3.5 stars

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3.5 stars

While this book is part of a series, it can easily be read as a standalone. This is my first time reading a Wilbur Smith novel and I was fascinated to learn it is the longest running series in publishing history according to the book's back cover. And while I might not be interested in the books featuring the Courtney family all the way back in the 1600s, I wouldn't mind checking out the ones that take place during the 20th century.

It's 1939 and Saffron Courtney and Gerhard von Meerbach are deeply in love but they are forced to separate. He is going to fight for Germany even though he opposes the Nazi regime. Saffron is recruited as a spy working for the Allies and is sent to Belgium to see how the Nazis have infiltrated Special Operative Executive's network. War forces a person to make tough decisions and soon choices must be made just in order to survive.

What I enjoyed most was Saffron had an interesting story line and not one you typically see with female characters in historical fiction about World War 2. She wasn't a nurse or working in a factory, she was actually in the thick of things as much as Gerhard.

My only criticism is at almost 450 pages, I felt like it was slightly too long and would have benefited by trimming off at least 50 pages. Overall, it's a good story and I definitely recommend to long time fans of the series as well as those who like World War 2 historical fiction.

I won a free copy of this book from Bookish First and the publisher.