MargaretBolingMullin

11/27/2010 This is an interesting blend of literary novel, historical fiction, love story, and mystery. Perhaps one of the beauties of h.f. is that simply provides the setting, with space for many other genre forms. I did find the fly-leaf description to be a bit misleading, focusing as it does on the teen girl Tamar. In reality, most of the book is set in the winter of 1944-1945 and focuses on the secret agent Tamar, his work, and his relationship with lover, Marijke, and fellow agent, Dart.

I thoroughly enjoyed the story, the book's construction, and learning about this aspect of WWII. I highly recommend it.

11/20/2010: I'm about 1/4 of the way through. I can sure see why this book won the Carnegie Award (I believe given to excellent historical fiction.)

I started reading and was sucked in by the 2nd page. Tamar is named after her grandfather; Tamar had been his code name when he worked for the British Special Ops unit in the Dutch Resistance during WWII. As with many good books - there's a mystery. Tamar, the female teen, has to uncover some of her grandfather's secrets after he passes away.

I do have to warn the unwary reader. If you don't like spoilers, DON'T flip to the last few pages. I discovered some details that will completely change the way I read the rest of the book.