This book was an escapist read for me after many heavy non-fiction tomes, but it was as detailed in facts as any history book.
I was easily swept into the story of three intelligent women working as code breakers at Bletchley Park, England, during World War II.
The three friends, Osla, Beth, and Mab, are not always fair to each other or themselves, but their work and the need to keep it secret binds them together, and an added mystery to solve that eventually breaks the group apart.
Based on actual events and people, it was hard to put down as the characters and the history were so fascinating. I listened to the audiobook, and Saskia Maarleveld was an excellent narrator.
The New York Times and USA Today bestselling author of The Huntress and The Alice Network returns with another heart-stopping World War II story of three female code breakers at Bletchley Park and the spy they must root out after the war is over.
1940. As England prepares to fight the Nazis, three very different women answer the call to mysterious country estate Bletchley Park, where the best minds in Britain train to break German military codes. Vivacious debutante Osla is the girl who has everything-beauty, wealth, and the dashing Prince Philip of Greece sending her roses-but she burns to…
I have been on a World War I reading binge lately. Some of it was for research, so when I came across this book, I was hooked.
The horror of the new mechanized war left unbelievable facial wounds on many of the survivors of the trenches. The only benefit was the birth of plastic surgery, which had no choice but to advance quickly. The British surgeon Dr. Gillies and his compatriots in France and the US did their best to reconstruct the devastation left by the war.
There are graphic descriptions of surgeries and photos, but most memorable were the individual stories of the soldier's lives and the doctors, failing and succeeding in equal measure but never giving up on their patients.
This book is thoroughly engaging and unforgettable.
A New York Times Bestseller Finalist for the 2022 Kirkus Prize
"Enthralling. Harrowing. Heartbreaking. And utterly redemptive. Lindsey Fitzharris hit this one out of the park." —Erik Larson, author of The Splendid and the Vile
Lindsey Fitzharris, the award-winning author of The Butchering Art, presents the compelling, true story of a visionary surgeon who rebuilt the faces of the First World War’s injured heroes, and in the process ushered in the modern era of plastic surgery.
From the moment the first machine gun rang out over the Western Front, one thing was clear: humankind’s military technology had wildly surpassed its…
Juliet Montague's husband abandoned her with two children in late 1950s London. Her Jewish religion has labeled her as invisible. For her birthday, she forgoes a new refrigerator and commissions a portrait of herself from an artist in the park.
Intrigued by the art world of swinging 1960s London, she decides to open a gallery to showcase all her new artist friends. She, in turn, becomes a muse to them and a lover to one. When her husband is featured in a Jewish newspaper, the Gallery of Vanished Husbands, she is confronted with the possibility of finding him.
I am drawn to any era's art scene and the artist's lives. This book also offered a peek into strict religious beliefs and society I was unfamiliar with.
A moving story of family and a life-long love affair in 1950s London, from the New York Times bestselling author of The House at Tyneford.
London, 1958. It's the eve of the sexual revolution, but in Juliet Montague's conservative Jewish community where only men can divorce women, she finds herself a living widow, invisible. Ever since her husband disappeared seven years ago, Juliet has been a hardworking single mother of two and unnaturally practical. But on her thirtieth birthday, that's all about to change. A wealthy young artist asks to paint her portrait, and Juliet, moved by the powerful desire…
William Holman Hunt wants his own revolution. In the year 1848 Europe erupts in turmoil, but Hunt is an art student, with many dreams and limited funds, in a London where revolution is just not done - especially one against the art establishment.Hunt, along with six friends and fellow students - including the prodigy John Everett Millais and the artist-poet Dante Gabriel Rossetti - proclaim themselves the Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood (PRB). They plan to display their new art at the most prestigious exhibition in the country: The Royal Academy of Art.They were expecting criticism, praise, or even ambivalence. What they were not expecting was the violent abuse hurled at them by the art elite, journalists, and even Charles Dickens. The stale and stodgy art world of mid-Victorian London will not tolerate these upstarts. The defiant PRB will not back down. Now it really is a revolution.Can the young PRB survive the attacks against them? Can their friendship survive growing up?"Anyone interested in the culture of Victorian London will find plenty to celebrate. An illuminating look at an influential artistic period, which may well inspire readers to pick up their own pen or paintbrush." -- Kirkus Reviews (starred review) Named to Kirkus Reviews' Best of 2012."(The formation of the PRB) seems unlikely seed-grounds for a dramatic historical novel, but through sharp pacing and some extremely sensitive character study, Lee pulls it off. Her awkward, immensely talented young artists are all dramatically drawn and expertly differentiated, and her midcentury London is so vividly drawn that readers will feel like they're seeing and hearing the chaotic world in which these men strive and laugh and seek to establish their careers. Her readers will never look at those works the same way again. Highly recommended." - Historical Novel Society “Young PRB, is a fascinating novel, a study of the Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood who hope to turn the clock back and continue with the work started earlier by artists who brought a lead white, light-filled touch to painting. It is a beautiful book, a literary volume, and an interesting read even for those who are not well schooled in the study of art history. The young artists come alive in this book...it is a masterpiece of history, character study, etc. It is well plotted, and filled with interesting characters and events. I truly enjoyed the reading experience.” - Judge, Writer’s Digest 21st Annual Self-Published Book Awards
