Elisabeth de Mornay is an SOE agent based in Paris; but when her cover is blown she flees, eventually ending up in Portugal. Here she receives new orders and takes her place amongst the Lisbon melting pot of exiled nobility and royalty, diplomats, military attachés, smugglers and spies. Posing as Solange Verin, a wealthy French widow, Elisabeth is tasked with mingling with the right people and finding out what she can. Is Salazar, the Portuguese Prime Minister playing games with the Germans and the British?
The book is set over a period of about eight months, and is split into five parts - sometimes jumping forward a month or two in time. Elisabeth is a likeable character who is in the thick of the action from the outset. She can handle herself, and does so if the situation requires.
My only (minor) criticism of the book is the vast cast of characters, I kept finding myself having to refer back to the handy (three page) character list at the front of the book to check who some people were. Although the fact that this character list is actually there at all indicates that I’m not the only one to feel this, and it is a handy reference tool. All in all, this is an enjoyable World War II based spy thriller, with a female lead character.
The book is set over a period of about eight months, and is split into five parts - sometimes jumping forward a month or two in time. Elisabeth is a likeable character who is in the thick of the action from the outset. She can handle herself, and does so if the situation requires.
My only (minor) criticism of the book is the vast cast of characters, I kept finding myself having to refer back to the handy (three page) character list at the front of the book to check who some people were. Although the fact that this character list is actually there at all indicates that I’m not the only one to feel this, and it is a handy reference tool. All in all, this is an enjoyable World War II based spy thriller, with a female lead character.