I'm a big fan of Anne Perry's Inspector Monk series (though less so of her novels with the Pitt family), and was eager to see what she would do with a very different time period--Europe in the 1930's between the world wars. Elena Standish is a smart--though somewhat naive--young woman with a mission and a vision. As a photographer, she is interested in colors and shadows as she looks through her viewfinder, but soon finds that her camera is essential to capturing the maelstrom in Germany. This is recommended for fans of Maisie Dobbs and Maggie Hope, and I look forward to reading further entries in this new series.

A powerful story, showing the build up seen in Europe prior to WWII. Shown through the eyes of Elena, a professional photographer, who is visiting Italy with her sister. Both have suffered loss from WWI, and both are struggling with life in general. The story also shows their grandfather, who is a retired MI6. A hard story to put down, although at times also very hard to read. Scary to think of the signs that people ignored or missed back then, and makes me wonder what we are still missing today. So much pain and suffering in the world, and while we claim to have learned, I have my doubts. Highly recommend this story. Another great book by an excellent author.