TLC Book Tours: The Huntress by Kate Quinn
Author: Kate Quinn
Format: Paperback
Publisher: William Morrow Paperbacks
Publish Date: February 26, 2019
Source: TLC Book Tours and HarperCollins
What's the Story?:
From Goodreads.com: "In the aftermath of war, the hunter becomes the hunted…
Bold, reckless Nina Markova grows up on the icy edge of Soviet Russia, dreaming of flight and fearing nothing. When the tide of war sweeps over her homeland, she gambles everything to join the infamous Night Witches, an all-female night bomber regiment wreaking havoc on Hitler’s eastern front. But when she is downed behind enemy lines and thrown across the path of a lethal Nazi murderess known as the Huntress, Nina must use all her wits to survive.
British war correspondent Ian Graham has witnessed the horrors of war from Omaha Beach to the Nuremberg Trials. He abandons journalism after the war to become a Nazi hunter, yet one target eludes him: the Huntress. Fierce, disciplined Ian must join forces with brazen, cocksure Nina, the only witness to escape the Huntress alive. But a shared secret could derail their mission, unless Ian and Nina force themselves to confront it.
Seventeen-year-old Jordan McBride grows up in post WWII Boston, determined despite family opposition to become a photographer. At first delighted when her long-widowed father brings home a fiancée, Jordan grows increasingly disquieted by the soft-spoken German widow who seems to be hiding something. Armed only with her camera and her wits, Jordan delves into her new stepmother’s past and slowly realizes there are mysteries buried deep in her family. But Jordan’s search for the truth may threaten all she holds dear."
My Two Cents:
"The Huntress" definitely ranks as one of my most anticipated 2019 releases and whenever I put a book on that kind of pedestal, I'm always a little worried that it won't live up to my anticipation. After WWII, Jordan is living in Boston with her family and dreaming about becoming a war photographer. Little does she know that the echoes of the war will find her right where she is. Add the story of Nina, a strong Soviet pilot who is driven by what she saw during the war as she tries to help out her husband Ian, a Nazi hunter and you have the beginnings of a really amazing story that I couldn't put down.
Where to start with this book? The writing is amazing. I know that I am always in really good hands with Quinn but this book was especially impressive. We get to know many of our characters in different time periods throughout the war and Quinn is a master of weaving all of these different stories together into a really wonderfully rich story where there's more than meets the eye at every turn. The author does an amazing job of dropping little clues throughout the book that hint at what's to come. I love when an author can force me to question what's going on and whether or not everything is as straightforward as it seems. This book was such a good ride!
I have to mention the characters. Usually in a book like this with so many different characters, I definitely have a favorite but the great thing about this book is that all of the characters are so rich. You at least get a bit of a back story for most of them so you feel like you understand what makes them tick a little bit more. I loved Jordan and Nina. Both of them are so different but they both have a really cool fierceness and drive to make things right. And I don't want to give too much away but the best (and creepiest) villains are the ones that hide in plain sight and are able to hide all of the evilness away until the time comes. Until then, they seem completely nice, caring, and normal.
The story line itself was so good. I have read a lot about World War II so that part of the book was familiar to me. I loved learning about Nina's Night Witches (what an amazing group). I had never given to much thought about what happened after the war and how driven people would be to hide their pasts. I always like to believe in justice for crimes committed but the fact of the matter is that a lot of people get away with a lot of terrible things and there were Nazis who were able to go on to create new lives after the war. Not everyone gets their comeuppance but I loved seeing justice served in this book.
This was a wonderful book!