I always look forward to Sara Ackerman's newest book and The Codebreaker's Secret is no exception!

A dual timeline set in Hawai'i in 1943 with a codebreaker and a fledgling photographer in 1965 who has come to cover the grand opening of a new hotel. These two women will come together to uncover a secret

I love Sara Ackerman's writing style and characters. I find the female codebreakers of WWII fascinating and I love reading historical fiction about these women.

Pick this one up when it comes out tomorrow - August 2nd.

The Codebreakers Secret by Sara Ackerman is a historical fiction novel based during WWII AND it is based in Hawaii! In the book, Izzy, works on deciphering codes. She is transferred to Honolulu, which is still reeling after the bombing at Pearl Harbor. Izzy wants to help her country and she also wants to learn more about her brothers death. Her brother was killed at Pearl Harbor, so Izzy wants to talk with his friends to learn more about what happened.

That is one time frame of the book 1942... The other time frame is 1965, also in Hawaii, but on the Big Island. This part of the book follows Lu, a journalist that is there to cover the opening of Mr. Rockefellers new hotel, The Mauna Kea Beach Hotel.

The author weaves both storylines masterfully. Each storyline tells a wonderful story and yes, eventually they come together with a few surprises along the way. 4⭐

THE CODEBREAKER’S SECRET by Sara Ackerman is an engaging historical fiction/mystery story told in the two intertwining timelines of 1943 and 1965 and both beautifully depicted on the lush Hawaiian Islands. This is a standalone story filled with intrigue, murder, and HEA love.

In 1943, Isabel “Izzy” Cooper has finally realized her dream to work as a codebreaker in Hawaii to avenge her brother’s death when Pearl Harbor was attacked. She meets her brother’s best-friend and pilot, Mateo Russi and as the two share their stories of her brother, they begin to get closer, but Russi has secrets of his own.

In 1965, Luana “Lu” Freitas lands her first big assignment covering the grand opening of Louis Roosevelt’s Mauna Kea Beach Hotel. Lu meets the famous Time magazine photographer, Mateo Russi who give her publishing advice as they become friends. When a famous singer goes missing and is believed dead, Lu and Russi begin to uncover secrets which have ties all the way back to Izzy and her codebreaking during WWII.

I enjoyed both timelines in this story and the mystery conclusion which tied them both together. Izzy and Lu are both strong, intelligent female lead characters. Russi is a man who has been shaped by loss and the war and I loved that he ultimately found peace and his HEA. All the characters were fully fleshed and believable. The plot starts a bit slow, but it does pick up and pulls you in so you cannot put the book down. The author does an amazing job of painting word pictures of Hawaii and the culture which makes for another layer to the story. The WWII history and the descriptions of the codebreaking failures and successes were interesting, also
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This is an intriguing historical fiction read with mystery and romance included.

4 stars

I flew through this book, i loved the dual timeline as well as the scenery. This book shows the work of the codebreakers during WW2, it highlights their work in ending the war in the Pacific.
I enjoy Sara Ackerman and her books. WW2 historical fiction is one of my favorite genres i love how these two timelines flow together well and how both story lines are equally interesting. I can't wait to read her next book!

Two intrepid women, a shared mystery, war codebreaking, and a tropical island paradise, make the latest Sara Ackerman historical fiction a lush and layered story for readers.

I’ve only experienced one other book from the author, Radar Girls, so was expecting something of the same sort, but The Codebreaker’s Secret surprised me with a dual timeline and a murder mystery beyond the expected women’s history, side romance, and war elements set in Hawaii that are usual to her books. Once I adjusted to this change in structure, I settled into the separate and then merged tales of Isabel and Lu.

At first, I was more taken with Isabel’s tale set in the WWII period as a crack codebreaker who was sent to the top secret ‘basement’ in Hawaii after she earned the highest codebreaking status and felt the fulfillment that she has likely saved many American lives. Walt, her Navy pilot brother came down there in the Pearl Harbor attack and so there she must be to go up against the Japanese herself and crack their codes to beat them on behalf of her brother. Matteo, Walt’s best friend and fellow pilot who is eaten by a secret is someone she grows close to while doing her important work. Then, she stumbles over a dangerous possibility- a spy for the enemy among their own?

Lu’s side was seeing her ambitions of being a successful journalist thwarted because she’s a woman, but has her chance to come home and cover the big hotel grand opening. Her friend disappears and a certain photographer named Matteo helps her, but the disappearance leads to a murder and a dark secret of the WWII days exposed. At first, as I said, I was drawn to Izzy’s time line, but Lu’s time line got going about half way and the two merged since a code turns up and Isobel is needed once again.

I was glad to see the author’s writing pulled me in this second book and I was engaged with her characters and their situations. The mystery added a layer of suspense that is always a welcome element to me though it does end up rather pat. I was a sucker for the romance and was touched to see the author wrote in Matteo’s war and PTSD struggles that were only vaguely acknowledged or understood back then. There is a nice layered story as a result of it all.

More than ever, I want to go back and hit Sara Ackerman’s backlist. WWII historical fictions with women protagonists set in the Pacific Theater are harder to find so that is a big compelling draw, but, in truth, it is her writing. She is slipping toward my favorite author list and I’m happy to see it. Do go, historical fiction fans, and put this on the reading stack.

I loved this story that takes place in WWll and in 1965. I loved learning about the women and men that were codebreakers in Washington DC and in Hawaii. This made me laugh in places and cry sometimes. I loved Isabel, Lu and Matteo. I enjoyed the intrigue and loved the descriptions of Hawaii. I received a copy of this book from Harlequin and Netgalley for a fair and honest opinion that I gave of my own free will.

Sara Ackerman has been an automatic read for me since The Lieutenants Nurse, and I'm happy to say that that will continue past The Codebreaker's Secret. I absolutely loved this book! I read The Code Girls by Liza Mundy a few years ago; I learned so much, that now whenever I see a book about codebreaking, whether it be nonfiction or fiction, I am immediately intrigued. This book will give you a taste of codebreaking, and have a beautiful setting, with some romance and a mystery thrown in there too. The book had a lot going on, but it never felt overwhelming. I can't recall Ackerman having a dual timeline in her other books, but I thought it was executed perfectly. Both stories held my attention throughout reading.

As the US enters WW2, young codebreaker, Isabel Cooper finds herself with an opportunity to head to Pearl Harbor at the top office, “The Dungeon.” As she finds herself deciphering top Japanese code, she begins to also trace the steps her brother took during his short time in Hawaii before Pearl Harbor attacks. His best friend steps up to help her, but she certainly didn’t plan on what would happen next.

Twenty years later, young journalist Lu Freitas steps back on the island she once called home, Hawaii. She is sent there to cover the latest Rockefeller Resort opening at the Mauna Kea Beach Hotel. The VIP weekend is disrupted when a high profile guest goes missing. Lu helps lead the search by teaming up with a well known photographer, Matteo Russi. While the two didn’t think they had much in common, as they search for the guest, more about the past comes out that could bind these two together in ways they couldn’t imagine.

While I enjoyed the dual timeline, it took me until the very end to figure out how they connected, which is a sign of a great plot. In a lot of the WW2 historical fictions, you get a much later dual timeline, so having one set in the early 60s was a nice change. I absolutely loved the setting of Hawaii and this made me want to get to Pearl Harbor to visit and take in the history. You will find lots of history, mystery and dabbles of love in this one.

History, mystery and a bit of romance in Hawaii! What’s not to like? I really enjoy Sara Ackerman’s books. She does a great job describing the islands and I always learn something.

I think I must have read a different book than everyone else because I don't understand the high ratings. I didn't connect with the characters, and it was a struggle to get through it as I wasn't very interested. The ending was also a stretch, just a miss all the way around but I'm glad it was not that way for others.

4.5 Stars

Welcome to my stop on the Harlequin Trade Publishing 2022 Summer Blog Tour for Historical Fiction. Thank you #Netgalley @HarliquinBooks (Mira) @HTPBooks @BookClubbish for a complimentary e ARC of #TheCodebreakersSecret upon my request. All opinions are my own.

Set in 1943, The Codebreaker’s Secret by Sara Ackerman is a story about Isabel and the codebreakers who work in the “dungeon” at Station HYPO in Pearl Harbor. They are in a race to retrieve data from the airwaves to help bring down the enemy. Isabel is grieving the loss of her brother as she faces sexism and other difficult working conditions. Circumstances look a little brighter when she meets her brother’s best friend, a hotshot pilot. A second timeline takes place in 1965 as journalist Lu Freitas covers the grand opening of a glamourous Mauna Kea Beach Hotel and meets a veteran photographer. As a team, they uncover a secret from the war days.

I look forward to Sara Ackerman’s compelling and page-turning stories because I’ve come to trust her as a solid author. In her trademark style, her books (so far) are set in Hawaii around the time of Pearl Harbor. Her stories are a perfect blend of historical fiction/women’s fiction that feature island descriptions, strong, independent women, friendship and women supporting women themes, and sprinkles of intrigue and romance. I appreciate no profanity (or very very limited), closed-door romance, and uplifting content.. I’m proud to be an Ackerman completist and I can recommend her books to anyone!

Ackerman’s main characters are likable, determined, inspiring, and brave. I feel like Isabel and I would be friends if I were a codebreaker, and I cheered for her as she held her own in a field dominated by men in the 1940s. I especially appreciate Ackerman’s themes of women helping women and friendship present in The Codebreaker’s Secret and in her other work.

Ackerman has an easy reading and pleasant writing style: thoughtful character development, page-turning plot, and vivid, descriptive details without being overwritten. In her recent releases, she has been stretching herself as a writer by implementing dual timelines. She handles the transitions well, and I’ve enjoyed the more complex storylines.

The Codebreaker’s Secret is perfect for readers who appreciate a historical fiction/women’s fiction mashup, for fans who love a sprinkling of (closed door) romance and mystery, for readers looking for a vacation or weekend read, and for book clubs who enjoy discussable themes. This is a heartfelt, compelling, pageturning, and uplifting story that women of all ages will enjoy!

This is a really good story! I didn’t know a lot about women working as codebreakers for the U.S. during World War II. Isabel Cooper, the codebreaker of the title, is tapped to go to Hawai’i shortly after the bombing of Pearl Harbor to work on Japanese codes that are proving difficult to crack. She is the only woman on the team, and has to prove herself. In addition to her determination to break the Japanese codes, she hopes to find some closure following her brother’s death. She didn’t expect her brother’s best friend to be the man she’d fall in love with.

Lu Freitas, a young reporter with ambitions of writing more than lifestyle pieces, returns to her home state of Hawai’i to cover the opening of Rockefeller’s newest hotel. She meets a veteran photographer who is obviously wrestling with something in his past. Gradually they strike up something of a friendship, and when a high-profile guest goes missing, their search for her uncovers a World War II-era mystery, and uncovers secrets long kept as well.

Sara Ackerman writes a beautiful book! I’ve never been to Hawai’i, but the way it’s described, I can see why Lu realizes how much she actually misses home. I’d love to see it for myself.

Ackerman’s characters are realistically written, and the relationships don’t feel forced. The book flowed smoothly and kept me engaged. I liked learning about something different from other World War II historical fiction that I’ve read. This is a book I’d recommend for anyone who enjoys a good mystery and a look at an interesting slice of history.

Isabel has finally been sent to Hawaii to work on the coded transmissions. She has been trying to be stationed here for a while. She wants to see where and how her brother, Walt, was killed. She meets Walt’s best friend, Matteo. They become fast friends and as things begin to grow, the war heats up and their lives change.

Fast forward to 1965. Lucy is a native Hawaiian. She has been sent by her magazine to cover the opening of Rockefeller’s new hotel. She ends up meeting a famous photo journalist, Matteo. When these two come across and old skeleton, Matteo realizes it could possibly be a friend of Isabel’s from the 1940s.

I loved the dual time lines in this novel. Not everyone enjoys those and not every author can do them properly. I enjoyed how they intertwined and eventually came together. So, Sara Ackerman got it right!

If this author is not on your radar….put her there! She truly has you picturing all the beauty and wilds of Hawaii. Plus, her stories have fabulous characters and a great mysteries to boot!

This has been my favorite novel by this author. All her novels are wonderful. But I loved Matteo and Izzy.

Need an awesome historical fiction with a beautiful setting…THIS IS IT! Grab your copy today!

The Codebreaker’s Secret is a suspenseful read. Isabel works for the government cracking foreign codes. She gets sent to Hawaii, where her brother perished, but his best friend, Matteo still is. The story is split between 1965 and the last two years of WWII. I liked the WWII storyline the best.
I had to wait until the end to see if what I really wanted to occur, did.
This book won’t let you down so crack open the pages and get cracking with the reading.

This was the first book i read by Sara Ackerman and won't surely be the last as I loved it.
It made me learn something about WWII in the Pacific and I liked the vivid setting and the strong women in this book.
It's a bit slow at the beginning but it becomes a page turner after setting the scene.
An excellent storyteller and an excellent story.
Highly recommended.
Many thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for this ARC, all opinions are mine

I could not put The Codebreaker's Secret down! The war in the pacific, particularly in Hawaii, always seems to be about Pearl Harbor and the lives lost there. Seeing how strong women got involved in the war effort was refreshing. I enjoyed the setting on the Big Island and the mystery and romance of the story.
I look forward to reading more from Sara Ackerman in the future!
Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read this advanced copy!

3.5 stars. I received an ARC from the publisher via NetGalley and am voluntarily posting a review. All opinions are my own.
The Codebreaker’s Secret is another solid read from Sara Ackerman, and while it’s a bit better than her previous book and there’s a lot to like, it does not measure fully up to her previous winners for me.
Ackerman’s attention to historical detail is once again top-notch, and that does not change as she treads into somewhat new territory, juggling a narrative that swaps between the 1940s and 1960s. There’s a real sense of the contrasting socio-political landscape in Hawaii and in the US as a whole that comes through in her writing.
I also enjoyed the two heroines, Isabel and Lu, and what they brought to the narrative about the issues of being woven working in the male-dominated fields of intelligence and journalism, respectively.
I did find Isabel’s a bit more captivating, as that’s where a lot of the intrigue was initially. Lu’s took a while to pick up by contrast, but I became more invested in both over time as the connection between the two became more obvious and began to intersect. Ultimately, the payoff is worth it, but it’s a bit of a slow build, and the transitions between POVs were not super-well executed to maintain intrigue.
In spite of any flaws in execution, I did mostly enjoy this book. If you enjoy dual-timeline historical narratives and historical fiction with a bit of suspense, I recommend picking this one up.

4.5 stars for The Codebreaker's Secret!

Synopsis: This story is told using two different timelines. The first involves Isabel (Izzy), who is a female codebreaker during WWII. She breaks barriers by becoming the first woman to be recruited to work at the naval base in Hawaii-- a place she has been dying to go to in order to avenge her brother's death. Upon arriving, she meets his best friend, a pilot with secrets of his own. The second timeline is about Lu, who comes home to Hawaii as a journalist. Her assignment is to write about the Mauna Kea Beach Hotel, a glamorous new hotel opened by Rockefeller. On her assignment, she befriends a high-profile guest and an intimidating veteran photographer. Secrets are revealed in response to a mysterious discovery and a hotel guest going missing.

Review: This was a little slow to start, but it was necessary to set the scene and lay the foundation. That said, I enjoyed reading Izzy's backstory and her reasons for avenging Walter's death. Around 60% is when the book really picked up, and I absolutely could not put it down. This book really has a bit of everything a reader could ask for: historical fiction, suspense, mystery, and romance. I think many readers would enjoy it!

Thank you to Netgalley and Mira books for my advanced reader's copy. Out 8/2/22

Beautiful Story With A Near Frequency Endgame. Yet again, Ackerman manages to craft a beautiful Hawaiian tale set partially in WWII and partially a couple of decades later. Both timelines worked quite well for me, and both were equally compelling with the high stakes and secrecy of codebreaking during the war and the mystery surrounding the opening of a new hotel during the early Vietnam era. Quite possibly the thing I liked the best was the endgame that came about with a nearly Frequency level abruptness, where the tale is moving along and *bam* - endgame. Overall a truly beautiful and wonderfully interconnected tale. Very much recommended.

The Codebreaker’s Secret is another great historical fiction by Sara Ackerman. Told from alternating viewpoints—one a female codebreaker stationed on Oahu after Pearl Harbor, and the other a young female journalist visiting the Big Island in 1965 for what she hopes will be a career launching story.

After her brother is killed at Pearl Harbor, Isabel Cooper wants nothing more than to be stationed there to feel closer to him and meet his fellow soldiers. There is an instant spark between Isabel and her brother’s best friend, Matteo. Both try to fight the attraction to stay true to their work for the war effort and avoid heartbreak.

20 years after the war, young Lu Freitas comes home to Hawaii as a journalist covering the grand opening of Rockefeller’s luxury hotel on the Big Island. When a famous guest goes missing, Lu teams up with a famous photographer to try to investigate the disappearance.

Both these stories intersect in the most surprising ways. I was definitely drawn in to both stories and was intrigued by how they would come together. This is my second Sara Ackerman book and I will be checking out her others. I love the characters she creates and how she weaves together their stories with the historical pieces.