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shgmclicious's review against another edition
Honestly, if I were teaching a creative writing class, I would assign the author’s note as a reading, because it’s really good. I really enjoyed ORPHAN MONSTER SPY, and the concept of this sequel was super compelling, but I just could not follow its plot. The pacing felt off, the characters were not as interesting as in book 1, and I just couldn’t stay engaged. Disappointing.
dairaglynn's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
That was something else. I thought book 1 was good, with a lot of character development and hard choices, but book 2 was just so much more. My heart broke for Sarah over and over again, and her character development was strong. She really came into her spy aspect and took control at the end. I want a book 3 and to see how Sarah grows. This story hurt to read at times and it also had me adding Red Rubber to my TBR.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Addiction, Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Racism, Violence, Xenophobia, Antisemitism, Medical content, Grief, Religious bigotry, Medical trauma, and Murder
Moderate: Religious bigotry, Colonisation, and Classism
Minor: Genocide, Slavery, and Gaslighting
saspist's review against another edition
3.0
YA Nazi spy fiction gets more complicated as action moves to Africa and a haemorrhagic virus plot.
krismcd59's review against another edition
4.0
My review of this book appears in Historical Novels Review issue 92 (May 2020):
Killeen’s Orphan Monster series addresses contemporary issues of war, trauma, political resistance, racism, and sexism through the pulse-pounding espionage adventures of Sarah Goldstein, a teenage Jewish spy embroiled in the WWII resistance against Nazi Germany. In the first volume, Orphan Monster Spy, Sarah, trained as an actor and gymnast, attached herself to “The Captain,” a James Bond-like British agent posing as a German industrialist and took on the role of his adorable blond “niece.”
Killeen has created a brilliant heroine whose sarcasm and comic-book resourcefulness are balanced by her understandable instinct for self-preservation and some serious moral questions about the value of human life. In the current volume, Sarah travels with her mentor and protector to the Congo, where there are reports of German missionaries researching a frightening disease for use in Nazi weapons of mass destruction. She also befriends a biracial Senegalese refugee, Clementine, who seems to be an operant herself, and who raises Sarah’s consciousness considerably about the pervasiveness of exploitation and white privilege. Sarah learns the hard way that the Nazis are not the only monsters in the world, as it becomes increasingly difficult for her to know who the “good guys” really are, and which side she’s actually working for.
Some of Sarah’s insights seem a bit modern, but teens will appreciate her growing global awareness of the horrors of war and the thrilling episodes of problem-solving and escape, including a nail-biting submarine pursuit. As in the first volume, the violence is graphic though not exploitative, and Sarah’s skills strain credibility occasionally, but this is a series that offers equal parts escapist adventure and morally complex history.
Killeen’s Orphan Monster series addresses contemporary issues of war, trauma, political resistance, racism, and sexism through the pulse-pounding espionage adventures of Sarah Goldstein, a teenage Jewish spy embroiled in the WWII resistance against Nazi Germany. In the first volume, Orphan Monster Spy, Sarah, trained as an actor and gymnast, attached herself to “The Captain,” a James Bond-like British agent posing as a German industrialist and took on the role of his adorable blond “niece.”
Killeen has created a brilliant heroine whose sarcasm and comic-book resourcefulness are balanced by her understandable instinct for self-preservation and some serious moral questions about the value of human life. In the current volume, Sarah travels with her mentor and protector to the Congo, where there are reports of German missionaries researching a frightening disease for use in Nazi weapons of mass destruction. She also befriends a biracial Senegalese refugee, Clementine, who seems to be an operant herself, and who raises Sarah’s consciousness considerably about the pervasiveness of exploitation and white privilege. Sarah learns the hard way that the Nazis are not the only monsters in the world, as it becomes increasingly difficult for her to know who the “good guys” really are, and which side she’s actually working for.
Some of Sarah’s insights seem a bit modern, but teens will appreciate her growing global awareness of the horrors of war and the thrilling episodes of problem-solving and escape, including a nail-biting submarine pursuit. As in the first volume, the violence is graphic though not exploitative, and Sarah’s skills strain credibility occasionally, but this is a series that offers equal parts escapist adventure and morally complex history.
spacerkip's review
challenging
dark
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
cursed_bog_witch's review against another edition
4.0
This book has been a deeply thoughtful, tense, and gripping read - following Sarah’s employment as a spy, she’s taken to Africa to stop a deadly disease from being made into a weapon and saving millions of lives around the world. The characters are complicated and dimensional, and Sarah struggles with her inner demons and the bloody actions she must commit to save innocent people. While the story was an incredible read, what I found stood out the most was the research that went into the plot and world building - the author, knowing full well that he can’t speak for the millions of minorities who suffered during WII and throughout history, wanted to amplify their voices and the crimes that were committed against them. He wanted to shine a light on the parts of history that Eurocentric/ western history doesn’t like to focus on, and I feel like he does a great job providing this within a YA book.
One of my favourite quotes from the authors note - “If you assume or even hope that you would have been the kind of person to defy Nazi’s, now is the time to find out.”
I am hella keen for the next book and to see what Killeen does next!
One of my favourite quotes from the authors note - “If you assume or even hope that you would have been the kind of person to defy Nazi’s, now is the time to find out.”
I am hella keen for the next book and to see what Killeen does next!
chloggle's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Gun violence, Racial slurs, Racism, and Violence
Moderate: Addiction, Genocide, Vomit, Grief, Colonisation, and War
Minor: Infertility and Slavery
shadowfalcon's review against another edition
challenging
dark
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.25
I struggled to read this, really enjoyed the first book but this felt disjointed. The author has clearly done a decent amount of research but I'm not sure the overall story was as strong as the first book. The new characters were interesting, the new setting in Africa and the wider historic view allade sense but the whole thing fell flat for me. I found the book horribly depressing which can't be a surprise
Content Warnings
Graphic: Genocide, Racism, Xenophobia, Murder, and War