London, 1939. When war breaks out on librarian Joyce Kindred’s doorstep and a call for help rings out across the libraries of London, she’s determined to act. Joyce knows only the world of books can offer safety and comfort to her neighbourhood — and she will make sure no one is left behind. Joyce sets […]
The women of the Blitz (and what I learned from them)
Who were the real hero(ine)s of the Blitz? “The wartime mothers of the East End,” one former doctor, who saved many lives, told author Kate Thompson. Kate writes about the lessons she learned from interviewing East London women who’d survived the bombs: the daughters of childminders, abortionists, money-lenders; the costermonger, the butcher, the singer. These […]
Liesel’s War by Corin Burnside
In April, 1945, Hamburg is a city on the brink of collapse, and Liesel Heinemann is caught in the storm of war. Once a promising student of translation, she is now a reluctant interpreter for the Nazis, her life irrevocably altered by the horrors surrounding her. Everything changes when she saves a British soldier who […]
The Variety Girls by Betty Firth
In March, 1940, Bradford mill girl Molly Clough can hardly believe it when she successfully auditions for ENSA, the organisation that entertains the troops. Despite the much-mocked ENSA’s reputation as ‘Every Night Something Awful’, singing on stage feels like a dream come true for Molly. But as she tours with her troupe, the Forces Follies, […]
The French Spymistress by Rachel Hore
When World War Two breaks out, the courage of two women will be tested to the limit. In Occupied France, Marie-Louise, a headstrong, single woman with two young children, is recruited into a secret intelligence network. She must collect privileged information about German military activities to help the Allies liberate her country. Her skill and […]
Under cover for Britain: two female WWII agents, Marie-Madeleine Fourcade and Barbara Bertram
Marie-Madeleine Fourcade led a French intelligence network supplying information to MI6. Barbara Bertram ran a secret safe house for agents in Surrey. They met several times. Here, Rachel Hore writes about how the two women sparked the idea for her new novel, and the challenges of writing fiction about real people. My new novel, The […]
Victory Days for West India Dock Road by Renita D’Silva
It’s June, 1944, and as news of D-Day reaches London, the residents of West India Dock Road dare to celebrate. But amid the bunting, shared food and children’s laughter lie fear, grief and secrets that refuse to stay buried. Divya has built a life for herself and her son that she once thought impossible, in […]
A Wartime Promise for the East End Girls by Jean Fullerton
It’s 1943. Nell Reilly is ready to fight with everything she has for a better future. Brought up in London’s tough East End, she is fiercely determined to keep the promise she made to her little sister Jo to build a new life for them one day. Until a chance meeting changes everything… Absorbed in […]