The Huntress

A Novel

By: Kate Quinn

Narrated by: Saskia Maarleveld

Length: 19 hrs and 4 mins

Publisher's summary

From the author of the New York Times and USA Today best-selling novel The Alice Network comes another fascinating historical novel about a battle-haunted English journalist and a Russian female bomber pilot who join forces to track the Huntress, a Nazi war criminal gone to ground in America.

In the aftermath of war, the hunter becomes the hunted....

Bold and fearless, Nina Markova always dreamed of flying. When the Nazis attack the Soviet Union, she risks everything to join the legendary Night Witches, an all-female night bomber regiment wreaking havoc on the invading Germans. When she is stranded behind enemy lines, Nina becomes the prey of a lethal Nazi murderess known as the Huntress, and only Nina's bravery and cunning will keep her alive.

Transformed by the horrors he witnessed from Omaha Beach to the Nuremberg Trials, British war correspondent Ian Graham has become a Nazi hunter. Yet one target eludes him: a vicious predator known as the Huntress. To find her, the fierce, disciplined investigator joins forces with the only witness to escape the Huntress alive: the brazen, cocksure Nina. But a shared secret could derail their mission unless Ian and Nina force themselves to confront it.

Growing up in post-war Boston, 17-year-old Jordan McBride is determined to become a photographer. When her long-widowed father unexpectedly comes home with a new fiancée, Jordan is thrilled. But there is something disconcerting about the soft-spoken German widow. Certain that danger is lurking, Jordan begins to delve into her new stepmother’s past - only to discover that there are mysteries buried deep in her family...secrets that may threaten all Jordan holds dear.

In this immersive, heart-wrenching story, Kate Quinn illuminates the consequences of war on individual lives, and the price we pay to seek justice and truth.

This audiobook includes an episode of the Book Club Girl Podcast, featuring an interview with Kate Quinn about The Huntress.

©2019 Kate Quinn (P)2019 HarperCollins Publishers

Great Female Characters & Performance, Weak Plot

This title features a nice trio of strong, independent female characters doing things that were most definitely considered male tasks in the era the book is set in--and, indeed, by some even today. In addition to their vocational success, these women also cast off the prudish, patriarchal model of sexual behavior for a liberated, modern approach. The male characters also display a near-21st Century level of enlightenment and have enough development to avoid being hackneyed or one-dimensional.

On the other hand, there's a major hole in the plot that sustains about a third of the book's content. (The prey going unnoticed right under the trio's noses.) Other minor weaknesses added to the effect. There were also some notable technical blind spots related to the processing of film (versus the printing of pictures from negatives) and the basic identity and function of guns (rifles and shotguns are fundamentally different things) and it somewhat undermines the overall effect. What good is it to write strong female characters if you ask your readers to overlook weak thinking and technical flaws in the story? It honestly undermines the whole effort by minimizing the knowledge required by these women to do the things that they do. Full technical accuracy and a bit more detail about the processes and challenges involved would improve the work overall.

I loved the narration! Great job on that front.

Not as good as The Alice Network

Still a pretty good book. Saskia Maarleveld is an AMAZING narrator. Had it not been for her I would have stopped listening a long time ago. I skipped a bunch a “Nina” chapters because they were boring and confusing and I was still able to keep up with the flow of the book. Also, the ending was too simple and easy to predict. All in all it was a good book to listen to while doing housework.

Loved it

A very good thriller, very engaging. It reads very fast and with a good ending.

Amazing narrator!

I loved the book, the history behind it, and especially the narrator! Use your credit on this one : )

Really fun novel

This novel goes back and forth in time, from post World War II Boston to Russia during the war. In Boston, 17 year-old Jordan McBride wants to be a photographer, when her widower father brings home a suspicious European woman. Meanwhile, Nina is a crazy Siberian woman who only wants to fly, and gets a chance against the Nazis. The other plot thread consists of Nazi hunters looking for the woman who killed one of their brothers. All three plot threads were interesting. I liked the first half and loved the second half. There is history, action, mystery, and romance, with interesting and believable characters. This is quality escape fiction that will appeal to men and women. The story is a solid 4.5 stars to me, and the great narration upped this to a 5 star listen. The narrator did am amazing job doing both male and female voices equally well. That is rare.

Interesting Story

Enjoyed the plot of the story. Really the only reason I gave it 3 stars for the story is because of several entire useless chapters of sexual scenes that have absolutely nothing to do with the story line and add nothing to the story.

The Russian accent

Good story if you like historical novels. Very well written and the characters are believable and relatable.

One of the best

Really enjoyed this book from cover to cover ! Ms K Quinn did a masterful job piecing all the characters together ! Sorry it ended !

Rivetting

This book was rivetting from beginning to end. I couldn't hardly quit listening to go to bed, go to work, or do anything but listen. The characters were so real, and the description of the places were like I was transported right to those places, myself.

Great novel

The great intertwining of the three story lines was so wonderfully done. I didn’t want it to end!