THE ALICE NETWORK by Kate Quinn

Note: I am not a paid reviewer, and I have purchased this title to read for my personal enjoyment.

A post WW2 tale of espionage that spans both world wars when American Charlie St. Clair, an irreverent, knocked-up heiress spurns her over-bearing mother to try and discover the fate of her beloved cousin Rose, who went missing in France during WW2. Charlie’s search leads her to London and cranky, broken-down drunk Eve, a WW1 spy who perks up when Charlie reveals her long-shot clue. Together with Eve’s “man of all work” Finn, this unlikely trio hits the continent to find Rose, in a tale told chock-full of deft similes and fun turns of phrase in Charlie’s first person account. A parallel narrative unveils Eve’s spy past in flashbacks, bringing to life historical figure Louise de Bettignies and her accomplished Alice network spy ring, as well as Eve’s evil foil Rene. Historical scenes at Oradour-sur-Glane and Belsen present moving images of Nazi atrocities. On the other end of it, passion scenes are heated, but not overdone. This read gives us fantastic characters who are easy to imagine on the silver screen, especially the tortured Eve and sadistic Rene, and a wonderfully textured relationship between Alice and the Fleurs du mal who obtained intelligence to pass back to the British.