Starred review from October 25, 2021
Robuck (Hemingway's Girl) delivers an enticing tale of two women who risk it all to help the French Resistance. Former American teacher Virginia d'Albert-Lake lives in France with her French husband, Philippe. Together they endure the German occupation, and Virginia refuses to return to the U.S. despite pleas from her mother. French-speaking Englishwoman Violette Bushell marries French Legionnaire Étienne Szabo after a whirlwind courtship in London. After Étienne leaves to fight the Germans in Egypt, Violette joins the Special Operations Executive and Virginia and Philippe join the Resistance. Virginia and Violette meet when they are arrested and taken to Fresnes Prison near Paris, and their bond strengthens as they endure the hardships of imprisonment and, later, life at the Ravensbruck concentration camp, where Violette inspires heroic efforts in support of their fellow prisoners. Robuck lures the reader into the mud and the muck alongside the protagonists as they face the dangers and destruction wrought by the conflict. Fans of WWII dramas are in for a treat. Agent: Kevan Lyon, Marsal Lyon Literary Agency.