Reviews with content warning for Sexual assault - Alles Licht, das wir nicht sehen

I was pleased with how quickly it felt the story got going, then it lulled, then I was enthralled through to the end. Very short “chapter” breaks let us switch between two main and a few other characters’ perspectives. Time jumps can be tricky to keep straight but this is all done effectively: keeping the story interesting and avoiding giving too much away. The war is a backdrop as the setting and reason for the events unfolding as they do- I wouldn’t describe it as a WWII book. Instead, it is a historical fiction playing with the magic of radio communication. The the title of the is very fitting. A clever novel

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jmdressel's review against another edition

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dark emotional mysterious sad medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes

4.75

i was gripped by this story nearly 40 pages in. the moving back and forth between story lines/perspectives is something i love. this has a LOT of that. still, it was easy to follow!

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_hannahbo's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging dark emotional hopeful sad tense medium-paced

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

5.0

This was a gorgeous, sparkling book that knocked my breath out more than once. A slow burn in some ways, but paced and outlined in a way to pull you deeper and deeper into these moments in the character’s lives.

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ottercorg's review against another edition

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challenging dark reflective sad tense fast-paced

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

2.5

I will begin by saying that were it not for the frequent change in POV keeping my attention, I would not have finished this book. It took me, without exaggeration, 400 pages to finally "get into it." I also kept going because I'd heard such amazing things, and I wondered when they'd arrive.

I feel that the writing style is good, I think the characters are well developed, and the story is moving and real. But...I just didn't like it very much. Maybe if I'd read it without hearing the hype, I wouldn't be rating it so low, but it's hard not to be disappointed.

Getting it off my TBR after it sat there for so long feels good, and trying more historical fiction feels good, I just didn't have a very good time in the process.

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