My thoughts
By the author of The Hidden Child, which I throughly enjoyed.
When I read a historical book I always expect to learn something. With this one I learned quite a bit. It's the first book I've read about The Cold War/The Cuban Missile Crisis... No that it goes into great detail about nuclear war or threats of war but about the prospect of it possibly happening. Also about a family secret that you may figure out before it's revealed. I'm sure the author intended that happen though.
Filled with lots of action and information, from 1942 to 1962. Told from three voices, one being Jeannie who worked for the SOE or Churchill's Secret Army/the Ministry of Ungentlemanly Warfare. You will get to know Jeannie from the very start. You get to know what she went through before being recruited. How she was shamed into giving up her baby for adoption. That happened way to often in those days. (read the author's notes)
You meet Celia who works at the bookshop. She meets a handsome young American who sweeps her off her feet. Celia is a very smart young woman who by accident finds out a big secret her parents have kept from her her entire life. The things she does with her best friend and how hard she works to uncover some truths.
Then there is Septimus Nelson. He works at the American Embassy in London. He has a few secrets of his own and falls for Celia hard. You'll get to know all about this man and his many secrets.
There are a few other characters who you may or may not like. Most have secrets. Some good and some horrible. For a while I didn't like Celia's parents but after finding out exactly why they did what they did I decided it was for the best. They loved their daughter.
I remember when I was just a child being terrified that the world was going to be nuked. While I didn't understand what exactly "nuked" meant I did know it was bad and would end all as we knew it. I didn't realize how close we came to this actually happening until I read the Author's Notes at the end of this book. I hope we never have to experience anything like it but never think it can't happen. As long as they exist they can be used.
Thank you #NetGalley, #LouiseFein, #WilliamMorrow, #HarperCollinsPublishers, for this ARC. This is my own true thoughts about this book.
FIVE big stars and I highly recommend it. It's based on actual people and events with some changes to names made.
About
From the bestselling author of Daughter of the Reich, an historical drama set in London about a bookshop involved in an espionage network.
"An utterly atmospheric and completely compelling read!” —Julia Kelly, international bestselling author of The Lost English Girl
Two courageous women. One astonishing secret. A world on the brink of war.
London, 1962: The world is teetering on the brink of nuclear war but life must go on. Celia Duchesne longs for a career, but with no means or qualifications, passes her time working at a dusty bookshop. The day a handsome American enters the shop, she thinks she might have found her way out of the monotony. Just as the excitement of a budding relationship engulfs her, a devastating secret draws her into the murky world of espionage.
France, 1942: Nineteen-year-old Anya Moreau was dropped behind enemy lines to aid the resistance, sending messages back home to London via wireless transmitter. When she was cruelly betrayed, evidence of her legacy and the truth of her actions were buried by wartime injustices.
As Celia learns more about Anya—and her unexpected connection to the undercover agent—she becomes increasingly aware of furious efforts, both past and present, to protect state secrets. With her newly formed romance taking a surprising turn and the world on the verge of nuclear annihilation, Celia must risk everything she holds dear, in the name of justice.
Propulsive and illuminating, The London Bookshop Affair is a gripping story of secrets and love, inspired by true events and figures of the Cold War.
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