I have never been as interested in World War II history, until now. This book is one of my new favorites and I cannot wait to finish the series. The characters are fleshed out and I cared deeply about what happened to them from the very beginning. The tension is perfect, we know there is danger because of what is happening with Hitler (and because we know at least the framework of what happened, we know at times to be nervous than the characters, which only adds to the tension) and there is normal, everyday tension as well as the children of the family are making life decisions. The book is never intense though, and very interesting. The only parts that weren't as brilliant for me was the beginning of some chapters. Hughes wraps up what happened in the war at that time at the beginning of some of the chapters, rather than putting it into the story somehow. I can see why he did it, but it was still exposition. The book was so wonderful and I loved the themes of God watching out for us and having faith through hard times. And don't let the size intimidate you--I couldn't put the book down and couldn't believe how quickly I flew through this. It is well worth the read.