Ava Harper works for the Library of Congress. But one meeting changes everything. As Ava speaks both French and German and has experience with microfilm, the government asks her to work for the Office of Strategic Services—the OSS. The OSS gathers information in neutral territories about the Nazi regime. At first, Ava wants to say no, but her brother is fighting in the war, and she will do anything to help bring him home.
Ava starts her new job in Portugal, where she discovers the war is far worse than she imagined through newspapers, secret news from the Resistance, and people's stories. Ava finds herself connecting with a Resistance fighter in France. Together Elaine and Ava's help smuggle a mother and child to America. Ava does everything she can to help those in need, but it's not always enough.
This powerful World War II novel weaves the story of two strong women fighting against the Nazis. Ava's story is vastly different from Elaine's story. While Ava lives in luxury, Elaine's on the front lines facing danger every moment. While Ava flirts with danger, any wrong move could mean death for Elaine. Elaine works on printing the news of the Resistance while Ava gathers up the news. Both women fight in small ways, but those small ways begin to add up. They risk everything to help others while they gain and spread information. Information is the key to survival in France and Portugal. This novel highlights their different circumstances but showcases their similarities in uniting for a common cause. The book starts slowly but the powerful ending made me cry.
From the New York Times bestselling author of The Last Bookshop in London comes a moving new novel inspired by the true history of America's library spies of World War II.
Ava thought her job as a librarian at the Library of Congress would mean a quiet, routine existence. But an unexpected offer from the US military has brought her to Lisbon with a new mission: posing as a librarian while working undercover as a spy gathering intelligence.
Meanwhile, in occupied France, Elaine has begun an apprenticeship at a printing press run by members of the Resistance. It’s a job usually reserved for men, but in the war, those rules have been forgotten. Yet she knows that the Nazis are searching for the press and its printer in order to silence them.
As the battle in Europe rages, Ava and Elaine find themselves connecting through coded messages and discovering hope in the face of war.
No excerpt available.
© 2003-2026