megsbookishtwins's reviews
1177 reviews

“Hope is the most treacherous thing in the world. It lifts you and lets you plummet. But as long as you're being lifted you don't worry about plummeting.”

I really loved Rose Under Fire, almost as much as I loved Code Name Verity! But I really did miss Julie, heart achingly so, but I do think this was because I missed Julie's narrative and writing the most, especially compared to Rose. It was also lovely to see some Maddie and her life after Julie. Rose Under Fire had the same affect on me as Code Name Verity as it stuck with me after I read it and I had an ache in my heart for all the characters. The reason I did was because they were beautifully written and they felt so so real. It was so obvious how much research and heart went into writing Rose Under Fire, and it was horrible to think that everything else was so horribly real, except the characters, but their stories were real, there was "Rabbits" and Ravensbruck was real, and Elizbeth Wein has told the world.

Rose Under Fire was a book about bravery and the strength of friendship and how much courage that can give an individual to keep going. Rose is a character that you can love. You can see the change in Rose from the beginning of the book, and after her experience at the camp, but she didn't let the camp and the experience be her, but to shape her, and I think that was a really brave thing to do. I also really loved the other characters - Roza, Irina and Karolina. I was so engrossed in Rose story that I could barely put it down and this is one of the best books i've read this year, and if you are a fan of the companion novel Code Name Verity then I highly suggest you read this.

I had heard many great things about The Book Thief, especially from many people on Tumblr so I had to give it a go, and I'm so glad I did. This book is different from other books I've read, mainly because it's not narrated by Liesel, as many other writers would have wrote it from, but from Death itself. And in my opinion this makes the book so much better as war and death go hand in hand, and it wouldn't have the same effect if it was written in Liesel's perspective. Markus Zusak's writing is simply beautiful. The characters was one think which I loved from the very beginning, especially Liesel as she loved books and words and therefore one of the characters I could relate to, and this made The Book Thief so much better. It was very hard to say goodbye to the characters at the end and it had me in tears, I will try not to give too many spoilers, mainly because I loved all the characters and their relationship with Liesel as each had a special part to play in Liesel's life.
Some people criticise The Book Thief for it's slow pace some times, however I didn't have that problem as I felt captivated from the start. But those who do feel like that, just keep reading, I promise you it will be worth it! This is probably one of my favourite books, and hopefully I will be getting it on paperback soon as I only have it on kindle!

I read this a few years ago when I first started really getting into books, and I remember that I really enjoyed it!