It is really difficult for me to review this book. First of all, I had NO idea this was a YA/children book. Knowing the kind of books Philip Kerr normally writes, I did not expect this

The story itself is kind of charming (in the beginning) and it kept me going (to a certain point). Up until Kalinka arrived on the scene. Ok, is there another character in the history of literature who is more perfect than our dear little Kalinka? I mean, the girl is a chess prodigy, fluent in German (which she learned in no time, but found boring), she is a horse whisperer, she is an amazing artist (who knows how to make her own paints out of nothing), she is brave, she doesn't complain or whine, she knows what to do in medical emergency, etc. I can go on and on and on. Kalinka is sooo sweet, she gave me at least 5 cavities.

It is hard to understand how old Kalinka is or meant to be. I could have sworn that somewhere in the beginning it was indicated that she was around 15-16 (I might be wrong about the actual number) Even if I am wrong about her being 15-16, I believe she is meant to be a teenager. However, sometimes she acts like a much older individual while speaking like a 6 year old. It was so weird.

The story itself started to get ridiculous early on. Even allowing for magical realism or for the fact that this is a children book, it was very silly. Here are some examples: a German officer apologizing to a Ukrainian peasant and inviting him to dinner, a horse is able to count approaching German motorcycles (and with that being said, a horse who is able to tell a difference between German and a non-German), a horse who is able to predict how a human mind will work in a certain situation and what that human’s actions will be. There are more examples like that throughout the book.