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A review by jillgoober
The Rose Code by Kate Quinn
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
5.0
This was one of those novels that reminded me why I should read more historical fiction. I've owned this book basically since it was released and hadn't read it until now and I simply do not know what I was waiting for.
The Rose Code by Kate Quinn follows three women (shifting perspectives chapter to chapter between each) who work at Bletchley Park, a code breaking center, during World War II. The book flips back and forth between the earlier days of the war (starting at 1940) and a few years post war (1947). At the start of the novel, you know that by 1947 these three women hate each other to some level but that when they worked at Bletchley Park, they were close friends. The big question: What happened between then and now?
This story includes romance, heartbreak, grief, friendship, and, of course, historical facts about the real Bletchley Park. As you can read in the Author's Note, Quinn modeled a good amount of her characters after real life people and did loads of research to make sure the book was as accurate as possible. This contributed greatly to the people and situations in this novel feeling so very real.
I will say that I'm partial to a historical fiction book that has a female protagonist (or multiple) but I do think any historical fiction reader would love this book, regardless of gender.
The Rose Code by Kate Quinn follows three women (shifting perspectives chapter to chapter between each) who work at Bletchley Park, a code breaking center, during World War II. The book flips back and forth between the earlier days of the war (starting at 1940) and a few years post war (1947). At the start of the novel, you know that by 1947 these three women hate each other to some level but that when they worked at Bletchley Park, they were close friends. The big question: What happened between then and now?
This story includes romance, heartbreak, grief, friendship, and, of course, historical facts about the real Bletchley Park. As you can read in the Author's Note, Quinn modeled a good amount of her characters after real life people and did loads of research to make sure the book was as accurate as possible. This contributed greatly to the people and situations in this novel feeling so very real.
I will say that I'm partial to a historical fiction book that has a female protagonist (or multiple) but I do think any historical fiction reader would love this book, regardless of gender.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child death, Death, Forced institutionalization, Grief, and War