Reviews

As a lover of WWII era historical fiction, I loved this book. I loved the character development from multiple perspectives and points in Nancy’s life. The best part was finding out it was all based on the real Nancy Wake and much of it was historically accurate!

samlazbennet's review against another edition

Go to review page

adventurous slow-paced

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

3.25

aj_yogi's review against another edition

Go to review page

I wasn' getting drawn into the story and found myself distracted by the forced romance

m_klevenberg's review against another edition

Go to review page

4.0

A little challenging to get past the Australian accent and attitude of the narrator but the story is a great one based on an Aussie ex pat hero in WWII and she’s a badass lady.

booksnooksandcooks's review against another edition

Go to review page

5.0

While this definitely errs more on the fictional side, this book is a fantastic read. Every loose end tied up at the end and a few even caught me off guard. Nancy’s characterization is brilliant and I am so, so glad to see:

- a woman who is strong without compromising her femininity

- Nazis depicted as the true evil they were (in fact, it’s not often that historical fiction books surprise me with the war crimes/brutality depicted but there were times in this book that I had to take a moment to grimace.)

- a historical fiction with a woman as the main character and yet rape isn’t included in every. single. chapter. Sexual violence was mentioned but Lawhon didn’t feel the need to write a lengthy chapter of Nancy being assaulted which then fuels her. I get it. Sexual violence has been and continues to be a very real threat to women. Do you think, though, that in order for something to be “historical”, it must involve graphic and/or detailed assault?

fairytales's review against another edition

Go to review page

adventurous emotional inspiring sad medium-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? It's complicated

4.5

This book is brilliant and Nancy and Henri were amazing and brave in an incredibly scary time. Nancy’s story and leadership is just incredible, as was her relationship with Henri. I loved this book and particularly enjoyed how Nancy succeeded and gained such respect as often the only woman in male dominated spaces. My only critique (seriously don’t read it’s a big spoiler):

I felt like there was something missing in describing Nancy’s dream and then her reaction to the news toward the end. It’s possible this was just how Nancy actually did react, but the author describes in her note at the end that Nancy had a strong feeling after her dream that Henri had died or something terrible had happened, so I was confused why that wasn’t mentioned in the book. I also felt there were a few times—and I do get that Nancy was compartmentalizing—when she could have focused on Nancy’s fear for Henri more especially towards the end. It felt a bit almost glossed over or not explicitly focused on. I get that enormous fear could be assumed but I felt like I needed it spelled out a bit more.

spersephone's review against another edition

Go to review page

4.0

Great read but the timeline made it very confusing.

More...