Review - Journey to Munich

Working with the British Secret Service on an undercover mission, Maisie Dobbs is sent to Hitler’s Germany in this thrilling tale of danger and intrigue—the twelfth novel in Jacqueline Winspear’s New York Times bestselling “series that seems to get better with each entry” (Wall Street Journal).

I have only read one prior novel in this series, Book 8 -- A Lesson In Secrets (click here).

Author: Jacqueline Winspear 

Copyright: March 2016 (Harper) 309 pgs

Series: 12th in Masisie Dobbs Mystery series

Sensuality: one murder witnessed, no gore

Mystery Sub-genre: historical amateur Sleuth, intrigue

Main Characters: Masie Dobbs,  Private Investigator, former psychologist, & war nurse

Setting: 1938 London and Munich on the brink of WWII

Obtained Through: library

Book Blurb: "Working with the British Secret Service on an undercover mission, Maisie Dobbs is sent to Hitler’s Germany in this thrilling tale of danger and intrigue—the twelfth novel in Jacqueline Winspear’s New York Times bestselling “series that seems to get better with each entry” (Wall Street Journal).

It’s early 1938, and Maisie Dobbs is back in England. On a fine yet chilly morning, as she walks towards Fitzroy Square—a place of many memories—she is intercepted by Brian Huntley and Robert MacFarlane of the Secret Service. The German government has agreed to release a British subject from prison, but only if he is handed over to a family member. Because the man’s wife is bedridden and his daughter has been killed in an accident, the Secret Service wants Maisie—who bears a striking resemblance to the daughter—to retrieve the man from Dachau, on the outskirts of Munich.

The British government is not alone in its interest in Maisie’s travel plans. Her nemesis—the man she holds responsible for her husband’s death—has learned of her journey, and is also desperate for her help.

Traveling into the heart of Nazi Germany, Maisie encounters unexpected dangers—and finds herself questioning whether it’s time to return to the work she loved. But the Secret Service may have other ideas. . . ."

Maisie is a responsible woman who has faced much in life. In this book she is still grieving the untimely death of her husband and trying to pick up her life again.  Everybody needs a close friend like Priscilla who provides a home for Maisie in London while she pieces her life together.  Brian Huntley and Robert MacFarlane of the Secret Service are more concerned about the coming confrontation with fascist Germany and only slightly worried about Maisie's lethal mission.  As if it weren't dangerous enough, John Otterburn pushes Maisie into finding his errant socialite party-girl daughter, Elaine Otterburn, while in Germany and getting her home.  Maisie has to face her anger at Elaine for not flying and Maisie's husband flying in her place which is when he died.  Mark Scott, an American agent who always seems around is somebody Maisie doesn't fully trust but who could come in handy.

The setting is only a little in London, but mostly in Munich. The author is great at conveying the mood of the setting.  The plot is going undercover to impersonate a man's daughter to get him out of Dachau, the only concentration camp in Germany, and then in her spare time find Elaine and convince her to return to England.  But things don't go as planned with either assignment.  The man who is in Dachau as Mr. Leon Donat isn't who he says he is so Maisie must find the man to rescue him. Elaine has been setup for murder of a soldier and Maisie is trying to keep her from being arrested.  With the complications it keeps the tension up and I was glued to the story.  

This isn't a whodunit, so there isn't a killer reveal.  Just when I thought we were at the conclusion, Maisie has still more to accomplish before she can get the @$#* out of there.  This ratchets up the final chapter's suspense.  Very well done.

The wrap-up shows Maisie taking steps for her future and showing healing from her grief.  I appreciated ending on an upside for Maisie.

The Maisie Dobbs series has won several awards and this book displays why the accolades.  This has everything: great historical detail, just complicated enough plot, complex characters, the setting used optimally, and plenty of high stakes tension.  I can't recommend highly enough.

Rating:  Near Perfect - Buy two copies: one for you and one for a friend. 

Here is the author at a bookstore for the novel

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dpkGh4RelYE

Review - The Prisoner in the Castle

I have followed and reviewed each of the books in the Maggie Hope series since the beginning:  #1 Mr. Churchill's Secretary (click here), #2 Princess Elizabeth's Spy (click here), #3 His Majesty's Hope (click here), #4 The Prime Minister's Secret Agent (click here), #5 Mrs Roosevelt's Confidante (click here), #6 The Queen's Accomplice (click here), #7 The Paris Spy (click here), and a wonderful interview with Ms. MacNeal (click here).  Today I review the newest addition to the series, which can be read as a stand alone, if you haven't read the seven prior books.

Author: Susan Elia MacNeal

Copyright: August 2018 (Random House-Bantam) 400 pgs

Series: 8th in Maggie Hope Mystery series

Sensuality: n/a

Mystery Sub-genre: historical Suspense

Main Characters: Maggie Hope, a spy who started as Churchill's secretary 

Setting: 1942 London and Scottish Island during WWII

Obtained Through: Netgalley

"A series of baffling murders among a group of imprisoned agents threatens the outcome of World War II in this chilling mystery from the New York Times bestselling author of Mr. Churchill’s Secretary.

World War II is raging, and former spy Maggie Hope knows too much.

She knows what the British government is willing to do to keep its secrets.

She knows the real location of the planned invasion of France.

She knows who’s lying. She knows who the double-crossers are. She knows exactly who is sending agents to their deaths.

These are the reasons Maggie is isolated on a remote Scottish island, in a prison known as Killoch Castle, out of contact with friends and family.

Then one of her fellow inmates drops dead in the middle of his after-dinner drink—and he’s only the first. As victims fall one by one, Maggie will have to call upon all her wits and skills to escape—not just certain death . . . but certain murder.

For what’s the most important thing Maggie Hope knows?  
She must survive."

Maggie, who originally started out as Churchill's Secretary and is now a Major and has completed some harrowing missions but now is under house arrest of sorts because she knows who is willing to sacrifice British agents to keep a secret.  Detective Chief Inspector James Durgin who was introduced in the Queen's Accomplice, is the only one asking where Maggie has disappeared to under the guise of needing her to testify in the Blackout Beast serial killer trial.  David Greene, Maggie's good friend and Churchill's personal assistant teams up with Detective Duggan in asking what happened to Maggie.  The house full of detainees is complex and they each have their issues. Then there is the household staff who who have their own secrets.  

The setting of a remote Scottish island is pure Gothic gold.  It provides the chilling atmospheric backdrop for multiple murders. The most important part is that the author knows how to maximize the setting for a Hitchcock-like ratcheting of suspense.

The plot uses the framework of Agatha Christie's "And Then There Were None" with the added tension of WWII and each resident is a trained British Agent under house arrest for any number of reasons, plus one may be a double agent.  There have been many re-creations of Christie's classic, but this novel took the concept to a whole new level.

The killer reveal/confrontation is nail biting thrills and chills.  The author has made such gripping reveals a trade mark and she never fails to have me at the edge of my seat.  Well played, yet again.  The pacing is a little slow at the beginning to setup the conditions on the island and introduce the house full of incarcerated guests.  But the first murder is soon discovered and the pace doesn't let up from there.

For the eighth book in the series, Ms. MacNeal knocked this out of the ball park.  I can see this as a blockbuster movie easily.

Rating: Near Perfect - Buy two copies: one for you and one for a friend. 

Author Interview - Susan Elia MacNeal

Today we have Susan Elia MacNeal, author of the smash hit Maggie Hope series set in WWII.   Read my review of newest addition to the series, The Paris Spy (click here) including a book giveaway!  Please welcome Ms. MacNeal.

1)  What drew you to write a historical mystery and why the WW2 era?

 You know, I never planned on writing a historical mystery. But I was writing fiction when I went to London with my husband (who was there as Bear for the Disney Channel show Bear in the Big Blue House). I ended up going to the Churchill War Rooms, the underground bunker where Churchill and his staff ran World War II. It was a powerful, transformative experience — and I just knew I had to write about it.


2)  What is your work schedule like when you're writing and how long does it take you to write a book?

I usually write every morning from about 8 or so to noon. After lunch, I do a little more and also answer emails and whatnot. When I'm starting a new novel it's harder, because I don't know my characters and setting as well. Towards the end, I put in really long days because the people and the world seem so familiar. It usually takes me a year to write a book for my editor, and then more time as it goes through editing and copyediting.

3)  What in your background prepared you to write not just mystery novels but historical intrigue?

 I have a B.A. in English from Wellesley College and also studied history. But basically I just love to read and learn. I knew about World War II, of course, but more of the big battles and also from an American perspective. I had to educate myself about World War II in London, which I did with books, videos, and talking to people in the UK who lived through the war.

4)  Who is your favorite Mystery character (by another author)?

 I'm a huge fan of Flavia de Luce, Alan Bradley's heroine. The Favia series starts with The Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie. I'm also currently obsessed with Ann Cleeves, who writes the Shetland Island series. The first book is Raven Black. I'm also reading and rereading a lot of P.D. James, currently on An Unsuitable Job for a Woman, about private investigator Cordelia Gray.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ 
Thank you Ms. MacNeal for that interview and joining us today.

Now, please read further if you are interested in the women Churchill utilized as spies in Nazi occupied countries in his full out effort to stop Hitler's advance.  It is this effort that the Maggie Hope series highlights and is built upon.  Here is a clip on the SOE training.

https://youtu.be/8oImDIZO2N4

I am fascinated by the story of Eileen Nearne, one of the SOE spies for the Britain during World War II.

She died at 89 years old, poor and alone in September of 2010 in England.  When her small apartment was being emptied, her wartime medals (Croix de Guerre by the French government, and appointment as a Member of the Order of the British Empire) were discovered and her secret was out.  She had no family or friends to pay for her funeral and was about to be cremated, until the news was spread that she was a war hero.  The public flooded local officials to help pay for her funeral and to attend her services.  The Royal British Legion placed a flag on her casket.  There was even a French official in attendance at her funeral to honor this incredible brave woman.  Her eulogy was given by Adrian Stones, Chaiman of the Special Forces Club.

It turns out she was only 23 when she was sent into occupied France since she spoke fluent French. She was one of 39 (some report 57) British women who were parachuted into France as secret agents by the Special Operations Executive [SOE is featured in The Paris Spy], a wartime agency known informally as “Churchill’s secret army.”  She was caught by the Nazis using her radio to send information.  She endured torture but maintained her cover story, but was still sent to Ravensbruck concentration camp in Germany.  She managed to escape and resumed spying.  In all, she was captured three times by the Nazis, and either convinced them she knew nothing, or escaped.  The New York Times reported that after the war, she suffered emotionally from the toll of her experiences.

Then there is Nancy Wake who escaped France, but her husband didn't make it and was executed by the Gestapo.  So Nancy joined the SOE (featured in The Paris Spy) and returned to France to coordinate the 7,000 person strong Resistance attacks, led a raid against Gestapo headquarters and German gun factories.  When wireless operator codes were destroyed in a Gestapo raid, she cycled (autos were banned except for Nazi's) over 71 hours on sheer determination - through multiple Nazi checkpoints - to replace the codes so orders and weapons drops could resume.  She became the Gestapo's Most Wanted.  She was awarded the George Cross medal by Britain, the Medal of Freedom by the USA, and the Médaille de la Résistance, the Croix de Guerre – three times – and the Légion d'Honneur by France.  Nancy died in 2011, at the age of 98.  She has had books written about her and movies and documentaries made about her.

Movie Trailer: https://youtu.be/Oh7LNhr7WWQ

The 1958 black and white movie "Carve Her Name with Pride" was about Violette Szabo, who even has a museum about her work as a spy. She was another SOE agent and was trained in fieldcraft, night and daylight navigation,  escape and evasion, uniform recognition, communications, cryptography, extensive weapons training, and demolition. She provided critical information on the factories producing war materials for the Germans that were critical in determining Allied bombing targets.  On her second mission during the Normandy invasion, a Nazi roadblock resulted in a shoot out and while racing across fields she severely hurt her ankle and provided fire cover so her partner could escape and carry out the mission.  She was captured and interrogated by the SS for four days, then taken to Gesatapo HQ in Paris and tortured.  As allied forces were sweeping France, Violette was moved to Ravensburck concentration camp in Germany where she reportedly helped to save the life of Belgian resistance courier Hortense Daman.  She was eventually executed at the age of 23 and received many medals posthumously.

I shared these to highlight how the character of Maggie Hope is based on real life heroines and the plots borrow much from the history of the actual SOE and their mission.

Review - The Prime Minister’s Secret Agent

I wish all of you a healthy and prosperous new year. 

I have followed and reviewed each of the books in the Maggie Hope series:  #1 Mr. Churchill's Secretary (click here), #2 Princess Elizabeth's Spy (click here), #3 His Majesty's Hope (click here), and a wonderful interview with Ms. MacNeal (click here).  Today I review the newest addition to the series.  I received this book from my Secret Santa at LibraryThing.com, yeah!

Author: Susan Elia MacNeal

Copyright: July 2014 (Bantam) 320 pgs

Series: 4th in Maggie Hope Spy series

Sensuality: N/A

Mystery Sub-genre: Historical Intrigue

Main Characters: Maggie Hope, a spy who started as Churchill's secretary

Setting: November 1941, London, Scotland, and Pearl Harbor

Obtained Through: Personal purchase


This book is in the wake of Maggie's return from her mission in Berlin where several surprises awaited her and she had to fight to get out alive.  We find her recuperating emotionally as a teacher at the spy training camp based in the Scottish coastal lands.

Maggie is encouraged to attend her dear friend Sarah's ballet performance in Glasgow where she witnesses the lead ballerina collapse, dead, in the middle of the show.  Quickly, Sarah is hospitalized with similar black blisters on her hand.  Maggie recognizes the black blisters from dead sheep she found in Scotland but has no clue what is causing it. Maggie partners with an MI-5  agent who is a friend of her ex-fiance, to determine what is causing the deaths (a second ballerina is afflicted too) and if it is of national concern. But it’s the approaching attack on Pearl Harbor that looms throughout the book.  The book weaves what we know of the approaching bombing with a time line of who potentially knew what information when leading up to the Japanese attack on Dec 7, 1941. This is meant to build suspense surrounding an event we know is coming in the story.

While the Pearl Harbor information is nicely interspersed throughout, it isn't "Maggie" focused.  This might be distracting to some.  This book deals with Maggie on a more personal level during her scenes and has fewer action events than prior books (some, but fewer.) 

Maggie Hope is struggling to gain her emotional equilibrium after surviving her assignment in Berlin.  She rallies to save BFF Sarah from whatever has struck her ill, which Maggie suspects is a targeted illness. Maggie's innocence is gone forever and the Maggie who emerges is better able to handle what the future will require of her as an agent.  Sarah Sanderson, extraordinary ballerina and good friend, is changed by the war like never before.  Clara Hess, Maggie's mother and Nazi spy, is due for execution and is desperately maneuvering to have time with her daughter.  John Sterling (the ex-fiance) and David Greene are back as aids to Churchill.  Winston and Clementine Churchill are great in this outing.  I appreciated the serious questions raised about how far is too far in a war for your nation's continued existence that Churchill faced and the toll that the war was extracting from him mentally.  Satoshi Nagoka is a minor character that made an impression.  His training of agents in martial arts is a little slice of history best not forgotten, even if his real name wasn't properly recorded for posterity.

Balmy Pearl Harbor and the island of Oahu, frigid Scotland, and war-ravaged London are each rendered as vital elements to the story.  You feel the Hawaiian sun or the bone-chilling cold of the Scottish coast.  The plot is two-fold in reality, first is Maggie's uncovering what and who killed two ballerinas and has Sarah fighting for her life, and secondly Maggie's place in the global drama unfolding with Pearl Harbor.  Subplots are her emotional struggles and growth as an agent.  The confrontation of who was the immediate catalyst for the ballerina deaths was pretty straight forward, the investigation had more thrills.  The wrap-up showed how stunned and shocked Maggie is by the Pearl Harbor attack and sets her up to be at Churchill's side for the next book.

This book may get labeled as a transition book, or even filler, but I disagree.  This book shares Maggie's emotional and mental growth in the midst of an increasingly insecure world all while fighting the odds to uncover what has struck-down her remaining dear friend.  Maggie's struggle is not in a vacuum and the reader is drawn into the drama of the approaching Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor. 


Rating: Excellent - Loved it! Buy it now and put this author on your watch list

Review - His Majesty's Hope

I reviewed the first book "Churchill's Secretary" (click here)  and the second book "Princess Elizabeth's Spy" (click here)  plus an author interview (click here.)  Now the third installment in the series in out this month.  It is hard to review it without spoilers because there are several twists, but here goes. 


This is part of the Historical Mystery Reading Challenge (click here.)

Author: Susan Elia MacNeal

Copyright: May 2013 (Bantam) 368 pgs

Series: 3rd in Maggie Hope Mysteries

Sensuality: n/a

Mystery Sub-genre: Historical Intrigue

Main Characters: Maggie Hope, a spy who started as Churchill's secretary

Setting: WWII, England and Berlin

Obtained Through: Publisher for honest review

Maggie is going on a big mission - solo.  She will be air dropped into Germany and meet with the German resistance to accomplish two goals.  She should only be there three days and then on her way back.  She will be the first female spy sent into Germany.  Everybody is nervous, particularly Maggie.  Part of the book is told from the point of view of Elise, a young German nurse working in a Berlin Hospital who is a devout Catholic.  Elise's best friend and fellow nurse is married to a Jewish Doctor and their lives are torn apart.  Elise also worries about her mystery patient, a terrified pilot who has been recovering but doesn't speak, not a word.  Then Elise becomes suspicious of what is happening to disabled children patients.  Maggie and Elise's paths will cross and neither of them will be the same afterward.  More of Maggie's family secrets are revealed and more surprises.  Maggie won't make that three days only target, but the real question is whether she can get out at all.  While Maggie is on the razor's edge spying, her dear friend and Churchill's right hand man, David is dealing with an increasing difficult personal life as his family pressures him to be something he isn't.

Maggie has come a long way as a character. She has worked hard in training to be a spy when she began as just a secretary.  But this book provides her biggest challenge yet.  She will have personal bombshells dropped and must maintain her cover, not just for her life but for the resistance members who are aiding her. Nurse Elise is gutsy while a little naive.  She will face the horrors of what is happening and put her safety on the line when it counts.  Clara Hess, who is part of Maggie's mission, is a survivor who will do whatever she must to come out on top.  If you read "Princess Elizabeth's Spy" you are aware of Clara's personal connection to Maggie.   

Berlin and Charite Hospital are portrayed so well that you feel the oppression, suspicions, and fear that are a dark cloud over the city while attending society parties.  Well done.

Women were spies in WWII, mostly dropped into occupied France.  So the idea of a woman spy being dropped into Germany isn't too much of a stretch.  The plot line takes some hits in credibility because of the mystery patient in the Berlin hospital is a bit too convenient for Maggie to stumble across in her undercover role... and the patient's identity was too predictable.  But I have to say that I still devoured it in-spite of that.

I found the climax to be exciting and thrilling yet tragic too.  The wrap-up is actually realistic considering what Maggie goes through on her mission, she has some healing to do.

If you are a Maggie Hope fan and enjoyed "Princess Elizabeth's Spy," then you will find this novel even better.  I really enjoyed it and found even the somewhat obvious plot twists to be engrossing.  There are comparisons to Maisie Dobbs, but I don't see the writing styles being similar enough to fairly place them together.  What is the strong point, in my view, for this book is the Maggie and Elise dynamic.

Rating: Excellent - I Loved it! Buy it now and put this author on your watch list

Review - Princess Elizabeth's Spy

I reviewed the first book in this series, Churchill's Secretary (click here,) as well as interviewed the author (click here.) I enjoy a good historical mystery, but historical intrigue is particularly a favorite. The second book in this World War II intrigue series is out and here is my review.

Author: Susan Elia MacNeal

Copyright: October 2012 (Bantam) 384 pgs

Series: 2nd in Maggie Hope Adventures

Sensuality: Mild references

Mystery Sub-genre: Historical Intrigue,

Main Characters: Maggie Hope, American in London

Setting: 1941, London England

Obtained Through: Personal Purchase

Picking up shortly after the end of the first book, this book finds Maggie struggling to meet the physical demands of MI-5 training.  Her first assignment looms before her and she fears she will get a desk job because of her short comings in the physical training.  But she is assigned to Windsor castle undercover as a private Math teacher for Princess Elizabeth.  Intelligence reports indicate a plot to kill the king and replace him with his brother who is sympathetic to Hitler.  In order for that plan to work, the heir to the throne, fourteen year old Princess Elizabeth would have to be eliminated too.  Maggie quickly joins the staff at the war beleaguered castle and suspects something is definitely suspicious when a lady-in-waiting is killed during a ride with the Princesses.  Personally, Maggie is trying not to worry herself sick over her boyfriend, a pilot in the Royal Air Force, who was shot down over Germany.

Maggie is smart, sensible, and grateful to do everything she can to help the war effort.  She is not sure about her father who remains aloof.  She is human in the story, and makes some mistakes that she kicks herself over.  She finds the Princesses Elizabeth and Margaret to be delightful and the details of their young lives are fascinating.  Maggie's dear friend, David Greene, the aide to Churchill also has a key part in the story.  I really like his character and appreciated his getting some of the spotlight.  The surprise breakout character was actually Princess Elizabeth, with her sense of duty to the people while still a child herself.

Windsor Castle during the war is well portrayed, with hiding in the old dungeons during air raids, the royal jewels simply boxed up and tucked away, and all the paintings removed from frames and stored bringing the stark reality to the situation.  The war is ever present.

Obviously, to write a fiction book about significant historical events and people is ambitious and risks criticism.  I found the scenarios and overall plot suspenseful and not outrageous.  There is some creative license, but that is true in any fiction, and always more so in intrigue.  The pacing slows a bit as Maggie adjusts to the castle and the reader is introduced to all the characters and their activities.  Events begin to speed up rather quickly and tension is maintained.

The climax is full of nail-biting tension that I fully enjoyed. The wrap-up left the reader with a cliff-hanger, setting up the next book.  This creatively utilizes WWII as a rich tableau for Maggie to come into her own.  It easily mixes history with suspenseful fiction which makes for enjoyable intrigue and drama.  The writing style is not necessarily poetic or high literature, but it cleanly and effectively transports the reader to 1940s England for quite a ride with a few twists and surprises.

Rating:  Excellent - Loved it! Buy it now and put this author on your watch list. 

Julia Child, Spy

I enjoy espionage books and movies.  I also like sharing the tidbits about real world spies when the opportunity allows.  Julia Child, known for making French cooking popular in the U.S. and one of the first television chefs, was one of those spies.  She wrote several books beside her cookbook, Mastering the Art of French Cooking, including My Life In France, and Julia's Kitchen Wisdom.  I found there is also a book titled Julia's Cats about her love of cats.

The National Archives in August of 2008 released unclassified personnel files, including those of Julia Child and 24,000 other spies.  Julia had a disappointing employment record before working for wartime intelligence.  Julia reportedly attempted to join the Navy right after Pearl Harbor attack, but was too tall and rejected.  I don't think the armed services were accepting women at that time anyway.  This is what brought her to the attention of the intelligence community at the Office of Strategic Services. 

According to an ABC news story (click here), "Nevertheless, she became a top secret researcher for the director of the OSS, the legendary William "Wild Bill" Donovan. And, later, she worked to reduce the threat of U-boats, the deadly Nazi submarines." 

She went on to become such a part of U.S. culture that she was satirized on Saturday Night Live, and a there was Google doodle to celebrate her 100th birthday.  
 

Here is an interview with an author who wrote about Julia and her husband, Paul and their work as spies.  If you are interested in learning more, this looks like an interesting book.  I think I will be getting it myself.

 

Here is a short news broadcast about Julia as well. I find this so fascinating.

A Real Spy's Tale

I have been reading and reviewing a few spy novels lately, if you hadn't noticed.  In Jacqueline Winspear's book, A Lesson in Secrets, (click here for review) the little known efforts of women during wartime is utilized.  Then I came across the story of Eileen Nearne, a spy for the Britain during World War II.  I had to share this story of her bravery with all of you.

She died at 89 years old, poor and alone in September of 2010 in England.  When her small apartment was being emptied, her wartime medals (Croix de Guerre by the French government, and appointment as a Member of the Order of the British Empire) were discovered and her secret was out.  She had no family or friends to pay for her funeral and was about to be cremated, until the news was spread that she was a war hero.  The public flooded local officials to help pay for her funeral and to attend her services.  The Royal British Legion placed a flag on her casket.  There was even a French official in attendance at her funeral to honor this incredible brave woman.  Her eulogy was given by Adrian Stones, Chaiman of the Special Forces Club (click here for eulogy text.)

It turns out she was only 23 when she was sent into occupied France since she spoke fluent French. She was "one of 39 British women who were parachuted into France as secret agents by the Special Operations Executive, a wartime agency known informally as “Churchill’s secret army.”  She was caught by the Nazis using her radio to send information.  She endured torture but managed to maintain her cover story, but was still sent to a concentration camp.  She managed to escape and resumed spying.  In all, she was captured a few times by the Nazis, and either convinced them she knew nothing, or escaped.  The New York Times reported (click here for article) that after the war, she suffered emotionally from the toll of her experiences.

 I just felt her story is worth passing along.  Spy novels are exciting, but this lady is an unsung hero who deserves to get some praise - even after her death.  I found these two short British news stories about her.

As for the Agatha Awards we have been following, the winners have been announced.  Turns out I had only reviewed one of the winners.  Congratulations to all the winners!!

Best Novel
• Three Day Town by Margaret Maron

Best First Novel
• Learning to Swim by Sara J. Henry
 

Best Non-Fiction
• Books, Crooks and Counselors by Leslie Budewitz

Best Children's/Young Adult
• The Black Heart Crypt by Chris Grabenstein

Best Historical Novel
• Naughty in Nice by Rhys Bowen  (Review Here)