Code name Verity

I was quite pleasantly surprised by this book. It is in short, quite wonderful.
Code Name Verity defies easy description. It is filled with action, danger, tragedy, horror, and some comedy. The story is told in the form of journals written by the two main protagonists (a bit of an odd format, but it works quite well). The story is set in the 1940's in wartime Britain and France, and the war sets much of the tone and rhythm of the story. However, it is much more than a war story. At its core, it is the story of a powerful friendship between two young women who were caught up in the turmoil of that war. These girls, Maddie and Queenie, come from very different socioeconomic backgrounds and would probably never have met in normal times. But the crucible of war tosses Queenie the agent and Maddie the aviator together and forges a strong bond.
I wrote quite a bit more about the story, but then deleted it all because it seems to me that almost any details I could give might spoil the impact for the reader. I'll just say: good book, read it.