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A review by erinarkin20
Skandal by Lindsay Smith
4.0
3.5 stars
Skandal is the second book of the Sekret series by Lindsay Smith and I thought it wrapped up Yulia’s story in a good way.
The book picks up with Yulia living in Washington D.C. with her father and Valentin. Having left her brother and mother behind, Yulia is constantly worried about them and how they are being used by the KGB but she is also unsure about her place within the CIA. She has been placed within a group to help her learn more about her psychic power so she can in turn, help the government figure out what General Rostov is up to and how to stop him but she definitely has some challenges to overcome due to the fact that she is Russian and worked fro Rostov.
Yulia is at a point where she needs to embrace her power and she does but she also struggles with knowing that everything she does for the CIA is a danger to her mother. I liked seeing her grow into her psychic ability and eventually begin to use it in a way that allows her to understand she is a strong, young woman. On top of her learning to use her ability better, she is also learning more about who her father is and what he has been up to. It was tough for Yulia to reconcile the man she is with now with the man she grew up with and loved. He is so different and she has no idea why. When she does find out why, it all began to make sense.
One of my favorite parts of this book was seeing the relationship between Yulia and Valya evolve. As Valya continues to struggle with his ability and the things he remembers from his childhood, Yulia looks to do whatever she can to help him. This could be as simple as being with him during a nightmare or on the extreme end, absorbing his vision and pain. This is where mastering her ability was important for her and she is willing to go to whatever lengths she has to in order to help Valya.
On top of all of that, Yulia is reminded every day that they have commitments to the government to help bring down the General however they could and that means they can't just hide away from everyone in their house. They are all in danger and the fact that the KGB has people out in the world that are being used to get to the most important people in the government, creates an even greater danger for Yulia and the group as their abilities are being used against them in some situations.
The pacing in this book felt a bit slower than the last book and at times I struggled with it but in the end, I thought the story was well done. Smith brought all of the pieces together and linking the paranormal aspect with the governmental fears of the 1960’s was great. I’m a history nerd so this was right up my alley and if you liked the first book, definitely check out this one as you will want to know how things end up for this group.
Thank you to the publisher for the review copy.
Skandal is the second book of the Sekret series by Lindsay Smith and I thought it wrapped up Yulia’s story in a good way.
The book picks up with Yulia living in Washington D.C. with her father and Valentin. Having left her brother and mother behind, Yulia is constantly worried about them and how they are being used by the KGB but she is also unsure about her place within the CIA. She has been placed within a group to help her learn more about her psychic power so she can in turn, help the government figure out what General Rostov is up to and how to stop him but she definitely has some challenges to overcome due to the fact that she is Russian and worked fro Rostov.
Yulia is at a point where she needs to embrace her power and she does but she also struggles with knowing that everything she does for the CIA is a danger to her mother. I liked seeing her grow into her psychic ability and eventually begin to use it in a way that allows her to understand she is a strong, young woman. On top of her learning to use her ability better, she is also learning more about who her father is and what he has been up to. It was tough for Yulia to reconcile the man she is with now with the man she grew up with and loved. He is so different and she has no idea why. When she does find out why, it all began to make sense.
One of my favorite parts of this book was seeing the relationship between Yulia and Valya evolve. As Valya continues to struggle with his ability and the things he remembers from his childhood, Yulia looks to do whatever she can to help him. This could be as simple as being with him during a nightmare or on the extreme end, absorbing his vision and pain. This is where mastering her ability was important for her and she is willing to go to whatever lengths she has to in order to help Valya.
On top of all of that, Yulia is reminded every day that they have commitments to the government to help bring down the General however they could and that means they can't just hide away from everyone in their house. They are all in danger and the fact that the KGB has people out in the world that are being used to get to the most important people in the government, creates an even greater danger for Yulia and the group as their abilities are being used against them in some situations.
The pacing in this book felt a bit slower than the last book and at times I struggled with it but in the end, I thought the story was well done. Smith brought all of the pieces together and linking the paranormal aspect with the governmental fears of the 1960’s was great. I’m a history nerd so this was right up my alley and if you liked the first book, definitely check out this one as you will want to know how things end up for this group.
Thank you to the publisher for the review copy.