This book was INCREDIBLE. I was already a Kate Quinn super fan and honestly I was hesitant to read this because I just didn't think she could top The Huntress, but I am happy to say she just keeps getting BETTER.

Here are some reasons why Kate Quinn is my absolute favorite historical fiction author:

1. Her books are character driven AND plot driven. They are very fast-paced but never lacking in character development. These are stories to be remembered and characters to cherish.

2. She is the absolute master of the dual timeline. I’m never confused when she jumps between time and/or POV, but I’m always anxious to see where and how things converge!

3. Her stories feel so real, like you’re getting a firsthand account from people who lived amazing secret lives and they just happen to be incredible writers.

4. The stories she writes about are not the typical ones you see in every other historical fiction book. It’s obvious she did a ton of research and specifically chose to write stories that are often overlooked (and shouldn’t be).

5. Lastly, her books have a little bit of everything. There’s romance (I mean swoon-worthy wartime love letters that will absolutely BREAK YOU), a whole lot of suspense and mystery (major jaw-dropping moments), tragedy, heartbreak and ~extremely satisfying~ justice for the bad guys.


I have nothing negative to say about this book - it was absolutely perfect. And while I definitely cried, it wasn't a Kristin Hannah style sobfest which I actually appreciated :)

The Rose Code by Kate Quinn is a phenomenal historical fiction novel and the audiobook is excellently narrated by Saskia Maarleveld. Thank you NetGalley and HarperAudio for a copy of this book for review - I thoroughly enjoyed it. I hadn't read a Kate Quinn historical fiction novel before and now I want to read them all.

One of my absolute favorite WWII films is The Imitation Game which is a story about the codebreakers of Bletchley Park. Well, The Rose Code is also about the codebreakers of Bletchley Park but better! Because it is centered around the experiences of three strong female characters!

Learning about the strong women of WWII always inspires me - they too played such a critical role in the war efforts and it's fabulous that so many authors take the time to have their stories told. Kate Quinn told the stories of three women whose lives were interwoven as codebreakers and roommates during the war. While personalities, morals and life interests often conflicted, their dedication to the war effort united them. This is a story not only about the war and the important work these women did but also about their personal experiences finding who they are, falling in love and living a full life, even in the midst of a devastating war. 

Secrets, love, betrayal, hope, friendship, and loyalty are a few strong themes in The Rose Code and all of them make for an enticing and truly captivating story. If you are a historical fiction and mystery lover, I highly recommend this book! PubDay is March 9th!

I really enjoyed this audiobook. The narrator spoke clearly and the enunciated well. I felt like the narrator helped to bring the story to life. I have read most of Kate Quinn's books and while I like them, I feel like they are really long and it did not feel that way when listening to the audiobook. The story itself was great and drew you in with the character development and storyline. I love historical fiction and after listening to this book I plan on re-reading Kate Quinn's other books via audiobook.

Kate Quinn is easily one of the best historical fiction authors of all time. I definitely would've preferred this book in a physical copy and not audio book but narrator Saskia Maarleveld is the best narrator in the game. I fell in love with the stories of these women and could perfectly picture everything. An intricate story with heartbreaking and hopeful elegance.

I love Katie Quinn’s previous books like “The Alice Network” and “The Huntress” so I was so excited to be given the chance to listen to the ALC of Quinn’s newest book from #Netgalley.
“The Rose Code” weaves through the stories of three female codebreakers in WWII England. Osla, the debutante, Mab, the dreamer, and Beth, the outsider, become close friends who live and work together under a secret mission to help the war effort. Each woman grows in her own way. Eventually, the trio breaks up and their lives go on, except one ends up in a mental facility, labeled as a traitor to her country.
The former friends reunite to crack one last code, The Rose Code, to find out who the real traitor is and save their old friend.
Like her other works, Quinn seamlessly blends in real life places, characters, and events into her work of fiction. After watching The Crown, I was happy to see people like Lady Margaret, Prince George, and Lord Mountbatten in this story.
The story starts slow, but I then found myself completely engrossed in the story. My heart broke for these women and their stories. I found myself most connected to Beth, who is shy, but learns to stand up for herself with help from Osla and Mab. I recommend this story to anyone who enjoys reading about female leading ladies or historical fiction.

Love love loved this one! I adore this author and I’m so picky with historical fiction but this was amazing!!!!!!!!! Again amazing! I’m definitely grabbing a company to own! Thank you!

I read The Alice Network several years ago and (hot take) didn't love it, but this one... I couldn't put it down - during work assignments, meals, chores, driving, and painting. Kate Quinn did a magnificent job with the story of Bletchley Park and the women (and men) breaking codes during WWII.

I burnt myself out on WW2 fiction, so I was hesitant to start this. But it did not disappoint. One of the things I love about historical fiction is learning about new things. This book is set in England and the protagonists are women whose jobs are to decypher German coded messages. It is written in two time lines, one during the war and one after. After the war we see one protagonist is in a mental institution and the other two hate her. The story drew me and I couldn't stop until I knew what led to that happening. I listened to the audiobook though the narrator is good, I did have a hard time keeping Oz and Mab straight at first. I'm not sure if it had anything to do with the narration or if it was the way the story was written.
I encourage everyone who likes historical fiction to pick this up. This is my first Kate Quinn novel, and it will not be my last.

I was already a fan of Kate Quinn as I really enjoyed her novel, The Huntress. I think that she outdid herself with this novel as I don’t have any quibbles with any of the characters and found them believable and interesting. The story revolves around three main characters: Osla, the wealthy debutant, hard as nails Mab and Beth, the anxious and broken spirited genius. These women would likely never had met or become friends if they didn’t have jobs at the top secret Bletchley Park during WWII. The stress and long hours of code breaking enemy messages bonded these women and also introduced an assortment of engaging secondary characters. My favourite was Francis, but the royal family, Churchill and Alan Touring also made appearances.
The novel shifts between two time periods; wartime Bletchley Park and November 1947 in order to solve the mystery of a traitor at Bletchley Park.
The drama and action throughout the 600+ pages kept me riveted and that is a major accomplishment in itself 😆
Thanks for writing a killer diller story Kate Quinn!

Kate Quinn keeps getting better and better! I love her complex characters and careful plotting. Her strong women protagonists never fail to inspire. She is the absolute best writer I of historical fiction. 4 1/2 stars for audio version - I probably would have enjoyed the print copy better so that I can savor the writing. Thank you Harper Audio, William Morrow and Net Galley for the ARC

5 stars!!! O. M. G. I haven't added a book to my "all-time favorites" shelf in quite awhile, but this one definitely deserves a spot there. I may even purchase a hard copy to have on hand. Okay, now that all my gushing is done...

Kate Quinn developed this story beautifully. I loved our main characters. I felt like I knew them and was rooting for them. My heart broke when relationships were fractured and when they experienced death and trauma all too common during a World War. Each character felt unique and like a lot of thought was put into them, which I appreciate. That tends to make or break a book for me.

The story itself was fascinating and compelling. I loved learning about code breakers and the logistics behind how that process worked during WWII. It was a side of WWII history that I wasn't very familiar with and I learned a lot. There is a mysterious and suspenseful element to the latter part of the book that I couldn't quite figure out on my own until the very end.

All in all, I highly recommend this, especially if you're a fan of WWII historical fiction. But even if you're not, I still think this will suck you in.

I thoroughly enjoyed The Rose Code by Kate Quinn. I enjoyed the history, mystery, and friendship. The characters are likable, interesting, and memorable. Quinn writes in a way that you really know the characters, and you think about them when you aren't reading the book. Quinn enlightens us about historical events with out boring us. She makes you cheer for the characters, hoping things will turn out for the best as secrets and twists unfold. I did not want to stop listening. Sneaking away to fold laundry just so I could listen!
I thought the narrator did a fantastic job and that the personalities of the voices fit the characters.

Thank you to Net Galley, the author, & the publisher for an ARC audio of The Rose Code in exchange for an honest review.

I love Kate Quinn’s other books, and this was equally good. The Alice Network was my favorite, but this one is a close second. I love that she interprets the true stories of some of the amazing women in WW2 into fictional stories. The narrator did a great job of bringing the characters to life.

Go ahead and pre-order this book. Pack it in your beach bag & add some kind of sign that you can hold up while reading that tells people to bugger off. I love historical fiction & this one threw in all of the features of the genre that I love most. A confessed Anglophile who has never been to Buckinghamshire, I don’t think my life will be complete without a visit to Bletchley Park. The audio version was long, but it was well done with lots of balanced voices. I thoroughly enjoyed this one!

I really enjoyed this one! It’s entertaining and I feel like I learned something. In general I am cautious with my WWII historical fiction. There’s just so much of it. It can be overwhelming and I want to pick titles that do it justice. This one definitely does. I got an advanced copy of the audiobook. So thanks to @harperaudio and @netgalley.
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The book is long and as with any war fiction is quite heavy at times. The code breaking work is interesting and the spy hunting is griping. The pressure the characters are under to keep it all secret plus the general hardships of war make their lives very difficult. The reader really gets a sense of how much personal sacrifice was required and how willingly it was given.
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The story follows three women, Mab, Osla, and Beth, who have been recruited to work at the code breaking operations at Bletchley Park in England. It is top secret and very elite. The three women could not be more different but become as close as sisters. The book jumps between 1940 and 1947–during the time that they are working and then after the war is over and they’ve gone back to normal lives. Well, except for one of the women. Beth has been locked up by the English government in a mental hospital. She’s not insane but has been caught up in a spying scandal inside Bletchley Park and was the scapegoat. She smuggles letters out to the other two women who are definitely not on speaking terms to try to get some help before she’s lobotomized. Yikes!

The Rose Code by Kate Quinn is a wonderful story about friendship, loyalty, love, adventure, and service to one’s country. Three young women meet at Britain’s Bletchley Park to help with the war effort. They are from vastly different backgrounds, have quite different personalities and outlooks on life. Their life experiences make they the most unlikely of friends, but best friends they become. As they work at code breaking, they also work at finding out who they are and where their lives are leading. They get to know the meaning of love, friendship, as well as the losses that come with any war. Once a traitor is discovered within Bletchely Park, their lives begin to fall apart, their friendship tested, and their allusions shattered. As the war ends and the traitor is identified, Osla, Mab and Beth survive and learn that there are always second chances in life and friendship can offer the home and family everyone wants. I would certainly recommend this book to anyone who enjoys historical fiction with some adventure and romance.

Thank you NetGalley for the eARC audiobook in exchange for an honest review.

This is fantastic historical fiction. I was interested to see with how long the book is if it would have pacing issues. But shockingly, it did not. The characters were well-developed and grew over the course of the story. There were appropriate twists and turns and they weren't all predictable (although some were). Loose ends were tied up properly. It remained interesting throughout and I did care about the characters. I listened to this as an audiobook, and sometimes I wonder if I sometimes judge books unfairly because I comprehend them better reading compared to listening. But then I come across a very high quality book like THE ROSE CODE that completely captivates me as an audiobook and I realize that listening is actually a very good way to determine if a book is really good or not.

If you enjoyed The Imitation Game, or historical fiction revolving around war, you will love this. And even if you aren't a huge historical fiction fan, you will probably still like this because it is very well done.

Kate Quinn may becoming one of my favorite authors. I’ve only read the Alice Network so far, but I am absolutely enthralled with her writing. Both the Alice Network and the Rose Code tell little-known stories of women’s roles in the world wars. Especially in this book, it felt meticulously researched and very real. Quinn intertwined the three main characters stories (as well as two timelines) wonderfully. And the narrator Saskia Maarleveld does impeccable work. There are a variety of accents and a plethora of characters and she gives a different flavor to each one. Excellent storytelling all round.

The Rose Code is what I would consider epic historical fiction! In my opinion, it transcends the typical historical fiction genre as it has a little bit of everything; history, romance and mystery.

I love when historical fiction novels focus on real, ordinary women who did extraordinary things and The Rose Code does exactly that. The story is told from the perspectives of three very different women, Osla, Mab, and Beth as they spend the years of WWII working as German code breakers. I enjoyed how the three women have different personalities and come from different backgrounds but find a friendship in the place that brought them together.

What I loved:
-Main characters based off of real women in history
-The various storylines that combine history, romance, and mystery
-Intriguing topic (code breaking and cryptanalysts)
-The audiobook narrator was one of the best I’ve ever heard

What I struggled with:
-Technical information was difficult to understand at times

The audiobook is long (approximately 15-16 hours), but it is well worth it. The narrator is able to speak with various English dialects and does both the male and female characters so well.

This will definitely be one of my top favorite historical fiction reads and I highly recommend it!

4.5 stars!

God, I’m such a fan of Kate Quinn. Her characters are always wonderfully realized, and her particular sense of humor makes her books immensely enjoyable. The Rose Code is her longest book yet, and it definitely lived up to my expectations. While The Huntress is still my favorite book of hers (that I’ve read) for personal reasons, I believe that many will consider The Rose Code to be Quinn’s best book yet. It’s very heavy on both characterization and plot (hence the high page count) and I thought both these aspects were extremely well done. I listened to the audiobook by Saskia Maarleveld, who did an amazing job: each character – main and side alike – has their own distinct voice.

I adored each of the three main characters:

Osla: She’s lively, hilarious, and wants to prove to the world that she’s more than a “silly debutante.” She’s the heart of the trio and brings light to this often dark, gritty story. She’s quick to see the potential in others and I would love to have her as a friend.

Mab: She grew up in a poor area of London, but she’s ambitious and determined to raise her position in society. She’s far from vain, though; she cares immensely for her younger sister and she’s a wonderfully loyal friend. She also has an acerbic wit and reminds me a lot of Eve from The Alice Network.

Beth: She’s my favorite of the three! I love that she doesn’t find her purpose in life until the age of 24, discovering a level of intellect she never knew she had. She’s socially awkward and shy and begins to find herself stifled by the tight rein her mother keeps on her. Watching her blossom into a more confident person is so satisfying to witness. And I love how much agency Quinn gives to Beth’s character – in many ways, I feel that this is really Beth’s story.

This book had me hooked from the very beginning, as Quinn sets the stage for intrigue early on. I was left dying to know: What tore these three women apart? And who is the traitor? As this book is lengthy, it takes a while to get the answers to these questions. At certain points, I wanted the pace to quicken a bit, but looking back, I can see why Quinn decided to draw out some scenes. And when I did get my questions answered, it was chillingly satisfying. One particular event in this book felt like a punch to the gut, but the bleak tone doesn’t stay for long, as action and adventure ultimately take precedence. By the end of the book, the tone is exciting and hopeful.

In short, The Rose Code was a knockout for me, and I can’t wait to read Kate Quinn’s next novel!

I received an ALC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.