Starred review from December 20, 2021
Sepetys (The Fountains of Silence) unveils the culture of constant surveillance in communist Romania through an ominously suspenseful historical novel set at the brink of revolution. Under the corrupt authoritarian Ceaus’escu’s tenure in 1989 Bucharest, canny aspiring writer Cristian Florescu, 17, keeps his true observations secret as he studies English and jots down illegal thoughts, such as jokes and notes from a contraband travel guide, in a notebook. When an agent of the secret police blackmails him for accepting a dollar of foreign currency from the son of his mother’s U.S. diplomat client, and promises life-saving medication for his grandfather, Cristian is forced to inform on his loved ones. Tensions intensify as the teen suspects everyone close to him for the betrayal that led to his blackmail, including best friend Luca, crush Liliana, and even his own family (all characters cue as white), and wrestles with how to use his new position to resist authority. As the betrayals’ nuances become clear via interspersed intelligence reports, Cristian’s tense first-person narrative foregrounds stark historical realities (families keep an inventory of American cigarettes as black market currency, police ruthlessly beat protesters), unflinchingly confronting deprivations and cruelty while balancing them with perseverance and hope as Romania hurtles toward political change. Back matter includes an author’s note. Ages 12–up. Agent: Steven Malk, Writers House.

Starred review from February 1, 2022

Gr 9 Up-Sepetys's latest book maintains the caliber readers have come to expect from an author whose focus on hidden histories has made her a YA powerhouse of historical fiction. Cristian is a 17-year-old living in Romania in 1989 with his family in the sterile concrete block housing that Ceausescu's communist state allows, with little to eat and no liberties. When Cristian reluctantly agrees to become an informer to protect his grandfather, nothing is sacred: not his budding relationship with Liliana, not his friendship with Luca, and not his musings about Romania in a notebook that will be a tool to fight back, if he makes that choice. Romania blossoms under Sepetys's attention to detail which comes from personal interviews, archival research, and traveling. These complexities are then infused into the setting and cast of characters whose surveillance means betrayal lurks everywhere, evidenced by the secret reports resourcefully sprinkled into the narrative. Mysterious as it is thrilling, the book's short chapters create an atmosphere of impending danger leading to a historical event in Eastern Europe that may be unknown to many yet is necessary to be told. The impending revolution pressurizes Cristian's next move, reminiscent of Matt Killeen's Orphan Monster Spy that blurs the line of good and evil. VERDICT Sepetys is a formidable writer, and her stories declare the need to write about global issues of social injustice. For that reason and her attention to detail, this is a must-read.-Alicia Abdul

Copyright 2022 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

May 1, 2022
Cristian has grown up under the dictatorship of Ceauescu in Communist Romania. Now it's October 1989, and he's conditioned to life in his family's cramped apartment; to queuing for meagre, awful food; and to whispering indoors to avoid the surveillance of the brutal secret police, the Securitate. Then a Securitate agent blackmails him into becoming an informant. The agent has the power to destroy his future and family, so what can Cristian do? At the cost of trust, friendship, and romance, he must play along -- at least until he joins the thousands of Romanians who rise up to overthrow Ceauescu and the Securitate. Sepetys (Between Shades of Gray, rev. 5/11; The Fountains of Silence, rev. 9/19) paints a nuanced picture of the effects of the deprivation, anxiety, and fear created and upheld by Ceauescu's tyrannical rule. In quick, economical language, she provides historical detail and shows readers a context in which one contraband can of Coke can result in a police report, but also one in which the courage and solidarity of youth can change a country's oppressive regime. Back matter includes photos, an author's note with historical background, and a note on research and sources. Deirdre F. Baker

(Copyright 2022 by The Horn Book, Incorporated, Boston. All rights reserved.)

Starred review from December 1, 2021
A rare look at the youth-led rebellion that toppled Romania's Ceaușescu. Seventeen-year-old Cristian Florescu, with his spiky hair, love of poetry and English, and crush on Liliana Pavel, is as much of a rebel as it's possible to be in Bucharest, Romania, in 1989. Communist dictator Nicolae Ceaușescu has been in power for 24 years, and most Romanians live in poverty, exporting what they produce to unknowingly fund Ceaușescu's obscenely extravagant lifestyle. Wild dogs attack children in the streets, and secret agents are everywhere. When an agent confronts Cristian with evidence of treason--a single dollar bill tucked inside his notebook--and also offers medicine for Bunu, his sick grandfather, Cristian agrees to spy on the American diplomat family whose son he's become friendly with. But as young Romanians gradually become aware that other countries have gained freedom from communism, they rise up in an unconquerable wave. Sepetys brilliantly blends a staggering amount of research with heart, craft, and insight in a way very few writers can. Told from Cristian's point of view, intercut by secret police memos and Cristian's own poetry, the novel crackles with energy; Cristian and his friends join the groundswell of young Romanians, combining pragmatism, subterfuge, hope, and daring. While the story ends with joy on Christmas Day, the epilogue recounts the betrayals and losses that follow. The last line will leave readers gasping. Compulsively readable and brilliant. (maps, photos, author's note, research notes, sources) (Historical fiction. 12-18)

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Starred review from January 1, 2022
Grades 8-11 *Starred Review* Sepetys (The Fountains of Silence, 2019) once again masterfully portrays a dark, forgotten corner of history: Bucharest, Romania, winter 1989. For nearly 25 years, Romania's communist dictator Nicolae Ceaușescu and his wife, Heroine Mother Elena, perpetrated unspeakable human-rights abuses on their people. By focusing on one voice, 17-year-old Cristian Florescu, Sepetys amplifies the isolation, fear, and uncertainty experienced during the final months of Ceaușescu's regime. Cristian shares a tiny apartment with his parents, older sister, Cici, and beloved, rebellious grandfather, Bunu. They speak in whispers and spend hours in line for cooking oil or a single onion. Cristian writes in a journal he hides under the floorboards and dreams of kissing his beautiful classmate, Liliana. When a dollar bill appears in his stamp collection, the secret police use it as leverage to force him to inform on a U.S. diplomat. Cristian's short, almost breathless first-person chapters are interspersed with chilling interview reports by his assigned Securitate agent. Cristian, Liliana, and their friend Luca join the final uprising, from University Square to notorious Jilava prison. The worst tortures take place offstage, but beatings, mental torment, and near starvation do not. Suspenseful twists continue to the very end, when Cristian's betrayer is revealed. The back matter, too, is fascinating; it encompasses archival photographs, an author's note, an extensive source list, and a description of the research process and several in-person interviews.

COPYRIGHT(2022) Booklist, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

January 1, 2022
Cristian has grown up under the dictatorship of Ceausescu in Communist Romania. Now it's October 1989, and he's conditioned to life in his family's cramped apartment; to queuing for meagre, awful food; and to whispering indoors to avoid the surveillance of the brutal secret police, the Securitate. Then a Securitate agent blackmails him into becoming an informant. The agent has the power to destroy his future and family, so what can Cristian do? At the cost of trust, friendship, and romance, he must play along -- at least until he joins the thousands of Romanians who rise up to overthrow Ceausescu and the Securitate. Sepetys (Between Shades of Gray, rev. 5/11; The Fountains of Silence, rev. 9/19) paints a nuanced picture of the effects of the deprivation, anxiety, and fear created and upheld by Ceausescu's tyrannical rule. In quick, economical language, she provides historical detail and shows readers a context in which one contraband can of Coke can result in a police report, but also one in which the courage and solidarity of youth can change a country's oppressive regime. Back matter includes photos, an author's note with historical background, and a note on research and sources.

(Copyright 2022 by The Horn Book, Incorporated, Boston. All rights reserved.)