Quiet resistance and bravery in action should not be forgotten...
A stack of photographs found in an abandoned suitcase in New York City's Grand Central Terminal, intrigue Grace Healy. Each photograph is a head shot of a young woman, some in uniforms. Later, Grace discovers the abandoned suitcase belonged to Eleanor Trigg, who was in charge of a network of female secret agents deployed by the British government to infiltrate Nazi occupied Europe as couriers and radio operators. Its 1946 and Grace still hasn't quite recovered from becoming a young widow, so finding out what happened to these brave women; especially a young mother named Marie, is a welcome distraction.
The chapters alternate between 3 points of view; Grace in 1946 and Eleanor and Marie in 1944. British agents are getting captured in the field and the allied forces are struggling ahead of the invasion of France. At the Special Operations Executive agency, Eleanor suggests to her superiors, the forming of a female network to infiltrate France, who could blend in easier than men, capture data to radio back to Britain, and maybe carry out some sabotage to slow the Germans down. With a degree of male chauvinism coupled with desperation, they agree and put Eleanor in charge of recruitment, training and deployment of the girls. She's hard on her girls because she knows how critically their success is needed. Marie has evacuated her daughter to the countryside to live with an aunt. Her fluent French makes her a perfect candidate for the agency, but she's not sure she's willing to risk everything as a single mother. Marie proves to be effective in the field, until it becomes apparent that there is an informant somewhere within the network and the girl's lives are at stake.
Pam Jenoff is one of my favorite historical fiction writers. In fact, it was her book, The Kommandant's Girl, that made me fall in love with the genre. When I get one of her books, I just want to put life on hold, dive in, and not surface until I finish it, and this one was no exception! It was well paced and hard to put down. The three female leads were all differently but likeable. I had not heard of the Special Operations Executive organization, and wish that this ARC had included some author notes, because I'm sure her research was fascinating. I did find a list of female SOE agents online, that detailed their experiences and revealed that quite a few paid the ultimate price for their roles. Interestingly, not all the women were British, but from various countries, including one American, This is captivating fictionalization of their experience and bravery. This will release on 2/5/2019; trust me you don't want to miss this one!
The chapters alternate between 3 points of view; Grace in 1946 and Eleanor and Marie in 1944. British agents are getting captured in the field and the allied forces are struggling ahead of the invasion of France. At the Special Operations Executive agency, Eleanor suggests to her superiors, the forming of a female network to infiltrate France, who could blend in easier than men, capture data to radio back to Britain, and maybe carry out some sabotage to slow the Germans down. With a degree of male chauvinism coupled with desperation, they agree and put Eleanor in charge of recruitment, training and deployment of the girls. She's hard on her girls because she knows how critically their success is needed. Marie has evacuated her daughter to the countryside to live with an aunt. Her fluent French makes her a perfect candidate for the agency, but she's not sure she's willing to risk everything as a single mother. Marie proves to be effective in the field, until it becomes apparent that there is an informant somewhere within the network and the girl's lives are at stake.
Pam Jenoff is one of my favorite historical fiction writers. In fact, it was her book, The Kommandant's Girl, that made me fall in love with the genre. When I get one of her books, I just want to put life on hold, dive in, and not surface until I finish it, and this one was no exception! It was well paced and hard to put down. The three female leads were all differently but likeable. I had not heard of the Special Operations Executive organization, and wish that this ARC had included some author notes, because I'm sure her research was fascinating. I did find a list of female SOE agents online, that detailed their experiences and revealed that quite a few paid the ultimate price for their roles. Interestingly, not all the women were British, but from various countries, including one American, This is captivating fictionalization of their experience and bravery. This will release on 2/5/2019; trust me you don't want to miss this one!