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Books > Fiction > Genre fiction > War fiction > Second World War fiction
From the author of the runaway bestseller The Orphan’s Tale comes a remarkable story of friendship and courage centered around three women and a ring of female secret agents during World War II.
1946, Manhattan. One morning while passing through Grand Central Terminal on her way to work, Grace Healey finds an abandoned suitcase tucked beneath a bench. Unable to resist her own curiosity, Grace opens the suitcase, where she discovers a dozen photographs—each of a different woman. In a moment of impulse, Grace takes the photographs and quickly leaves the station.
Grace soon learns that the suitcase belonged to a woman named Eleanor Trigg, leader of a network of female secret agents who were deployed out of London during the war. Twelve of these women were sent to Occupied Europe as couriers and radio operators to aid the resistance, but they never returned home, their fates a mystery. Setting out to learn the truth behind the women in the photographs, Grace finds herself drawn to a young mother turned agent named Marie, whose daring mission overseas reveals a remarkable story of friendship, valor and betrayal.
Vividly rendered and inspired by true events, New York Times bestselling author Pam Jenoff shines a light on the incredible heroics of the brave women of the war and weaves a mesmerizing tale of courage, sisterhood and the great strength of women to survive in the hardest of circumstances.
Bristol - 1945 The war has ended; the men are returning home to
their loved ones, but for some things have changed. Charlotte
Hennessey-White's husband, David is no longer the gentle loving man
he once was and Charlotte, so independent during the war, is
devastated. Edna Burbage's strong fiancee, Colin has suffered
appalling physical injuries. He won't hold her to her promise of
marriage, but she insists her feelings are unchanged. But is that
true? Is she marrying him out of love or pity? And Polly Chandler's
sweetheart, Gavin who'd she'd planned her whole future around,
hasn't come home at all. War and suffering have changed their men
leaving the women to cope on their own. But they too are changed.
They harbour secrets best kept that could do untold damage to these
already fragile lives. Praise for Lizzie Lane: 'A gripping saga and
a storyline that will keep you hooked' Rosie Goodwin 'The Tobacco
Girls is another heartwarming tale of love and friendship and a
must-read for all saga fans.' Jean Fullerton 'Lizzie Lane opens the
door to a past of factory girls, redolent with life-affirming
friendship, drama, and choices that are as relevant today as they
were then.' Catrin Collier 'If you want an exciting, authentic
historical saga then look no further than Lizzie Lane.' Fenella J
Miller
As war is declared can The Variety Girls keep smiling
through...Cleethorpes - September 1939 Struggling to keep their
spirits up as the reality of war hits home and theatres are closed,
friends Jessie Delaney and Frances O'Leary search for work to see
them through until they can sing and dance again. Frances, once
upon a time followed her dreams of becoming a dancer but soon found
herself with a broken heart and a precious secret when her lover
abandoned her. Keeping her secret from her friends grows more
difficult as time passes and their friendship grows.. But with her
lover returning to England from a successful tour of America, how
long will it be before the truth comes to light? Secrets aren't
good for anyone and Frances isn't the only one hiding things from
her friends. Ginny Thomspon, another Variety Girl is hoping for the
best. But is hope enough? Can the Variety Girls pull together to
help each other through the tough times or will their secrets tear
them apart? A gritty and heart-warming saga perfect for readers of
Elaine Everest, Nancy Revell and Pam Howes. Praise for Tracy
Baines: 'A charming, heart-warming saga about ambition, hard work
and courage in the cut and thrust of a world often driven by
jealousy and spite'. Rosie Clarke 'Immerse yourself in the
exciting, evocative world of Wartime musical theatre. I highly
recommend this book.' Fenella Miller 'An emotional, entertaining
read that had me gripped!' Sheila Riley 'An absorbing and poignant
saga. I loved it from the very beginning and would highly recommend
it...' Elaine Roberts 'Terrific - beautifully written. The book
twinkles. A well-crafted and satisfying story' Maisie Thomas 'A
pleasure from start to finish.' Glenda Young '...you will have to
read this well-researched song and dance of a novel in great gulps
as I did' Annie Clark 'I just loved this book! Molly Walton The
Variety Girls is terrific - beautifully written & with an
unusual background. The stage costumes twinkle with sequins and the
book twinkles with tiny details of theatre life that add depth and
atmosphere to this well-crafted and satisfying story. Maisie
Thomas, The Railway Girls 'A pleasure from start to finish.' Glenda
Young, Belle of the Backstreets '...you will have to read this
well-researched song and dance of a novel in great gulps as I did'
Milly Adams 'an evocative, busy, entertaining read, which has well
balanced touches of humour, vying with angst, and of course, more
than a dollop of tension.' Margaret Graham, Frost Magazine
'Characterisation is one of the book's strong points - the
individual characters stay in your mind long after you finish the
story.' Barbara Dynes, The Voice
**Longlisted for the Booker Prize 2021** **Winner of the RSL Encore
Award** ** From the author of Golden Hill ** 'My god he can write.'
Richard Osman 'Glorious.' Evening Standard 'Exhilarating.' TLS
'Brilliant.' Observer 'Dazzling.' The Times 'Extraordinary.'
Financial Times 'Superb.' Guardian November 1944. A German rocket
strikes London and five young children are atomised in an instant.
Here are the futures they might have known, had they experienced
the unimaginable changes of the twentieth century - futures that
illuminate the miraculous in the everyday, and the preciousness of
life itself.
All she wants is somewhere to call home...Frances Sweet can't
really remember her real parents. Brought up by her uncle, her
cousins Ruby and Mary have always treated her like their little
sister. As the war continues to keep her cousins separated from the
men they love - Frances is growing up fast enough to catch the eye
of dashing American soldier Declan. But she also has a greater
longing - to find the mother who abandoned her years before... Full
of hardship, love and emotion, discover the final instalment in
Lizzie Lane's bestselling Sweet Sisters trilogy. Praise for Lizzie
Lane: 'A gripping saga and a storyline that will keep you hooked'
Rosie Goodwin 'The Tobacco Girls is another heartwarming tale of
love and friendship and a must-read for all saga fans.' Jean
Fullerton 'Lizzie Lane opens the door to a past of factory girls,
redolent with life-affirming friendship, drama, and choices that
are as relevant today as they were then.' Catrin Collier 'If you
want an exciting, authentic historical saga then look no further
than Lizzie Lane.' Fenella J Miller
An unforgettable novel of mothers and daughters, wives and muses,
secrets and outright lies 'Freud is a modern literary rarity: a
born storyteller' THE TIMES 'Such a powerful book' RICHARD CURTIS
'Delivers an emotional punch that left me in tears' RACHEL JOYCE
'Utterly compelling' HANNAH ROTHSCHILD 'I couldn't love it more'
POLLY SAMSON 'I loved this book' AMANDA CRAIG 'Completely,
inspiringly wonderful' BARBARA TRAPIDO 'Breathtakingly beautiful'
JULIET NICOLSON AN EVENING STANDARD BOOK OF 2021 Rosaleen is still
a teenager, in the early Sixties, when she meets the famous
sculptor Felix Lichtman. Felix is dangerous, bohemian, everything
she dreamed of in the cold nights at her Catholic boarding school.
And at first their life together is glitteringly romantic -
drinking in Soho, journeying to Marseilles. But it's not long
before Rosaleen finds herself fearfully, unexpectedly alone.
Desperate, she seeks help from the only source she knows, the local
priest, and is directed across the sea to Ireland on a journey that
will seal her fate. Kate lives in Nineties London, stumbling
through her unhappy marriage. But something has begun to stir in
her. Close to breaking point, she sets off on a journey of her own,
not knowing what she hopes to find. Aoife sits at her husband's
bedside as he lies dying, and tells him the story of their
marriage. But there is a crucial part of the story missing and time
is running out. Aoife needs to know: what became of Rosaleen?
Spanning three generations of women, I Couldn't Love You More is an
unforgettable novel about love, motherhood, secrets and betrayal -
and how only the truth can set us free.
‘I live here alone in a garage, together with a laptop and an old hand grenade. It’s pretty cosy.’
And...she’s off. Eighty-year-old Herra Björnsson lies alone in her garage waiting to die. One of the most original narrators in literary history, she takes readers with her on a dazzling ride of a novel as she reflects – in a voice by turns darkly funny, bawdy, poignant, and always, always smart – on the mishaps, tragedies and turns of luck that shaped her life.
Born into a prominent political family, Herra’s idyllic childhood in the islands of western Iceland was brought to an abrupt end when her father foolishly cast his lot with a Hitler on the rise. Separated from her mother, and with her father away at war, she finds herself abandoned and alone in war-torn Germany, relying on her wits and occasional good fortune to survive. Now, with death approaching, forced to hack into her sons’ emails to have any contact with them at all, Herra decides to take control of her destiny and sets a date for her own cremation – at a temperature of 1,000 degrees.
In this international bestseller, Hallgrímur Helgason invites readers on a journey that is as hilarious as it is heartbreaking, and which ultimately tells the deeply moving story of a woman swept up by the forces of history.
November 1944. A German rocket strikes London, and five young lives are atomised in an instant.
November 1944. That rocket never lands. A single second in time is altered, and five young lives go on - to experience all the unimaginable changes of the twentieth century. Because maybe there are always other futures. Other chances.
Light Perpetual is a story of the everyday, the miraculous and the everlasting. Ingenious and profound, full of warmth and beauty, it is a sweeping and intimate celebration of the gift of life.
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