Code Name Verity (Elizabeth Wein)

****

         Verity is living every spy's worst nightmare.  She's been captured by the Nazis in France before completing her mission, and is now facing torture and a terrible death at their hands.  But first, she has struck up a bargain to give away any information she knows in exchange for a little more time.  Not that she claims to know very much.  Meanwhile, greater forces are in action.  There is a war on, and there are plans that must be fulfilled with or without Verity's help.  Friends are trying to find a way to save the mission that she failed to complete, and possibly a way to save Verity herself.

         This was a really powerful book.  It got a fair amount of hype in the book world, which I would say it deserves.  After reading the first fifty pages or so, I was thoroughly invested in the characters.  Maddie and Verity were well-developed both in Verity's prison confession and the rest of Wein's story.  The book was divided up in a way that added to the excitement and made me feel even more affection and pride for the characters (but I can't properly explain that without ruining the story).  I was on the edge of my seat hoping that things would work out well for the two best friends, even though it was pretty clear that wasn't going to happen.  The ending did turn out to be very sad, but it still managed to be satisfying in its own way.  This is by no means a light read, but it is  definitely worth picking up.

Rating: 4/5
Completed: February 15, 2013

The Collector (John Fowles)

***

         Clegg is a small-town man with a boring job who gets a lucky break and wins enough money that he will never have to work again.  With the power to do whatever he wants, Clegg hopes to improve his life and find real happiness.  At first, happiness means buying an isolated countryside home, which happens to have a very lovely large cellar.  Soon it means following Miranda, the beautiful girl he's fallen in love with, all around London.  But knowing Miranda from a distance is not enough for Clegg; he decides to kidnap her so that he can enjoy her company for as long as he wants.  The only trouble, of course, will be to get Miranda to love him back.

         Sorry, guys, but I just can't bring myself to go in-depth about this book after picking it apart in English class.  This is going to be a short review.  Basically, this book was very creepy.  How can a book about a guy who stalks a girl and then kidnaps her in his van - yes, van - not be creepy?  The Collector deals with some pretty heavy themes, including gender roles, class, and power, and John Fowles does a good job of playing them out in the story.  There's no denying that it's a great candidate for analysis and essay writing.  As we discussed in class, Fowles gets the reader confused about who they like and who they don't.  It's shockingly easy to feel sorry for Clegg at certain points.  In the end, though, I knew exactly how I felt about the characters.  Although I was not happy with the ending, it was fairly realistic.  I can't say that I exactly recommend this book, but it definitely has its merits.

Rating: 3/5
Completed: February 8, 2013

Sorry that I haven't posted much at all lately.  Junior year is really catching up with me - I have heard more than one person refer to this week as "hell week".  Spring break is on its way, which means college visits, but also hopefully more time to read.  In the meantime, I'm still a bit behind on posting, so I'll try to keep 'em coming for the rest of the month.  Have any fun plans for the spring?  Reading any great books?  Post it in the comments.