[Review: Rebel Angels by Anne Blankman]

"Traitor Angels"
Author: Anne Blankman
Series: None
Pages: 400
Genre: YA, Historical, Romance, Mystery
Date Published: May 3rd, 2016
Publisher: Balzer + Bray
Format Read: eARC provided by publisher (via Edelweiss) for honest review

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Summary:

Six years have passed since England’s King Charles II returned from exile to reclaim the throne, ushering in a new era of stability for his subjects.

Except for Elizabeth Milton. The daughter of notorious poet John Milton, Elizabeth has never known her place in this shifting world—except by her father’s side. By day she helps transcribe his latest masterpiece, the epic poem Paradise Lost, and by night she learns languages and sword fighting. Although she does not dare object, she suspects that he’s training her for a mission whose purpose she cannot fathom.

Until one night the reason becomes clear: the king’s man arrive at her family’s country home to arrest her father. Determined to save him, Elizabeth follows his one cryptic clue and journeys to Oxford, accompanied by her father’s mysterious young houseguest, Antonio Vivani, a darkly handsome Italian scientist who surprises her at every turn. Funny, brilliant, and passionate, Antonio seems just as determined to protect her father as she is—but can she trust him with her heart?

When the two discover that Milton has planted an explosive secret in the half-finished Paradise Lost—a secret the king and his aristocratic supporters are desperate to conceal—Elizabeth is faced with a devastating choice: cling to the shelter of her old life or risk cracking the code, unleashing a secret that could save her father…and tear apart the very fabric of society.

-Goodreads

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My Thoughts:

This isn't my first time reading something from Anne Blankman. She's actually one of my favorite historical writers. Without a doubt it's because she mixes actual people from history, and made up characters into a story together. She uses her fictional characters to give you an understanding of actual historical figures, and Traitor Angels doesn't disappoint on that front. 

Almost all of us have heard of the poem Paradise Lost, and we know that Milton wrote it. Blankman takes that knowledge and throws us into a world of mystery and excitement, one that clearly didn't happen the way she's written it. But also one that's so wrapped up in historical fact and people from history that it feels like it could have. 

She give us a protagonist in the form of Elizabeth Milton. Elizabeth was not an actual person, but the rest of the Milton family is as historically accurate as Blankman could make them. I liked that John made sure that Elizabeth could take care of herself. While other girls are learning how to keep a home, Elizabeth is taught the art of sword fighting, reading/speaking/writing mutable languages, and the art of his poetry. All of these things come into play in the novel, and nothing that Blankman writes goes to waste. 

The book not only plays with the idea of poetry, but also delves into the impact of religion. These are the two biggest things that drive the plot of the novel. Art, exploration, studying the skies, power, and more are also key elements. 

I enjoyed this one a lot, but as I don't love the time period that it was set in, I found that it read a bit slow, but I know that it was just me. It's also got extremely exciting near the end, as Blankman made sure to throw in a few more historical events. That being said I still enjoyed this novel a lot. It's a mystery novel at its heart, and what's better then that.  

Rating:

 3 Unicorns = I liked it a lot, but it had its issues!  

[Review: Conspiracy Of Blood And Smoke by Anne Blankman]

"Conspiracy of Blood and Smoke"
Author: Anne Blankman
Series: Prisoner of Night and Fog #2
Pages: 416
Genre: YA, Historical Fiction
Date Published: April 21st, 2015
Publisher: Balzer + Bray
Format Read: eARC provided by publisher (via Edelweiss) for honest review

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Summary:

The girl known as Gretchen Whitestone has a secret: She used to be part of Adolf Hitler’s inner circle. More than a year after she made an enemy of her old family friend and fled Munich, she lives with a kindly English family, posing as an ordinary German immigrant, and is preparing to graduate from high school. Her love, Daniel Cohen, is a reporter in town. For the first time in her life, Gretchen is content.

But then, Daniel gets a telegram that sends him back to Germany, and Gretchen’s world turns upside-down. And when she receives word that Daniel is wanted for murder, she has to face the danger she thought she’d escaped-and return to her homeland.

Gretchen must do everything she can to avoid capture and recognition, even though saving Daniel will mean consorting with her former friends, the Nazi elite. And as they work to clear Daniel’s name, Gretchen and Daniel discover a deadly conspiracy stretching from the slums of Berlin to the Reichstag itself. Can they dig up the explosive truth and get out in time-or will Hitler discover them first?

-Goodreads

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My Thoughts:

An Open Letter To Conspiracy of Blood and Smoke,

I have to admit something to you. I loved the first book in your series, and I was so excited to read you. That being said, I don't think that you lived up to Prisoner of Night and Fog. You were still wonderful, but until the last quarter of the book, I have to say that I was a bit bored with you. The history was still legit, even if I felt like you focused too much on the love story this time around. So, even though you weren't perfect, I still like you.

-The White Unicorn

I just have to say it. I feel like Conspiracy of Blood and Smoke suffered from some major middle book syndrome, and that makes me really sad. It's not that it wasn't well written, because Anne Blankman is a great writer, but I felt like the story wasn't as exciting at the first book in the series. The story picked up closer to the end, but the beginning dragged... a lot. 

These characters that seemed so dynamic in the first novel ended up being a little one dimensional this time around, which was a bit confusing for me. I think this fact stems from the book focusing on Gretchen and Daniel's love story so much. I'm a sucker for a good love story, but I feel like this book made that the main subject this time around, and I wanted as much action as I got in the first book. Maybe it's just me, but those are the thoughts I was having as I read along. 

The story did pick up for me once Gretchen and Daniel were back in Germany. Their time in England bored me, but once they were surrounded by Nazis again, the story kept me on my toes. It also helps that Blankman has no issues with putting her characters through some really intense events.

Gretchen and Daniel end up hanging out with the likes of some good-hearted-crime-lords in Germany, and that, for me, was when things started to pick up. The characters that we meet in those moments are ones that really made a difference in the feel of the book. I found myself rooting for these fellows who ran crime and had this firm code of honorable conduct. I love that Blankman added them into the story.

The actual mystery of the novel was interesting as well, since it's stemmed in real events. As a girl who's always been fascinated with WWII, that part of the book was also really cool. The fire and the history behind it was so simple, and yet so complicated. 

Even though I was personally a bit disappointed in this book, I still highly suggest that you read it. 

Rating:

3 Unicorns = I liked it a lot, but it had it's issues!

[Waiting On Wednesday: Conspiracy of Blood and Smoke]

Waiting On Wednesday happens every week on Wednesdays (hence the name) and is hosted by Breaking The Spine.  It's were people talk about the books they want to read about that aren't out yet.

My pick this week is...

"Conspiracy of Blood and Smoke"
Author: Anne Blankman
Release Date: April 21st, 2014

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Summary:

The girl known as Gretchen Whitestone has a secret: She used to be part of Adolf Hitler’s inner circle. More than a year after she made an enemy of her old family friend and fled Munich, she lives with a kindly English family, posing as an ordinary German immigrant, and is preparing to graduate from high school. Her love, Daniel Cohen, is a reporter in town. For the first time in her life, Gretchen is content.

But then, Daniel gets a telegram that sends him back to Germany, and Gretchen’s world turns upside-down. And when she receives word that Daniel is wanted for murder, she has to face the danger she thought she’d escaped-and return to her homeland.

Gretchen must do everything she can to avoid capture and recognition, even though saving Daniel will mean consorting with her former friends, the Nazi elite. And as they work to clear Daniel’s name, Gretchen and Daniel discover a deadly conspiracy stretching from the slums of Berlin to the Reichstag itself. Can they dig up the explosive truth and get out in time-or will Hitler discover them first?

-Goodreads

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What are you waiting on this week?  I wanna know!  

[Review: Prisoner Of Night And Fog by Anne Blankman]

"Prisoner of Night and Fog"
Author: Anne Blankman
Series: Prisoner of Night and Fog #1
Pages: 416
Genre: YA, Historical Fiction
Date Published: April 22nd, 2014
Publisher: Balzer + Bray
Format Read: eARC provided by publisher (via Edelweiss) for honest review

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Summary:

In 1930s Munich, danger lurks behind dark corners, and secrets are buried deep within the city. But Gretchen Müller, who grew up in the National Socialist Party under the wing of her "uncle" Dolf, has been shielded from that side of society ever since her father traded his life for Dolf's, and Gretchen is his favorite, his pet.

Uncle Dolf is none other than Adolf Hitler.

And Gretchen follows his every command.

Until she meets a fearless and handsome young Jewish reporter named Daniel Cohen. Gretchen should despise Daniel, yet she can't stop herself from listening to his story: that her father, the adored Nazi martyr, was actually murdered by an unknown comrade. She also can't help the fierce attraction brewing between them, despite everything she's been taught to believe about Jews.

As Gretchen investigates the very people she's always considered friends, she must decide where her loyalties lie. Will she choose the safety of her former life as a Nazi darling, or will she dare to dig up the truth—even if it could get her and Daniel killed?

From debut author Anne Blankman comes this harrowing and evocative story about an ordinary girl faced with the extraordinary decision to give up everything she's ever believed . . . and to trust her own heart instead.

-Goodreads 

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My Thoughts:

An Open Letter To Prisoner of Night and Fog,

BOOK!!!  I can't get over how much I love you.  I didn't know that you would end up giving me a history lesson in such detail that I would also read the author's note, wanting you never to end.  Needless to say, that's what happened.  Even though you're a work of fiction, you gave me so much insight into the beginning of The Nazi movement.  I didn't want to get sucked into the glamor or brutality of it, but alas I fell into the rabbit hole that you dug up for me.  Book, I'm a huge fan and I want everyone to read you and the other books that will come later, continuing your story.

-The White Unicorn

Prisoner of Night and Fog is one of those magical books that comes around every once in awhile.  It hits you like a fly ball to the face and makes an impact that's sure to stay with you for a very long time.  It's one of those books that is more history than fiction and that in and of itself makes it a horrifically intriguing read.  So many WWII books come at the war from the view of the oppressed, but Blankman dares to do something different with her narrative, she drops you into the lion's den, she drops you right into Hitler's lap.

It's evident from the first page all the way through the author's note that Blackman didn't mess around when it came to researching the Nazi party and all of it's early key players.  The book is drenched in real historical facts, that are so bluntly stated that you have to remind yourself that most of these things and these people existed and this is indeed how they acted.  The added fictional characters only add to the excitement of the story, instead of covering up the historical elements.

Gretchen is one of my new favorite characters.  The ways that Blackman used her to get us inside the workings of Hitler and his Socialist Party were daring.  She's one of those characters that grows so much in one book.  Of course she's put through the ringer as she learns that she can't trust anyone that she once considered family.  It's through her eyes that we get to see the human parts of Hitler and how, after the layers are pulled back that he was a monster in human form all along.  You know it's coming, but Gretchen doesn't and seeing things through her eyes is a strange and terrifyingly awesome experience.

The characters (whether fictional or not) are all written with such care.  Gretchen's brother Reinhard will make you squirm as you read.  He's evil in it's most pure, natural, human form.  He and Hitler are cut from the same, yet altogether different piece of fabric.  The chills and the shock that these two men (as well as the rest of the Nazi party) give you hang over the book.

The softer, yet still intense part of the novel was the love story between Gretchen and Daniel.  It was awesome to see the two of them come together in a way that didn't drowned out the rest of the plot.  The romance is needed and it is really well written, but it's not the main focus of the novel and I really liked that.  Daniel gives us incite into the reporting side of things and gives a strong sense of the Jewish community in Munich in the 30s.  He also gives Gretchen a chance to grow and change. Confusing the Jewish propaganda that she's been fed for years by her darling Uncle Dolf, and forcing her to start making her own assumptions about what really happened the night her father died.

In short, what I'm trying to say is that I haven't read a historical fiction novel like this in quite some time and anyone who is interested in what really happened in the beginning of Hitler's reign should give this fantastic novel a good ol' read!

Rating:

5 Unicorns = Get your hands on this now! 

[Waiting On Wednesday: Prisoner of Night and Fog]

Waiting On Wednesday happens every week on Wednesdays (hence the name) and is hosted by Breaking The Spine.  It's were people talk about the books they want to read about that aren't out yet.

My pick this week is...

"Prisoner of Night and Fog"
Author: Anne Blankman
Release Date: April 22nd, 2014

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Summary:

Obey. Smile when Hitler comes closer. And never, never question him.

These are the three rules in seventeen-year-old Nazi Gretchen Müller's life. They've kept her safe since Papa died, protecting old family friend Adolf Hitler during a street fight years ago. Until the night in 1931 when Gretchen meets a young, fearless Jewish reporter she's supposed to despise. But she can't stop herself from listening to his story -- that her father, the adored martyr, was actually murdered. Together, Gretchen and the reporter vow to do whatever it takes to uncover the truth. Even if it means breaking all of Hitler's rules. Especially the most important one of all: don't fall in love with the enemy...

-Goodreads

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I actually just snagged an eARC of this one and I couldn't be more excited.  I've been waiting for a book from the flip side of Nazi Germany and it's finally here.  I have a feeling that the conflict inside on Gretchen is going to be huge and I'm guessing that this one isn't going to have much of a happy ending.  

What are you waiting on this week?  I wanna know!