• Girl in the Blue Coat

  • By: Monica Hesse
  • Narrated by: Natalia Payne
  • Length: 9 hrs and 42 mins
  • 4.3 out of 5 stars (397 ratings)

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Girl in the Blue Coat  By  cover art

Girl in the Blue Coat

By: Monica Hesse
Narrated by: Natalia Payne
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Publisher's summary

An unforgettable story of bravery, grief, and love in impossible times.

The missing girl is Jewish. I need you to find her before the Nazis do.

Amsterdam, 1943. Hanneke spends her days procuring and delivering sought-after black market goods to paying customers, her nights hiding the true nature of her work from her concerned parents, and every waking moment mourning her boyfriend, who was killed on the Dutch front lines when the Germans invaded. She likes to think of her illegal work as a small act of rebellion.

On a routine delivery, a client asks Hanneke for help. Expecting to hear that Mrs. Janssen wants meat or kerosene, Hanneke is shocked by the older woman's frantic plea to find a person - a Jewish teenager Mrs. Janssen had been hiding, who has vanished without a trace from a secret room. Hanneke initially wants nothing to do with such dangerous work but is ultimately drawn into a web of mysteries and stunning revelations that lead her into the heart of the resistance, open her eyes to the horrors of the Nazi war machine, and compel her to take desperate action.

Meticulously researched, intricately plotted, and beautifully written, Girl in the Blue Coat is an extraordinary, gripping audiobook from a bright new voice in historical fiction.

PLEASE NOTE: When you purchase this title, the accompanying reference material will be available in your Library section along with the audio.

©2016 Monica Hesse (P)2016 Hachette Audio

What listeners say about Girl in the Blue Coat

Average customer ratings
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  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
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  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    4 out of 5 stars

A gripping Story of Love and War

Another reviewer did provide a spoiler for this book. Without reiterating it, I thoroughly understand why things unfolded the way they did. I enjoyed the author's sense of character, time and place. Her characters were mostly young people, trying to navigate a world at war, at an age when you think everything should be black and white and they realize, too late, that there's so many shades of gray.
I love the characters, their bravery, their cowardice... it's a young adult novel that will appeal to adults. The writing sucks you in and won't let go, the narration is good (with some imprecise dialogue and slightly-off accents). Well worth your time and credit.

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5 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
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    3 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    3 out of 5 stars

Author Tried Too Hard to Not Be Predictable

I liked this book OK, but the author tried SO HARD to be unpredictable that it was confusing, yet SO predictable! I did finish it, but found myself hoping it would end already.

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4 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

A most powerful book

Where does Girl in the Blue Coat rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?

top 10% with Willa Cather and Kent Haruf

What was one of the most memorable moments of Girl in the Blue Coat?

there were many but I particularly appreciated the discussion following the ending.

Have you listened to any of Natalia Payne’s other performances before? How does this one compare?

Natalia was amazing. Pronouncing the Dutch words and making the story so vivid. I have not listened to her narrations before

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

I was on a cruise in Tahiti so I listened at night. But I am on my second listening.

Any additional comments?

Thank you Monica for falling in love with the Dutch and presenting such a tumultuous time so well and powerfully.

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4 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    2 out of 5 stars

Great until the end...

The inclusion of a gay crush in the story threw me for a loop. Why do so many modern writers of historical fiction add current issues to a time period that would rarely speak of them? It doesn't even pertain to the plot of the story but appears to be an opportunity that the author took to insert something in the story to make a statement.

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3 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    3 out of 5 stars

So slow

The story was interesting, but it was so slow. I ended up not caring about the characters because I wanted the book to end.

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2 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    2 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    2 out of 5 stars

Very weak book

What could have made this a 4 or 5-star listening experience for you?

The performance was fine;

What was most disappointing about Monica Hesse’s story?

The characters were not believable; why would a gentile switch ID's with a jew then get captured and not attempt to talk her way out of trouble? Totally and completely unbelievable

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2 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Sad, Powerful, Mystery, Romance, Historical.

Sad, Powerful, Mystery, Romance, Historical. I usually hate reading but this book is probably by far one of my favorite books ever. Audible really has helped me read and love the idea of reading. I usually don't do too well understanding the book when I read myself but having the book following along helps me understand the plot and theme of the book. Monica Hesse is a very gifted and talented writer. I never really had been interested in books but thing book was impossible to put down. The flashbacks really set the stage knowing what happened between charters before and why they are at the stage they are in the book. the accents and music make me feel like I'm there a bystander witnessing what is happening.
10 out of 5 stars. Amazing read.

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1 person found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Summer reading that’s binge worthy!

This book was on a list of required high school summer reading for juniors. I listened to have a dialogue with my daughter and ended up falling in love with it! Thankful for the author’s hard work researching to give a vivid picture of what real people in that hard time had to experience. The fictional characters are very believable and it would be nice to see how their lives turned out after the war. Worthy of a sequel!

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1 person found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Fiction But Not Fiction

Loved that the author based the story on her visit to Amsterdam and Holocaust sites. Great story

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1 person found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

I thoroughly enjoyed this book!!

This story is amazing and will keep you guessing until the end. Excellently written and narrated perfectly. I loved the character development and well- researched details of the period, location and events. Ready to read another book by this author!

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1 person found this helpful