Technical Rating: 4 out of 5
Enjoyable Rating: 2 out of 5
Genre: Historical Fiction
People who should read this: Historical Fiction fans, people who love badass females, and stories based on real life events.
“Hope was such a painful thing, far more painful than rage.”
If The Alice Network taught me anything, it’s that I need two rating systems - one for my enjoyment of a book and another for the technical side of things - because, though this book was well researched and most of the times well written, I really didn’t like it. The pain and agony that writers are putting into WWII stories is tearing me apart. Which is why I’m now swearing off all WWII based stories. I can’t do it friends. It feels like each new WWII book is trying to outdo the last one.
However, I think most readers will enjoy The Alice Network. Quinn crafted a badass, female story steeped mostly in facts, all of which she explains in detail at the end in her author’s note. Her characters are the heroines that no one talks about. They’re the unsung heroes of the World Wars. These ladies went above and beyond the call of duty and most times were not seen as the threat they really were. And because it’s such an incredible story, I really wanted to like it.
But it was a no go.
“Facing a pistol-wielding murderer does tend to put parents further down the list of things to be intimidated by.”
The first couple of pages immediately turned me off. Charlie’s condition felt like a trap to lure you in - a cheap shot to hook readers. Oh look, it’s the forties and this girl is pregnant and on her way to fix “the little problem”. But she has a secret. A hidden reason of why she’s in Europe. Let’s follow her on her heroic journey of finding out what happened to her cousin. A few pages later, we meet the love interest, so obviously shoved in your face that by the time they do get together, it’s a boring mess of jumbled body parts. I feel like I missed the part where they actually fell in love. Granted, Charlie was hailed as a forward thinking girl of her time, but sometimes she read too Twenty First Century to be believable. How easy it was to slip into thinking it was really a contemporary story. Charlie’s character arc was small, broken up into tiny bits, and left a sour taste in my mouth.
“One college sophomore minus one small encumbrance, divided by six months’ passage of time, multiplied by ten Paris frocks and a new haircut will not magically equal one restored reputation.”
Eve is another beast in the story. If The Alice Network had been solely her story, I think the book would have been better. And if you need one reason to read this story, let it be Eve. Quinn crafted a character from one tiny event that happened to the real life Alice. It’s your typical author explanation of “I saw something and thought, how did it get there”. I’m glad she did. Eve is a great example of a well crafted, fully developed character. Quinn gave Eve some unique traits that I’ve never seen another author pull off successfully. Eve’s stutter is a key part to the story, lending to an interesting side thought about disabilities. Eve’s stutter is what makes her her, never feeling like a gimmick to carry the story along.
Since the ending was fictional anyway, could Quinn have left Charlie out all together and let Eve get to her ending differently? The way Eve lived the thirty years between the two POVs didn’t really feel in her character. Once you read the book, I think you’ll get what I mean. I think we could have had a different ending and cut Charlie’s story out. Charlie’s side of things was just a whole different story with too much information and pain thrown in. Quinn also could have just written a book two - there’s plenty of story to pull it off. With Charlie’s POV gone, Eve could have been developed even more. The possibilities are endless.
“He’d turn his own mother in to the Germans for a profit, not that he has a mother. The devil probably shit him out after a night’s drinking with Judas.”
Though I was mostly bored, would have put this book down if it wasn’t for book club, I’m still going to recommend this book to people. The story is amazing. At the end, I was gripping it between my hands, furiously flipping, and feeling all the emotions. That was for such a short time though that I won’t be changing my enjoyment ranking. I just want this story to be heard. I want people to know about these heroes. What they did, what they had to go through… it’s amazing. The execution of this book could have been slightly better is all. If you have the time, don’t mind a good cry, I think you should read this book.
Happy Reading
Love Kait
Reading Challenge: 54/100