Girl in the Blue Coat

By: Monica Hesse

Narrated by: Natalia Payne

An unforgettable story of bravery, grief, and love in impossible times.

The missing girl is Jewish. I need you to find her before the Nazis do.

Amsterdam, 1943. Hanneke spends her days procuring and delivering sought-after black market goods to paying customers, her nights hiding the true nature of her work from her concerned parents, and every waking moment mourning her boyfriend, who was killed on the Dutch front lines when the Germans invaded. She likes to think of her illegal work as a small act of rebellion.

On a routine delivery, a client asks Hanneke for help. Expecting to hear that Mrs. Janssen wants meat or kerosene, Hanneke is shocked by the older woman's frantic plea to find a person - a Jewish teenager Mrs. Janssen had been hiding, who has vanished without a trace from a secret room. Hanneke initially wants nothing to do with such dangerous work but is ultimately drawn into a web of mysteries and stunning revelations that lead her into the heart of the resistance, open her eyes to the horrors of the Nazi war machine, and compel her to take desperate action.

Meticulously researched, intricately plotted, and beautifully written, Girl in the Blue Coat is an extraordinary, gripping audiobook from a bright new voice in historical fiction.

PLEASE NOTE: When you purchase this title, the accompanying reference material will be available in your Library section along with the audio.

©2016 Monica Hesse (P)2016 Hachette Audio

Nice twist

I liked the story and the twist in it. It shows that the author did a lot of research, but she made some weird mistakes (the use of Miles vs. Kilometers, why would German soldiers speak Dutch with a German accent amount themselves?) The narrator is very good, and she seems to be trying, but her pronunciation of Dutch words in painful to me, being fluent in both English and Dutch, is painfully and distracting. Why the author is using Dutch words in a story written in English where they are not needed, is weird and distracting to me.

Lovely story

I read this book and got hooked I have listened to the book several times and it is just as good as the fist time.

Amazing

I loved this book, the ending is so good. It leaves you thinking so many different ways about everything.

Summer reading that’s binge worthy!

This book was on a list of required high school summer reading for juniors. I listened to have a dialogue with my daughter and ended up falling in love with it! Thankful for the author’s hard work researching to give a vivid picture of what real people in that hard time had to experience. The fictional characters are very believable and it would be nice to see how their lives turned out after the war. Worthy of a sequel!

I thoroughly enjoyed this book!!

This story is amazing and will keep you guessing until the end. Excellently written and narrated perfectly. I loved the character development and well- researched details of the period, location and events. Ready to read another book by this author!

Girl in the Blue Coat Book Review

My initial reaction: Why hadn't I read this or heard of this book sooner? 

The only reason I picked this book is was because it was being read as the April pick for a book club. I am absolutely thankful that I got the chance to read this book. I read/listened to half of the book one night and by noon the next day, I had already finished it. I could not put it down. I was so invested in the story, the characters, and the history the novel was presenting. 

I did not originally consider myself a person that likes books with historical events in them. However, after reading this book I have a new appreciation for them, and I actually want to read more books like this one. I had also never read any book by Monica Hesse, and the way she presents this one really has me invested in her writing. I want to read more work from her. I recently also purchased The War Outside, her most recent release, to get signed along with Girl in the Blue Coat at a book signing event Hesse was at, and I cannot wait to read it as well. 

My only "problem" with this novel is that I constantly asked myself why Hanneke was so invested in finding Mirjam. I do think that near the end of the novel, Hanneke gives a brief, sentence-long explanation of why she does. That one description of why she go to the length in her hunt for answers gave me enough to justify her search, but I will admit that I can see who someone else may disagree. It was not really something that stood out when she says why she does search so extensively, and one would actually have to ask that question early on to really notice the answer at the end.

Other than that one picky question I had, I could not find any other complaints. I was too invested in what was going on to really point out anything else that I did not like. It was so real to me! I was getting so anxious and worried. I was scared for the characters throughout. I was frightened to find out what fate Hesse had in store for her characters. When I got to the end, I found myself asking what was next. I am unsure if there is a second part to this novel. It does not need one. I simply want a second book because I really enjoyed the journey Hesse took me on in this book, and I did not want it to end just yet. 

Audible Review:

Payne's narration was well done but was too slow for me at 1.0 and 1.25 speeds. Her narration 1.50 speed was at what I would consider normal, conversation speed and the slowest speed I would listen. The favorite listening speed for me was at 1.75 speed. The speed was just right for me. For those of us who like to multitask and listen on the go, I recommend listening at a 1.5 speed, so one does not miss anything. For those who are listening while reading the book and want to listen at a faster pace, I found 2.0 speed to be the best speeds. 2.5 speed was good too, but I liked 2.0 speed better and easier to follow. 3.0 was manageable and easy enough to follow as well. I was able to keep up with a full chapter when I was testing out the listening speed and was able to get through the whole thing. I do recommend reading along with the book if you decide to listen at 3.0 speed. 3.5 speed was too fast for me, and I had to slow it down to 3.0 speed.

Characters felt real

Very well-done book with characters that are flawed and felt very real. Interesting twists and turns in the story that shine a light on a very small part of the lives of individuals during such a well-known war that are maybe not thought of when thinking of that time period.

A gripping Story of Love and War

Another reviewer did provide a spoiler for this book. Without reiterating it, I thoroughly understand why things unfolded the way they did. I enjoyed the author's sense of character, time and place. Her characters were mostly young people, trying to navigate a world at war, at an age when you think everything should be black and white and they realize, too late, that there's so many shades of gray.
I love the characters, their bravery, their cowardice... it's a young adult novel that will appeal to adults. The writing sucks you in and won't let go, the narration is good (with some imprecise dialogue and slightly-off accents). Well worth your time and credit.

Fiction But Not Fiction

Loved that the author based the story on her visit to Amsterdam and Holocaust sites. Great story

Wow!

I choose the rating because this book had so many compelling elements and the voice actor did so astonishingly awesome. I had read the book before and this felt like the characters came to life. I really recommend this to anyone who likes historical fiction novels, or young adults.