Thank you for the opportunity to read this. I will be posting a full review to Goodreads, Amazon, and Instagram.

Expertly blended with seamless style, this is a story of two powerful women...one is lost to family by her supposed treachery, the other is on a quest for the truth.. Riveting and unrelenting, you will be drawn in from the first page. Told with two distinct voices, this is a gorgeous Literary Historical Fiction read.

A photograph sets the stage for the search for truth about an"Aunt Vivienne" who was disowned, despised and forgotten, because of the heinous, unforgivable act she committed. Her great niece "Sophie" takes up the challenge to understand what happened to seal her Aunt's fate.

"When We Were Brave" unfolds with characters that are competing to be heard and understood; leaving clues like breadcrumbs in the forest, if only someone could look deep enough, through all the layers of lies, to the truth that waits to be found.

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Thank you to NetGalley and Bookouture and the author, Ms. Suzanne Kelman, for the opportunity to read this Advanced Readers Copy of "When We Were Brave".
The opinions expressed in this review are mine alone.

I was first drawn to this book after reading (AND LOVING) Suzanne Kelman's book, A View Across the Rooftops, last year. I loved her writing, I loved the story she told, and I loved the characters so much. This book was another solid 5 star read for me (although I don't think it could compare to View Across the Rooftops, I loved that one SO MUCH).

One thing that really jumped out at me about this book is how mundane it is, in lots of ways. It showed the day to day and how exhausting and nerve wracking and tedious and scary the world of espionage can be and how quickly everything can change. There were a lot of times in this book I just wanted to shout at them to JUST CALL SOMEONE OR ASK FOR HELP OR SOMETHING, but they couldn't, because it was really life or death choices that they were facing, and trust was not something that could be freely given.

I was also very invested in the modern day story line, and enjoyed how that turned out. It's not as often that the present day POV has as much of a journey as those in the past (a lot of dual POV hist ficts, it seems like the present day story lines just support the momentum of the past story).

Overall, this is one that I would definitely recommend to readers of WWII Historical Fiction, especially if you're looking for a well rounded book with two compelling story lines that give you a lot to think about.

Thank you to NetGalley, Bookouture, & Hachette Editions for the opportunity to read and review this book before it's publication date! This in no way affected my review, opinions are my own.

I really enjoy historical fiction particularly set during WW2. This did not disappoint. Set today when Sophie, who has had a really awful year, goes to visit extended family in Cornwall. She discovers the existence of a relative that no-one had ever spoken about - Vivienne with an awful history. We then follow Vivi's story. A really unique story which leads you through Vivi and the bravery of the Resistance to becoming the girlfriend of a Nazi. Sophie's quest for the truth tells a really stunning story. A little unbelievable that there were so many clues/records left behind but it made for a beautiful ending.

This was a wonderful WWII historical fiction novel with a dual modern story line. Thought-provoking, unique, suspenseful - I couldn't put this book down! I look forward to reading more from this author.

Thank you, Bookouture and NetGalley for a digital ARC!

I loved this book! Suzanne Kelman was able to successfully write in two time periods, keep both storylines flowing, tie everything together and give you an amazing ending!

This story starts with Sophie finding a picture of a woman who looks like her deceased mother. The photograph of a woman in WWII London sends her on a journey that takes her from her home in London to Paris and Berlin. On her journey she makes many discoveries about herself and her family and meets a man that shares in those discoveries. I love a book that tells an amazing story, has beautiful, descriptive backdrops and ties everything up at the end. Wonderful book!! 4⭐

Thank you to Netgalley and Bookouture for the opportunity to read and review this book in exchange for my honest opinion

I cannot say enough good things about this book. It’s another winner from the author of A View Across the Rooftops. The characters are engaging, and the plot is one of the most intriguing I have read in awhile. Sophie, the contemporary plotline main character, is likable, and her search into her family’s history (including a relative that nobody ever talks about) drew me in from the start. But for me, the WWII plotline is where everything happens. I could not get enough of Vivi’s story. This is one of my favorite books so far this year. For more thoughts, please visit my blog at Fireflies and Free Kicks Fiction Reviews. Thank you to NetGalley and Bookouture for a digital ARC of the book.

When We Were Brave by Suzanne Kelman was an intriguing tale post World War II chasing wartime happenings. Aunt Vivienne was rarely mentioned. It was rumored that she had run away with a Nazi and returned to Germany to become a Nazi but no one would ever really talk about it. He great niece, Sophie Hamilton was intrigued, especially when she saw a photograph in a new exhibit that she was certain was her mother, but her mother had yet to be born so it must be Aunt Viv. But, what was she doing in London, outside the offices of the Woolworth Building? The only possible way t o find out was her grandmother, who had been married to Viv's brother. She might know. A night out of town would do her good. It hadn't been that long since her 16-month old baby and her mother had been killed in an auto accident and Matt, the baby's father was drifting further and further away in the wake of the accident. Her grandmother was exactly what she needed.

The Nazis were ruthless. This we know. This story is not your typical ghetto or concentration camp tragedy; it is a simple story of how love can go wrong. Much of it is told in hindsight and Viv and Marcus, her lover, were both excellent characters trying to survive in a time when survival was the best one could hope for. Viv had been trained as a spy and sent to France. It was determined that she was not cut out for the job and she was returned to civilian life. As she searched for something meaningful to do, she returned home, to Cornwall. She found her home had been turned into a hospital and she began working there, then training there to become a nurse. There she met Marcus, a Nazi soldier to claimed to be an English agent. She believed him and helped him escape and was never hear of again, until Sophie started looking for her. This was a wonderful story that touched on the periphery of that which was Nazi Germany. I was also a love story and a story that would teach Sophie not to take things at face value. There was more...and she found it. I enjoyed the read. It was lighter than many WWII novels but just as powerful. I recommend it.

I received a free ARC of When We Were Brave from Netgalley in exchange for a fair and honest review. All opinions and interpretations contained herein are solely my own. #netgalley #whenwewerebrave

Bookouture are certainly very much on top of their game lately when it comes to bringing us brilliant historical fiction. I've discovered two excellent new to me authors in this genre in the past few weeks, the first being Catherine Hokin, whose début book was fantastic and now here is another When We Were Brave by Suzanne Kelman which is her second offering. Unfortunately, I haven't read her first but I will certainly be rectifying that because if it is anything like this superb read I know I am in for a real treat. From beginning to end, I was completely hooked on the story unravelling piece by piece right before my eyes.

It's a real mystery that keeps you in suspense until the last moment until playing its final card and I found once I began it was hard to tear myself away from it. Despite not wanting to, I had to set this book aside for a few days as life didn't dictate me much reading time but during this time away from Sophie and Vivi's story I found myself thinking about the characters and longing to get back to them to see what was going to happen next. It was such an inconvenience that I couldn't sit down and read it all in one go because it really is that type of book that is so well written, so carefully plotted, so expertly researched and with characters you care for immensely and you ultimately hope that a positive outcome can be achieved for all.

When We Were Brave is told in a dual timeline format and navigates its way back and forth between the modern day and the years that World War Two raged on. Two strong women are at its centre although they do experience hardships and difficulties but there is a connection between the pair. As Sophie Hamilton attempts to uncover the exact truth behind her Great Aunt Vivienne's experiences of the war she hopes she can right a wrong or else see exactly if what the family have believed to be true for so many years is actual fact.

Sophie is taking six months off from her legal career following a very traumatic event in her life, the finer details of which only become clearer much further into the book but the reader can guess the overall picture. Her state of mind is all over the place and she doesn't know what the next steps should be. Guilt and loss eat away at her. She is now working for a small charity which specialises in archiving historical materials and she has found this to be interesting and in some small way it takes her mind off bigger events which are permanently etched in her heart and mind.

A new exhibition curated by Sophie and her work colleague Jonathan leads to a startling discovery. A photo showing a bombed out street with only several buildings remaining shows a woman entering a building. One thing leads to another and Sophie discovers it is her Great Vivi who has the most villainous of reputations given she abandoned her family and fled their manor house in Cornwall with a Nazi and was never seen again. No one knows exactly what happened and the family have been stigmatised ever since. Sophie knows she can't let sleeping dogs lie and is determined to discover just what happened. Why did Vivi turn to the other side? What were her motivations? Or were there other more sinister forces at work?

Sophie is very driven and the chapters told from her perspective really drove the story forward as a whole. She is a person who always keeps an open mind and there is something niggling away at her deep down with regards to Vivi that she just can't let go. She won't rest easy until she has done her utmost to go down every avenue available to her and maybe right some wrongs if at all possible. I thought good for her. She really had nothing to to lose in starting this process and as her relationship with Matt had hit the rocks and there was time available for her to take from her job than really she was right to just to go for it. Maybe by embarking on this journey she would come to know Vivi and her situation better and find the evidence that will either clear her name or confirm she was a traitor to her country. At the same time Sophie needed to do this for herself. She needed to seek a better version of herself. One who is more brave and more together and a person who makes some small steps in finding acceptance at a time when she needs it the most.

I thought this quote summed up perfectly Sophie's stance in relation to why she felt so motivated to delve back into the past. 'She felt this odd pull into the past. As though finding out what really happened during the war would also help her find her own balance again. She needed everything in her life, including her history, to make sense. Or the future was just an impossible unknown'. It becomes so crucial and important for Sophie to piece the missing pieces of her life together and encourage her through her own personal trauma. The chapters told from Sophie's perspective worked so well alongside those of Vivi's as we were getting two takes on one big situation and I loved moving back and forth as the changes occurred at just the right time and provided us with more information to mull over and also opportunities to really get inside the characters heads in order to understand their thought processes and actions throughout the story.

Vivi was an exceptional character full of spirit, guts and determination but that's not to say that she was not without her faults. Of course she had many and the girl we initially get to know I really couldn't reconcile with the fact that she would betray her country in the manner in which she did. Vivi was a vivacious character who was known for being reckless and rushing head long into things but through reading the chapters told from her viewpoint and through Sophie's investigations we come to realise there is always more than one way to view a story. She has a brave and adventurous streak in her and this leads her down a path she would never have foreseen herself in in relation to the war. To say much more regarding the part she plays in the war would be to give too much away but suffice to say if people knew the exact things she got up to they would admire her rather than have her painted as a monster, traitor and a villain. She deserved admiration, love and respect but I suppose if you only hear one side of the story and that in turn grows legs and the person who it is focused on is not there to defend themselves than we do make an overall judgement based on what we hear.

Vivi has harrowing experiences during the war but at the same time there are plenty of exhilarating moments until it all comes crashing down and she returns to nurse in her home which has been converted into a hospital. She is consumed by guilt and I could see why but people blame her reckless and care free attitude. Vivi realises she needs to redeem herself for what has happened and it takes a courageous person to admit this. Yet at the same time one wonders is she too trusting and following her heart rather than practical matters of the mind? What really happened to make her life take such a dark and disastrous turn? Maybe the power of love can make somewhat rational people do crazy things. Vivi was a brilliantly drawn character and my opinion of her swayed back and forth several times over. The detail of her experiences and the job she does during the war were so vivid and informative.

My eyes were opened to a whole new aspect of the war that I had only briefly read about previously. It was evident that the author had engaged in extensive research and enjoyed doing it and then transferring this knowledge into a breathtaking story that will leave your heart in your mouth and having you questioning so many things. She certainly succeeded in allowing the heroics of the past to reach forward into her characters lives which she mentioned in the end notes as one thing she wanted to achieve with this book.

I can't recommended When We Brave enough. It's historical fiction at its very best and certainly in my book cements Suzanne Kelman as author to watch. I really wish there could have been more as I didn't actually want to discover the truth as I was so caught up in the story and all the various characters I was meeting and becoming accustomed too. You are transported back to a time when devotion and bravery was shown by the greatest generation and through Vivi's story we shall never forget. Congratulations Suzanne Kelman on writing such a stunning book.

I love historical fiction books dealing with WWII and this one was not a disappointment. It alternates between 1944 and present day. In the present, Sophia sees a photograph of a woman wearing a pin of the crest of her family. After asking her family about it, she learns that it may be her Aunt Vivienne, a member of the Resistance, who ran away with a Nazi POW and tarnished her family. They refused to discuss her because she was considered a traitor. Sophia takes it upon herself to investigate the life of her Aunt and to better understand her life and hopefully clear her name. Along the way she meets the great nephew of the Nazi POW that Vivienne ran away with. Together they work to find out what happened to their family and if they really were the traitors their family have believed for years.
I loved the dual timelines and the flow of the two stories and how they related to each other. The character development was good and made you really care about the present characters and those in the past.
Thank you netgalley for the ARC of this book. I really enjoyed it.

Historical Fiction seems to be my go to these past months, and When We Were Brave ranks right up there at the top. This affecting story is told in both 1944 Cornwall and present day London. Sophie finds a photograph of her great-aunt Vivi from World War II. This is very confusing to Sophie because this picture and the memories she has been told her entire life do not match up.

During the war, Vivienne Hamilton eloped to Paris with a Nazi POW. This was something her family was ashamed of, and that is why. until Sophie happened upon the picture, Vivi's name had never been discussed.

Sophie studies the photograph, and she gets help when she can, and it becomes more and more evident that Vivi's story was simply one of love. It seems more and more that Vivi was involved in so much more, and that might be why she apparently disappeared. As Sophie has taken her questions to Cornwall, and talks to various people secrets are coming to light.

Whether the story was being told in the past, or in the present, I was captivated throughout. The war effort was at full swing, and the spy network had an amazing agenda, as it turned out. Sophie's story was intriguing as well. In great fashion, Suzanne Kelman has penned another fantastic story.

When reading historical fiction there is always something to learn about during that period of war. In this case it was the complicated spy network, the British SOE. Just as I will never forget the other book I read by her, The View Across the Rooftops, this is one I will not forget either.

Many thanks to Bookouture and to NetGalley for this ARC for review. This is my honest opinion.

Another winner read for Suzanne Kelman.
Ok! You made me cry again. How do you do it? Is by writing an amazing story.
Sophie the main character seeing a picture of a woman in the London Blitz wearing the family crest finding that weird. She brings the picture to her aunt Jean and thinks it does look like your great-aunt Vivienne the traitor according to the family history and the village.
This started Sophie’s quest to finding the truth about Vivi. It took Sophie to London, Germany, Normandy, Brittany and to the great-nephew of the man she was accused of defecting with Marcus Vonstein named Alex Vonstein.
Finally, after extensive research done Sophie was able to tell the truth to her family especially her grea- Uncle Tom who had taught Vivenne a traitor.
Vivienne Hamilton and Marcus Vonstein we’re members of the SOE underground Resistance and not traitors.
I want to thank NetGalley, Bookouture and Suzanne Kelman for an early copy in exchange of an honest review.

Sophie is trying to rebuild her life after a personal tragedy, the loss of her daughter and mother. She gives up her job as a corporate solicitor and working as a historical archivist for a charity its at an exhibit at the British War Museum when she stumbles across a photograph of a woman , taken in London during the blitz and who looks startlingly like a family member. In fact, just like her. Her investigations into who this mysterious woman was are met with hurdles and family secrets. Just who is this woman that nobody wants to talk about.? Villainous Vivienne has shamed the family name with her exploits during the war. Had she really run off with a Nazi or was her role in the war just misunderstood?

Vivi is the mysterious woman and through a dual timeline we hear her story too. Vivi unwittingly signs up as a member of SOE - Special Operations Executive. She doesn't initially realise just how dangerous her missions will be but being fluent in both French and German she is an asset to the organisation during wartime. Thinking she'd just be carrying out admin tasks she'd no idea she would end up in France. On a mission! But, is she really equipped for this task? She has her doubts. Back in the present day, Sophie is doubting her own bravery.

I really enjoyed this book and the way the story was told through a dual timeline. It flowed so effortlessly and the story was flawless. I'm really enjoying stories set in this era and love the amount of research that goes into such books. When We Were Brave is no exception. The attention to detail is fantastic and I couldn't help but feel every bit of heartbreak and fear that the main characters felt. Reading about ordinary characters who were called upon to do extraordinary things during the war really is so grounding. Could you step up and do what needed to be done? Many untold stories of incredible bravery lie waiting to be discovered. This is a super book if you want to immerse yourself in a bit of mystery and war time drama. I thoroughly enjoyed it.

This is a fascinating read and draws the reader in as we discover Vivi's story. Little by little her great-niece Sophie pieces together what must have happened to make Vivi, once an undercover agent for her country, change sides and join the Nazi party. This is cleverly told but absolutely heartbreaking and the ending will leave you in tears.

I was given this ARC by Netgalley and Bookouture in exchange for a review.

Unfortunately, I did not enjoy this book. I was not able to get into it as the writing just didn't flow. It read like a poor translation if that makes sense. It plodded rather than flowed and that was so hard to get past. It also felt rushed and not fleshed out completely.

The concept was pretty interesting but that is the extent of any positive feedback I can give.

This booked grabbed me right from the start as it opens up with our present-day protagonist, Sophie Hamilton, involved in a project at the Imperial War Museum which I’ve recently visited! If you enjoy museums and history, then this is the type of place that you’ll enjoy immersing yourself in for hours. The number of artefacts and data that is stored is, is absolutely astounding and it’s truly fascinating stuff!

So … back to the book! Sophie isn’t in the best space. Since the recent tragic death of her mother and baby daughter, she just can’t get her life back on track. To add to her woes, she’s sure that her relationship with long-term partner Matt, is on the rocks. He can’t seem to understand her inability to move on. Sophie has lost all focus – she has nothing to focus on!

But then, while going through the material she’s been working on for a project that she’s just completed, a photo catches her eye. It’s a wartime picture – WWII – 1944, to be exact, so it’s not recent, so obviously not clear, and the focus is a child in the foreground of the picture, not the woman in the background, the person who’s caught Sophie’s attention. Because although the woman’s image is blurry, the similarity between her, Sophie and Sophie’s late mother is quite uncanny. But when Sophie does the maths, thinks of all the family members she’s aware of and scans her memory for what she knows about her ancestry, this woman is nowhere to be found.

Mentally and physically exhausted, Sophie realises she desperately needs some time out, so she retreats to the only place that can bring her comfort and relief: the family estate in Cornwall. Her great-uncle Tom, now suffering from dementia, still lives there with his daughter Jean. And it’s here that Sophie learns of the family’s black sheep: Vivi Hamilton, who is never spoken about, never mentioned and has been banished from the annals of the family’s history for being a traitor to her country! Sophie is initially shocked and understandably upset, but once she’s had time to absorb what she’s heard, she realises that if this is really the case, then the photo she has doesn’t make any sense, for in it Vivi is walking away from a building known to have housed the British SOE (Special Operations Executive).

Sophie is determined to uncover Vivi’s full story. She’s unconvinced that her aunt helped a Nazi officer escape from the hospital that was being run from the family’s country home after becoming a Nazi herself! So she travels to Paris to discover as much as she can about Vivi’s life during the war.

The reader is lucky to learn the story as it’s told in dual timelines and from the perspectives of both Sophie and Vivi. We can see how people could have got things so very wrong, misunderstanding actions and motives. But it really did upset me that everyone was so ready to think the worst of Vivi, who was so brave, and so heroic throughout, even when she was positive that she couldn’t be. It is sad how human nature prevails, but we see it all the time: people are so much more willing to believe the worst rather than the best; more able to list to negative reports than positive truths. Suzanne Kelman portrays this side of human nature so perfectly, in all its ugly, heartbreaking glory.

Vivi questions her abilities throughout, despite her training and her obvious capabilities. But her own soft nature gets the better of her. Again, the author shines in the way that she describes Vivi and her innate humanity. In fact, her characterisation throughout is superb.

But where Suzanne Kelman once again shows her true strength as a historical author is through her meticulous research. She’s chosen one particular aspect of WWII history to focus on, based on a story she’d read while researching her previous book (A View Across the Rooftops. If you haven’t read it, why not?? Go and read it now – it’s exceptional! Here’s my review.). It was about an infiltrated Resistance Network, and theories about falsified information from the British Government at the time relating to the location of the D-Day landings. This compelled Suzanne to write a story from the point of view of a young spy who might have been a part of such a Resistance Network, leading her to wonder what kind of person would become a spy and what can be learned from such devotion, bravery and quiet determination.

This is an outstanding 5+ star read!

I have recently been on a kick of reading historical fiction and with that they can be hit or miss.

This book was simply put amazing. It was a strong story with a time slip that just made it more attractive.

What I liked about this was that it was that it deals more of the spy game. It also shows a tough family life as well and they want to clear the family name

Thank you to NetGalley and Bookouture for the free advanced reader's copy in exchange for an honest review.

When We Were Brave tells the story of two women. Sophie Hamilton is a high-end solicitor who loses her young daughter unexpectedly. As a way to cope with her sudden loss, she leaves her job and finds a different job working as an archivist of historical materials. While working on a project, she comes across a photograph taken in 1944 with a woman who looks like someone in her family. Asking after the picture, it turns out to be her long lost great aunt Vivienne--the black sheep of the family. Vivi was last seen leaving Cornwall fleeing to Nazi-controlled France with a Nazi!

Suzanne Kelmen goes back and forth from Present Day to WWII reconstructing events. There are times we see what Vivi and Marcus -the Nazi- are doing and experiencing in the past. At times, we are with Sophie in the present as she discovers pieces of the past in the present.

I highly recommend this historical fiction novel. it is fast paced. It keeps you guessing. At times, I wanted to take Vivi to task for being so naive during her time in the SOE but that brings authenticity to the character. It is a love story in more than one way.

This was a beautiful book about heartbreak, love, loss and finding out the truth years later. Such a beautiful story with both the present day and WWII pieces that are captivating. You had such strong emotions for both story lines that you really felt what each character was going through. I will definitely be reading more from this author.

Brilliant. A very well written story told over two timelines. It tells about the sacrifices made in World War 2. People gave their lives to help Britain win the war. This is a beautifully written story about love and loss and family. It had me captivated the whole way through. There are strong characters and unexpected twists.

Thank you to Netgalley for my copy.