Code Name Verity by Elizabeth Wein → Start Date: June 3rd, 2013

[Vicki]

Awe, that's a beautiful thing to say. Thank you! :)

[Kathy]

I'm really loving now!! lol

Ok a quick post! I think I've changed my mind about (view spoiler)[ Queenie isn't real and Maddie is actually the one telling the story! See I have crazy theories too! lol :D

Queenie is supposed to not know about anything plane realted and absolutely not sense of direction what so ever right? It seems to me that in saying that her "friend" Maddie is the pilot and that is where she's learned all of her info on anything plane or airbase related and she throws suspicion off of herself! She gives them just enough critical info to stay alive and not tortured until she can escape or be rescued! As far as her being a spy purposely dropped or actually captured I'm still not sure on that! (hide spoiler)]


Good grief!! Did I explain all of that right? That might have sounded better in my head!! I have a good momentum going so I'm going to keep reading!!

[Kathy]

Vicki! It sounds like you're so much fun with your family!! That's so awesome that you're able to see them and spend time with them!! So happy for you!

I'll be doing the same next month and won't get to read much, so I know how you feel! I hope you get to pick this one up soon!! It's really good and I think you'll like it! So no worries!! Have fun with your kids and spoil your grand kids!! :D

[Vicki]

Awe, thanks Kathy!!! I definitely spoil them as much as I think is good for them! Lol Today or tomorrow they (2) are getting surfing lessons! Hope they love it!! I'd like to take them to Sea World, but not sure we'll make it this trip. My 5 and 9 year old granddaughters have never been.

I can't wait to read this one ASAP!!!

[Kathy]

Wow! Surfing lessons? Very cool! Sea World sounds fun too! And you're welcome!! :)

[Trisha, lives on coffee]

Kathy wrote: "Good grief!! Did I explain all of that right? That might have sounded better in my head!! I have a good momentum going so I'm going to keep reading!!..."

no, I totally followed you! You explained great :D
right, I struggled thinking "is she Maddie?! Is she Queenie!??! WHO IS THIS PERSON!!!"

Your theories were exactly what mine were too!!!

[Kathy]

Ok just finished part 1!! I'm not going to bed just yet, going to see how much I can finish before I absolutely have to. Tomorrow is my Saturday to work, so we'll see! :)

And that last line was pretty Sweet!!! :)

[Trisha, lives on coffee]

(love your new photo of Four / Tobias :D)

[Kathy]

I know right!!! Just released today! He looks doesn't he! lol :D

[Kathy]

Ok wow!! I loving this book and it's so hard to put down, but I have to go to bed!! ugh! lol

There are no chapter #s so it's hard to say where I'm at in part 2!

Paul (view spoiler)[ is an A**!!! He has some nerve! (hide spoiler)]

Ok tell me if I'm right or not! (view spoiler)[ So Verity/Julie/Eva gave v.L. an operator and a destination for 11 wireless lets, but they were all FAKE!?!? So here she is writing all of this out and it's all gibberish!!! Bloody Brilliant!! lol (hide spoiler)]

I'll try to wrap this one up soon! :)

[Trisha, lives on coffee]

YES! you are totally right

isn't she amazing!?!?!!!!!!

[Kathy]

Yes! I mean I knew that she (view spoiler)[ couldn't be giving out pertinent info or at least as little as possible. I mean she seemed too honorable to me, she played William Wallace for Pete's sake when she was a kid! (hide spoiler)]

lol :)

[Kathy]

Ok I'm done! Yes, I did love it! I loved Verity and Maddie's friendship!! So beautiful and just Bloody Brilliant!!! I loved the authors's note too!

I have three favorite quotes!!

"Fly the plane, Maddie!"

"Careless talk costs lives."

KISS ME HARDY! Kiss me QUICK!"

[Trisha, lives on coffee]

"Careless talk costs lives."

gah, I loved loved loved all three of those quotes too!

the last one though :( Oh Verity!

Do you plan to read book 2 in the series??

[Kathy]

Trisha wrote: ""Careless talk costs lives."

gah, I loved loved loved all three of those quotes too!

the last one though :( Oh Verity!

Do you plan to read book 2 in the series??
[bookcover:Rose Under Fire|1785..."

I know! I had to put the book down for a few before I continued! I really loved it! Yes, I do plan to read it even if I have to buy it I will!!! :)

[Trisha, lives on coffee]

lol I'm lucky
my library already has it on order :D I'm excited! If the writing is any indication, I think I will LOOOOVE book 2!
I just passed this book on to my mom today :D

[Kathy]

Oh!! You are lucky!! I agree about the writing, this is the kind of book that makes me want to buy it cause I loved it so much even though I've already read it!! If for nothing else but to pass it around to everyone I know!! lol :)

Also my boss was listening to it on audio CD and I wondering how the narrator would convey the clues in the book. The underlining of sentences and things. Needless to say my boss didn't finish it, she said it was too dry! I'm going to have to change her mind in the morning!!! lol :D

[Ally]

AH sorry guys!! I was at prom weekend for the past few days so I didn't have a way to get in touch with all of you (though I did get some beach reading done!)

I just finished Code Name Verity. HOLY CRAP IT WAS AMAZING. Okay I'm going to read through the discussion now and edit this to add in my two cents.

[Ally]

Never mind, I'm just adding another post because I don't want to flip back and forth between the pages LOL

Responses to Discussion Points:
(view spoiler)[
- I definitely knew that the underlining and such was important. But, on a kindle I didn't have the energy to piece it all together (and I knew someone would compile it later.) I wish I had written everything down on my own and solved it myself. Would have been fun.
- I also had NO IDEA that Engel was sympathetic. I thought she was just another lazy, tired, authority-following civillian. I have respect for her now (somewhat).
- Didn't pick up on the fact that she was Queenie. Or that she was an interrogator. Both were surprising plot twists for me.
- Also, I had no idea that everything she said was a lie. So convincing. and SO RELIEVING. I love Verity. Definitely one of my favorite characters of all time.
- Trisha, that was really impressive with the notes and Engel and Verity! You were pretty much spot on. My laziness precluded me from guessing.
- Totally missed all of the code within Penn's interview. I knew a little bit, but definitely not the full conversation that the others' pieced together.
- As for why v.L is letting her write this, I think he's partially amused. I think Verity reminded him of Isolde in a way, and she was a fighter. She had character, and she was intelligent. I feel like that place was miserable, and she livened it up for him a bit (though he'd never admit that to superiors, or anyone for that matter).
- Super impressed with how Verity handled everything as well. Fake wireless sets, subtly slipping clues to Penn, etc.
- I'm heartbroken over the way Maddie shot Julie. Sad, necessary, but just sad. I really wanted that happily ever after for them, but Jamie/Lady Beaufort-Stuart made it better.
(hide spoiler)]

Overall Thoughts:
(view spoiler)[
- I understand now why all of the reviews are people unable to capture their thoughts about the book. I can't myself.
- Honestly I don't know what to think about a sequel. Obviously I'm going to read it, but this was a brilliant standalone novel and I really, really, really don't want a sequel to ruin it.
- It's been a long time since I've read a book this heavy. It's not that I wasn't interested in the beginning, but I thought it was really slow. Most of my curiosity was more "ok let's skip to the part where they meet up", so it was more anticipatory excitement than the intrigue due to the current plot for over half of the book. I understand that all of the backstory was necessary, so I don't fault the author, but I still wasn't thrilled about it either. I don't know how Wein would fix that, but its a complaint of mine nonetheless. I'd rate 4.5 stars because of that if I could.
- But then once Maddie takes over, the story is incredible and I doubt whether I could ever give a story like this less than 5 stars. Good thing you can't give half stars on GR and I'm forced to round up regardless ;)
- I love Jamie!! That whole family is just... perfect. Tragically perfect, I guess. But so inspiring.
- Okay, after writing all of that I have decided my thoughts on a sequel. I think I would rather a longer epilogue instead, maybe five years later Maddie finding the papers again in the Beaufort-Stuart library and adding a final few pages to the collection. Because I want to know more. But I still stand on the fact that I think this should be a standalone, not a series.
(hide spoiler)]

Kathy, I get how an audiobook of this could be dry at parts! Too many abbreviations and names and places to remember (especially in Europe, as an American). If I wasn't staring at them, I don't think I would have absorbed anything. Also, as an English/Spanish speaker, I needed to see the French words if I had any hope of understanding them. Luckily Spanish/French look alike, even if they don't sound it!

The real question is - when are we scheduling the sequel?

EDIT again: Just realized that the sequel isn't actually a sequel with the same characters!! I'm much happier now. But I don't think I would read it right away, I need to space out such heavy books, and I think that the two stories would jumble in my mind if I read them close together.

[Trisha, lives on coffee]

Ally wrote: "The real question is - when are we scheduling the sequel? ..."

Yay! I'm so glad you liked it!! The beginning WAS heavy!

Book 2! I know, it's hard to hope for another great book but I'm so excited! LOL!

it's out in September!! :D I will be ready when you guys are :D

[Ally]

Trisha wrote: "Ally wrote: "The real question is - when are we scheduling the sequel? ..."

Yay! I'm so glad you liked it!! The beginning WAS heavy!

Book 2! I know, it's hard to hope for another great book but ..."

OH it's not even out yet? Show's how much attention I was paying LOL but we should all read it together then!!

[Trisha, lives on coffee]

YES!!! I think we should too!!!

[Kathy]

Ally!! I so glad you liked it too!! I think you're right about why v.L. let her write it all out! I loved Jamie and their mom, loved them!!

Don't feel bad about not picking up on those things cause I was so clueless! About the only thing I had predicted was the she (view spoiler)[ was Queenie. (hide spoiler)] That was really about it.

I talked to my boss about the audio CDs and she said it was really slow, also I showed her the book and the underlined sentences and things and she said she will have to try again but with the book.

I was so sad for (view spoiler)[ Maddie when she had to shoot Verity. Also that was Julie's grandmother or aunt...I don't remember which...that cooked Maddie her the egg and comforted her after she shot Julie, right? She had to know that was Julie when had the bodies buried. So sad, you know I cried like a baby. (hide spoiler)]

Yes! We will have to read the next book together!! :)

[Ally]

About Julie's grandmother, (view spoiler)[yes. I think it was implied that she was the old woman in Ormaie who the Damask circuit was named after. It's amazing how everyone in the family is so important in the war, and so skilled at what they do. (hide spoiler)]

The more I think about the story, the better it gets! She put so much effort into every detail.

[Kathy]

Ally wrote: "About Julie's grandmother, [spoilers removed]

The more I think about the story, the better it gets! She put so much effort into every detail."

I know! I loved how it all clicked together in the end! When reading Verity's confession all you get is little bits and pieces, not the entire story...even after everything she wrote! But then the 2nd half, it was like you got the rest of the puzzle and it all fit perfectly! :)