Wednesday, March 14, 2018

[Review] Orphan Monster Spy by Matt Killeen

Orphan Monster Spy by Matt Killeen

Rating: 4 stars

Format: ARC
Release Date: March 20th 2018

Goodreads Synopsis:
After her mother is shot at a checkpoint, fifteen-year-old Sarah--blonde, blue-eyed, and Jewish--finds herself on the run from a government that wants to see every person like her dead. Then Sarah meets a mysterious man with an ambiguous accent, a suspiciously bare apartment, and a lockbox full of weapons. He's a spy, and he needs Sarah to become one, too, to pull off a mission he can't attempt on his own: infiltrate a boarding school attended by the daughters of top Nazi brass, befriend the daughter of a key scientist, and steal the blueprints to a bomb that could destroy the cities of Western Europe. With years of training from her actress mother in the art of impersonation, Sarah thinks she's ready. But nothing prepares her for her cutthroat schoolmates, and soon she finds herself in a battle for survival unlike any she'd ever imagined.
"Never lie when you can tell the truth. Lies have to be worked out in advance or they will tie you up and eat you."
A dark spy-historical fiction set in Nazi Germany. Sarah passes off as part of the so-called perfect Aryans in Germany - blonde and blue eyed. However, she's seen her fair brutality, gruesomeness, and suffering, all because she is Jewish. Turns out, Sarah is smarter than she looks, and she ends up working with Captain Jeremy Floyd, a spy for the British, and infiltrates an all-girls Germany school as Ursula Haller, to befriend the daughter of a scientist, in order to steal back top-secret intel.


Because we're in Sarah's head for all of the novel, we get all of Sarah's thoughts, worries, and fears - especially because she might get caught and fail her mission. But Sarah remains cool-headed and plays her role perfectly (sometimes too perfectly at times). It's honestly fascinating watching her pretend that she is a little monster like all the others. She's strong and resilient, in the face of all the terrors that she must undergo and witness.

Her growth and maturity for her age also make for interesting scenes.

"Do you have a dog bowl?" Sarah asked.
He was intimidated but curiosity overcame the barman. "What do you need a dog bowl for?"
"For the horse. Unless you have a horse bowl, of course, in which case I'll have that. Except there isn't such a thing as a horse bowl, is there?"
"Not that I know of," he said defensively.
"So I need a dog bowl, then," she said, as if explaining something to a toddler. "Don't I?"

Her dynamic with the Captain is particularly endearing, as well. They are left with only each other, and they grow to rely upon each other, despite their tendencies to work alone. It's quite sweet, really, and my favorite part of the book is this growing bond.

"Fine. They cleaned it?" He nodded. "Then, bandage... things? Right."
Sarah did not like him not knowing things. He always knew things when she did not.

Orphan Monster Spy got exceedingly dark and graphic at times... very much in line with the monstrosities that came out of Nazism. Triggers for attempted rape and abuse. It may not be everyone's cup of tea.

Nevertheless, Orphan Monster Spy painted numerous facets to another aspect of WWII I had not read about before - what happens inside enemy lines, in what would be a normal setting like school. It explores the darkness of the Nazi ideology that can pass on from parent to child, and the psychological repercussions of the regime.

I would love to read sequels of Sarah and the Captain's spy missions, should any come up in the future!

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