The White Lady by Jaqueline Winspear

 

The White Lady by Jaqueline Winspear-318 pages

Post-World War II Britain, 1947. Forty-one-year-old “Miss White," as Elinor is known, lives in a village in Kent, England, so quietly and privately as to seem an oddity to her fellow villagers.  But the residents of Shacklehurst have no way of knowing how dangerous Elinor's war work had been, or how deeply their mysterious neighbor continues to be haunted by her past.

It will take the child of Jim Mackie, a young farmworker and his wife, Rose, to break through Miss White's icy demeanor—but Jim has something in common with Elinor. He, too, is desperate to escape his past. When the powerful Mackie crime family demands a return of their prodigal son for an important job, Elinor assumes the task of protecting her neighbors, especially the bright-eyed Susie, who reminds her of the darkest day of her life.

Wonderfully written.  Great character development.  I loved this book.

Rose Under Fire (Code Name Verity #2) by Elizabeth Wein

Rose Under Fire (Code Name Verity #2) by Elizabeth Wein-368* pages

I read Code Name Verity in Summer 2015 for the Teen Services class I was taking during Library school and it was a good read. I decided I wanted to read this for historical fiction month. It is an even better read. Rose Justice is an American Air Transport Auxiliary (ATA) pilot in Britain during WWII and works with Maddie (one of the protagonists from Code Name Verity). On her way back to Britain from one of her transport flights, Rose is captured by Nazis/Germans and eventually sent to Ravensbruck. The atrocities that took place at the hands of the Nazis there (and at all of the concentration camps) are appalling. Many things that we take for granted today were barely considerations for them (freely going to the bathroom/working toilets is one thing). "Prisoners" were experimented on (infected with disease, operated on, had bones and/or muscles removed, etc.), beaten with whips, shot on a whim, gassed, forced to stand for hours or days at a time, and given very little to eat. Many of the women (and men) at Ravensbruck and all of the camps who survived were skeletons of their former selves (in many cases both physically and emotionally). Wein's story about Rose is good because it tells a story that needs told (continually so that no one forgets) and it is well-written and told well. Although it is a work of fiction, I felt as if I were there with Rose and the other women at Ravensbruck and that is the mark of a good work. Overall, it was a good read, though not easy at times. I would recommend it to anyone (though be prepared for sad moments).

This Was a Man by Jeffrey Archer

This Was a Man  by Jeffrey Archer  pages 416


In this final installment of the Clifton Chronicles all of our favorite characters are back and we discover some truths that we were wondering about from the last book.  As our beloved characters are getting older there are some sad turn of events at the end..so be prepared.  I enjoyed the whole series very much and now that it is over I am awaiting what is next for Jeffrey Archer.

The Secret Keeper by Kate Morton

The Secret Keeper by Kate Morton - 481 pages

1961: On a sweltering summer’s day, while her family picnics by the stream on their Suffolk farm, sixteen-year-old Laurel hides out in her childhood tree house dreaming of a boy called Billy, a move to London, and the bright future she can’t wait to seize. But before the idyllic afternoon is over, Laurel will have witnessed a shocking crime that changes everything.

2011: Now a much-loved actress, Laurel finds herself overwhelmed by shades of the past. Haunted by memories, and the mystery of what she saw that day, she returns to her family home and begins to piece together a secret history. A tale of three strangers from vastly different worlds – Dorothy, Vivien and Jimmy – who are brought together by chance in wartime London and whose lives become fiercely and fatefully entwined.

Shifting between the 1930s, the 1960s and the present, The Secret Keeper is a spellbinding story of mysteries and secrets, theatre and thievery, murder and enduring love.

Mr. Churchill's Secretary by Susan Elia MacNeal

Mr. Churchill's Secretary by Susan Elia MacNeal - 373 pages

In this first in a series, readers are introduced to the series heroine, Maggie Hope, and her cohorts.  Maggie is British-born but American-raised. The year before World War II began, the budding mathematician returned to England to sell her grandmother's home but ended up staying due to her new friends.  In the spring of 1940, one of those friends is instrumental in getting Maggie a job as one of Winston Churchill's secretaries.  She reluctantly takes the typist job, wanting instead of be one of the private secretaries in charge of conducting research.  But there are some things Maggie doesn't know that affect her role in #10 Downing and the War Rooms that lead her to becoming indirectly involved in a spy game between MI-5 and the Abwehr.  Besides the action/mystery side of the story, readers also gain an understanding on life on the domestic front for the Brits as Maggie and her friends, especially co-workers/Churchill's private secretaries David Greene and John Sterling, enjoy London's nightlife.

God Save the Queen by Kate Locke

God Save the Queen by Kate Locke - 351 pages

One word...Superb! I was not expecting this. When I first seen this book I was sceptical, did not know what it was all about. When I read the back of the book it was all about vampires and werewolves. I thought cool this should be preaty good. Boy was good a poor choice to use on this, it was fantastic.

Alexandra - Xandra/Xandy to family and friends- is a halvie and  part of the Royal Gaurd for the original Queen Victoria and the year is 2012. Yes, Queen Victoria in 2012. She is a vampire the rules Britatin with an iron fist and no one is to stop her. But maybe Xandra?