becky_lynn's review against another edition
4.0
This book surprised me. I really enjoyed it. I want to read the sequel when it exists.
emilyctrigg's review against another edition
4.0
This book started off with a very slow start, but once it got going, it was endless action! Definitely enjoyed, but took me about 150 pages to get invested.
claiben's review against another edition
4.0
It’s not that I don’t love this book - because I do - but I hate that Pagan and Devin part ways.
knboereads's review against another edition
5.0
This book was fast-paced and fun, with an interesting and likable main character.
Pagan Jones, despite all her faults, is compassionate and brave. Through all the obstacles and difficulties life brought her, she carried on, sometimes in desperation, but sometimes with an aplomb that only a 1960's hollywood starlet could exude. This was one of the traits that really drew me to her.
Devin Black was more of an enigma, even at the end of the book, but there seemed to be a heavy implication of a possible sequel at the end so we may learn more about him yet.
I hope there is a sequel because I would like to see more of Pagan and Devin (and the other characters).
Pagan Jones, despite all her faults, is compassionate and brave. Through all the obstacles and difficulties life brought her, she carried on, sometimes in desperation, but sometimes with an aplomb that only a 1960's hollywood starlet could exude. This was one of the traits that really drew me to her.
Devin Black was more of an enigma, even at the end of the book, but there seemed to be a heavy implication of a possible sequel at the end so we may learn more about him yet.
I hope there is a sequel because I would like to see more of Pagan and Devin (and the other characters).
asey's review
3.0
Pagan Jones, teen starlet fallen from grace after driving drunk and killing her family, has been taken from Reformatory School to star in a comedy filmed in Berlin during a near nuclear crisis. Her release as well as her temporary guardian, Devin Black, are all suspicious, but Pagan finds she must redeem herself even if it means trusting the suspicious. She is, after all, the Notorious Pagan Jones.
Great plot, wonderful descriptions, fantastic characters and character development. This book made me realize how little I know about Berlin during this time period.
Great plot, wonderful descriptions, fantastic characters and character development. This book made me realize how little I know about Berlin during this time period.
tiareleine's review against another edition
3.0
More and more often I'm trying to go into books knowing next to nothing about them. I went into The Notorious Pagan Jones knowing almost nothing about it. Well, just the basics. The synopsis did a good job of not spoiling anything, and that's why I was able to go in without knowing much. Pagan Jones is a disgraced actress who, for mysterious unknown reasons, was pulled from her reform school to start in a movie in Berlin. And it's the 1960s, so Berlin is quite the hot place as far as politics go.
That last part I didn't know about the book so much as I knew it about history. I wish I'd given it more weight in my initial assessment of this book. It was the reason this book was not what I thought it would be.
I thought it would be a book about Pagan struggling with her past misdeads, trying to set things right, trying to fix her reputation. I thought there might be a little mystery (especially when the mystery about the German side of her family was set up toward the beginning).
That's not really what this book was. This was a book about the politics of Germany. It was a book about espionage, inspired (according to the end notes) by celebrities of the 1960s who participated in espionage. It was a book about Berlin and the Berlin was. Pagan Jones was just the vehicle.
I wish I had known that, because then I would have experienced this book very differently.
Here's what you need to know: this is not a book about emotions, it is a book about action. There is absolutely nothing wrong with that, except that I prefer books that are about emotions over books that are about action. I'm not really a fan of 50+ pages of constant action at a time.
Here's who I recommend the book to:
1. People who like action movies. This felt to me just like the classic action movie. Lots of intrigue, lots of mystery, lots of people you may or may not be able to trust. Emotional setup at the beginning of the story that punches at the end, but maybe not as hard as some people would like. Not quite so much importance on the characters as on the plot.
2. Fans of history. From the end notes, it's clear to me that Nina Berry did a lot of research before writing this book. Obviously Pagan Jones and co. are made up, but they are based on some real stuff (and some real events are featuring in the book, like the Berlin wall going up at 1:00 in the morning so as to trap people into East Berlin). Also, had I known from the beginning about the real celebrities that participated in espionage, I might have had an easier time suspending my disbelief at the things Pagan did.
Basically what I'm saying about this book is that it was good and I think a lot of people will like it. But it wasn't for me. I'm still going to read the sequel, though. I do want to know what's up with Pagan's German family. That mystery didn't really get solved.
That last part I didn't know about the book so much as I knew it about history. I wish I'd given it more weight in my initial assessment of this book. It was the reason this book was not what I thought it would be.
I thought it would be a book about Pagan struggling with her past misdeads, trying to set things right, trying to fix her reputation. I thought there might be a little mystery (especially when the mystery about the German side of her family was set up toward the beginning).
That's not really what this book was. This was a book about the politics of Germany. It was a book about espionage, inspired (according to the end notes) by celebrities of the 1960s who participated in espionage. It was a book about Berlin and the Berlin was. Pagan Jones was just the vehicle.
I wish I had known that, because then I would have experienced this book very differently.
Here's what you need to know: this is not a book about emotions, it is a book about action. There is absolutely nothing wrong with that, except that I prefer books that are about emotions over books that are about action. I'm not really a fan of 50+ pages of constant action at a time.
Here's who I recommend the book to:
1. People who like action movies. This felt to me just like the classic action movie. Lots of intrigue, lots of mystery, lots of people you may or may not be able to trust. Emotional setup at the beginning of the story that punches at the end, but maybe not as hard as some people would like. Not quite so much importance on the characters as on the plot.
2. Fans of history. From the end notes, it's clear to me that Nina Berry did a lot of research before writing this book. Obviously Pagan Jones and co. are made up, but they are based on some real stuff (and some real events are featuring in the book, like the Berlin wall going up at 1:00 in the morning so as to trap people into East Berlin). Also, had I known from the beginning about the real celebrities that participated in espionage, I might have had an easier time suspending my disbelief at the things Pagan did.
Basically what I'm saying about this book is that it was good and I think a lot of people will like it. But it wasn't for me. I'm still going to read the sequel, though. I do want to know what's up with Pagan's German family. That mystery didn't really get solved.
missriki's review against another edition
4.0
One drunken night changes everything for America’s sweetheart Pagan Jones when she causes a car accident that kills her whole family. For nine months she is stuck in the Lighthouse Reformatory for Wayward Girls where the sadistic Miss Edwards is making every day a new sort of hell. But everything changes when Pagan’s old agent shows up with mysterious studio executive Devin Black, offering Pagan a juicy role in a comedy directed by award-winning director Bennie Wexler. Pagan must agree to a court-appointed guardian and a shoot in West Berlin starting in only three days time. Berlin is in great political turmoil and the mysterious Devin Black is up to something, but Pagan is just the girl to figure it all out.
The setting of this book is highly intriguing, and Nina Berry paints a perfect picture of Berlin in the 1960s. The country is divided by war and attempting to rebuild, and it makes for the perfect backdrop for this intense thrill-ride of a novel.
Pagan Jones is all sorts of sassy and smart, with a little bit of a chip on her shoulder, but she’s fun to read and makes for an intriguing heroine in this novel. She struggles mightily with both the guilt of her actions and her own addiction to alcohol, making the stakes for redemption even higher. When she gets the opportunity to escape the girl’s reformatory and regain her one shiny image, she’s thrust into a world going faster than she can keep up with.
I loved the mystery elements in this novel, and enjoyed every twist and turn on the way to the finish. Pagan is excellent at digging deep to find out more information about her family’s past and Devin’s role in what turns out to be an intense political scheme.
This book is definitely a page-turner, especially in the last third of the book, and I think readers will really enjoy the fantastic setting and unique characters.
The setting of this book is highly intriguing, and Nina Berry paints a perfect picture of Berlin in the 1960s. The country is divided by war and attempting to rebuild, and it makes for the perfect backdrop for this intense thrill-ride of a novel.
Pagan Jones is all sorts of sassy and smart, with a little bit of a chip on her shoulder, but she’s fun to read and makes for an intriguing heroine in this novel. She struggles mightily with both the guilt of her actions and her own addiction to alcohol, making the stakes for redemption even higher. When she gets the opportunity to escape the girl’s reformatory and regain her one shiny image, she’s thrust into a world going faster than she can keep up with.
I loved the mystery elements in this novel, and enjoyed every twist and turn on the way to the finish. Pagan is excellent at digging deep to find out more information about her family’s past and Devin’s role in what turns out to be an intense political scheme.
This book is definitely a page-turner, especially in the last third of the book, and I think readers will really enjoy the fantastic setting and unique characters.
miky_jay's review against another edition
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
4.0
lulukubo's review against another edition
4.0
This sort of (very vaguely) reminded me of an Indiana Jones romp. Great fun, for historical fiction.
bookishly_faith's review against another edition
3.0
I'm very surprised about how few ratings and reviews there are for this book. Considering how well this book fits into the YA historical genre, I'm surprised more people haven't read this book.
[book:The Notorious Pagan Jones|23280190] is set during the Cold War. Pagan Jones is an actress, a struggling alcoholic and was convicted of manslaughter of her father and younger sister. Pagan is released from her detention facility when she is wanted to be in a movie. She jumps at the chance to star in this Berlin film because her grandmother was a German immigrant. Pagan hopes to shed some light about her mother's suicide.
Now I'm not saying this book blew my mind or anything, but this book was interesting. It has a focus on Hollywood during the Cold War, which is an interesting perspective I haven't seen in books ever. I loved learning more about Berlin and the aftermath of WW2. I know in my history class in high school, we kind of brushed over the Cold War so I found that this book was informative in a way that wasn't too info-dump-y. I loved the spy plot and am looking forward to exploring it more in another book. I think anyone who loves books about WW2 but are getting sick of plots revolving around Hitler, then maybe they'd enjoy this book.
I also liked seeing the main character's struggle with her alcohol addiction. I found that Pagan's struggle with it to be portrayed very realistically. Pagan knew that she had a problem and wanted to fix it. Sometimes this plot line is thrown in books to add dimension to the character but then isn't expanded on or used later. But in [book:The Notorious Pagan Jones|23280190], I thought that Pagan's struggle was one that defined her character and made her more complex and interesting because of it. In addition, I loved how kick-ass and clever Pagan could be. She got herself into some pretty sticky situations but with her cleverness and bravery, Pagan could talk or act her way out of it. In many ways, I was pleasantly surprised to be comparing Pagan to Nancy Drew, aka one of the most awesome female protagonists in history.
I also found the side characters to be really interesting, specifically Devin Black and Thomas Kruger. Even though at times I found Devin and Pagan's relationship to be bordering on problematic, I did find their relationship to be interesting. Maybe I like dark, mysterious, morally ambiguous characters too much, but Devin Black was a character that kept me reading. I liked Thomas Kruger because his character shed some light into the German film scene during the Cold War.
Overall, I think anyone craving a historical mystery should pick up [book:The Notorious Pagan Jones|23280190].
[book:The Notorious Pagan Jones|23280190] is set during the Cold War. Pagan Jones is an actress, a struggling alcoholic and was convicted of manslaughter of her father and younger sister. Pagan is released from her detention facility when she is wanted to be in a movie. She jumps at the chance to star in this Berlin film because her grandmother was a German immigrant. Pagan hopes to shed some light about her mother's suicide.
Now I'm not saying this book blew my mind or anything, but this book was interesting. It has a focus on Hollywood during the Cold War, which is an interesting perspective I haven't seen in books ever. I loved learning more about Berlin and the aftermath of WW2. I know in my history class in high school, we kind of brushed over the Cold War so I found that this book was informative in a way that wasn't too info-dump-y. I loved the spy plot and am looking forward to exploring it more in another book. I think anyone who loves books about WW2 but are getting sick of plots revolving around Hitler, then maybe they'd enjoy this book.
I also liked seeing the main character's struggle with her alcohol addiction. I found that Pagan's struggle with it to be portrayed very realistically. Pagan knew that she had a problem and wanted to fix it. Sometimes this plot line is thrown in books to add dimension to the character but then isn't expanded on or used later. But in [book:The Notorious Pagan Jones|23280190], I thought that Pagan's struggle was one that defined her character and made her more complex and interesting because of it. In addition, I loved how kick-ass and clever Pagan could be. She got herself into some pretty sticky situations but with her cleverness and bravery, Pagan could talk or act her way out of it. In many ways, I was pleasantly surprised to be comparing Pagan to Nancy Drew, aka one of the most awesome female protagonists in history.
I also found the side characters to be really interesting, specifically Devin Black and Thomas Kruger. Even though at times I found Devin and Pagan's relationship to be bordering on problematic, I did find their relationship to be interesting. Maybe I like dark, mysterious, morally ambiguous characters too much, but Devin Black was a character that kept me reading. I liked Thomas Kruger because his character shed some light into the German film scene during the Cold War.
Overall, I think anyone craving a historical mystery should pick up [book:The Notorious Pagan Jones|23280190].