September Genreflecting: Review: Code Name Verity by Elizabeth Wein

Oct. 11th, 1943-A British spy plane crashes in Nazi-occupied France. Its pilot and passenger are best friends. One of the girls has a chance at survival. The other has lost the game before it's barely begun.

When "Verity" is arrested by the Gestapo, she's sure she doesn't stand a chance. As a secret agent captured in enemy territory, she's living a spy's worst nightmare. Her Nazi interrogators give her a simple choice: reveal her mission or face a grisly execution.

As she intricately weaves her confession, Verity uncovers her past, how she became friends with the pilot Maddie, and why she left Maddie in the wrecked fuselage of their plane. On each new scrap of paper, Verity battles for her life, confronting her views on courage, failure and her desperate hope to make it home. But will trading her secrets be enough to save her from the enemy? 

From Goodreads

So this was a poor choice for this specific use. It's a PERFECT historical fiction representative, but I can't even begin to write a spoiler-free review at the moment because I'm still processing what just happened. Needless to say, I completely understand why this was one of the hottest books of 2012 & that summary above does the storyline justice. What it doesn't do justice for is Wein's writing. Her intricate writing style is impeccable & perfectly suited for this type of story. That's really all I feel I can say at the moment.

As for its historical fiction portrayal, this book was an exceptional example of what good historical fiction can accomplish. Maggie Stiefvater, a history buff who usually has trouble enjoying historical fiction books, adored this book. Check out her analytic & spoiler-free explanation on Goodreads.

While many people may not enjoy the wartime setting or the prisoner of war type books, Code Name Verity is so much more than that. It transcends pigeon-holing because it's not just about the time period or the events facing the characters; this book represents historical fiction's ability to appeal to all reader demographics because of it's meaning & presence. The story being told, about a true and meaningful friendship, is one that can exist in any time period. The uniqueness of this particular situation is what makes it so perfect for a historical fiction piece.

Not only is this book factual, it's also emotive. The locations & information are well-researched and the nationalities portrayed are quite accurate. What makes it work so well in this historical context is the ability to bring all these characters together & have them interact in their specific manners. I'm sure that's all a bit more muddled than I would prefer, but that's the best way I can think of to explain how unique this particular book is and why it was difficult to use as a historical fiction example.

I'll be cutting down my genreflecting posts to three a month due to my school & work load. I may combine the general & details posts or I may only review one book. My determination to finish this series is strong & I hope you'll bear with me during this transitional period.

Such a Rush by Jennifer Echols review

A sexy and poignant romantic tale of a young daredevil pilot caught between two brothers.

High school senior Leah Jones loves nothing more than flying. While she’s in the air, it’s easy to forget life with her absentee mother at the low-rent end of a South Carolina beach town. When her flight instructor, Mr. Hall, hires her to fly for his banner advertising business, she sees it as her ticket out of the trailer park. And when he dies suddenly, she’s afraid her flying career is gone forever.    

But Mr. Hall’s teenage sons, golden boy Alec and adrenaline junkie Grayson, are determined to keep the banner planes flying. Though Leah has crushed on Grayson for years, she’s leery of getting involved in what now seems like a doomed business — until Grayson betrays her by digging up her most damning secret. Holding it over her head, he forces her to fly for secret reasons of his own, reasons involving Alec. Now Leah finds herself drawn into a battle between brothers — and the consequences could be deadly.

From Goodreads

I can't do any better a job of summarizing the book than the blurb itself. Usually I like to throw my own view in because I don't think the blurb does the storyline much justice, but this one pretty much takes the cake.

Jennifer Echols has managed to capture my heart the same way these banner-flying crazies catch their banners. This woman has an amazing ability to take a basic plot (girl from wrong side of tracks stuck between 2 brothers) and make it into some extraordinary! The background that she set this book in is what really gives the story its extra oomph. How many girls are engrossed in airplane knowledge? Not many, but Echols makes this semi-closed off world accessible with just the right amount of detail that the reader is comfortable without being overwhelmed. 


I adore Leah in this book. She's the best Cinderella story I've read in a long time. Despite all the shortcomings of her upbringing & how hard life has been made for her, she has persevered & found something special. That is a rare quality of character that this world is lacking & I am beyond thrilled that Echols has made her so accessible as a role model. Leah is far from perfect, but she's still struggling & doing her best to do what's right for her.


The Hall brothers make quite an impression as well. Neither of them really fit a stereotypical "bad boy" or "sensitive boy" role, but you can see qualities from several types in each of them.It was also a lot of fun getting to know them via other people. You don't necessary learn much about them from the boys themselves, more from their actions & the thoughts of others. Personally I find Grayson more attractive, but that's because I need someone who can deal with my acerbic wit.


In short, this is a great read that takes no time at all to get lost in. A wonderful story about perseverance, dreams & the ability to trust, Such a Rush is the perfect summer read!

ARC graciously provided by Around the World Tours.