I know Kate Atkinson is a superb author but this one just didn't work for me. I know it will appeal to many of my library patrons so I will be recommending it to them. Thanks netgalley and publisher.

What you think is the main story isn't the main story... This was the first book I read by Kate Atkinson, but it won't be the last. The pacing was perfect, the characters well rounded, the plot gripping, the evocation of the era convincing. My only quibble is that the final act seemed unearned and came out of nowhere, imo. But you should definitely read this to see if you agree..

Kate Atkinson's novel Transcription spins the tale of 18-year-old Juliet, recruited into Britain's MI5 unti to monitor British fascist collaborators. The story continues to follow her ten years later, while she's working as a BBC radio producer. The book skillfully combines military history, fiction, suspense, and women's wartime roles.

I enjoyed this very much, as i have enjoyed the author's previous books. However, a number of time jumps and sudden asides from the character sometimes made the story hard to follow and disrupted the "narrative dream"---that is, the flow of the story that immerses you.

Recommended for Atkinson's fans and readers who care about women's participation in historical events.

Atkinson's writing is as deft as ever but this story was both too light on plot and too heavy on cheap surprise reveals to live up to her best work.

Fantastic story, vivid characters. Another great from Kate Atkinson, I can’t wait to read it again!

Interesting story told during 1940, 1950 and 1981. Juliet is working with MI5 or is she? Is her job more than transcribing recording with her typewriter? It was hard to tell who was a spy or a double spy. You will want to keep reading to find out the answer.

I am only about a fourth of the way through this book, but already can say I highly recommend it. Atkinson's writing adds depth and dimension to the already well-developed main character, Juliet. I am partial to female characters who are independent, objective, and capable thinkers. The scene where Juliet is interviewed for a position with MI-5, illustrates her sense of self beautifully. I'm looking forward to diving back in.

A special thank you to NetGalley and Little, Brown and Company for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

In 1940, eighteen-year old Juliet Armstrong is reluctantly recruited into the world of espionage. Sent to an obscure department of MI5 she is enlisted to transcribe the conversations that take place in a bugged flat between Godfrey Toby, an MI5 agent, and a group of suspected fascist sympathizers. At first the work seems dull, but then it becomes terrifying as Juliet is thrust into a world of secrets and code. After the war ends, she thinks that her service is over that the event she transcribed are left in the past.

Fast forward ten years and Juliet is now a radio producer with the BBC. Even though her past seems like a lifetime ago and Juliet has resigned herself to her more mundane life and work, she is unexpectedly confronted by figures from her past. Haunted by these relationships and her actions, Juliet cannot escape from the repercussions of her work. Left with no choice, she is pulled back into a life of espionage.

Atkinson is such a gifted writer. I had the privilege of attending an event where she spoke at length about her research and writing process for Transcription. Her writing is rare in that she brings humour to her narrative in such a subtle way. Much of this is accomplished through Juliet trying to make sense of what she is listening to as well as through her naiveté. Juliet is Atkinson's vehicle to make the events fictional. She is "the girl". Atkinson has described her as being "a smart character, but with an incredibly active imagination".

In typical Atkinson fashion, the reader is treated to shifts in time and plot (things don't unfold sequentially). You can certainly tell that she has done her research, the story that emerges is nothing short of original and extraordinary, and I encourage you to read the author's notes. Transcription is a layered work of deception and consequences and a thrilling literary read.

Kate Atkinson never disappoints. I love the quirkiness of her credible characters, the surprising intrigue, and of course, the intuitive canine. Her work turned me into an Anglophile! And oh yes, there's a dark river, high tea(s), and a spooky cemetery. This novel has everything. I might turn right around and reread it.

https://twitter.com/LynnSherr/status/1054019049577951232

@LynnSherr
Looking for a World War 2 connection to today's troubled times? Read intriguing novel #TRANSCRIPTION by multi-talented Kate Atkinson: female spy learns the secret to #fakenews: "People always said they wanted the truth, but really they were perfectly content with a facsimile."

This book is a wonderful mix of spies, counterspies, life in wartime London and the inner workings of the BBC. It's written from the point of view of Juliet Armstong, an intelligent young woman who was recruited by the British Security Service when she was 18. After a while her chief task became the transcribing of secretly-taped conversations between an MI5 agent (posing as a member of the Gestapo) and some English Fifth Columnists who were eager to help the Nazi cause. After the war, Juliet worked at the BBC, until her past caught up with her. The book was loosely based on historical records and there is a lengthy bibliography in the book for anyone who wants to read about the actual people and events.

The beginning of the book was a little confusing because the author hopped around among several time periods. It became much easier to follow once the story settled into the 1940s. The characters were very convincing, with compelling personalities and secrets. They were also very good at their jobs. I haven't always liked this author's books, but I enjoyed this one very much.

I received a free copy of this book from the publisher.

The Book Stop
Review: Transcription by Kate Atkinson
By curlygeek04, September 25, 2018


Readers of historical fiction will enjoy this book about MI5 agents in World War II (and post-WWII) London. I also know there are some Atkinson fans who didn’t love Life After Life and prefer something a little more straightforward, so this book should please them as well. It’s thoughtful, interesting historical fiction written with Atkinson’s attention to detail and character.

It was a fast read for me, one that never slowed or got dull, although it does at times get a bit confusing. I think that’s probably deliberate because, as an agent, the main character Juliet Armstrong never quite knows who’s doing what or for which side.

Armstrong is introduced at the very beginning of the novel as a 60-year old in 1981. Then the book jumps back to 1940, where young Juliet is recruited first to transcribe secret recordings of Third Reich supporters, and then as a secret agent infiltrating “the fifth column”. Then we go to 1950, where Juliet is struggling to make a post-war life for herself with a somewhat mundane job working for the BBC. She’s trying to leave spy work behind her when she receives a threatening note (“you’ll pay for what you did”) and then she sees a former colleague on the street who pretends not to know her.

I found Juliet an interesting character. She’s a good person but not always a terribly likable one (readers who need to love their main character may be put off). She’s fairly distant and doesn’t have much trouble being duplicitous. She’s brave, although you get the sense she doesn’t really know what she’s gotten herself into – it takes a while for her to take the work they do seriously. She’s innocent in some ways but also seems pretty jaded. I loved her wry sense of humor (and Atkinson’s way of writing it).

I found the story fascinating and enjoyed the suspense Atkinson builds, where we never quite know the full story since the work of a spy is not to know what other spies are doing or who they are working for.

Atkinson gives an explanation at the end of the book of what was fact and what was invented, and she describes the historical discoveries that inspired the book. This kind of information always adds to my appreciation of a historical novel.

The book is particularly relevant today, in its themes relating to nationalism, patriotism, and fascism.

Juliet could still remember when Hitler had seemed like a harmless clown. No one was amused now. (“The clowns are the dangerous ones, Perry said.”)

I liked everything about the book except I had mixed feelings about the ending (which of course I can’t write about).

If you enjoyed this book and want to read another character-driven novel about spy work, I recommend Who is Vera Kelly? by Rosalie Knecht (about Cold War espionage in Argentina).

Thanks to NetGalley and publisher Little, Brown and Co. for the advanced review copy of this book, which publishes September 26, 2018.

Very enjoyable spy story with a good twist at the end. The scenes inside the BBC were particularly interesting. One tiny point of irritation were references to characters not being able to see through London fog--which implies a naturally occurring condition--when I'm pretty sure what they were experiencing was smog - smoke particles mixed with fog due to large numbers of pen fires/industry in the city. The term smog was in use from the early 20th century so I think would have been the term characters would have used to describe the condition.

When I first read the summary for Transcription, I was so excited. WWII spies written by an author whose work I’ve loved before? It sounded like a match made in heaven.

While the premise of the story was interesting, I never cared for the main character. I’m not sure if it the writing or the characterization but I just couldn’t connect with her. The jumping between time periods was interesting because we saw how the character’s lives developed and how the war changed them. But it also robbed the novel of a sense of urgency since you knew the main character survived and the outcome of the war already. I think part of why this book didn’t work for me is because I was expecting a spy thriller, which this book is not. If you go in with different expectations, you may enjoy it more.

That being said, I did like the glimpse into a hidden part of the war and the insights into what everyday life was during that time.

*Disclaimer: I received this book for free from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.

I am a huge Kate Atkinson fan. Her Life After Life captured my imagination and I fell in love with her improbable Ursula Todd. I may have gone into this read with too high expectations because I found Transcription to be a dry, repetitive look at MI5 and the spy network set up to uncover the fifth columnists in Britain during the war. I admit I knew very little about these covert operations and had no idea how many fans of Hitler were sprinkled among the loyal Brits.

Give Kate Atkinson credit. It’s a rare author that can make a reader stick with an anti-hero like Juliet Armstrong. Her disdain for everyone and everything made it difficult to care about how much danger she was facing doing the job she did for the war effort. I was compelled to continue reading about her time spent transcribing meetings between a double agent and these Hitler sympathizers/locals if only to see whether or not she blew her cover.

There are surprises waiting for those will to wade through the past to see what becomes of our heroine in the future. I was so underwhelmed with the whole story that the big reveal was more anticlimactic than shocking. History buffs will love this. It was a bit too dry to hold my interest.

ARC received from publisher via NetGalley for review.

This certainly wasn’t a fluff type of read, but rather required full alertness and faculties to process each page and reconcile it to the previous ones. Although brimming with information they were still holes in the story that it assumed the reader would understand. I’ll admit that this left me wondering if I missed a chapter or forgot something important.

Transcription by Kate Atkinson is a World War II era story about a low-level employee at Britain's MI5 and the impact it had on her entire life. All over the world a revolution took place during the war when men had previously held women got out of the home and filled positions in the workplace that. After the war, they struggled to find their place in the world. Once a spy, always a spy? These facts made life difficult for Juliet Armstrong.

The story opens when Juliet is lying on the ground surrounded by ambulance attendants after being hit by a car (many years after the war). In her delirium, her mind goes to the past and her story begins. It's 1940 and she is in a low-level clerical position (working out of a prison) when she is approached for another position, away from the prison. By 1950, she is a program director at the BBC, not all that thrilled with her life. She is unmarried and in a boring job. One day she sees a man from her spy days and the adventure begins.

Transcription is a dramatic look into post WW II life for an English woman. It's also an interesting take on the politics after the war and the battle for power by relatively low level MI5 employees in danger of being excised now that the war is over. This era is extremely interesting and Transcription is a different viewpoint, for sure. It was interesting. I recommend it. If the reader is a lover of this era or historical fiction in general, this choice will not go amiss.

I received a free ARC of this book in exchange for a fair and honest review. #netgalley #transcription

I love everything Kate Atkinson has written and this is no exception. Longtime fans will enjoy the echoes of her previous themes and works - for me, this was a wonderful combination of Life After Life and Emotionally Weird. I tore through the book, I found Juliet to be a delightfully wry and unreliable narrator, although I did find the ending to be somewhat precipitous. I didn't find the 1950 plot threads to be overstuffed as some reviewers did but I think I would have liked a slower build to the reveal. Still, enthusiastically recommended.

Disclaimer: I'm biased where Kate Atkinson is involved. 3.5. But, I could not round up to 4 stars. I was not entranced, but rather intrigued by this subtle spy novel.

Admirable writing and research, less so the story. Perhaps because I have read similar, lately. [WWII]

"During WWII, Juliet Armstrong was conscripted into service as a young woman, transcribing conversations between an MI5 agent and a ring of suspected German sympathizers. Years later, in 1950 post-war London, Julie can't escape the repercussions of her work for the government, and is pulled back into the life of espionage she thought she'd left behind."

A work of historical fiction. In the author's note, Atkinson says the book was rooted in reality. But "..for everything that could be considered an historical fact in this book, I made something up--and I'd like to think that a lot of the time readers won't be aqble to tell the difference."

Kudos for the wit [unexpected and sprinkled throughout], the character observations, the weaving of the story [back and forth, WWI and 1981]. One example of humor: "Has the cat got your tongue? (What an awful idea, Juliet thought. And how would the cat get it--by accident or by design?)"

Juliet, the main character, often less interesting than others who populated the novel. Still--no spoiler alert--taken by surprise towards the end--which is always a bonus for me. The situation involving Juliet's work as a transcriptionist--very interesting.

And just certain sentences that captured my attention:
"Thinking had always been her downfall."
"She spoke wth a debutante drawl herself--a laryngitic, smoke-infused one..."
"The war still seemed like a matter of inconvenience rather than a threat."
"She seemed fond of lace, it decorated her substantial hull in many manifestations."
"Juliet was also finding herself unnerved by Mrs. Scaife's fur tippet--at stoat or a weasel--that was wound so tightly round her neck that it appearted to be trying to strangle her."
And so on.

And I learned something new [looked it up]--what a siren suit is--a one-piece suit used to go to/from air raids.

So, if you like Atkinson and appreciate good writing and research--this book's for you.

Kate Atkinson is a master writer for a reason. That reason is her ability to wrestle out of labels for what her books "should" be- is it a thriller, spy novel? a coming of age story?! The answer would be yes and no to all of those. And therein lies the joy of reading her work.

In this story, you meet a woman who is convinced that what she did in the war, as an agent for MI5, has come back to exact some revenge on her in her later years. In this bifurcated tale, you meet the young Juliet who is yearning for something. She is enticed into working as a transcriptionist with a group of people who are charged with convincing traitors that they are helping the Nazis, and who meet regularly in a bugged apartment to pass secrets. You also get to know the Juliet who, in her post-war years, joined the BBC and is living a perfectly regular existence. Except for that thing that happened all those years ago...

As with any Kate Atkinson book, the richness of the people and place pull you in, while the writing is not always as simple as it seems. There are layers to be dissected and analyzed. The spy novel format is the best to trap you, the reader into the game where you never really know who to trust.

Highly recommended- especially for those who like literary novels, and those who like to sit and think about a book. If you like your plot more linear, this book may frustrate you. I think it's worth the frustration, personally.