Ramzipoor juggles it deftly, helped by glittering prose, snappy pacing, and a keen sense of humor ... The characters’ wry, sharp dialogue and its sometimes slapstick sensibility owe much to the legacy of Charlie Chaplin and the Marx Brothers. I noticed the book’s sense of humor because it’s at odds with today’s memetic one. It’s very much of the 1940s, and it’s very funny ... themes do not feel forced, but instead feel like a true part of history, a part that is too often elided in fiction ... As for the plot, it’s a rollicking, twisting, turning adventure that’s almost unbelievably complicated, and hangs together on a delicate frame of multiple-point-of-view narration ... the multiple points of view take some time to coalesce. The characters don’t feel distinct until about 150 pages into the 544-page book. But that’s a minor issue, and it’s well worth your time to get past the bumpy beginning ... Rampizoor’s attention to the small details missed by larger tellings of history animate the book, and it’s the light of her perspective that makes it something worth reading, which will stay with you long after you’ve put it down.
... a compelling historical thriller ... The stories of the six are all fleshed out in such a way that readers will be wanting to hear more about each one of them, and layered over the personal drama is the remarkable saga of how 50,000 copies of a newspaper were published under the thumb of the gestapo. This is a long book, but it is never less than engrossing.
... astonishingly original ... The novel explodes with released suspense every few pages as the chapters and their subdivisions shift from character to character, setting to setting, and obstacle to obstacle ... Ramzipoor’s control over the manipulation of time-sensitive information is splendid, and the results are magnetic ... The main narrative, energetic enough, is further enlivened by unexpected subsidiary areas of interest. Perhaps the most thought-provoking and emotionally fraught subplot has to do with the relationship between Lada and a female judge. The thread involving these lesbian lovers and the circumstances that test their various loyalties could launch a fascinating sequel ... In today’s world of propaganda wars, fake news, and alleged fake news, The Ventriloquists holds up a dazzling looking glass for those intent on silencing others and for those who will not be silenced.
Ramizpoor based the plot on actual events that took place in Brussels, reality providing the underlying horror for the satirical conspiracy ... The characters are many and mostly well drawn, though a reader may find the first-page cast of characters worth flipping back to from time to time ... it takes courage to be comedic in times of fascism. But there's a delicate line to be marked by Ramzipoor...the ventriloquist behind The Ventriloquists. Comedy mixes only uneasily with Nazi atrocities. But on the whole, the author succeeds in the ambitious feat she attempts to pull off, just like her doomed protagonists somehow manage to put their pasquinade newspaper into the hands of war-weary citizens ... A carefully woven narrative that combines irony and pathos, The Ventriloquists allows a view into a world that we didn't know existed.
The challenge of fleshing out and differentiating so many colorful characters, combined with the sheer logistics of acquiring paper, ink, money, facilities, etc. under the Gestapo’s nose, makes for an excruciatingly slow exposé of how this sausage will be made. The banter here, reminiscent of the better Ocean’s Eleven sequels, keeps the mechanism well oiled, but it is still creaky. A few scenes amply illustrate the brutality of the Occupation, and sexual orientation works its way in ... The genuine pathos at the end of this overdetermined rainbow may be worth the wait ... A little-known story that will have special resonance for today’s resisters.
... magnetic ... Sprawling and ambitious, with crisp pacing and fully realized characters, this will fascinate anyone looking for an unusual, enthralling war story.
