Book Review: I Must Betray You, by Ruta Sepetys

Sepetys usually writes about little-known aspects of war or politics, and I Must Betray You is no exception.

It's hard to read. The political situation in Romania in the 1970s and 1980s was so horrific -- and pretty much hidden from the rest of the world. Nicolae Ceaușescu was a Communist dictator that ran the most isolated and oppressive nation in the world. People always stood in line for very little food. Coats were worn inside since little heat was available. Students were required to attend school six days a week. But the biggest issue was the fear.  People were afraid of each other. There was no place to talk, no one to trust. Not even within families.

Christian Florescu is a seventeen-year-old high school student who has been turned in to the secret police for supposed illegal activities, and they bribe him to become an informer. He's trying to navigate his teen years with the usual romantic endeavors. He wants to become a writer, but that seems impossible at this time.

The story starts in October of 1989, and if you know history (which I looked up), Ceaușescu is executed in December of 1989. Christian becomes involved in the resistance and is put in grave danger.

I Must Betray You is compulsively readable. The chapters are short and because of the conditions, the tension is constant. As usual, there are detailed notes at the end and an extensive bibliography. This was an eye-opening book for me, and teens, as well as adults, should consider I Must Betray You. 

Published by Philomel, February 1, 2022
Copy obtained from the library
336 pages

Rating: 5/5

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Book Review: Violeta, by Isabel Allende

Violeta is the story of the life of a woman of that name. It is an amazing story, told by an amazing writer.

Violeta is born in 1920 in an unnamed country in South America. The war is not long over, and the Spanish flu is just taking hold. The story is written as a letter to a loved one, but the identity of the person is not revealed until much later in the story.

She lives in the city and her family is well off, so Violeta is fairly happy as a child. They hire a young woman from Ireland to be her nanny/governess. When the depression hits, her family loses everything and must escape to live with some relatives in the country. Through it all, Violeta adapts and mostly thrives. 

She lives for over 100 years and dies during the current pandemic. So she sees another world war, as well as political upheaval in her country. Along the way she falls in love, and out of love, maybe a couple of times. She remains close to her family and always helps them when she can.

It is a beautiful story and was so easy to read. Allende just has a way of writing that makes you fly through the pages. I should probably give some credit to the translator, as Violeta was originally written in another language. Spanish? I'm not sure. But it reads so incredibly easily. I will read anything Allende writes.

If you've never read anything by Allende, Violeta is a good place to start, although I also really loved Daughter of Fortune. In any case, I highly recommend this author.

Published by Ballentine, January 25, 2022
eARC obtained from NetGalley
336 pages

Rating: 4.5/5

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Book Review: Never by Ken Follett

I am so disappointed in Never, and it's because of the way it ended. So don't read any further if you don't want spoilers. 

Follett is a great writer. We get to know all the different people and become attached to them. There are budding romances and political drama. Spy stories. One woman and her child is trying to escape from Chad to build a better life, but must put her life in the hands of some very untrustable men. The president of the United States, a woman, is formidable and smart.

A few small things happen - a United States drone (that was stolen) bombs some Chinese interests in Chad. There is a small but growing uprising in North Korea that is threatening their control over nuclear bombs. South Korea is nervous. Japan gets involved. Little things keep escalating in the name of "appropriate response" by the different governments. We get to know a member of what is China's equivalent of the CIA. The influence of the Chinese "old guard" is significant. But as a reader, you feel that one of these leaders is going to see reason. See where all this is heading if they don't stop escalating. 

I couldn't wait to see how all the pieces come together. How was this woman from Chad and her soon-to-be lover, a US spy, going to influence the outcome? There is another romance of a CIA agent and her equivalent from France. They are deciding to give up their careers just so they can be together. So what is the great surprise that ties all these stories together?

But no. There is no tie-up. The story just ends with all these people in limbo when, after China bombs Hawaii, the United States president orders all the nuclear weapons we have to bomb China.

Are you kidding me???? What a waste of over 800 pages. Yes, it's realistic. Yes, it's well written. But not what I expected. Ughhhh. 

Published by Viking, November 9, 2021
eARC obtained from NetGalley
816 pages

Rating: 3/5

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Audiobook review: Becoming, by Michelle Obama

I adored Becoming by Michelle Obama. Whether you are a fan or not, it is a fascinating portrayal of an unusual life.

For some reason, I'm always interested in stories of what it is like to be president and live in The White House. I got some additional information from Becoming.

Michelle Obama's life began on the south side of Chicago, with a loving family who encouraged her to be the best she could be. Being black and from the south side didn't offer as many opportunities as other people had. But she was driven to excel from a young age. And, of course, we all know how this story ends.

I really enjoyed hearing about her childhood and how she met and fell in love with Barack.  As I read her description of him, I realized that this man was destined to be president--whether he knew it or not. I loved hearing about having children and trying to raise them as she was raised. Throughout much of the book, we hear how she dealt with her fairly deep hatred of politics and how she never wanted Barack to be president. But, of course, in the end, she was devoted to him and had to help him reach for his dreams.

The stories about The White House and how their lives changed with all the protections they had to endure and their limited ability to move freely in society were my favorite parts. I enjoyed hearing about her struggles to become the First Lady she wanted to be and how her initiatives were accomplished. I guess if I have one criticism of the narrative, it would be that, especially towards the end, she talks too much about Barack's presidency and statistics and details about what he accomplished and how. I just wanted more stories about life in The White House. But it is a small niggle that really didn't change my opinion of the book.

Michelle narrates the audiobook, which made it even better. We all know her voice, and it was soothing and easy to listen to. I did not speed this one up, as I often do. I wanted to hear her tell her story as she intended.

I'm sure Becoming will appeal more to those with similar political beliefs, but I still think this book can be recommended to anyone who is interested in any sort of political or rags-to-riches stories. Becoming is such a positive, hopeful book that I think we all can take something from it.

Published by Crown, 2018, Random House Audio
Audiobook obtained from the library (after a very long wait!)
448 pages

Rating: 5/5

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Audio Book Review: Split Second, by David Baldacci

Split Second, the first book in the King & Maxwell series, provided all the suspense and unexpected twists that I was hoping for.

Michelle Maxwell has potentially destroyed her career as a Secret Service agent when the presidential candidate she was protecting gets kidnapped. She is relieved of duties and looks up Sean King, who eight years ago, as a Secret Service Agent, had let his presidential candidate get murdered.

Maxwell wants to do her own investigating. Coincidentally, King is recruited by an old colleague from the Secret Service, Joan, to help her find Maxwell's candidate. She now works privately and has been hired by the candidate's family.

These three end up working together and uncovering links between the two events, as unlikely as that may seem. The characters are interesting, as we learn about past relationships and developing new ones. The pace is quick and certainly kept my interest.

There are a lot of characters and sometimes names are thrown out quickly. I think this was a disadvantage to the audio format. If I were reading the print version, I'd page back and remind myself. For the audio version, until I remembered who they were talking about, I may miss something. Or else I would have to back up a few minutes. These multiple characters and many different suspects serve to make for a complex plot that continually surprised me.

That alone makes it a worthwhile read. I really enjoyed listening. The narrator, Scott Brick, did a great job. His characterizations were distinct without being annoying.

I'm not going to rush out and grab the next book in the series (I believe there are six of them), but I would enjoy continuing it someday. Split Second is a good choice if you are in the mood for a thriller.

Published by Grand Central, 2003. Hachette Audio
Audiobook obtained from the library
432 pages

Rating: 4/5

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Book Review: American Wife, by Curtis Sittenfeld

American Wife is a fictionalized account of the life of an unlikely First Lady of the United States, Alice Blackwell. It is loosely based on Barbara Bush, but very loosely, in that she is First Lady during the time period that Bush was president, and Alice may have had some of the same beliefs that Barbara did but a different background. And her husband, Charlie, had a much different background also.

But, American Wife was entertaining for the most part. It is the story of a childhood, a romance, a marriage, and ultimately a political career. But the presidency doesn't happen until the last 120 pages. A lot of the story is about their marriage, at times struggling, and Alice fitting into Charlie's very affluent family after her middle-class childhood.

Alice's first-person narrative flips back and forth in time quite a bit, and this technique worked well for me. Especially during the presidency years, she is very introspective about fame and how it changes a person and how she fought these changes. Somewhat repetitive, I still found these insights helped the reader relate to this very unique situation.

American Wife would not fit into my "must read" category, but it certainly was not a waste of time. If you are interested in seeing the rise of a political career from the First Lady's perspective, this is a good one. Sittenfeld did a lot of research into first ladies of the time period, and I felt her observations were authentic.

Published by Random House, 2008
Copy obtained from my personal library
558 pages

Rating: 4/5

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Book Review: The Warriors by Paul Batista

The Warriors is billed as a John Grisham-like legal thriller.  And it is, but a bit gorier.

Raquel Rematti is a high profile New York attorney involved in an astounding case.  Senator Angelina Baldesteri, former first lady and current presidential candidate, has been indicted for tax evasion, money laundering, and election fraud. As the trial progresses, Raquel realizes that this cold, calculating client will do anything to be acquitted, including lying...and possibly even more serious actions. It comes to the attention of the prosecutor that a witness is being bribed.  And Raquel herself is being accused of being involved in the bribery.

Not only is Raquel in danger of losing her career, but even her life. It takes a while for the action to get going, but once it does, it is relentless.  Many major players are losing their lives, and it isn’t quite clear until the very end if Raquel will escape.

Those fans of legal thrillers involving corruption at the highest level, and wanton violence, will enjoy The Warriors.

Published by Oceanview, December 18. 2018
eARC obtained from Edelweiss
336 pages

Rating: 4/5

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Book Review: Anna Karenina by Leo Tolstoy

I thought a review of Anna Karenina would be appropriate on the last day of the year, since it took me about six months to read it.  I used my Serial Reader app on my iPad.  I love this app, and I think it's the only way I will read some of these long classics that have been on my list.  The Serial Reader app gives you a short segment of the book each day.  I did end up reading ahead to finish by the end of the year. It costs $2.99 to be able to read ahead, otherwise, the app is free.

Now for the book.  I'm not including a summary, you may click on the Wikipedia link if you need one. I really didn't enjoy Anna Karenina very much.  Here are some of the reasons why:

1.  There are too many characters, and they each have two or three names.  I had trouble keeping track.

2. Related to that, there are so many different (unimportant) tangents.  If you are interested in Russian politics in the 1800s, this is your book. If we could have just had Anna's story and Kitty's story, I would have enjoyed it more. I know this is often described as "the best book ever written," but I guess I'm not cultured enough to see it.

3.  Something is lost in the translation.  The turns of phrase and weird affectations were too much for me.  I really got tired of their dialog starting with "Well, and." Maybe that makes sense in Russian, but it's just bizarre in English. I was also annoyed at the many passages in French, that were not translated or explained.

4.  The third-person point of view kept me very detached from the story.  I normally don't have trouble with POVs, but in Anna Karenina, it affected my feelings towards the characters and the book in general.

5.  I hated Anna.  I guess I didn't have much sympathy for her slow descent into madness.  She was just annoying, then all of a sudden, she's crazy.  It happened too fast and therefore I didn't feel for her as I think Tolstoy wanted me to. Or maybe you are supposed to hate her.  I never know how I'm supposed to feel when I read classic novels.

I feel accomplished that I actually read Anna Karenina. It is a story of Russian history, and I did learn quite a bit. I'm ready to watch the movie to see how it compares.  I don't think it could be worse! I've chosen Les Misérables for my next Serial Read.  You probably will see a review for that next New Year's Eve!

Published from 1873 to 1877 as a serial. First published in book form in 1878.
Copy obtained from Serial Reader
1000 pages

Rating: 2/5

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