This week, as I read, my predictions were proven to be correct. The character Queenie is in fact Verity herself. Verity, in order to avoid directly describing herself, disguised herself as another character. This added an element of foreshadowing to the story. The Hauptsturmführer (commanding SS officer at the Nazi prison) was the one to see the similarities between Verity and Queenie.
Another development in the story was an implication that Verity's best friend, and the main character of the flashbacks, Maddie, might not have survived the crash landing. The author doesn't go too deep into the details, allowing the reader to infer for themselves whether Maddie is truly dead or not (this also adds the element of suspense). For a few of the following chapters, the story became relatively boring. I almost quit reading. There was too much info on Maddie's flight and etcetera. Eventually, another highlight came along. Vertiy's cellmate (not really cellmate, more of a jail neighbor) was sent to the guillotine. This was the first actual execution in the book. I mean, in a story about World War II, people are definitely going to die.. but this was the first execution that actually meant something. Okay, that sounded heartless. What I mean is that the execution of the French prisoner Marie, was kind of a reality check. It brings back the possibility that Verity might actually die. So far, the author has built up a mutual understanding between Verity and the Hauptsturmführer, but this execution brings up the idea that our beloved main character, might end up dead.
Also, Verity finally revealed her real name (Wow, that's a huge jump from the first paragraph.. I did a lot of reading). This doesn't seem to be very important, but it is. She's been called Scottie, Queenie, Eva, Scheherazade (by von Lindon), and Verity. All of those names are referring to the same flight officer, but not once has she actually mentioned her true name. As Queenie/A whole bunch of other names, reaches the conclusion of her story, she finally reveals it. Lady Julia Lindsay MacKenzie Wallace Beaufort-Stuart. It's quite a regal name. She also mentions that she preferred to be called Julie, with no titles. This revelation also reveals a lot about her characterization. She comes from a powerful family (LADY Julia), she's well educated, and grew up in castle, yet she doesn't exploit her position. Verity, or as I should say, Julie, doesn't care for the lavish lifestyle her family undoubtedly enjoys. She doesn't want to make use of her family name, and instead wants to create a name for herself. Julie wants to be known for what she does, not her family (it's quite impressive how much one simple sentence can reveal). Further analysis of Julie can be found here. Well, I will continue reading and hope that the story becomes more interesting now that Julie's story is finished. The original deal was that she would write, and then be executed, so I am quite curious as to why there's a good 150 pages left.
Another development in the story was an implication that Verity's best friend, and the main character of the flashbacks, Maddie, might not have survived the crash landing. The author doesn't go too deep into the details, allowing the reader to infer for themselves whether Maddie is truly dead or not (this also adds the element of suspense). For a few of the following chapters, the story became relatively boring. I almost quit reading. There was too much info on Maddie's flight and etcetera. Eventually, another highlight came along. Vertiy's cellmate (not really cellmate, more of a jail neighbor) was sent to the guillotine. This was the first actual execution in the book. I mean, in a story about World War II, people are definitely going to die.. but this was the first execution that actually meant something. Okay, that sounded heartless. What I mean is that the execution of the French prisoner Marie, was kind of a reality check. It brings back the possibility that Verity might actually die. So far, the author has built up a mutual understanding between Verity and the Hauptsturmführer, but this execution brings up the idea that our beloved main character, might end up dead.
Also, Verity finally revealed her real name (Wow, that's a huge jump from the first paragraph.. I did a lot of reading). This doesn't seem to be very important, but it is. She's been called Scottie, Queenie, Eva, Scheherazade (by von Lindon), and Verity. All of those names are referring to the same flight officer, but not once has she actually mentioned her true name. As Queenie/A whole bunch of other names, reaches the conclusion of her story, she finally reveals it. Lady Julia Lindsay MacKenzie Wallace Beaufort-Stuart. It's quite a regal name. She also mentions that she preferred to be called Julie, with no titles. This revelation also reveals a lot about her characterization. She comes from a powerful family (LADY Julia), she's well educated, and grew up in castle, yet she doesn't exploit her position. Verity, or as I should say, Julie, doesn't care for the lavish lifestyle her family undoubtedly enjoys. She doesn't want to make use of her family name, and instead wants to create a name for herself. Julie wants to be known for what she does, not her family (it's quite impressive how much one simple sentence can reveal). Further analysis of Julie can be found here. Well, I will continue reading and hope that the story becomes more interesting now that Julie's story is finished. The original deal was that she would write, and then be executed, so I am quite curious as to why there's a good 150 pages left.
No comments:
Post a Comment