The Rose Code by Kate Quinn

Genre: Historical Fiction

Format: Print, Hardcover & Audio Book

Pages: 624

Start Date: April 13th, 2023

End Date: April 19th, 2023

My Ratings

Overall: ★★★★★

Character Development: ★★★★★

Ending: ★★★★

Spice Level: 🌶

Tear Jerk-ability: 💧💧💧

Pace: Medium to Slow

Recommend: Yes

Triggers: Loss of Loved Ones - Specifically a Child

Summary In My Words

Osla, Mab (Mabel), & Beth are serving during the war at Bletchley Park. Osla is proving herself, Mab is fulfilling her lifelong goals, & Beth is finding herself. As each finds their way, they lose one another. Each fighting their own battles with the goal to win a singular war.

My Thoughts - Contains Spoilers, Continue at Your Own Risk

Osla is a debutante, seen as a silly filly with no real skills dying to prove her worth to everyone around her. Mab is a strongwilled, determined woman letting nothing stand in her way of obtaining her goals & leaving her past behind to better herself. Beth is a meek & quiet soul, living beneath the thumb of her overbearing mother believing she has nothing else to offer but a life of serving her family.

I really liked how the author provided a balance of "before" & "current". It let us learn the characters story slowly - giving us a glimpse of who they were & how that shaped who they are now. I also appericated the author using existing people in the story, the mix between fiction & reality made it easier to believe this all could have happened. I will say, it felt a little drawn out & the middle bulk was very s-l-o-w. One it picked back though, I had a hard time putting it down. I knew there were code breakers & that they made a significant difference during the war, but I didn't know anout Bletchly Park or what happened behinds the scenes so this was all incredibly eye opening. I cannot imagine a living a life where even your family can't know what you're up to.

This book touches a lot of stereotypes surrounding women - how society puts them in a box & labels it. Making it almost impossible for them to break free & be themselves. To this day women still face these issues, but because of women like the ones described in this book we've come a long way.

I'm surprised at myself for not picking up that Lucy was Mab's daughter, I mean of course she was. The clues were all RIGHT THERE in front of me. It made the shock of. her death hit that much harder, Mab wanted the world for that little girl & I was heartbroken she hadn't gotten the chance to do it. I'm glad that eventually Mab moved on, maybe not for the right reasons at first. I'm hopefull that if there were ever to be a sequel we'd read about the love she'd allowed herself to have with Michael, to finally allow herself to move on from Francis.

Osla grew so much, regressed a little agreeing to marry Giles, but made up for it in the end by taking a stand for not only herself but all of her friends & her country.

Beth really found herself in a way, but also completely lost herself in another. Does she ever actually come into her own? Is it possible to just be whatever consumes you at the time (her mother, the codes, vengence) & that be your one & true personality?

I think the ending did a good job of resolving the issue & giving you a nice little bit of "what ifs" for each character, let you use your imagination to think up of how their chapters ended separately.

I'm Curious

1. Do you think that Prince Phillip is vile enough in real life to do what he did to Osla in the book? Or is it just me that thinks he should have said something sooner to her about it? Even if she hadn't written, he could have written to tell her.
2. Do you think Beth is at all resposible for what happened in Convetry? Do you think Mab had the right to also blame Osla for what happened?
3. Do you think Mab & Osla are in part responsible for what happened to Beth? Do you think the "traitor" would have found a way to get "rid" of her some other way, with or without their testimony?
4. We're you surprised that Osla was engaged to Giles? We're you even more surprised to find out who Giles really was?
5. Do you think Giles was genuine in his belief that sharing the information they'd obtained at BP with "allies" was for the betterment of the country? Or was he just a selfish jerk trying to make a buck?

Next Book: Adelaide by Genevieve Wheeler