The Last Hope by Susan Elia MacNeal

 

First Line from Prologue: July 1943. General Walter Friedrich Schellenberg, cigarette dangling from the corner of his mouth, raced his black Mercedes coupe through the dense pine forest and then up the cobblestone drive to the gates of the looming castle.

 

Maggie Hope has come a long way since she was Mr. Churchill's secretary. She's learned espionage, sabotage, and reconnaissance, among other things. But now British Intelligence has ordered her to assassinate Werner Heisenberg, the physicist who may give Germany the atom bomb. Maggie is shaken to her core. How can the Allies even be sure that Germany does have the bomb? She travels to Madrid where Heisenberg is giving a lecture to gather more information.

Once in Madrid, Maggie finds her presence being requested at the British ambassador's by none other than French fashion designer, Coco Chanel. Maggie-- finally having the opportunity of a happily-ever-after of her own with John Sterling-- wants no part of being an assassin, but she knows what will happen if Germany has an atom bomb. Never have her professional and personal choices been more crucial. And... just what does Coco Chanel want with her?

~

It's always sad to see a favorite series end, but-- to be honest-- Susan Elia MacNeal's excellent Maggie Hope series had no choice. People in Maggie's line of work had notoriously short shelf lives. With everything she was being asked to do, her number was going to be up sooner rather than later. And what better way for her career to end than in this pedal-to-the-metal thrill ride, The Last Hope?

I have enjoyed every second of Maggie's service in World War II. She's grown from a bright yet naive young woman to a brave, resourceful agent for British Intelligence. In The Last Hope, Maggie finds herself in a moral dilemma facing betrayal and personal danger, and every step she took felt right to this reader. 

As usual with one of MacNeal's books, I felt right at home in the setting and time period, aided a great deal by the little details that the author added to the story. I'd often wondered how Londoners navigated bombed-out streets during the blackouts, and MacNeal mentions the "curbs painted phosphorescent white to glow in the dark." In addition, you simply have to have a bon-mot by the incomparable Winston Churchill. Once again, the man made me laugh when he said that the British "ambassador was descended from a long line of maiden aunts." I also enjoyed seeing Madrid in wartime. Maggie found it quite a change to be in a neutral country, and so did I.

 

In The Last Hope, a character asks Maggie, "Will I ever read about you?" to which Maggie replies, "Not if I do my job well." One of the things I am most grateful to Susan Elia MacNeal for is bringing to light just what so many incredibly brave women did in service to their country during World War II. Thank you, Susan. You took splendid care of Maggie, and I look forward to your new stories. 

The Last Hope by Susan Elia MacNeal

eISBN: 9780593156995

Bantam Books © 2024

eBook, 304 pages

 

Historical Mystery, #11 Maggie Hope mystery

Rating: A

Source: Net Galley

Odds On by Michael Crichton writing as John Lange

First Line: Le Perthus, France: The dynamite, neatly bundled in "Happy Birthday" wrapping paper, lay casually on the backseat.

Three Americans have used an IBM supercomputer to plan the perfect heist. Now all they have to do is blend in at the finest resort in Fascist Spain in order to carry it out. It doesn't take them long to discover that the computer planned for every contingency except one: the Hotel Reina is crawling with femmes fatales.

This is Michael Crichton's very first novel, and although it's not bad, it's certainly not good. The very best part of Odds On is the heist. I've always enjoyed a good heist story. Perhaps I was a cat burglar in a former life. But then the incidentals start clouding the issue. The author included an overlong scene in which the explanation is given for how the computer planned out the robbery. I have to be honest: my eyes crossed midway through and I skimmed the rest. Of course, this was written in 1966, so all that computer stuff was new and fascinating and not really trusted.

The other "incidental" that spoiled Odds On was the inclusion of all the gorgeous women with long long legs and huge firm breasts who strutted from scene to scene-- not to mention bed to bed. Ah well, I think we can say that Michael Crichton as a young writer loved James Bond films and all those Bond Girls.

Fortunately, this was a quick read, and although I didn't really enjoy it, I do value it as a window into the world of an author who wrote some of my favorite thrillers. These early books are his learning curve.
 

Odds On by Michael Crichton writing as John Lange 

eISBN: 9781453299234

Open Road Integrated Media © 2013

Originally published in 1966.

eBook, 288 pages

Thriller, Standalone

Rating: C-

Source: Purchased from Amazon.

This Thing of Darkness by Harry Bingham

First Line: Rain.

Fiona Griffiths has been tasked with two things: passing her sergeant's exam with flying colors and logging evidence to help fill in for someone on medical leave. She couldn't be less concerned about her exam, and the monotony of evidence tracking is driving her around the bend. In desperation, she goes to her boss and is given a big stack of cold cases-- anything to keep her quiet.

But as Fiona goes through those cold case files, she begins to piece the tiniest of clues together. A marine engineer found hanged in a locked apartment. A security guard found dead at the base of a cliff in Wales. Artwork that's stolen and then mysteriously returned. What connects the three? Only Fiona believes they are connected, and in her usual inimitable style goes about piecing the facts together to prove that she's right. Her investigating is going to bring her right into the heart of darkness, and her journey is going to be the ultimate test of her mental toughness.

Whenever I see those "all-time favorite" book lists, I avoid them like the plague. I just don't feel like putting all the books that have touched me deeply into an organized and rated row. (Yes, it is a lot like asking a mother to name her favorite child.) However, if someone asked me to name the best mystery series being written today, without hesitation I would say Harry Bingham's Fiona Griffiths. To date, there are four books, and I have given all four the highest possible rating. I can't say that about any other author I've read.

Yes, the setting of Wales adds texture and richness to the books. Yes, the mysteries are some of the most intriguing you'll ever come across. Yes, the pacing draws you inevitably forward, faster and faster. You have to know what happens, and you have to know now. But the best and brightest thing about Harry Bingham's superb series is the main character, Fiona Griffths.

At one time Fiona suffered from Cotard's syndrome, a rare mental illness in which an afflicted person holds the delusion that they are dead, either figuratively or literally. Fiona is one of the brightest people you'll ever run across, but Cotard's syndrome has colored every aspect of her life, and most especially in the way she interacts with other people. As can be seen in This Thing of Darkness, Fiona now has two superior officers who--though they may not really understand her-- can see her almost limitless potential as an investigator. To the best of their ability, they are now trying to groom her for bigger and better things. Will Fiona cooperate? Your guess is as good as mine.

I will warn you that this book does contain scenes of torture, and they do involve Fiona. They are tough to deal with but not impossible because we see these scenes through Fiona's eyes... those eyes that do not see the world as we do. There are also scenes of humor that bring needed warmth and laughter to the book, as when Fiona and Inspector Watkins conduct an interview together.

As different as Fiona is, she can also be very familiar. When she says, "Just when I see a barrier saying Do Not Cross, I have an almost overwhelming impulse to cross it," I understand because I've felt the same way many times.

Harry Bingham is the first writer who's been able to write scenes that take place on board ship that made me seasick, so be forewarned. He also made me nervous about a purchase Fiona made-- an uneasy foreshadowing of what's to come in book five, The Dead House? Unfortunately I'll just have to wait and see.

If you haven't read any of the books in this series, I urge you to do so, and you need to start with the very first book, Talking to the Dead.  If you do that, Fiona will make sense-- and then you will be as hopelessly hooked as I am. Fiona Griffiths is as wild and wonderful in her own way as Stieg Larsson's Lisbeth Salander is in hers. I can't recommend Fiona-- or this entire series-- highly enough.
  

This Thing of Darkness by Harry Bingham

eISBN: 2940152156331
Sheep Street Books © 2015
eBook, 576 pages

Police Procedural, #4 Fiona Griffiths mystery
Rating: A+
Source: Purchased from Amazon.


 

The Last Queen by C.W. Gortner

First Line: Tordesillas, 1550. Midnight has become my favorite hour.

C.W. Gortner does an excellent job of throwing light on a woman who has been shrouded in myth for centuries. Juana of Castile, daughter of Ferdinand and Isabella, was married to Phillip, the archduke of Flanders and sole heir to the Habsburg Empire. Juana's parents needed to strengthen their country, hence Juana's marriage and the marriage of her younger sister Catherine of Aragon to Arthur, heir to the throne of England.

At first Juana's marriage is very happy, and she is content to be a wife and mother. When Queen Isabella dies and Juana becomes the last queen of Spanish blood to inherit her country's throne, her life is thrown into chaos. 

The wealthy grandees who were supplanted by Juana's parents want their old rights and privileges back. Ferdinand is too busy trying to keep the various bits of the country together to help his daughter, and Juana's husband-- within the blink of an eye-- has turned power mad. He wants to be King of Spain, he wants it now, and he will stop at nothing to achieve it. Nothing.

I read quite a bit of European history when I was in high school and college, and all I knew of Juana of Castile was her nickname: Juana La Loca-- Joanna the Mad. The nickname intrigued me because even then I knew that everyone who was referred to as mad wasn't necessarily so. If someone has something that you want, one of the best ways to get it from them is to make people believe they're crazy. 

Gortner portrays Juana as a brave, intelligent, and passionate woman whose strengths were used against her. The story is told from Juana's point of view, and as I read I became her staunch defender. I kept wondering why Isabella would send her daughter off with-- basically-- no weapons in her arsenal, no champions of substance to fight in her corner. It's as though Isabella thought she had super blood that would transmit everything to her offspring that her daughter could possibly need. As my own levels of anger and frustration mounted, I kept reminding myself of my reading all those years ago, those random mentions of Juana La Loca, and I knew what would happen, but that didn't keep me from becoming emotionally involved in a centuries-old story.

It is true that winners are the ones who write the histories, but thanks to historians, teachers, and the talents of authors like C.W. Gortner, we can still learn about the losers, many of whom deserved much better than they received.
 

The Last Queen by C.W. Gortner

eISBN: 9780345507419

Ballantine Books © 2008

eBook, 438 pages

Historical Fiction

Rating: A

Source: Purchased from Amazon. 

The Time in Between by María Dueñas

Title: The Time in Between
Author: María Dueñas
Translator: David Hahn
ISBN: 9781451616880
Publisher: Atria Books, 2011
Hardcover, 624 pages
Genre: Historical Fiction
Rating: C
Source: Publicist

First Line: A typewriter shattered my destiny.

Sira Quiroga is the daughter of a humble seamstress in Madrid, Spain. From sweeping floors and running errands, Sira grows into an apprenticeship. By the time she's twenty, she's learned her trade and is looking forward to marriage to a government clerk. However, she hasn't learned to resist charismatic men. The father she never knew and a handsome salesman turn her world upside down.

Abandoned in Morocco by the man she loves, the only way Sira can survive is by using her needle. Through hours of hard work and determination, she becomes a respected modiste in Morocco. Catering to the collection of European expatriates trapped there by the war in Spain and the worsening political situation in the rest of Europe lays the groundwork for the next stage in Sira's life. She returns to Madrid, opens an exclusive couturier for Nazi officers' wives, and becomes an undercover agent for the Allies.

This was a very uneven reading experience for me. Its length (624 pages) is not for the weak of heart (or for those with weak wrists). If a story holds my interest, I don't care how long the book is, but this one only held it sporadically.

In many ways, I enjoyed the first section of the book the most. My interest was fully engaged as I learned how Sira grew up, how she fell in love, and how she had to fight hard to make a living after being abandoned in Morocco. The reader's opinion of Sira will make or break this book since she is the narrator. At times I found that her naivete and impulsiveness made me want to slap some sense into her. However, she is honest about how she abandoned a good man for a bad one, and her friendships with Rosalinda and Candelaria as well as her descriptions of starting out in business definitely strengthen the narrative.

But Sira tells us something very important: she is carefully picking and choosing each fact in her story. Some of her choices weaken the book for me. When she becomes couturier for the Nazi officers' wives, it is a case of too much reporting and not enough doing. We're told more about the days the coded messages are delivered and very little about how the information was gathered. It would have added so much to the story to have a scene at the shop when the wives were gathered, relaxed and being served tea, gossiping away, with Sira working-- and listening-- diligently. I wanted to see it happen, not be told about it later.

It also came to the point where the political segments made my eyes glaze over. Sira purposely avoided many areas of Madrid because she didn't want to see what had happened to the city of her birth. There was too much in this book that Sira didn't wish to see, and I didn't appreciate being forced to wear blinders. Moreover, it felt as though Sira kept me at a distance-- as if she didn't really trust me. Granted, being a spy would make a person extremely distrustful, but when that spy is the narrator of a huge novel, distancing the reader can be very off-putting.

When all is said and done, your reaction to the main character of this sweeping historical novel will determine how much you enjoy it. I found much in the book to admire, but in the end, I felt as though Sira had led me down the garden path.

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People of the Book by Geraldine Brooks

Title: People of the Book
Author: Geraldine Brooks
ISBN: 9780143115007
Publisher: Penguin, 2009
Paperback, 400 pages
Genre: Fiction
Rating: A+
Source: Purchased at The Poisoned Pen.


First Line: I might as well say, right from the jump: it wasn't my usual kind of job.


Australian rare book expert Hanna Heath has been asked to conserve the beautifully illuminated fifteenth-century Sarajevo Haggadah, a priceless Hebrew manuscript thought to have been destroyed during the fighting in Bosnia.

As many times as I've worked on rare, beautiful things, that first touch is always a strange and powerful sensation. It's a combination between brushing a live wire and stroking the back of a newborn baby's head.

As Hanna examines each page with great care and wonder, she discovers a series of tiny artifacts left behind in the manuscript: a fragment of an insect's wing, wine stains, salt crystals, and a white hair. These microscopic bits are the keys to unlocking the centuries' old mysteries of the Sarajevo Haggadah and the catalysts that will change Hanna's life forever.

As the insect's wing, then the wine stains, then the salt and hair are analyzed, we learn the history of the ancient book and the lives of the people who had it in their care. Anyone who has ever picked up a book, caressed its cover, and ruffled through its pages wondering about the identities of previous owners or all the places that book has been will absolutely love People of the Book. As Brooks takes us through the centuries, each time period and each caretaker comes to vivid, aching life.

I was deaf and blind to everything around me as I read this book. It's not the first time author Geraldine Brooks has done this to me, and since her latest book (Caleb's Crossing) is on its way to my door, I don't think it will be the last. She is one of the supreme storytellers of her time.

What Hanna does the last time she's with the Haggadah made me cry and made me smile. It also made me think. Around the world today books are under attack from technology, economy, ignorance and indifference. How many of us would be willing to do whatever it takes to ensure their survival?

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