Code Name Verity really got to me, the characters seem so close, like my own best friends. I kept running the story over again in my head, following all the different strands and trying to puzzle out the false leads. I always look for books with strong female leads, and Code Name Verity has brilliant ones. Elizabeth Wein's meticulous research into the period gives the reader an authentic feel for the world her characters live in, but you don't even notice it because what is really going on is a breathtaking adventure story about characters you really care about. Be warned, you will need a box of tissues to read this book through!

Just started reading it and the characters are like my best friends already. It's really making me think about the war and what people went through. But it's not all serious, I've laughed a lot already but I think it might make me cry later. Best book ever!

I don't know when I last read anything so instantly readable as Code Name Verity. From the very first page Agent Verity grabs the reader by the hand, claiming to be a coward, and then goes on to show her utter bravery in the face of Gestapo interrogation. I have seen other reviews pointing out how "unrealistic" it is that Maddie would be allowed to fly planes during war; I don't think historical accuracy is the crux of the story. The characters are deep, believable and (in the most part) likeable; Agent Verity's interrogators are not pantomime villains and the allies and resistance are not all angels. The circumstances that led Maddie to fly into France are convincing within the thread of the story, which is far more about friendship, bravery and desperation than the technicalities of war (despite Agent Verity's descriptions of British planes and RAF bases, for the benefit of the Gestapo). I think it is the immediacy of the story that caused the publisher to market Code Name Verity as a children's book (young adult, whatever), or perhaps it is the lack of overt sexuality (implicit is another matter) and heavy swearing. It is certainly not a fluffy story; a happy ending would be a betrayal. But buckets of blood, this is a good 'un.

It's best to go into this book knowing as little as possible about what happens. To be told even a little of what goes on could ruin the whole experience and so I will try and write some coherent thoughts that don't give away a million plot points. This was an epistolary novel like no other I have read. Our first protagonist, who I shall not name, is writing letters to her captors, who want to know everything about the British war effort. These letters were written in third person but, throughout, the narrative occasionally changes tack and slips into first person - it was here that we realise all is not exactly well between this woman and the Gestapo holding her, just how much she is suffering at their hands. It was such an interesting way to start this story. I felt as if I was thrown right in there with her, confused and not knowing what on earth was happening. I loved that Wein didn't feel the need to tell me everything, she let characters do that and just assumed that I would know, 150 pages later, what she was relating to. And I did. It's hard to forget such a book, such a character. This book was split into two: part one by our mystery spy and part two by the pilot of the story, Maddie. Despite the fact that both sections were written in first person and about two women of a similar age, they had very distinct voices. I find this a rare thing: sometimes the only thing that distinguishes characters voices in my head is everything else that makes up the story. And Maddie's story is no less thrilling than the spy's. It was a joy to read her side of their friendship. This was a wonderful book, one that was both funny in places and utterly devastating. Keep the tissues beside you. Ignore the fact it seems like the characters are a bit modern, suspend your disbelief at the tolerance of the Gestapo when it comes to the spy writing her letters (and who really knows something like this never happened?) and just enjoy this book for what it is: a story about two marvellous, courageous and beautiful young women who I will never forget.

I really don't think I can do justice to this book. It's the best thing I've read in quite a while, and only one other book has moved me as much as this one - The Book Thief. I like this coincidence, since both are set during World War II and both feature strong female heroines, although in the case of Code Name Verity there are actually two strong female heroines, with the narrative being split between them. "It's like being in love, discovering your best friend." So says the first narrator, describing an early encounter with Maddie. And indeed, the first half of the book reads very much like a loveletter. Under the guise of providing information to the Gestapo, the narrator recounts the story of her and Maddie's friendship, from their very different beginnings up to the night when their plane was shot down over Occupied France. The narrator has been tortured, and her story is interspersed with harrowing details of the way she and other prisoners of the Gestapo are treated. But it is also filled with beauty and humour; it's almost as if she can escape whatever fate awaits her when she talks of Maddie's exploits, or remembers the fears they shared with each other. For me, it's these lighter moments that allow the reader to keep reading through the horrific reality of the present. This is a story of friendship and bravery. Of undercover intrigue and derring do. Of two girls from very different backgrounds who make the perfect team. It's heartbreaking and beautiful and I want to make everyone I know read it. So if you've made it this far and you've yet to pick up the book, why not give it a try?