Title: The Bletchley Riddle
Authors: Ruta Sepetys and Steve Sheinkin
Major Themes: Mysteries, Historical Fiction, Codes, Ciphers, England
Synopsis: Jakob and Lizzie, employees at Bletchley Park, help with secret codebreaking operations while trying to figure out what caused their mother’s sudden disappearance.
Over the years, I’ve been thrilled to read various books centered around codebreaking (Roseanna M. White’s Codebreakers series, set in World War I, was a particular favorite). When I saw the description for The Bletchley Riddle, I decided I was interested in this one—I love mysteries, and it had been quite a while since I last read one. Plus, this dealt with siblings, and I love a good family story!
Publisher’s description:
A stunning collaboration between award-winning and bestselling authors Ruta Sepetys and Steve Sheinkin, this middle grade historical adventure follows two siblings at Bletchley Park, the home of WWII codebreakers, as they try to unravel a mystery surrounding their mother’s disappearance.
Remember, you are bound by the Official Secrets Act…
Summer, 1940. Nineteen-year-old Jakob Novis and his quirky younger sister Lizzie share a love of riddles and puzzles. And now they’re living inside of one. The quarrelsome siblings find themselves amidst one of the greatest secrets of World War II—Britain’s eccentric codebreaking factory at Bletchley Park. As Jakob joins Bletchley’s top minds to crack the Nazi’s Enigma cipher, fourteen-year-old Lizzie embarks on a mission to solve the mysterious disappearance of their mother.
The Battle of Britain rages and Hitler’s invasion creeps closer. And at the same time, baffling messages and codes arrive on their doorstep while a menacing inspector lurks outside the gates of the Bletchley mansion. Are the messages truly for them, or are they a trap? Could the riddles of Enigma and their mother’s disappearance be somehow connected? Jakob and Lizzie must find a way to work together as they race to decipher clues which unravel a shocking puzzle that presents the ultimate challenge: How long must a secret be kept?
My thoughts:
The Bletchley Riddle was almost all I hoped it to be. I loved the sibling element—even if they didn’t work together a lot of the time! I especially loved how Jakob tried to take care of Lizzie, even when she didn’t particularly want to be taken care of. I also loved all the different codes and codebreaking things in the book. The historical side, in particular, was my favorite—I’d heard about the Enigma cipher before, but never knew what it was until now. So reading about how they figured out how to crack that code was fascinating! Then there was the mystery of where these siblings’ mother went, and the different encoded messages they were sent…it was a lot of fun to read about!
Where this book disappointed me was in people’s attitudes. There is a hint of a teenage romance in here with people far too young to be seriously thinking about such things, which annoyed me. There’s also a lot of unnecessary lying in the story. And what disappointed me the most was the blatant disrespect of the wishes and orders of people in authority over them. Several times, one character was told they had to go somewhere, and they ended up lying so they wouldn’t have to do that. This was never dealt with in the book or treated as something wrong, and that didn’t sit well with me.
Overall? The Bletchley Riddle is a good book. Because of the things mentioned above, I still haven’t decided whether I’ll read it aloud to my siblings or not—some days, I’m leaning toward yes, because of the history and the fact that I haven’t seen it in other books; some days, I’m not so sure, because I don’t want to encourage deception and disrespect in my siblings. I enjoyed the read, but I’m not sure I’d ever be tempted to read it again. I suspect there could be better books out there on the topic, even though I’ve never read any others myself. If you don’t mind what I’ve mentioned above, and enjoy mysteries, family stories, and history, you’d probably love this story.
I was given a complimentary copy of this book, and this is my honest opinion of it.
WARNING: Goodness is used in ch. 2, 4, 13, 15, 20, 23, 27, 31, 39, 40, 44 (twice), 51, 65, 69, 70, 76, 82, and 92; “for heaven’s sake” is used in ch. 3; bloody is used in ch. 4 and 90; “that poor devil” is used in ch. 5; “Good Lord” is used in ch. 7, 9, and 45; blast or blasted is used in ch. 20, 42, 46, 52, 80, and 90; “by Jove” is used in ch. 21; heavens is used in ch. 23; damn is used in ch. 28; “what the dickens” and crikey are used in ch. 29; blinkin’ is used in ch. 31; blimey is used in ch. 33 and 74; drat is used in ch. 33; gosh is used in ch. 34; “my god” is used in ch. 35; golly is used in ch. 39; “what the blazes” is used in ch. 45; “good grief” is used in ch. 51; swore is used in ch. 56; “I bally well” is used in ch. 63; “what the devil” is used in ch. 65; swear is used in ch. 66; and “the lucky devil” is used in ch. 89. There is lying in ch. 2, 13, 15, 23, 27, 32, 39, 40, 44, 50, 62, 81, 85, and 86.
People smoke multiple times throughout the book. There is stealing in ch. 27 and 80. Chapter 58: Mention of a character’s brother who was shot down over the Channel. Chapter 65 (when talking about a place at Bletchley Park): “Well, the light in the ladies’ loo isn’t broken. The light bulb is intentionally unscrewed, as that location is a preferred spot for snogging.” Chapter 88: Characters in London while it was being bombed. Unmarried people hold hands in ch. 33 and 94, and characters talk about having a crush twice, in ch. 70 and 94.
Age levels:
Reading Independently—Ages 12 – 15, 15 and Above
Links to buy this book:
Amazon: Kindle | Hardcover | Audible Audiobook (unabridged)
AbeBooks: View Choices on AbeBooks.com
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