This post contains affiliate links. I don’t remember when I heard about The Diamond Eye by Kate Quinn. It may be because I have enjoyed some of her other books, such as The Alice Network. However, The Diamond Eye was a bit different, and it took me about 100 pages to really get into this book.
About The Diamond Eye by Kate Quinn
Mila is a 24-year-old graduate student with a 9-year-old son when the novel opens. It’s 1941, and she lives in the Soviet Union. She’s estranged from her pompous, arrogant, condescending husband, who won’t grant her a divorce. She takes shooting lessons so she can teach her son the skill later because she knows her husband never will.
However, when Germany invades her country, she immediately signs up to serve. After months of grunt work, the officers discover what an excellent shot she is, and she becomes a sniper for the military. She earns the title “Lady Death” because her official kill count climbs to 309.
Mila is sent on a tour to the United States to try to help convince the U.S. to help Russia with its war efforts against Germany.
My Thoughts on the Book
This story is based on a real woman, Mila Pavlichenko. I was fascinated to read about her. At first, the book was hard to get into because reading how calculated she had to be with her kills, how she had to turn off her emotions, was difficult. But soon I was hooked and couldn’t wait to read more.
I should mention there was also some romance in the book. Initially, I was irritated with the author–clearly this romance had to be fictional because who has time for that when on the front line? But, jokes on me. Mila did have a powerful romantic relationship when on the front in real life. Some truths are stranger than fiction.
In addition, she became friends with Eleanor Roosevelt during her U.S. tour, and the two remained lifelong friends in real life.
I give The Diamond Eye by Kate Quinn 4 stars instead of 5 because I felt like less is more. While most of the book is written based on Mila’s life, the author takes some liberties, especially at the end of the novel, which were unnecessary. I would have enjoyed the book more if those parts hadn’t been included.
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