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

Unique viewpoint of someone from Ireland going to England during WWII to escape the bombings and work against the Germans. A perspective I had never read before. Interesting read that was hard to put down. Definitely recommend! Thank you NetGalley for the chance to read an advanced copy!

I devoured this historical thriller and then went on to the second book by Pam Lecky. I guarantee you will want to do the same! A great character and a plot that moves quickly during WWII, and you won't be able to put it down! Make sure you get both books!

Sarah Gillespie and her sister, Maura were in their house when they heard the sound of airplanes fly overhead. They assumed there was no way that the Germans were going to bomb them, until they did. Sarah's life was turned upside down on that day.
With no family left in her hometown, Sarah went to live with relatives in England. There she found herself a job at the Supermarie as a tracer. While doing her tracing work, Sarah finds herself wrapped up in the war more than she ever expected.
For someone who loves historical fiction, this book was hard to put down. It was engaging, the characters were lovable and I found myself at the edge of my seat, waiting to see what happened.

Thanks, netgalley for the ARC!

Her Secret War was not a quick, easy read. Her Secret War was a detailed story of Sarah, a survivor of a Dublin bombing. As the lone survivor in her family, her uncle asks her to move to Southampton area in England where she can get a job working for Supersubmarine. For her it is a way to get revenge on the Germans and a way to start over.

The reader gets to experience some of the struggles she experiences as and Irish citizen trying to make it in England. She is young. She is naive. She is susceptible to the influences of others. She will do anything stand up to the Germans. It will put her at risk as she thinks she is taking down a spy.

The reader gets an overview of what it was like in war torn England as factories try to keep ahead of demand. My mom talks about the rationing, the shortages but I never grasped the challenges until I started reading more and more Historical Fiction. I have learned so much that was never taught in schools. They need to stop glossing over what happened. We need to learn. We need to remember. We need to never, ever repeat what happened.

In 1941, Sarah Gillespie is living in Dublin with her sister and father, sorting through a romance with her boyfriend Paul, when things suddenly and tragically change. Her neighborhood - and her home - is bombed by Germans. Her family perishes and Sarah lives. She makes the decision to go to England to live with her uncle and his family. She becomes involved in war work there, and slowly becomes involved in espionage, spurred on by her anger about what happened in Ireland.

I wanted to read Her Secret War because I love historical fiction and the 1940's is my favorite time period to read about. I was also intrigued by the Irish setting, as I knew very little about Ireland during World War II.

This is a beautifully told novel with a sympathetic protagonist. Sarah is such a relatable character, and it makes the position she later finds herself in particularly striking. She is going about her normal life and finds it changed beyond her control. This spurs her to take courageous and dangerous action.

This is a leisurely paced novel, but fascinating, as Sarah tries to figure who she can truly trust in England.

The author, Pam Lecky, has a real gift at description that sets the time and place with passages like:

"15th September 1941, Hursley Park

It was Monday morning and Sarah’s first day at Supermarine. She surveyed the wood-panelled office with admiration. Much like the rest of the house she’d seen so far, it was beautifully decorated, contrasting sharply with the utilitarian office furniture. She would have loved to have caught a glimpse of the original antiques that must have been here before, but she assumed those items were stored somewhere safe until the war was over. The window afforded a view of the parkland, lush and green with a stand of oak trees in the distance. The grounds were extensive, Uncle Tom had told her, housing many different departments both in the outbuildings and in the huts hidden beneath the vast woodland canopy. Her aunt had mentioned that Lady Cooper, the widowed owner, was still in residence, occupying the upper floor of the mansion, and was often to be seen about the place" (eBook position 879).

Her Secret War was a wonderful read and I highly recommend it to fans of historical fiction, and especially for anyone interested in the World War II time period.

Interesting historical fiction account of the bombing of Dublin during WWII and the work of drafters for the Spitfire.

Sarah Gillespie spends her time focusing on her life and avoiding her brute of a father. All that changes one night when the Germans bomb the North Strand section of Dublin where she lives, killing her sister and father. Sarah herself is badly wounded but is dug out of their home and rehabilitated in a hospital. With nothing left for her in Ireland, she takes passage to her uncle in England, where is employed at Southmarine as a tracer for drawings created for the spitfire airplane. As she gets to know the other workers, she finds herself drawn into a spy ring where she must participate in order to keep her new family safe!

Overall, I enjoyed the story and learning some of the history behind the Dublin bombing as well as how the plans for different aircraft were drawn up for the Royal Air Force. After the bombing, much of the story was a bit slow until the last 100 pages, which flew off the page. It is definitely worth sticking with and the ending feels like there may be a sequel in the works. I liked Sarah’s character and how she went from being self-absorbed to wanting to do her part to support the war effort. The main drawback I had was in the writing style as it felt like the author was telling me what was going on in Sarah’s mind rather than showing me. Aside from that, it was intriguing, and I would be curious to read any future installments.

I received a complimentary copy of this title from the publisher. The views and opinions expressed within are my own.

Irish author Pam Lecky gives us an intriguing twist on WWII novels with the Nazi bombing of Dublin and the tragic aftermath that changes character Sarah’s life in one night.

Sarah moves to England to live with family, and ends up working for Vickers Supermarine, makers of the famous Spitfire fighter planes. While there, she is forced to prove her loyalty to Britain by spying for them (Ireland was neutral during the war). At this point, the story kicks into high gear and never falters.

Lovers of histfic and WWII novels will thoroughly enjoy HER SECRET WAR — a tale replete with romance, tragedy, hope, and espionage. There’s even a sequel coming later this year. Hurrah!

Pub Date Jan 4, 2022
#HerSecretWar #NetGalley

Thanks to the author, Harper 360, Avon, and NetGalley for the ARC; opinions are mine.

After losing her beloved sister Maura and her abusive, alcoholic father in the bombing of Dublin, Ireland during WWII, Sarah moves in with her aunt and uncle in England, getting a job at Supermarine as a tracer where both her uncle and cousin work. Sarah is approached by Navy Captain Northcott to help in finding a spy who has infiltrated the company trying to steal plans for alterations to the Spitfire airplane.After being threatened with deportation of her nd her family she reluctantly agrees to help the Captain. This is where things begin to get dicey for Sarah.
For me this book started off pretty slow, there was a whole lot of telling of Sarah's background leading to her move to England that just dragged on too long. It is only after she is approached by Captain Northcott that the pace picks up and the action gets rolling. From there on to the end the story moves along nicely and the plot catches and holds you to the end. The ending is a surprise itself, leaving one to wonder if we will be seeing Sarah agin in the future. I for one hope we do.
I would recommend this to historical fiction fans. The plot is unique, not the same old WWII novel,jujst stick with it if it seems too slow at first, it is worth it. It does get much better.
Thank you to the publishers at Harper 360 and to Net Galley for the free ARC, I am leaving my honest review in return.

What a great suspenseful spy novel. The story and characters are well done. The plot will hold your interest and keep you guessing. A good read.

Thank you to #NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.

After losing her sister and father in a bombing, Sarah moves from Dublin to live with cousins in England. Her uncle and cousin work in an airplane factory, and they soon find a job for her. Sarah's job involves hand copying plans and schematics for airplanes. When she is approached to uncover a spy, she reluctantly agrees to the mission.
I thought this book was a bit predictable. I saw the twists coming long before they happened. Sarah seemed a little one-dimensional and wasn't well flushed out as a character. Despite this criticism, this would make a good beach read, or for light reading. Overall, 3 out of 5 stars.

Interesting take on WWII novel with an Irish heroine when Ireland was technically neutral during the war. But it was refinishing to see a character type that you normally don't see in that historical fiction genre.

I found this book hard to get into in the beginning. The dialogue was rather juvenile. However, as the book went on the storyline made up for the lack of exciting conversations. I did find it predictable at times but the ending did allow for a nice twist I did not see coming. As a fan of historical fiction, it wasn’t my favorite but I don’t regret reading it.

This was a part of history that I did not know anything about. There are so many World War Two novels lately, that focus on the bits of history we all know. This novel begins with a unique perspective with an Irish connection. Who knew that Ireland had been bombed by the Germans? I surely didn't. The terrible loss of life in the North Strand bombings sets the story up, following a lone survivor of a family. This is complicated by Ireland being a neutral country during WWII, with strong pockets of Irish Republican activity against the British. The main character gets to travel and live in England, after being approved by the British government, and after stringent checks into her background as the daughter of a man with an IRA terrorist history. She finds work in a Supermarine design office, copying blueprints for new versions of the famous Spitfire planes. I won't ruin the rest of the story but there's espionage, love affairs, fitting into a new family. I was spurred on to research the Dublin bombings and the Supermarine aircraft site mentioned in the book. I loved the premise of this novel, but I felt that the actual fleshing out of the characters needed more work. I wanted to care about Sarah, our heroine, but couldn't. The secondary characters were similarly flat. A good story, but needs work.

From the start this book is a look into a part of WWII history that is often overlooked and sets the reader on a tale of adventure and mystery.

The Irish Spy

In Dublin, during a bombing by a German Bomber Sarah Gillespie loses her sister and her father, the only family she has left after the death of her mother years earlier. She goes to live with an Aunt and Uncle in England.

She had a fight with her boyfriend Paul because he wants to enlist in the British RAF and fly airplanes. Later she feels she has made a mistake, but doesn't know how to fix it with Paul and he leaves to join the RAF.

She doesn't know when she goes to work at a company designing spitfire airplanes she will meet a boy named Rob and be drawn into an espionage ring. She still misses Paul but doesn't know how to let him know how she feels. She is confused and threatened if she doesn't steal airplane plans for Rob she will be deported and her Aunt and Uncle and cousins as well. She doesn't know what to do.

The story of Sarah, Rob, Paul and her other friends Ruth, Gladys, and Martin her cousin are told within the pages of this book. Will Sarah be caught as a spy? Will she get back with Paul or with Rob? You will want to read this fast paced, suspenseful novel filled with intrigue, romance and a twist at the very end.

I loved the characters and the descriptions of the landmarks and the battles during the bombings. Exciting and historical. I just wanted to keep reading to find out what was going to happen next. It Was a great read and I would recommend it.