Historical Fiction: The Huntress by Kate Quinn

Initially, I was not sure if I was going to pick up Kate Quinn's The Huntress, even though I did enjoy her 2017 novel, The Alice Network. Any consistent reader of this blog knows that I get squirmy when it comes to books about war. Even so, here I am, ready to talk about yet another novel about World War II. Granted, this one mostly takes place immediately after the war has finished, but there is still plenty of talk about Nazi hunting, and post-war feelings about certain cultures.

The Situation: Three individuals are brought together by the same fleeing war criminal. Nina Markova grew up at what she even describes as the end of the world. In icy Russia, she learned to be (almost) completely fearless, while also cultivating a love for flying. It would only be after she spent most of the war as a pilot for the Russian military that she would meet Ian Graham, the brother of an old friend, and someone who is also interested in finding a woman most commonly known as die Jägerin, or the Huntress. Meanwhile, in Boston, Jordan McBride is ready to begin her adult life. While she dreams of going off to college and eventually becoming a great photographer, her father is hoping she will stay close to home and take over the antiques shop. When Mr. McBride suddenly introduces his daughter to a woman he has been seeing, Jordan cannot help the persistent feeling that Anneliese Weber is not who she says she is. But she decides to let go of her suspicions and see her father happy.

The Problem: After her initial suspicions, Jordan has focused on her step-sister Ruth, doing her best to provide a stable life for a young girl who has already experienced too much. And after some fairly touch and go investigative work, Ian and his partner Tony, with Nina's help, manage to track die Jägerin to the U.S, and more specifically to Boston. This brings the trio directly into contact with Jordan and her father's antiques shop. With a handful of names and addresses, Ian and Nina find plenty of people attempting to live peaceful lives in the area, and though they should probably have to stand trial for their own war crimes, none of them are die Jägerin. None of them are the woman both Nina and Ian - each for their own reasons - want to track down. While Ian wants justice, Nina wants revenge, and her memories of the war, her time as a pilot, the friends she flew with, and her struggle to survive on her own only fuel her desire to see the Huntress brought down. But as they follow clues that lead nowhere, they know die Jägerin could be slipping through their fingers, and this time it would be even harder to find her again.

Genre, Themes, History: This is a historical fiction novel set in 1940-1950, and across three continents. Nina begins her part of the story slightly before with her history of growing up in Siberia with her father. After discovering a love of planes and flying, she joins the war effort and ultimately becomes one of the Night Witches, an all female group of Russian bombers who worked to push back Hitler's army during World War II. Jordan's story begins in 1946, when her dad has begun dating the beautiful but strange Anneliese Weber, a woman who escaped post-war Germany with her daughter Ruth in tow. Jordan may not trust Anneliese at first, but she soon moves on from her suspicions and the three enjoy a fairly normal domestic life. And then there is Ian, whose entire life, at least since of the end of the war, has been to find die Jägerin and bring her to justice. His partner Tony may describe her as Ian's 'white whale,' the final catch that will given Ian some peace. With the narrators alternating with every chapter, Jordan and Ian's stories are told in a linear fashion, while Nina's gives flashbacks to her time during the war, culminating in her own encounter with the Huntress, and why she is determined to find her. All of the characters may be fictional, but the events and their accomplishments are based on real people, including die Jägerin.

My Verdict: Overall, I enjoyed the book and think it was well-written, thoroughly researched, and a fantastic look at how women are just as valuable (and dangerous) in battle as men. My problem with the book came from realizing very early on how everything was going to unfold, and I was uncomfortable with waiting out 500+ pages while our narrators attempted to find an incredibly dangerous Nazi war criminal, who is more or less right under their noses. I will say that reading about Nina's history, and her journey from cold and harsh Siberia, all the way to Boston with Ian and Tony, was not only interesting, but incredibly entertaining. Her story slowly, but steadily, reveals why she is the way she is by 1950. But often, I had a hard time liking any of the characters, at least for the first two-thirds or so of the book. However, even with my apprehension over the time period, and the focus on war, and my lack of excitement over the focus being a ruthless Nazi, the story culminated in a satisfying ending, and I gained an overall different view of World War II.   

Favorite Moment: When Ian becomes hooked on the romance novels that Nina has been reading, though she mostly reads them because they help her with her English...mostly. 

Favorite Character: I have a hard time picking anyone from this story as my favorite, and picking Ruth, Jordan's step-sister who escaped Germany with Anneliese, feels like a cheat.

Recommended Reading: I actually enjoyed The Alice Network more, though it is just as stressful. I also recommend Lilac Girls and Lost Roses by Martha Hall Kelly.