys' work is well researched and reflective of historical events. But what the author does best is create a full cast of characters whose fates I was deeply invested in. I loved the protagonist, but I loved the supporting characters even more, and I was devastated when any of them met a tragic fate.

I'm looking forward to reading much more Ruta Sepetys, including the graphic novel adaptation of this book.

bethmara's review against another edition

5.0

4.5
Set the beginning of World War II, Shades of Gray follows the story of Lina, a girl caught by the Soviet invasion of Lithuania. Her family is broken apart and she's forced to live in unfathomable circumstances in the Arctic tundra farming root vegetables with her mother and brother and attempting to survive brutal conditions and heartless guards.
The is told with great empathy for her mother, who is broken at the loss of her husband trying to raise her children in starvation and hopelessness.
Lena manages to find decency in camaraderie within the internment farm while her mother and other families continue to diminish mentally and physically.
Small kindnesses become life-saving interventions and, through the eyes of Lina, there's little malice or despair, just efforts to make sense of incomprehensible circumstances.
While it sounds like a dreary Anne Frank inspired novel, there are good things that happen and the ending is by no means a foregone conclusion.
Overall, a gripping read with entirely sympathetic characters you cheer for and (occasionally) mourn.
The book includes a post script detailing Soviet internment camps in the Arctic Circle.

heidilreads's review against another edition

4.0

not a spoof on the 50 shades of gray series... this is another devastatingly beautiful story from world war II from the perspective of a teenage Lithuanian girl.

the short chapters may not be for everyone, but i found them great for my semi-adhd lifestyle - except when i would keep telling myself, just one more chapter and then i'll go to sleep...

shailydc's review against another edition

4.0

Somewhere between 3 and 4 stars... I've read many WWII novels but this is my first that focused on the Soviets rather than the Germans. I'm grateful for the exposure it is giving to the suffering of the Baltic countries.

My only issue with the book is the abrupt ending. So many things were left unanswered:

Spoiler

Where was Andrius kept after Lina was taken away? How long was he imprisoned? How did they find each other and how many years had they been apart? What was Jonas's future? Were Lina and Jonas able to transport Elena's body home? etc...

There was just more to the story that we didn't get a chance to read.

Lastly, this didn't affect my rating, but the audiobook narrator was awful.

huyentrang's review against another edition

4.0

The book’s highlight is are the mother and the little brother, whose kindness persist throughout the difficult times. I didn’t find the main character interesting at all, because there is little character development: she’s quite the same at the start and the end of the book. However, I still appreciate her because she talks a lot about imagination and drawing, which sorts of trigger me into my creative mode. There is a lot of talk about the prose, but wasn’t as mesmerizing as I was hoping for. However, it was enough to help me imagine what was happening.

Prose and characters aside, this historical fiction informs me of a crime that I never knew. Therefore, I’m thankful for this story for making me want to learn more about this side of history.

lauracaitlinmangelsdorf's review against another edition

dark informative inspiring reflective fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.0

kittyofdarkness's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional hopeful informative sad tense fast-paced

5.0