It was well written and engaging, making you invested in the characters and interested in their stories. But holy cow it was SO long!! There were so many characters to keep track of and it’s weird that it was named after Anna when I would say Levin was really the one character everything kept coming back to and revolving around. But the book makes a good central comparison of one character (Levin) who strives for contentment and valuing others around him, versus another (Anna) who is completely self focused and discontent.

Definitely not a bad story - I enjoyed it overall - but so many details that just made it so long and didn’t have all that much consequence in the grand scheme of things. It would have been better broken up in a series or something.

Loved the perspective of what it took to train in the resistance and the detail of this type of resistance jobs. Most WW2 books are more about the events of the war or courier jobs when it comes to the resistance but I’ve not read much where it comes to liquidation or taking out marks.

Really well written and great character development for Lien as she processed thru in a very human way, the difficult moral position of what they were tasked to do, and the emotional toll it took. Also enjoyed the cameo of Corrie Ten Boom’s family since it took place in their same town.

3.5 rounded down. I enjoyed reading about WW2 in the Philippines, as there aren’t that many books that take place in the pacific and out of all the WW2 books I’ve read (and there are many!) this is the first in that country I’m even aware of. The story itself was very interesting and informative.

That being said, I didn’t really care for the writing style - it had very little character development and was more event-oriented, which I’m not a huge fan of in a novel. It was put together well as far as describing what was taking place but I didn’t feel invested in the characters or like I even was being brought along with them in their experience, emotions, etc, the majority of the time. A lot of it felt like documentary-ish or an observing narration more than anything.

There were also a couple weird gaps at the end in the last chapter or so that I was trying to follow and were confusing. A couple things repeated and then a few more pieces, I couldn’t quite figure out what was happening, as if the ending was sort of put on paper and then not edited, alluding to events but never clarifying, or making conclusions that were grand leaps based on what was written.

I felt like it was better than a 3 star, but shy of 4 because of the style and vagueness at the end.

Thanks to Netgalley for the advanced copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

I realize I’m apparently in the minority on this one but I really didn’t care for this book. I kept with it just hoping it would get better, which it did in the second half, but not by a lot. It was really slow and not much happened at all in the first half. While the story of connecting with a foster child and investing in him is great, and I did enjoy the light humor often, I had to talk myself into finishing it multiple times.

Beyond the extremely slow pace of the book, honestly both Claire and Whitaker annoyed me as characters for a good portion of the book. Whitaker would make these almost manic swings in his decisions or motivations, flat out refusing to write David’s book over and over and then literally a few min later chased Claire down to change his mind. Only to do it again - multiple times. And he completely lacked the fortitude to do the hard things (or even mundane things) when life got tough. Claire was often highly irrational and angry, and so obsessed with what she wanted that she was livid with Whitaker when he refused to write the book, arguing vehemently when he said no. All while she obsessively stalked Whitaker - someone who she met a couple times years ago briefly - chasing him down without warning at both his house and his work multiple times, then slamming him on social media. And somehow it was all laughable and no big deal for them both...? The rest of it, just seemed really flat and dragged for me. Unfortunately for the end focus, I was just not a fan at all.

An incredible look at WW1, women’s roles as well as the intense brutality the men faced, and a lovely romance thrown into the mix. So descriptive and life-like, it was well written, and was difficult to put down. I’ve loved each of Ms Ciesielski’s books I’ve read and this is no exception.

Such an interesting look at female ambulance drivers as well, in a time where women’s roles were still really rare at least on the field. I loved the friendship Gwyn had with Cecelia as well as her stubborn commitment to Will and their ability to encourage each other’s dreams and passions.

Such an interesting and heartfelt look into Thomas Jefferson’s daughter’s life, and by extension, a little of his also. So many sad and difficult things that Patsy Jefferson endured, and heartbreaking how a number of women in their family married destructive and abusive men. Amazing how one decision can ruin so many things.

I did feel disappointed about how the story with Sally Hemings was told. I get that to portray the relationship as it probably was - not her choice to be Jefferson’s mistress and forced as a slave - would have made a terrible story, but I imagine it was more likely to be true than a mutual infatuation. It’s definitely a sad and awful piece of Jefferson’s story with all he did for freedom for the rest of the nation.

But the book was very well written and very interesting. I enjoyed it, though not as much as My Dear Hamilton. But maybe I just liked Hamilton better.