Madeleine's War: A Novel - Hardcover

"Watson's use of detail, down to the crinkle-free silk writing pads sewn into agents' clothes, heightens the atmosphere ofintrigue ... [a] mix of romance and risk makes for a heady cocktail sure to be savored by historical-fiction readers."
Booklist
"A love story born in the grimness of wartime, Madeleine s War vibrates with the authenticity that only a master historian can provide. A well-told tale that will grip readers from start to finish."
Kate Alcott, New York Times bestselling author of The Dressmaker and A Touch of Stardust
"Drawing on his rich understanding of twentieth century European history, Peter Watson brilliantly captures the tense months in England leading up to D-Day. He weaves a thrilling story around the training of a spy, the uses of code, the meaning of deception and betrayal, and the conflict of loyalties, be they patriotic, official, personal, or emotional. Part spy novel, part history, and part love story, Madeleine s War is engaging on every level. I loved it."
Roxana Robinson, author of Sparta
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A compulsively readable blend of romance and drama based on actual events in Britain and France leading up to D-Day in 1944

Matthew Hammond is a British military officer posted to the European theater during World War II. He sustained a serious injury on the front lines, so bad, in fact, that it cost him a lung. Now he is back in England, unable to fight, but he continues to serve his country by training new resistance fighters.
One of the recruits under his tutelage is Madeleine, a spellbinding, impassioned French-Canadian with eyes of "burnished whiskey." Despite protocols discouraging romance, they are deeply in love, and Matthew is torn about putting Madeleine's life in danger. He already has one tragic affair with a Resistance fighter under his belt—his former lover, Celestine, was killed because her assassination of a German doctor went awry.
But the Allies are mustering all their resources for crucial beach landings in Normandy, and Matthew knows his unit will need to play a role. It will be a very dangerous mission: parachuting in behind the Nazi line. As Madeleine progresses through the training with her fellow recruits, Matthew can only hope that luck will guide her through when the drop finally arrives.