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Velvet Undercover

Teri Brown (Goodreads Author)

3.72 · Rating details · 1,139 ratings · 229 reviews

Perfect for fans of Jennifer Donnelly and Libba Bray comes this page-turning historical spy thriller from Teri Brown, author of the Born of Illusion series.

Samantha Donaldson's family has always done its duty for the British Crown. In the midst of World War I, seventeen-year-old Sam follows in their footsteps, serving her country from the homefront as a messenger for the i ...more

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ebook, 336 pages

Published October 20th 2015 by Balzer + Bray

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May 02, 2015 Sarah Elizabeth rated it liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: r2r-complete, read-2015, romance, historical, young-adult

(Source: I received a digital copy of this book for free on a read-to-review basis. Thanks to HarperCollins and Edelweiss.)

“I’m pleased to inform you that you’ve been selected to join La Dame Blanche. We would like you to leave for training with the objective of joining the Third Company in Luxembourg. Are you interested?”

This started off okay, but I lost interest.

Samantha was a strong character, and she always tried to do what she thought was the right thing. She was young to be a spy, but ...more

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Jul 24, 2015 Theresa rated it really liked it · review of another edition

I give this a solid 4.5 stars!! I really really liked it!! I was on the edge of my seat reading and everything was sooooo interesting. I had never read a book like this one before but I really enjoyed it. I liked all the characters and the plot was really good. There were a few things that confused me when I was reading that I wish could have been explained a bit more. Other wise I definitely recommend this book!! A really quick, exciting read!

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Aug 09, 2015 Liz rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: review-advance-copies, historical-fiction, need-to-review

Historical fiction about spies?! YES AND PLEASE. She's smart, observant, and fifteen. Undercover as a governess for German royalty. (Full review to come) ...more

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Mar 17, 2015 Jen Ryland added it · review of another edition

Shelves: october-2015

While I can't stop thinking there is something slightly cheesy about this book (and the racy sounding title and come-hither cover aren't helping matters any) I gave it a chance and thought it was a lot of fun.

I loved the setting -- WWI Germany -- and thought the spy stuff, while completely improbable, was still pretty entertaining. Samantha, the main character, was kind of a prickly loner, but I get that, so liked her. She's a young British girl with a talent for speaking perfect German and is ...more

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Mar 25, 2015 Debby rated it it was ok

Shelves: for-review, stand-alone, covergasm, reviewed, 2015-reads

2.5 stars

Historical fiction is the genre that I've been trying to delve into much more this year. This paired with a fondness for (at least the idea of) spy thrillers, as soon as I heard about Velvet Undercover, I was excited. A teenage spy sent into Germany from the UK during World War I? Color me intrigued. This book was entertaining... but not exactly mindblowing.

I'll start with my biggest point of critique and the thing that kept this book from ever really engaging me fully: the writing. I h ...more

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Aug 03, 2015 Ms. Yingling rated it really liked it · review of another edition

E ARC from Edelweiss Above the Treeline

Samantha Donaldson's family lives in England at the time of WWI, and she and her mother are worried that her father hasn't been heard from and is feared missing. When she nearly wins a Girl Guide competition, where she has excelled in all manner of things, including knowledge of foreign languages, she is approached by a spy organization, La Dame Blanche to be one of their operatives. She is a little conflicted, knowing that if she joins the organization and E ARC from Edelweiss Above the Treeline

Samantha Donaldson's family lives in England at the time of WWI, and she and her mother are worried that her father hasn't been heard from and is feared missing. When she nearly wins a Girl Guide competition, where she has excelled in all manner of things, including knowledge of foreign languages, she is approached by a spy organization, La Dame Blanche to be one of their operatives. She is a little conflicted, knowing that if she joins the organization and goes to spy in Germany, she might well die. Captain Parker persuades her, however, by mentioning that he might be able to help locate her father if she is willing to help him. After accepting, Samantha is trained by her "handler", a talented spy named Letty Tickford, who teaches her the finer points of codes, being followed, and disguising oneself. She does well, and is soon sent to Luxembourg to take on the identity of a young woman who has died in order to infiltrate the royal household and extricate a fellow spy. Now Sophia von Schonburg, she must memorize her backstory, locate the operative known only as "Velvet", and serve as governess to the children of the family as well! Samantha soon finds out that her assignment is quite dangerous when her fellow teacher is killed, and she must decide if she can trust one of the German soldiers, Maxwell, in order to survive and to possibly find her father.

World War I has been under represented in young adult fiction in the past, but seems to be a rising trend, perhaps because of interest in television programs like Downtown Abbey or The Crimson Field. Spy stories are always a good bet, and this had plenty of historical details as well as a pulse pounding undercover assignment.

My favorite part of this was the fact that Samantha learns that the world is not all black and white. The war is not necessarily divided into "us" and "them". This makes it hard to know whom she can trust, but she is young enough that she can still see Germans as good people, no matter what her government tells her. It helps that she spent some time in Germany as a child and has good memories of being there. Her struggles in assessing her feelings and weighing them against her loyalties to La Dame Blanche as well as her country, are realistic and poignant.

Readers of spy adventure mysteries like Lee's The Body in the Tower as well as Carter's The Gallagher Girls will be enthralled with this story of divided loyalties, romance, and intrigue set against the backdrop of upper class society during World War I.

The only thing that didn't thrill me about this book was the cover. I would have rather seen a silhouette of a girl in WWI era clothing set against the background of a Luxembourg street of that era. This cover looks too modern. ...more

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Jun 11, 2015 AH rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: arc-edelweiss, spies, historical, thrillers, young-adult, zzread-oct-2015, romance, new-adult

"Trust no one." Good advice for a spy.

I can always gauge my enjoyment of a book by the amount of times I am inspired to go and Google. I'd never heard about La Dame Blanche and I blame our crappy high school history curriculum. Why didn't we ever learn about some of the heroines of the war? The people that risked their lives to track train schedules, troop movements, and the like? (Remember, no computers or internet in WWI).

Samantha is a bright young woman destined for more than her present jo ...more

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Feb 22, 2015 Rachel (APCB Reviews) rated it it was ok · review of another edition

I feel as though this book did half of what I needed it to in all areas. It half made sense. The characters were half developed. The plot was half enjoyable. Overall I'm left with a hardly memorable story and equally unmemorable characters. Disappointed am I. Review to come. ...more

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Oct 04, 2015 Fafa's Book Corner rated it did not like it · review of another edition

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here. Fafa's Book Corner (Wordpress)
Fafa's Book Corner (Blogger)

DNF

I think the only spy novels that I can enjoy are those written by Ally Carter. When I first heard about this book I was excited. I love reading spy novels and thought that this would be enjoyable. I was wrong.

The book starts off with explaining the readers that Sam is at a competition of sorts. Sam is a Girl Guide a group under MI5 in which she and a few other girls deliver messages. At the start of the book Sam and the other girls Fafa's Book Corner (Wordpress)
Fafa's Book Corner (Blogger)

DNF

I think the only spy novels that I can enjoy are those written by Ally Carter. When I first heard about this book I was excited. I love reading spy novels and thought that this would be enjoyable. I was wrong.

The book starts off with explaining the readers that Sam is at a competition of sorts. Sam is a Girl Guide a group under MI5 in which she and a few other girls deliver messages. At the start of the book Sam and the other girls are in competition to see who will be going home with the Markel Cup. The competition consists of a few different tests.

Life at home isn't so great. Her father disappeared on a mission and since then her mother and her have remained hopeful that he will return. She really wants to win the Markel Cup because she feels like she would make him proud.

She does not win and goes to the bathroom to cry. Her cousin Rose comes in to cheer her up. When the two leave the bathroom they run into Captain Parker who reveals he would like to speak with her.

The next day she goes to the Girl Guides and is she told by her boss that the Captain wishes to see Sam. The Captain tells Sam that he was impressed by how she was able to translate a French poem into German. Due to this he offers her a chance to work with La Dame Blanche. After some thinking she declines. The Captain tells her that if she takes the job then he will personally look into her fathers disappearance. She was basically blackmailed into agreeing.

This would have been way better had I known earlier that this is supposed to be a lighthearted spy novel. The writing style read as such. I found that Sam's character was a bit of a snob and noisy. Now of course I have read about characters as such and enjoyed those books for example are Rebel Belle. But in this book the writing style really didn't work. It came off silly like Ruby Red.

Overall this was not an enjoyable read. I would recommend it to those who are looking for a lighthearted spy novel. ...more

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Mar 31, 2015 KL (Cat) rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Possibly the only teenage-girl spy novel I've ever truly enjoyed, and I've read lots of this particular genre in hopes of finding a good gem. This is it!

Samantha is realistic, which I appreciate very much in a protagonist; she is a girl that is clever and talented and knows of the weight of what she is doing. Although she tries her hardest to be brave, some times (given the tenacious circumstances thrown at her) little slip-ups happen, but like any good spy she recovers quickly and keeps a calm ...more

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Jun 11, 2015 Zemira (Kylo Ren fangirl) Warner added it · review of another edition

Shelves: edelweiss, mystery, historical, thriller

I don't normally read historical novels but I wanted to give it a try since this one was about spies during the World War I. I've seen a lot of World War II books but no one writes about the First one.

This was a perfectly nice story. Can't say I was on the edge of my seat like I thought I would be. It's a mystery/thriller after all. Shouldn't I be allowed to expect that?

It will certainly appeal to the younger readers looking for a break from all those dystopians.

The ending tied everything up ...more

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May 05, 2015 Jessie Potts rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: young-adult-for-adults, arc, balzer-bray, rt-booklovers, oct-2015

Why you should read it: I haven’t read many historical YAs and love these genre crossovers. Samantha is a really great heroine who is smart and the perfect spy. Teri Brown is also a fantastic storyteller, and Velvet Undercover will sweep you away. The mystery of who Velvet is kept me guessing, and come on, who doesn’t love an elite all-woman spy group?

INTERVIEW WITH TERI BROWN

I loved the women’s spy group. If you ran one, where would you send your spies?

Teri: In Portland, Oregon, we have an ice ...more

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Jul 12, 2015 Gia rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: favorites

Velvet Undercover was a fabulous book read. I immensely enjoyed reading it. The book was filled with never-ending, lip-biting suspense.

Previously read Teri Brown's Born of Illusion series and liking it, I expected no less from this one. Turns out my expectations were proven right.
Spying? And all that in synopsis was enough to attract me to the book.

I relished reading about Sam's skill like ciphering secret codes and her training as a spy. However, I would've really appreciated if it was more.

Th ...more

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Feb 18, 2019 Jacquelyn Rose rated it really liked it · review of another edition

I found this book to be very cheesy at times and I may have rolled my eyes during the villain’s stereotypical plan reveal at the end... but damnit I enjoyed this book. I’m assuming I was just in the right headspace for something like this, but I’m glad I read it! To be honest... this book was a cover buy. I don’t usually like people on the cover of books but I was intrigued! I did guess the bad guy and the reveal before the epilogue, but I don’t even care, I was glad I was right! I think it was ...more

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Jun 11, 2015 Lekeisha The Booknerd rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: edelweiss

Originally posted HERE

While this story wasn’t as thrilling as I would have liked it to be, I still loved the mystery and deception of it all. Sam is a very sharp protagonist, which suited the plot. However, even when she was at her best, she still had this doubt within her mind about whatever situation she found herself in. I understand that she was thrust into it without notice, but one can’t be doubtful in life or death situations. Especially if you are in a country illegally, could be captur Originally posted HERE

While this story wasn’t as thrilling as I would have liked it to be, I still loved the mystery and deception of it all. Sam is a very sharp protagonist, which suited the plot. However, even when she was at her best, she still had this doubt within her mind about whatever situation she found herself in. I understand that she was thrust into it without notice, but one can’t be doubtful in life or death situations. Especially if you are in a country illegally, could be captured- tortured- killed for what you may or may not know, or you could just be charged with espionage and rot away in a prison camp. No time for screw-ups.

A desperate girl, eager to find out what happened to her father. An intelligence organization, desperate to retrieve a valuable asset from behind enemy lines. The problem? No one knows what Velvet looks like. Some have tried and failed (as in gotten killed) at this mission. So what makes Sam the next in line for being recruited into La Dame Blanche? Her ability to decipher codes, her multilingual skills, and the fact that they knew how to get her to agree. Mentioning her father is the equivalent of dangling a raw steak in front of a lion. A low blow, but it worked. Sam is very aware of things. Her father has been preparing her for this all along. Of course she agrees, of course she wants to make her father proud – especially if he’s still alive. The only thing that eats away at her, is leaving her mother. The woman is barely holding up since the disappearance of her husband.

So, the story arced like I expect most spy mysteries would go. Sam leaves her home under super secret orders. She is then trained in the art of spying, deciphering codes, self defense, weapon firing, etc… She is smuggled into Germany and is given her assignment. Only thing is, chance will always have a say in how things play out. Sam wasn’t expecting to fall for the handsome German guard. However, she didn’t let her guard down and always remembered her duty. Sam wasn’t stupid. The girl knew that there was more at stake than a mere rescue mission. And just what does her handler have to hide? The ending was a nice wrap, but I’m wondering if this will be a series of books about La Dame Blanche.

If you love stories of WWI, espionage and intelligence, then this would make a good book to read. It’s not heavy on the thrills, but this is YA after all. Definitely recommend. ...more

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Mar 11, 2015 Christina (A Reader of Fictions) rated it liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: arc

Not the most original book ever, but fun!

My expectations weren’t very high for Velvet Undercover. I’ve had mixed reactions to Teri Brown’s previous books, and Debby (Snuggly Oranges) wasn’t a huge fan, which generally means I won’t be either. Oddly, though, this was the first book (that wasn’t HP) to click with me in a slump period. It’s not that it’s the best book ever, but for some reason Sam’s voice clicked with me. Velvet Undercover was a quick read for me that had me turning pages, and that ...more

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Mar 03, 2015 Ashley rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: e-arc, arc

FAAABULOUS!!

I had so much fun with this book. I loved how it was kind of light-hearted but also intense and exciting at the same time. How is that even possible? I don't even know.

I adored the main character. I loved her personality and felt like I really connected with her.

EXCITING
Spy stuff
Twists
Betrayals
Europe
Historical

Historical novels aren't usually my thing but now I want MORE MORE. ...more

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Jun 17, 2015 Vishnu Brahmandam marked it as to-read · review of another edition

EpicReads is going to make my TBR list double it's size.
...more

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Feb 25, 2015 Carina Olsen rated it it was ok · review of another edition

I'm so disappointed. Which is just so heartbreaking. Because I really wanted to love this book. It looks gorgeous. It sounded pretty interesting. But then I read all of it today. And it was bad. Really bad. Hurts my heart, but it is the way I felt. This was a two star for me. I have so many reasons for that. Ugh.

This book started badly for me from the very first chapter. It was so bad. Like, I haven't read such a bad chapter in a long time. Which is so sad, but it is how I felt. Writing was bad, I'm so disappointed. Which is just so heartbreaking. Because I really wanted to love this book. It looks gorgeous. It sounded pretty interesting. But then I read all of it today. And it was bad. Really bad. Hurts my heart, but it is the way I felt. This was a two star for me. I have so many reasons for that. Ugh.

This book started badly for me from the very first chapter. It was so bad. Like, I haven't read such a bad chapter in a long time. Which is so sad, but it is how I felt. Writing was bad, which sucks, as I did love Born of Illusion by Teri from two years before. But this one? Oh, I did not like it. Not at all, really. Sigh.

About this first chapter. I did not like the writing. And my first impression of the main character, Samantha, was not good at all. It starts with a competition between her and two other girls. She thinks she will win. But she doesn't. And she runs to the bathroom to cry and sob and just act so badly. I didn't like being inside her head at all. Ugh. It was very painful to read about. So yeah. First impression was not good at all. And then it just went downhill from there. I'm not sure I will even be able to write about all the bad things. But I'm going to try my best. There are a bunch of characters in this book. And, sadly, I didn't like any of them at all. They were just so weird and they didn't feel natural at all. Well, the kids did; only them. Just, disappointing.

This is a book from 1915. Yet I don't think I ever felt like it was a book from the past. I felt like I never saw interesting things from the past. It was to be about World War I, but nothing bad happens at all. Nothing about the war. Just a teenage girl suddenly turning a spy, and trying to search for another spy in such a pathetic way. It wasn't good at all. Sam was a bad and boring character and I felt nothing for her. I didn't like her. But I didn't hate her either. But yeah. No good feelings for her at all, which is just sad.

I don't know how to speak about the plot in this one. It was so badly done. I couldn't stand it. I wanted to DNF this book after the first chapter. But I did not, because it was a print ARC from the publisher. So I read it. And it was such a struggle. I wouldn't have minded to stop reading it no matter when. Sam works as a messenger. Then suddenly she gets a job as a spy. She has zero training in that. None. Then she trains for a couple of weeks. Then gets sent to German. It was all so silly and didn't feel natural.

There is a bit of romance in this book. Well, more like insta-like. There isn't a single kiss. But Sam sees a guard. And she blushes just by looking at him. Wth. So weird. And then he helps her with everything after that, and he smiles and laughs at her all the time, and it did not seem natural at all. I didn't like it. And she has such weird thoughts about him. It was just awkward. I felt nothing for any of them. Small romance, but it sucked. Which breaks my heart. Ugh. Max was nothing special at all, unfortunately.

I don't know what else to say. I mean, there are so many bad things I could mention. But I'm not going to. Two stars. I didn't like the book. But I didn't hate it either, but I would not read it again. Ever. The plot is so badly done. The whole spy thing was so silly. Sam is not a good spy at all. She had such weird thoughts. She did it so badly. She kept thinking so often that she was using people. Just, what? When did she ever use anyone? She never did anything. I felt like this whole book was about.. nothing. Ugh.

I'm sorry for not saying more about this book. I suppose it could have been good. But I felt like it was so boring. This book just takes place inside a castle thingy. With Sam thinking that everyone is Velvet and doing such silly things trying to figure it out. It was so boring and not interesting. I didn't even like the one villain in this book. It made so little sense. There is one death. And I did not care at all. I expected more from this book. I wanted so much more. Like what I got from Wolf By Wolf. Sigh. Disappointed.

Thank you so, so much to Megan at HarperCollins International for sending me this print ARC for review. <3 It is all kinds of gorgeous. I'm so sorry that I sort of hated it. Breaks my heart. But still happy that I read it. And having gotten it from you guys meant the most to me. But, sadly, I will not be ordering the finished hardcover. My space is limited, and considering this was a two star, it is not a book I want to buy and own as a hardcover. Sigh. But I do think others might enjoy it. Maybe. I'm still a bit unsure :)

---

This review was first posted on my blog, Carina's Books, here: http://carinabooks.blogspot.no/2015/0... ...more

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Sep 21, 2015 ash lloyd spanton rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

4.5 Stars

Originally posted on citygirlscapes.

Sadly, I’m not a big history buff, Veronica is more into the historical fiction genre than I am, so I was worried that Velvet Undercover by Teri Brown would be a stretch for me to pick up. But I do love strong female leads and I find espionage pretty fascinating. Lady spy groups? That trumps historical fiction in a heartbeat.

It could have been really easy not to take this book seriously. This could have been really hokey, I saw a very possible slip of 4.5 Stars

Originally posted on citygirlscapes.

Sadly, I’m not a big history buff, Veronica is more into the historical fiction genre than I am, so I was worried that Velvet Undercover by Teri Brown would be a stretch for me to pick up. But I do love strong female leads and I find espionage pretty fascinating. Lady spy groups? That trumps historical fiction in a heartbeat.

It could have been really easy not to take this book seriously. This could have been really hokey, I saw a very possible slip off the side into silly and unnecessary high-school drama overshadowing any solid story, but Brown has written a very tight, thrilling spy book here, where the spies just happen to be teen girls, as opposed to teen girls who just happen to be spies.

Plucked from service as a Girl Guide, we follow Sam through training and mysterious missions, all of which she’s really only putting up with so authorities will look into her father’s disappearance. The training aspect was interesting as we were walked through fight, flight and tracking techniques, but it seemed like this training period was brief and not at all the in depth training you would imagine for the real life MI6, a little brushed over and rushed.

Regarding the historical fiction aspect, yes, this is set somewhere in the middle of World War I, but it’s in London, a place that I’m at least somewhat familiar with. So the whole thing is a little less intimidating and actually works really well as the backdrop for this story. The war also helps explain away the concept of teenage girls as spies, which I’m sure could be argued that it wouldn’t ever be considered for that time period. But the historical setting is a minor character in the story and my hesitance about historical fiction was totally unnecessary. (That said, if you’re seeking a heavy historical fiction novel, this probably isn’t it.)

If Brown was once a spy, do you think she would tell me? She writes about it very naturally without any complex spy garble. Almost as if she’s reciting a firsthand experience, which definitely adds to the overall appeal of the book. Like I said, this easily could have been really cheesy, but it’s not. It’s not overly dense either, like other spy books I’ve read that are heavy on the espionage technicalities and end up reading like a text book. There’s a wonderful blend of a casual story with the seriousness of certain life and death situations mixed in.

I actually enjoyed this much more than I thought I would. Sam is a spunky character, especially for her time, which I enjoyed. But it was also interesting to hear her moral inner dialogue about this whole business as she learns her way and how certain situations require manipulation and otherwise guilty actions. I haven’t read many spy books, but when I do, they’re usually seasoned spies who are already cold to the moralities of their tasks.

But most of all, I loved the ending. I was about to write all this off to a happy gift all tied up pretty in the end and then Brown throws in one last surprise that I honestly didn’t see coming, but made me smile ear to ear. Of course, things do all tie up nicely in the end, but I haven’t enjoyed a read like this in a while and I am so happy I picked this book up. ...more

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Jun 12, 2015 Ruthsic rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: young-adult, historical

Samantha Donaldson's family has always done its duty for the British Crown. In the midst of World War I, seventeen-year-old Sam follows in their footsteps, serving her country from the homefront as a messenger for the intelligence organization MI5. After her father disappears on a diplomatic mission, she continues their studies of languages, mathematics, and complex puzzles, hoping to make him proud.

When Sam is asked to join the famed women's spy group La Dame Blanche, she's torn—while this coul Samantha Donaldson's family has always done its duty for the British Crown. In the midst of World War I, seventeen-year-old Sam follows in their footsteps, serving her country from the homefront as a messenger for the intelligence organization MI5. After her father disappears on a diplomatic mission, she continues their studies of languages, mathematics, and complex puzzles, hoping to make him proud.

When Sam is asked to join the famed women's spy group La Dame Blanche, she's torn—while this could be an unbelievable adventure, how can she abandon her mother, who has already lost a husband? But when her handlers reveal shocking news, Sam realizes she can't refuse the exciting and dangerous opportunity.

Her acceptance leads her straight into the heart of enemy territory on a mission to extract the most valuable British spy embedded in Germany, known only as Velvet. Deep undercover in the court of Kaiser Wilhelm II, Sam must navigate the labyrinthine palace and its many glamorous—and secretive—residents to complete her assignment. To make matters worse she must fight a forbidden attraction to the enemy—a dangerously handsome German guard. In a place where personal politics are treacherously entangled in wartime policy, can Sam find Velvet before it's too late . . . for them both?

Set during the First World War, this story is of Samantha Donaldson, a young bright Girl Scout who was asked to be an undercover spy for the MI5, through La Dame Blanche (a secret woman-only spy organization), and is sent into the heart of Germany to extract an agent who has info on some deadly weapon. The story is divided into parts, each a phase of her spy life, and each chapter starts with a spy word definition giving an idea of what to expect in that chapter. Her training was fun but a little too easy, if you ask me, even after what we find out in the end. The real challenge for her is to find the agent without knowing who exactly it is.

While Samantha gets into the role of Sophia, a relative to the crown princess, she has to skulk around the palace, evade any suspicions, and protect her heart from the handsome personal guard to the prince, Maxwell. Max is a bit suspicious of her, but mostly he overlooks it. She, meanwhile, has moral conflicts over using someone's affections for her job. Though only seventeen years old, she shows quite a lot of maturity, and smarts. The brilliance was a little over-exaggerated, when she literally outwits seasoned spies. Like, did they really underestimate her that much? Anyway, the story has some good twists, and the mystery is the kind that would keep you reading, so overall it's a great spy book.

Received a free galley from Balzer + Bray via Edelweiss; this does not influence my opinions or the review. ...more

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Nov 15, 2015 Candace rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Velvet Undercover is a historical young adult novel about a teen who goes into Berlin undercover as a spy. Now this whole spy thing was something I knew would interest me. But it’s also World War I and I haven’t read a lot of books taking place during that war.

Right away I really liked the character of Samantha. She’s very sure of herself and bold. At the same time she’s able to show her fear and vulnerability, though it’s hidden (at least most of the time) on the outside. She makes a good spy f Velvet Undercover is a historical young adult novel about a teen who goes into Berlin undercover as a spy. Now this whole spy thing was something I knew would interest me. But it’s also World War I and I haven’t read a lot of books taking place during that war.

Right away I really liked the character of Samantha. She’s very sure of herself and bold. At the same time she’s able to show her fear and vulnerability, though it’s hidden (at least most of the time) on the outside. She makes a good spy for the most part, especially considering this is her first time. She has a few blunders but I think that makes it more real. I loved that even after making a mistake she’s able to shake it off and resume. For example, when she’s training she is looking for a tail and realizes that she was a little obvious about it and plays it off as she’s looking around for something and then snaps her fingers, like ‘oh yes, that’s right!’ and continues off with a purposeful stride.

There is some mystery in the book, which I always enjoy. Samantha has to find the spy named Velvet. But that’s about all she knows. So she goes undercover in Berlin to find out who it is and get her out. While there she makes friends with a handsome soldier. They aren’t able to spend a great deal of time together but I enjoyed the time they did spend together and we got a chance to see that this could be a romance. Except that he’s an enemy soldier… The romance is light. Not even a romance, really. Just a friendship that is not really a friendship at all since Samantha is not even the person she’s pretending to be.

The historical aspects and setting were pretty great. I would say it was ‘light’ on the details but this was a good thing. I get bored with war books and that’s why I pick up the YA ones, hoping for something a bit lighter and easier to get through. And in fact I read through this book in a single afternoon/evening. I stayed up just a tad late finishing it up, anxious to find out what happens in the end.

And the ending. Wow, it was fantastic! One big thing I did predict and it wasn’t a surprise at all but several other things totally did surprise me, catching me completely off guard. It was done really well.

I do recommend this one for fans of historical spy stories, it’s a fun and fast read while still giving us what feels like a true look at some history.

You can find this review, and others like it, on my blog at http://www.candacesbookblog.com ...more

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Dec 15, 2015 Abigail Young rated it really liked it · review of another edition

I would have given this five stars because of the emotions that are washing over me, but this is a really cheesy, romancey mystery novel. And I couldn't give it five stars without killing my integrity as a reader.

I have always loved books about world war 1 and especially books with an air of mystery. This book was chock full of spies, codes, secret meetings, stalking, secret formulas, and just the right touch of "OHEMGEE they like eachother". It was actually a pretty decent mystery, too, which ...more

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Mar 17, 2015 Lauren ✨ (TheBookishTwins) rated it liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: edelweiss, highly-anticipated-2015, mystery, owned, historical-fiction

I received an eARC via Edelweiss for review purposes.

Samantha, a bright and talented young girl growing up in WWI, is a Girl Guide and messenger for MI5. She is approached by MI5 to work for the spy organization La Dame Blanche. After she accepts, she's embedded deep undercover with the German royal family to search for another British spy known only as Velvet, who has valuable information.

Velvet Undercover was better in the second half, and I enjoyed the mystery, but other than that I felt th ...more

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Mar 02, 2015 Shelley rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: edelweiss-arc, 2015-release, young-adult-historical

*Source* Edelweiss
*Genre* Young Adult / Historical
*Rating* 3.5-4

*Thoughts*

Teri Brown's Velvet Undercover is the thrilling story of one girl’s journey into a deadly world of spycraft and betrayal—with unforgettable consequences. The story is set to the backdrop of the Great War, aka World War I. Samantha Donaldson is a practical, intelligent British girl. She’s studied code breaking, languages, and mathematics, and she isn’t afraid to prove herself to anyone. She's a strong, brilliant, likable he ...more

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Jun 11, 2015 Alexa rated it liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: read-in-2015

FIRST THOUGHTS: Velvet Undercover is a good, if average, read. I didn't particularly find myself invested in any characters, nor did I particularly find the details (historical or plot) extremely interesting. It was a quick read though, and the writing itself was decent. ...more

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Aug 26, 2019 Luca rated it really liked it · review of another edition

— 3.75 / 5 stars ✨ —

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Jun 13, 2015 Sandy rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: arcs, no-potty-mouth, 2015

I picked up Velvet Undercover because I loved Code Name Verity so much. Granted these are written by two totally different authors, but they both have similar aspects. We’ve got teenage females playing huge roles in World Wars (Verity in World War 2, and Sam in World War 1). Plus…spies. I mean come on! And the one thing that Code Name Verity didn’t really have…romance (which it didn’t need).

We start out Velvet Undercover with Sam being in a competition as a Guide Girl. They compete in all kinds I picked up Velvet Undercover because I loved Code Name Verity so much. Granted these are written by two totally different authors, but they both have similar aspects. We’ve got teenage females playing huge roles in World Wars (Verity in World War 2, and Sam in World War 1). Plus…spies. I mean come on! And the one thing that Code Name Verity didn’t really have…romance (which it didn’t need).

We start out Velvet Undercover with Sam being in a competition as a Guide Girl. They compete in all kinds of areas like the description mentions. Samantha’s performance in the competition as well as her previous work with the Guide Girls has caused her to stand out. Only when she’s offered an opportunity of a lifetime, she’s torn. Her father was abducted in the war and is presumed dead by many. She doesn’t want to leave her mother alone. But when information about her father is dangled in front of her, Samantha can’t turn down the opportunity to trade for answers. She’ll join the LDB in exchange for information on her father.

Samantha is then taken through a brief training period to prepare her for her first undercover spy operation—exposing and recovering another spy, Velvet, lodged deeply undercover in the Kaiser’s household. Personally, I found the amount of training Samantha was given for her mission to be extremely lacking and in no way realistic, but I didn’t dwell on that too much. And so Samantha takes the place of a distant relation to the duchess and will be acting as an assistant governess to the prince’s children. The LDB have narrowed down “Velvet” to two possible people—the governess and a close personal friend of the duchess. The role of assistant governess gets her close to the governess, and the distant relation will get her close to the duchess’s friend. While Sam does have a knack for solving puzzles, I wasn’t all that impressed with her actual spy work. I can’t imagine that you aren’t fearful even if you are a spy, but Sam was often clumsy and let her fear get the better of her.

Early on Sam finds herself feeling trusting and friendly with one of the prince’s personal guards who made her feel calm and welcome. But getting close to Maxwell isn’t the best idea, especially under the circumstances. Maxwell is a loyal guard and Sam isn’t who she pretends to be. Plus she’s on a mission. Yet these two have multiple encounters that spur them along toward one another.

I actually picked out “Velvet” from very early on as well as another twist. Even though these were things I predicted, I didn’t feel like the book was really predictable and I wasn’t 100% certain that I was right. I read Velvet Undercover very quickly. Part of that was because I was really into the story and the other part was because I had opportunity to keep reading and wasn’t forced to put it down. I do see where some might find this one more on the slow side. I won’t say that Velvet Undercover was as good as Code Name Verity, but I think it was a very well done spy book. It had a few flaws, but nothing to hold it back too much. I’m giving Velvet Undercover 4 Stars. Have you read Velvet Undercover? What did you think? Let me know! ...more

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Oct 04, 2015 Hannah Jones rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

I rarely write reviews, but I felt the strong need to do so this time--to right a wrong. Haha, I realize that sounds very overdramatic, but I was excited when I picked up a copy of this book and my excitement was seriously dampened by primarily bad early reviews here on Goodreads.

Diving into the book despite snippets of the low reviews echoing in my head, I read the book beginning to end on the edge of my seat--it's a tense and nail-biting thriller--and was totally in love with the world buildi I rarely write reviews, but I felt the strong need to do so this time--to right a wrong. Haha, I realize that sounds very overdramatic, but I was excited when I picked up a copy of this book and my excitement was seriously dampened by primarily bad early reviews here on Goodreads.

Diving into the book despite snippets of the low reviews echoing in my head, I read the book beginning to end on the edge of my seat--it's a tense and nail-biting thriller--and was totally in love with the world building, the characters, the intrigue and mystery, the AWESOME GERMAN PALACE SETTING. Additionally, amid the flood of badass heroine stories currently available in the YA market--where female characters are superhuman bullet-proof, super smart, and impossible-to-beat born fighters--the main character in VELVET UNDERCOVER, Samantha, was an absolutely refreshing heroine, a girl who certainly has her talents, but also has serious weaknesses, least of which is youth and naivety. She felt like a true teenage heroine and while people scoff at the reader complaint that characters "should be relatable," I will stand staunchly on my soapbox and say that it is NICE as a reader to relate to the main character in the small way of at least believing that, like me, she is a multifaceted human rather than some idealized superhuman version of a female.

I didn't literally miss my train stop while reading this book (some people use this as a gage, I know), but the ticket collector did have to tap my shoulder after several verbal requests for my attention. I was that into this book!

I really expected this book to disappoint somewhere along the way, but it never did. For this reason, it is my totally personal opinion that the low reviews are a reflection of advance reader copies falling into the wrong hands rather than a reflection of the book. If you're in the mood for YA, historical fiction, spies, codebreaking, WWI, and are particularly interested in a setting beyond Allied territory, this book is absolutely going to be your cup of tea.
...more

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Jul 12, 2015 Deyse rated it liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: 2015-reads, read-in-english

Full disclosure: I know shit about WWI. So I had 0 clue of what was supposed to be historical accurate or not, these being plot and costumes or clothes or whatever, so I definetely wasn't in this book for the historical aspect but for the spy stuff and I have to say that it didn't disappoint me.

The strongest quality of Velvet Undercover was its pace, we start with a lot of just information about the spy stuff and them things go building, the mystery starts to form and about 70% in is basically a ...more

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About Teri Brown

Teri Brown

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Well behaved women rarely make history. Teri Brown lived that quote way before she ever even heard it. The two things she is most proud of, (besides her children), is that she jumped out of an airplane once and she beat the original Legend of Zelda video game. She is a novel writer, head banger, pet keeper, math hater, cocktail drinker, booty shaker, book reader, city slicker, food fixer, French k ...more