The best historical fiction books on the Cold War, Nazi hunting, and growing up with spies in your house i.e. your parents

Why am I passionate about this?

As a wife of 38 years, mother of two fine adults, teacher of 30 years in art, speech, theatre, art…well painter, and now author, I enjoy hearing about others' stories. Purely by accident, I wrote a small personal story and found that people wanted more… so I wrote more and shazam I had a book. My first book is about childhood experiences and growing up in my normal world. For me it was normal but the outsiders looking in today would see anything but normal. My parents’ careful actions sheltered my sister and me from the outside world's bad influences until things blew up. Then with care they showed us their world of Nazi hunting.


I wrote...

A Child of the Cold War: Code Name: Kitten

By Cathy O'Bryan,

Book cover of A Child of the Cold War: Code Name: Kitten

What is my book about?

Emerald aka Emmy, a young teenager in the mid-sixties, is like most teens and doesn’t pay much attention to her parents’ work. When she's blasted right into their world, her safe daydreamy life changes forever. The bomb that tore away the front wall of her bedroom, sending her to the ER, begins her journey straight into the Cold War. Emmy didn’t know that her parents were high-level CIA agents. A dangerous group of Nazi sympathizers has her in their crosshairs. Emmy losses control of her life when they infiltrate her world through seduction and kidnapping.

Other teens’ instincts would be to run and hide, but Emmy steps up to the challenges of growing up—and staying alive—in the toxic mix of espionage, riots, racial tension, and being a teenager in the sixties.

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The books I picked & why

Book cover of Taken for Granite

Cathy O'Bryan Why did I love this book?

I personally love this book for several reasons; first, I love reading about strong women. Second, the experiences are real-life situations that draw you into Rocky’s life as if it is your own. Her solutions are at times quirky but make you realize that her solution is perfect for her and the search for her perfect solution allowed me to see what I would have done instead. Third, it is at times funny and at times tense. This balance of emotions and actions keeps you on the edge of your seat.

By Robin B. Sweet,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked Taken for Granite as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

Chicago's award-winning journalist Raquel “Rocky” Peake's investigations have earned her more than a few powerful enemies. Now, some of them want her dead.

Threatened out of her dream job, Rocky heads back home to Texas. Over a decade has passed since she left Twin Creeks. Yet, all those years haven't wiped away the sting of Liam Stone's humiliation and betrayal. But with nowhere else to go, Rocky needs the safety her small hometown can offer.

As her past and present worlds collide, Rocky must choose between running from big city criminals or trusting the handsome devil back home. Either way,…


Book cover of The Hiding Place

Cathy O'Bryan Why did I love this book?

I have read many accounts of the Jewish and European atrocities which kept me interested and wanting a different outcome. As a historical fiction writer, I was so fascinated with the main character's innocence and then resolve to power by using her faith and her personal internal value to survive. Her story from a Christian point of view made me feel empowered to see that my personal faith and values can influence others even if only in a subtle way. This book is for everyone who wants to step back to a sad time and still see the good. My journey through this one will stay with me forever.

By Corrie Ten Boom, Elizabeth Sherrill, John Sherrill , Tim Foley (illustrator)

Why should I read it?

10 authors picked The Hiding Place as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it. This book is for kids age 9, 10, 11, and 12.

What is this book about?

The True Story of a Real-Life Hero

It's World War II. Darkness has fallen over Europe as the Nazis spread hatred, fear and war across the globe. But on a quiet city corner in the Netherlands, one woman fights against the darkness.

In her quiet watchmaking shop, she and her family risk their lives to hide Jews, and others hunted by the Nazis, in a secret room, a "hiding place" that they built in the old building.

One day, however, Corrie and her family are betrayed. They're captured and sent to the notorious Nazi concentration camps to die. Yet even…


Book cover of 12 Disasters of Christmas

Cathy O'Bryan Why did I love this book?

It’s always good to have a book to read during the holidays about the holidays. This book does that and more. The main character Jane’s calamitous life feels like that never-ending Christmas song racing towards the new year. Jane is not sure she will make it in one piece. It is an easy read with lots of action and romance. Because it is divided into 12 crazy moments it is perfect to stop and start this book without having to back up and reread, you just read the next adventure.

By Robin B. Sweet,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked 12 Disasters of Christmas as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

On the first day of Christmas, her true life gave to Jane, an arm broken by a door...

With eleven more days until her evil stepsister's wedding, where the only thing uglier than the bridesmaids' dresses is the bride's personality, can Jane Smith go more than twenty-four hours without a disaster?

On the second day of Christmas, her true life gave to Jane, two killer dates...

Jane's calamitous life feels like that never-ending Christmas song, racing toward the new year like a gulf coast hurricane heading to Galveston.

On the third day of Christmas, her true life gave to Jane,…


Book cover of The Bishop's Pawn

Cathy O'Bryan Why did I love this book?

I really enjoy all of Steve Berry’s books but this one stuck with me. This adventure of Cotton Malone examines the death of Martin Luther King from a very different perspective. As a teenager at the time of King's demise, I was intrigued by his spin. Rarely do I feel compelled to do research after I read his books because he does it for you at the end of his books. This one had me looking for some of Rev King's speeches and reading for myself. Pick this one up you won’t want to put it down.

By Steve Berry,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked The Bishop's Pawn as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

The first case of New York Times bestseller Steve Berry’s iconic hero, Cotton Malone.

History notes that the ugly feud between J. Edgar Hoover and Martin Luther King, Jr., marked by years of illegal surveillance and the accumulation of secret files, ended on April 4, 1968 when King was assassinated by James Earl Ray. But that may not have been the case.

Now, fifty years later, former Justice Department agent, Cotton Malone, must reckon with the truth of what really happened that fateful day in Memphis.

It all turns on an incident from eighteen years ago, when Malone, as a…


Book cover of The Perfect Hope

Cathy O'Bryan Why did I love this book?

This third book of Roberts' Boonesboro trilogy is the perfect finish to her hometown story. I grew up nearby and was intrigued by her story of the people in the present and the links to the history all around this small Maryland town. The other very cool thing is that you can drive thru this unpretentious sleepy town and see her world for yourself. As an author it reminds you that a small, sleepy, quiet place can have so much just under the surface to write about.

By Nora Roberts,

Why should I read it?

2 authors picked The Perfect Hope as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

The Montgomery brothers have been the talk of Boonsboro, ever since they decided to renovate the old Inn into an intimate and handsome new Bed and Breakfast.

Beckett and Owen have both found love in the process, but what of Ryder, the third Montgomery brother? Can the Inn Boonsboro weave its magic one more time?

Ryder is the hardest Montgomery brother to figure out - with a tough-as-nails outside and possibly nothing too soft underneath. He's surly and unsociable, but when he straps on a tool belt, no woman can resist his sexy swagger. Except, apparently, Hope Beaumont, the innkeeper…


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The Samaritan's Patient

By Chevron Ross,

Book cover of The Samaritan's Patient

Chevron Ross

New book alert!

What is my book about?

Teenager Paige Abernathy awakens after a severe beating to find that she suffers from amnesia, and that everyone seems to hate her. She has only flashes of memory until the night a grieving parent attacks her in her hospital room. Paige then remembers her role as the creator of an online group where members talk about ways to commit suicide.

After recovering from the beating, Paige embarks on a journey of penance to atone for a disaster born of good intentions. Her odyssey launches her on a mission of mercy and into new danger. The Samaritan’s Patient is a thought-provoking novel about navigating the treacherous waters of social media.

The Samaritan's Patient

By Chevron Ross,

What is this book about?

Teenager Paige Abernathy awakens after a severe beating to find that she suffers from amnesia, and that everyone seems to hate her.

She has only flashes of memory until the night a grieving parent attacks her in her hospital room. Paige then remembers her role as creator of an online group where members talk about ways to commit suicide.

After recovering from the beating, Paige embarks on a journey of penance to atone for a disaster born of good intentions. Her odyssey launches her on a mission of mercy and into new danger.

The Samaritan's Patient is a thought-provoking novel…


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