This is a good book with a tense plot. The characters were likeable and believable. I felt very invested in the story.
A great book

An interesting read, a plot that sees an Irish woman working in England, where her family history seems to follow her.
Slowly, we learn more about Sarah’s character and the events that led to her coming over to England. I was very keen to see how the story progressed and how things would end up, a very interesting plot that kept me interested from start to finish.
Sarah is a strong character and does not suffer fools. I grew to really like her as a character. The end was a surprise in some ways and left open for further stories. Will there be a sequel?

A really enjoyable story.
After losing her home and family in an unexpected bombing over Dublin, Sarah Gillespie accepts an invitation from her only relative - her uncle on her mother's side - and moves to England. As an Irishwoman, her background is scrutinised, especially since her father - an abusive and opiniated man - has anti-British leanings. Little does she know that his past will come to dictate her future.
A strong cast and interesting storyline with great characters in the Lambe family and Gladys and Miss Whitaker. The well-paced story is a quick read and has everything from touching family relationships, new and enduring friendships, romance and humour, to suspense and mystery in its spy plotline.
Thank you #netgalley for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

On 31st May 1941, when Germany unexpectedly drops a bomb on neutral Dublin, Sarah Gillespie loses her family and home all in that one fateful night.

And then she breaks up with her boyfriend, as leaves Ireland to enlist in the RAF.

Her life as she knows it, is completely devastated.

When she receives an invitation to stay with relatives in Hampshire, England, Sarah recognises that it is the right thing to do. With nothing to keep her in Ireland and a burning desire to help the war effort, what else could possibly go wrong?

She obtains employment at Vickers Supermarine (home of the Spitfire) in the drawing office. She excels at her work, but her boss is -difficult.

When Sarah is asked to make a huge decision and prove her loyalty to Britain by becoming involved in espionage she knows that she must only do what she thinks is right.

But will everyone see it that way?

There are few books in the ones I have read in WW2 historical fiction that mention fifth columnists. I knew the term didn’t sound good based on its surrounding in the book. I am educated now. Sarah is such a great character. I can’t imagine having to make the decisions she did and the reader was right there with her. I look forward to more books by this author.

I voluntarily reviewed a copy of this book provided by NetGalley

Really good book. The plot was well-written and engrossing. I look forward to reading more from this author.

*Thank you to Avon Books and NetGalley for my copy of the book, in exchange for an honest review*

I’ve always been a fan of historical fiction, especially those based around either of the World Wars. Despite having read a lot of them, Her Secret War immediately stood out to me, and I was so excited to read it.

The beginning of this story was nothing like I had expected. It was explosive (quite literally), and emotional, and it has you completely invested immediately. Sarah’s world is turned upside in an instant, she’s lost her family, her home, and everything in it. The pain that Sarah must have been feeling is unimaginable.

When Sarah then makes the decision to move to England, to live with her aunt and uncle, she’s initially unsure whether this was the right choice, but she is determined to fight the evil that destroyed her family and her life, and England is the best place to do it. However, moving in with her relatives brought unexpected happiness to Sarah’s life. They are warm, welcoming, and loving, and they take her in to their home like one of their own. This is a happy home environment that Sarah hasn’t experienced in a very long time.

When she starts a job at Vickers Supermarine, alongside her uncle and her cousin, she soon begins to make friends and gets really stuck in to her work. But, her family’s past soon raises its awful head, and it seems that Sarah will never be able to escape the reputation of her father, and his IRA connections. I really liked that this story looked at how the history of the IRA effected the people of Ireland during the war, regardless of where their allegiance laid. This was the first time I had seen this included in a WWII historical fiction novel, but I would definitely like to see it involved in more, as I felt that it brought an extra interesting element to the story.

Proving her loyalty to Britain and completing her mission was much more difficult than Sarah could have ever imagined, and she faced unimaginable dangers, including the danger of death, but she was willing to do whatever it would take to not only prove herself, but also get her revenge on the enemy. There was so much excitement along the way, and obstacles that Sarah could never have seen coming. The further she got, the more danger that surrounded her and anyone close to her.

Throughout the story, I had quite a few theories and ideas on what was going to happen, and who the spy at Supermarine was, but then there would be a curveball thrown my way, and I was back to being clueless as to who it was. I kept changing my mind! There were twists along the way that I never saw coming, and also a few that I had predicted, but ultimately, the outcome was NOT what I had expected.

This book is a fantastic historical fiction, that is incredibly written, and difficult to put down. I will definitely be continuing Sarah’s story and picking up the book’s sequel, Her Last Betrayal.

I give Her Secret War a 4.5 star rating!

Her Secret War is an interesting and unique perspective of WWII in that it encompasses the unsettled relationship between Ireland and Britain during this time.

Despite its neutrality, Ireland experienced several bombings during WWII. Our protagonist, Sarah Gillespie, is caught in the cross fire during the bombing of the North Strand area of Dublin, and while she survives, her family does not. After leaving Dublin to stay with family in Hampshire England, Sarah takes on a job at the Vickers Supermarine (where Spitfire fighter planes are Manufactured). While her life begins to settle, and she is successful in her job, her Irish heritage puts her in a somewhat precarious position in having to prove her allegiance to Britain. She’s recruited to help stop a possible intelligence leak occurring from inside the factory but by agreeing to do so, she struggles within her world of loyalties and lies.

Espionage, spies and a touch of romance nicely intertwine and the political intrigue added an interesting perspective setting this story apart from other WWII novels I’ve read. I found Sarah to be a sympathetic character. While she was young, naive, and impetuous I also found her courageous and her flaws made her feel more real to me. I did find the pace a bit slow at times but there was enough going on to keep me wondering what would happen next. The ending was left open so I suspect I will be hearing more from Sarah in the future!

Thank you to NetGalley and AvonBooksUK for the opportunity to read this enjoyable advance digital copy in return for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

Cover: I love the color palette!

The third episode of my exciting new series called ‘Cleaning up my backlog’ features Her Secret War, a historical novel set during WWII.

(I promise I’m almost done with old reviews. I’ve got 2-3 more before I’m back on track. Which means, uh. +70 new books or something. Anyway!)

I gave this review a lot of thought.

Lecky’s protagonist, Sarah, is an Irish spy with a tragic background—par for the course given the setting—and overall, she’s a character with a nice growth arc. That and the fresh take Lecky goes for, the use of Ireland as a backdrop, deserve a star, no questions asked.

Another one goes to the writing and the story itself. As we follow Sarah’s life, we find ourselves caught deep into a love triangle subplot featuring her, her boyfriend Paul, and Rob. Now, love triangles or triangles-adjacent, they’re a rather common trope and not one that interests me. Lecky, however, handles the three of them in a graceful way, keeping me entertained throughout the entire novel. That’s a first, so well done!

Any flaws? Well, the pacing. The blurb says Her Secret War is fast-paced, which is not always true. It’s too slow in places, and that’s a surefire way to lose your readers’ attention if you’re not careful, even more so when it happens at the beginning–I don’t know why, but I’m stumbling into more and more books structured like this.

Look, I’m not saying every novel needs to be all quick-quick, from zero to a gazillion until the very end. My point is that there’s a fine line between slow and drag. It’s easy to cross it.

3.5 stars on GR, rounded up to 4.

I started reading this book - and absolutely loved it!! Then I won a paperback copy of this book from the publisher which I will be reviewing later.

I love reading books set during WWII. And this one had a different focus in that it included a time in Ireland. The characters are well developed and Sarah’s dedication to helping to end the war was admirable. The story developed slowly and the ending was too easy to figure out. But the intense emotions and tension Sarah felt as she worked as a spy kept me invested. This one could definitely have a sequel. I hope the author will consider that.

Thank you to NetGalley and Avon for my advanced review copy. All opinions and thoughts are my own.

Different from any other war time novel I've read, Her Secret War was packed with thriller like suspense that had me on the very edge of my seat.
The War Effort information was woven into the story easily and went into uncomplicated great detail making me feel all the emotions of the 40s as if I was actually there, it really was an amazing read.
Easily one of the best Wartime reads I've had the pleasure of reading and the perfect start to (I'm hoping anyway 🤞) a series!
I'm diving into book 2 straight away!

It was a good story with historical significance and likable characters. The end obviously leads to a sequel and I'll look forward to reading it when it becomes available. Thank to the author, publisher and NetGalley.

After her home in Dublin is destroyed in the bombing, Sarah moves to England where she moves in with her family and happily starts valuable war work at Supermarine. However she is approached and threatened into smuggling plans out to trap a German spy. Who is in the right and who is in the wrong? Who can she really trust? And where is Paul, the love of her life, through all this? Well written, not as straight forward as it seems, and shows another area of war work not normally written about

Yet another cover of a woman walking away from us and yet again a WW2 story. This time, we accompany Sarah Gillespie as she goes to England after an attack in Dublin destroys her home and kills her sister.

Someone is leaking high-level secrets to the enemy. Sarah has to uncover who that someone is. But doing so is not easy. She has to befriend and date an active pro-Nazi man. Will she be able to uncover the spy before it is too late?

WHAT I LIKED:
👉 Sarah Gillespie - The protagonist was a good woman. I could relate to her struggles and her dilemmas. She was real and I liked the way she always let her head rule over her heart.
👉 The writing - The writing was easy and very enjoyable.
👉 The plot - The plot was well-thought-out. There are the correct twists at the time when the narrative begins to sag.
👉 WW2 setting - It is no secret that I absolutely love WW2 fiction. This fit the bill perfectly.
👉 Cliffhanger - I don't like cliffhangers usually but this novel was good so the idea of a sequel is welcome.

WHAT I DIDN'T LIKE:
👉 Slow narrative - The text is over-explanatory at times. It slows down the narrative considerably.
👉 Unrealistic - Sometimes, the protagonist does things that women of the 1940s wouldn't have done.

READ OR NOT: If you like a fair-paced good WW2 read, you should definitely read this book.

MY RATING: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ stars

Thanks to Netgalley and Avon Books UK for the ARC.

Sarah's story starts in WW2 Dublin during a horrific bombing by the Germans. In the aftermath she moves to England to stay with family she has never met, taking a job as a Tracing girl to do her bit for the war effort.
Unbeknown to Sarah, her life is to change forever when she gets caught up in a tale of blackmail, murder and espionage resulting in almost losing her life.
I don't normally read books set in this era but it drew me in from the first chapter and kept me hooked right the way through, although I did work out the plot quite early on. However I didn't anticipate the final twist, leaving it open to a follow-up maybe?
An interesting and informative book which I totally enjoyed.

An interesting take in this historical fiction novel set in World War II Ireland and England. At the onset of the war, Ireland tried to remain neutral since anti-British sentiments prevented support for the Allies. In Dublin, Sara and her sister Maura are the unfortunate victims of a German aerial attack in the North Strand in Dublin. Sara survives, also losing her father in the bombing. Alone and bereft, Sara moves to England to live with an Uncle and his welcoming and loving family, working for a war sensitive business. There is much to appreciate in this novel, although there was some of it that stretched the imagination a bit. I really enjoyed it and hope Sara’s story continues with a sequel. Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC.

Fabulous! This book had me hooked from the very start. Dublin during WW2 was meant to be a neutral city until a rogue bomb changed so many lives.
Sarah has lost so much and an invite ftom her uncle to make a new life in England was tempting for Sarah.
A new life and brand new start for her; hopefully life in England would help Sarah ease her dreadful nightmares.
I enjoyed reading this part of British history and I sincerely hope that this will be continued.

I read this book a few months ago and enjoyed it very much. It is my oversight which has led me to review it so late. I found this story really exciting and interesting. It is one of those books which painted such clear pictures in my mind, that I feel that I watched it as a film. Indeed it will make a really good screen version either as a film or mini series so I hope that someone takes it up.

I really enjoyed this. I thought it was interesting to see a different character type/view point during WWII. I love the espionage and mystery. The relationship between Britain and Ireland at the time is one i'm not overly familiar with so it was interesting to read about.

I'd recommend this for anyone who likes historical fiction.