The London Bookshop Affair is a dual-timeline tale of love, war, and family set amidst the dark days of WWII and the glamour of London in the 1960s.

It’s 1942 when we meet Jeannie Duchesne, nineteen years old and newly in love with an American Airman. He goes off to battle while she works quietly at a shop, dreaming of his return when they will marry. Only life in wartime rarely has a way of going to plan.

We then jump ahead to 1962, where Celia Duchesne is increasingly frustrated by her placid existence. If her elderly parents have their way, she will work as a bookshop clerk until she marries the literal boy next door. But she dreams of having a career, of taking a secretarial course and becoming one of the glamorous women employed by the BBC, hobnobbing with celebrities and doing fascinating work that actually challenges her.

When the elderly couple at the shop where she works sell it to an American divorcée, she is worried she will soon find herself in need of new employment. Instead, Celia is given a raise and the opportunity to take a night course in typing and stenography. With diligence, she should be able to complete the course in a few months and get a better job, one that will finally allow her to leave home and the bitter anger that always simmers beneath the surface of that tiny dwelling.

Then, her dearest friend finds a file at a solicitor’s office that upends everything Celia previously believed about herself and her family. Untangling the secrets contained in the scant papers within leads Celia to Miss Clarke, a mysterious woman who worked closely with Jeannie and might just have a use for Celia as well.

Intertwining with all this is the narrative of Septimus Nelson, who works at the American Embassy and is quickly becoming enamored of the young sales clerk at the bookstore he frequents. His work has never allowed him to settle down and he is not one for falling in love, but the more he gets to know Celia, the more he realizes he is ready for that to change.

This novel is part women’s fiction, part cozy spy thriller, and the women’s fiction portion works quite well. The focus of the story is on Celia, who is taking her first tentative steps into independence. Her discovery of family secrets via the file from her friend helps her to understand the underlying current of deep misery in her home and her parent’s seeming antipathy towards her. Watching her force the truth out in the open and the healing that takes place from that is really lovely. I appreciated that the story underscores how everyone is doing their best to make the right decisions and how grief can cause us to keep from showing how much we love those we still have as we mourn for those we’ve lost. I also really liked that Celia is very careful in her gathering of information before she confronts anyone about anything. She wants to have a clear picture before she tears open old wounds, and her doing so is what enables the experience to end so positively.

In fact, that clever, cautious way of handling both relationships and mysteries is what makes Celia such a delightful heroine. She genuinely cares about the effects her actions could have on others and makes sure she has all the facts before she acts. It shows her sincere concern for everyone, from her friends, Daphne and Sam, to her parents, and even kindly bookshop owner Mrs Denton and would-be beau Septimus.

Speaking of which, I was impressed with the blossoming romance between Septimus and Celia. She has some strange reactions to his advances – understandable given the turmoil happening at home due to her recent discoveries. I appreciated the author showing that what we are going through can affect how we respond to overtures of love, and that sometimes instincts rather than emotions are the best guide to whether the time/place/person is the right choice for us.Jeannie’s portion of the story deals with the Special Operations Executive. Anyone familiar with their work will probably remember that there was more than a little scandal and horror associated with their issues in France, and Jeannie winds up being a part of that. Her parts of the story are brief and non-graphic, but it is wartime, and some off-page violence takes place. It is referenced, but very, very little is shown.

War is also an important part of the 1960s portion of our story, but at that point, it is the Cold War and the possibility of nuclear annihilation that underlies the daily lives of our characters. The Cuban Missile Crisis, how that involved London and its denizens, and just what people were thinking of it all play an important role in the thriller aspect of the tale.While the history is absolutely fascinating, the resolution to the story vis-à-vis the cozy spy part didn’t work as well for me, because it’s simply too coincidental. Literally, all the vital clues drop into Celia’s lap, either as a result of her being at the right place at the right time or as a by-product of other issues she has been trying to resolve.

That small quibble aside, I found The London Bookshop Affair to be a quick, enjoyable read. The warm interpersonal relationships at its core and the delightful Celia make it an easy, entertaining way to spend a few hours. I would recommend it to fans of WWII fiction and those who enjoy women’s fiction starring young, clever heroines.

Historical fiction. London. Bookshop. Espionage. These are a few of my favorite things! This story is right in my wheelhouse and had all the intrigue, story development, and strong women characters (Anya and Celia) set during two eras that I'm interested in, The Cuban Missile Crisis and WWII (dual timeline).
The author weaves a web in fascinating detail of what it must have been like to be in the high-pressure atmosphere during the threat of nuclear war. Celia's journey is revealed and her connection to Anya in the WWII timeline. Thought provoking and a sense of injustice as we learn of the treatment of former WWII spies and their abandonment by governments.
I highly recommend this book.
Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for a complimentary copy of the book. All opinions expressed are my own.

Cold War. WW2. A rare bookshop. A young woman wanting more out of life. Spies. Family secrets. Louise Fein has composed an historical novel that is gripping and entertaining. A blend of LeCarre and Kristin Hannah. This is the ideal read on a snowy night. Curl up under your favorite blanket with this book and a cup of hot cocoa. And just lose yourself in Fein's world.

This is an engrossing new Historical Fiction that you will not want to put down. With dual timelines of 1942 wartime espionage and the 1962 Cuban Missile Crisis, the captivating plot will keep you guessing. The author captures the time with well researched historical accuracy and nostalgic atmospheric details.

The story begins with a prologue in 1942 with Jenny, a young woman enamored with an American soldier. The reader then meets the main character, Cecily, a young shopgirl in 1962. Shortly after the store is sold, her life is turned upside down. Just when she begins a flirtation with a handsome young man from the American embassy, she learns that her family has secrets. She learns about a family member that she is too young to remember, one that her parents have never mentioned. Cecily is determined to dig up the facts about Jenny who died working as a spy during Worl War two. The author handles the difficult task of dual timelines with finesse as she weaves the stories together. She has created a tight, well thought out plot. It isn’t often that a book keeps me guessing.

I love a mystery and I can’t pass up a novel set in a bookshop. That is why I requested an electronic advanced reader’s copy of this book from NetGalley. I can honestly say that I loved it.

Wow, what a story! The London Bookshop Affair centers on Celia, a young woman in 60’s London who works in a bookshop. The story has a dual timeline, with the other storyline focusing on Anya during the Second World War. The way these two stories are woven together makes for an unforgettable book. The author, Louise Fein, has written a well-researched novel that grabs the reader on the first page and keeps ahold until the last. Thank you, NetGalley and William Morrow, for the advance reader copy of this five star read!

The London Bookshop Affair by Louise Fein is the story of a young English woman who works in a bookshop which mostly sells antique and rare books. It is kept afloat by one large sale every few months. The rest of the time, business is slow. Then, the elderly owners decide to retire and sell the shop to an American woman who is divorced. She doesn’t seem to take much interest in the shop but keeps Celia on. Celia is nineteen years old and has been raised very conservatively. Her parents are older and don’t allow her to live the same life as many of her peers. On the quiet she signs up for a typing and shorthand class two nights a week. She notices several odd visitors that her boss has regularly but she has too much to worry about to be overly concerned. Then, one of those visitors, a young man, starts paying her attention. She keeps her parents’ warnings in mind but enjoys his company more and more. At the same time her friend, Daphne, who works at at law office, discovers a file with her parents’ names on it. Since she is archiving it, she brings it to Celia and so begins an investigation that shatters Celia’s views of herself and her parents.

Celia is an interesting character who fully intends to live a 1960’s life, not a 1940’s one. She is ambitious, intelligent, and kind. When Septimus starts paying her attention, she is flattered, but wary. Her feelings for him grow, but at the same time she is suspicious. She has made a friend, one who used to be in British intelligence during the war and together they discover a conspiracy larger than anyone could imagine. This was a harrowing time: the Cold War, Kennedy and Kruschev, increasing technology for communication and travel; she is looking at a new world and is not sure she always likes what she sees. It is a story told in two timelines and so touches on World War II as well as 1962. Her life and her parent’s lives are opening up in ways she could never have foreseen. Fein has written an interesting story, here. One that should be read.

Thank you William Morrow for providing this book for review consideration via NetGalley. All opinions are my own. #Netgalley #WilliamMorrow #LouiseFein #TheLondonBookshopAffair

Set against the backdrop of the Cuban Missile Crisis, Louise Fein's engrossing historical drama "The London Bookshop Affair" explores the world of espionage during the height of the Cold War. The book deftly interweaves the tales of two brave women, Anya Moreau and Celia Duchesne, whose lives are linked by a secret that has the power to alter the path of human history.

Fein's painstaking study is evident in the rich historical settings and details that transport the reader to tumultuous 1942 wartime France and London in 1962. Three different points of view—those of Celia, Anya, and her love interest—are used in the story to provide the reader a complex understanding of the events as they happen.

The book is structured into five sections, each of which opens with a chapter written from Anya's (Jeannie's) point of view. Although this method gives the narrative more complexity, some readers may think that the changes between these sections feel a little jarring. Fein, however, did a fantastic job of depicting Anya's chronology events and matching Celia's, resulting in a compelling narrative symmetry.
This book stands out in part because of its commitment to telling the histories of the women who acted as spies in WWII but were frequently ignored. The book also provides a novel, non-American viewpoint on the Cuban Missile Crisis, which gives the historical background a deeper, more interesting dimension.

This novel is a must read for those who love historial fiction, mixed with non-fiction, but also dabbles of sweet romance and the thought of a positive future.

This dual timeline historical fiction title is a winner! The story was quite absorbing and kept me turning the pages with its two main focuses-one is about Jeanne/Anya a WWII SOE volunteer, and another is about a young woman named Celia who works in a bookshop as the novel opens.

What is going on in the bookstore under its new ownership? How will events from WWII and 1960s crises like the division of Berlin and Cuba come into the story? How will the characters and events in the two time lines be connected? Readers will want to know.

In these pages, there are traitors, people who care deeply for their country, professionals and amateurs, all of whom are impacted by world events. Along with these big world worthy plots, there are also storylines that impact the characters smaller, personal worlds. There are about family ties, secrets, trust, being in love, friendship, creating a life one wants and more. 

The author does a marvelous job of bringing the two time periods to life. The social mores of each era are well portrayed and these societal rules definitely impact the characters.

The complex plot that kept me engaged and always eager to read another chapter. I was always wishing for the very best for Celia.

Historical fiction lovers, this is surely worth a read. The 1960s is a time period that I have seen less in historical fiction but one that is full of the conflict that makes for a good read.

Many thanks to NetGalley and William Morrow for this title. All opinions are my own.

The London Bookshop Affair is an interesting, dual timeline novel that alternates between the WWII era and the Cuban Missile Crisis. Overall, I found this book to be good - but not great. Though the writing was wonderful and the WWII era plot was fascinating, I felt bogged down in the Cuban Missile Crisis timeline. I just was not sure why I was supposed to care about Celia. Something about her felt pretty flat and I had a hard time drumming up much sympathy for her in her vocational, family, and relationship troubles. That being said...her detective skills were pretty spot on and the last third of the book was interesting! I wish there was more of a focus on Anya and her experience. I also enjoyed learning more about the Cuban Missile Crisis and how ordinary folks may have experienced those days. This book kept me engaged but I did not particularly like the characters. The Author's Note at the end is also worth the read - I could tell that Louise Fein put alot of effort/research into this novel.

Thank you to the author, publisher, and NetGalley for the eARC. All opinions are my own.

** spoiler alert ** The London Bookshop Affair is historical fiction set in two timelines, in 1940s during the war and in early 1960s during the Cuban Crisis and Cold War. The book explores themes of equality, political activism, differences between the classes, espionage, WWII and nuclear threat. There’s a bit of a romantic plot but it seems an afterthought, to be honest. Thank you, NetGalley, for the eARC.

What I liked:

📚 the story is well researched - many events and characters are based on real people and history
📚 the book is well written, with neat and uncomplicated sentences and chapters written from points of view of three characters
📚 the ending offers a bit of a twist and the heroine finally seems to believe in herself and finds an interesting job

What I didn’t care for:

🥲 Celia constantly talks about how she is “just an ordinary girl” and how she can’t have big dreams or possibly be interesting enough to catch an eye of a young man she meets at work
🥲 overall, the author just does not sell Celia as a very likable person or a well rounded character. She is unsure of herself, then goes on clandestine missions; afraid what her parents will think if she drinks a pint of cider, then goes on a government protest?
🥲 there are some repetitions in text: Celia is like a drug for Septimus, mentioning of the UK government bunkers, some of the descriptions
🥲 the pace of the book is uneven. I think about 70 pages could be cut and the plot would not suffer one bit. We get lots of action and then nothing for pages and pages.
🥲 I understand the desire to portray how women were treated and how they saw themselves and others historically accurate, but some moments just gave me a pause. Celia repeatedly thinks about her grandmother saying she was conceived “against the wall in an alley;” she has a moment where “her slutty part” fights against her “good part;” she judges her mother for having a child out of wedlock and believes her grandmother when she tells her Celia’s GI dad took advantage of her mother and never intended to marry her. We never see a scene where Celia has reason to believe otherwise or learns anything additional about her father to prove he was a decent man (could she not ask her spy friends?)

I finished it but did not love it.

Louise Fein, the author of Daughter of the Reich, has written a well-researched, fascinating, fictionalized account of the Cuban Missile Crisis with a dual time-line with The London Bookshop Affair. The second timeline revolves around Special Operations Executives in London during WWII. The characters are based on real people during both of these turbulent times. The writing is excellent and the characters are riveting. After reading the novel, one must read the Author's Note. Ms. Fein has become one of my "must read" authors of historical fiction. Thanks to NetGalley and William Morrow Publishing for the Advance Reader Copy of the wonderful, compelling book!

The London Bookshop Affair is an intriguing story of a young woman uncovering long-hidden family secrets while trying to find a place in a world threatened by the potential of nuclear war. This book was well-researched, but I sometimes felt over-detailed on the political aspects. I would have enjoyed more insight into the spy aspect of this story and less of a historical walkthrough of the Cold War.

Throughout this story, Celia deals with a vast upheaval of life and identity. While the world around her is in a panic over the potential of nuclear war, her personal life is sent sideways when she finds out a long-kept family secret. At times, Celia can come off as a silly girl full of self-pity - who says she is thinking for herself and wants to see change in the world but defaults to parroting the old-school dogma and mentalities her parents try to drill into her. In actuality - Celia represents the transitional part of every person's life when you're trying to decide who you are and whether you want to become the person your parents want you to be or choose your path.

Jeannie's character is strong and independent. Her sense of self-identity and courage makes sense once you learn her backstory. A feminist influence for the changing times, Jeannie's 'radical' thoughts and actions contrast against Celia's more subdued thoughts and actions. Considering the time difference between the two women's storylines, Celia seems to be going along with the changing times, while Jeannie actively fights for change and breaking stigmas.

The London Bookshop Affair takes the reader through love, betrayal, espionage, social and political transformation, and fear.

Summary

Set against the backdrop of World War 2 and the Cuban Missile Crisis, this historical drama is told from three points of view. Jeannie, a 19-year-old English girl, falls in love with an American airman in 1942, little imagining how the relationship would change the trajectory of her life. In 1962, Celia is longing for a career, not just a job, but her parents tell her she should settle for her lot in life and be happy with the job she has in a bookshop. Meanwhile, Septimus has just been given a job as the aide-de-camp for the US ambassador in London, and with his life on path, he is determined that nothing should get in his way. When their lives become intertwined, secrets are uncovered.

My Thoughts

I very much enjoyed this book. It was very emotionally resonant.

I don’t always love books told from multiple perspectives on multiple timelines, but I found these stories captivating and the different perspectives easy to follow.

All the characters are, in their own ways, victims of circumstance - of their times, their families, their classes, and their nationalities. It’s the way each of them takes on those circumstances that makes them unique and makes this story special.

There are many twists and turns that made me want to keep reading. Some I saw coming, and some kept me guessing. In some books, it bothers me when I see a twist coming, but in this case, I really enjoyed watching Celia trying to figure out what was happening. Things that are obvious to me as an adult woman in 2024, were certainly going to be less obvious in 1962 to a 19-year-old with extremely limited life experiences. I think the author did an excellent job at portraying Celia’s inexperience and naivety in a way that made the reader want to see her succeed.

Underlying themes of this book are injustice, betrayal, bravery, sacrifice, healing and forgiveness. It was in turns infuriating, heart-breaking, and heart-warming.

However, the most powerful theme throughout was the ways in which patriarchy impacted every character. Men, as so often has happened throughout history, pulled together to help other men escape the consequences of their actions. Women felt the need to punish themselves, and others, for not adhering to society’s rigid patriarchal norms. Celia, who is an “innocent girl” and “nice girl”, reflects at one point on what those words mean, and it feels like a pivotal moment for her character.

There are coincidences at play in the story, but they were appropriate. None was so egregious that it would be entirely impossible to imagine. I was entirely comfortable with the way the stories were tied together, and, ultimately, I found the conclusion very satisfying.

The Lindon Bookshop Affair takes place in 1962, and explores the Cold War tensions between the US and Russia. Celia is a young woman who works at an antiquarian bookstore in London. After the elderly owners retire, a woman buys the shop who seems to have no interest in books. She lets Celia manage the day to day running of the business, and seems to spend much of her day meeting privately with clients.
Celia's mother was a member of the French resistance in WWII, and was executed by the Nazis. The double agent responsible for her death was tried as a traitor but never served time. One day Celia thinks she recognizes that man as one of her boss's clients, and everything changes.
The novel spans the time during which the Bay of Pigs incident occurred in Cuba—a time in which Kennedy and Kruschev were toying with the very real possibility of a World War III that would be fought with nuclear weapons.

“𝐎𝐫𝐝𝐢𝐧𝐚𝐫𝐲 𝐩𝐞𝐨𝐩𝐥𝐞 𝐨𝐟𝐭𝐞𝐧 𝐝𝐨 𝐞𝐱𝐭𝐫𝐚𝐨𝐫𝐝𝐢𝐧𝐚𝐫𝐲 𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐠𝐬.”

It’s 1962 and Celia Duchesne is longing for more in life. This is a time for liberation and she desperately wants to be part of it. While she daydreams, she spends her days working at an antiquarian bookstore that’s as dull and innocuous as she feels. That is until one day a handsome American comes in.

Celia is interested in Septimus and being around him, but she has her own issues brewing at home. After her best friend chances on a file with her family’s name on it, Celia begins to dig into their past. She finds that she’s not an only sibling, but that this apparent sister was also actually a British spy. Now it’s up to Celia to discover more about the past and how it will play into her future.

A tale of espionage, falling in love and being loved, and a coming of age alongside the timing of the Cuban Missile Crisis.

This was a wonderful historical fiction with three pov’s, although two are more heavily featured. I immensely enjoyed Celia’s character. She was so incredibly brave and clever, especially in a time when women were vastly undervalued. 🤎

If you like historical fiction and spy novels, you should definitely check out Louise Fein’s latest, The London Bookshop Affair. Nineteen year old Celia works at an antiquarian bookshop and uncovers a shocking family secret that upends everything she believes about herself. Meanwhile, the world is on the brink of nuclear war because of the Cuban Missile Crisis, and Celia finds herself drawn into a web of intrigue and espionage.

Fein’s careful historical research sets the stage for a solid spy story, complete with a likable heroine, a morally gray love interest, and a cast of supporting characters who keep things interesting. I enjoyed it very much, and definitely recommend if you’re into historical fiction or spy novels!

Review: The London Bookshop Affair by Louise Fein

After a bit of a slow start, this historical fiction which spans both the Cold War & WWII had me intrigued and hooked. Then about halfway through more comes to play in the story and it became unputdownable. There were a couple twists I didn’t see coming and some very exciting parts. There were a few points that it dragged and a couple sentences I thought were out of place or “where did that come from?”. Overall, I really enjoyed this book and am glad I pushed through the initial slowness - it was rewarded.

Thanks to @netgalley for an advance copy in return for my honest review!

I would recommend this book

Note: I received a free unpublished proof of this book, for a limited time, in exchange for an honest review. All opinions here are my own.
I decided to review this book because I do not read much Cold War and WWII historical fiction, largely because I don’t like the political undertones of this sort of thing. However, I figured that I hadn’t read anything like this in a while, and while I trust other people’s reviews and the synopses with regards to what the books are about, I wanted to read one all the way through, if only so it would get at least one critical review from someone in its target audience who doesn’t adore this genre.
Overall, this book reminded me why I don’t read this sort of historical fiction.
There are a lot of SPOILERS in this review.
The gist of the story is this: It’s the 1960s, during the Cold War, just before the Cuban Missile Crisis. A 19-year-old English girl named Celia lives in London and gets a job at a bookshop. Over the course of the book, she finds out from her friend that she might have had a deceased older sister she didn’t know about. The “sister” turns out to be her mother, Jeannie, who gave birth to her outside of marriage and gave her up to an orphanage. Celia’s parents are actually Celia’s grandparents. It turns out Jeannie was a British spy who went to France, was betrayed by a fellow spy who was friends with the Nazis, and was killed when Celia was a small child. Sometime in here Jeannie’s parents found out Celia had not been adopted by another family and brought her home hoping that Jeannie might come back. While Celia is discovering all of this information, she meets a young man named Septimus who frequents the bookshop and starts to fall in love with him, only to later find out that he is a Soviet spy in league with the woman who runs the bookshop she works at and this other man who stops by a lot. The other man turns out to not only be a Soviet spy, but to also have been the man who betrayed her mother to the Nazis, faked his death in a plane crash in Laos, and switched sides to the USSR. So Celia, with the help of the former spy leader who has told her some of this stuff, pulls the lid off of all this and the spies get arrested and it’s big news. Celia ends up in a relationship with her childhood friend and neighbor, Sam, with whom she’s been in a love triangle the entire book, and ends up pursuing a career with MI6.
As it turns out, this book was based on multiple real figures, which is where I start to have issues with it. There’s nothing wrong with writing books about real historical figures, but the way this book incorporates them is questionable. Celia’s mother, Jeannie, is loosely based on several real people, all of whom were very brave women who risked everything to fight the Nazis, and as a result were captured, injected with poison, and burned while they were still conscious.
However, throughout the book, Jeannie’s story—which is reflective of these real, heroic women who should absolutely be remembered and honored—takes a backseat to the completely fictitious character of Celia, who doesn’t really care about any of this until she’s unwittingly dragged into it. The story decenters the people who actually took a stand and made tough choices, in favor of an average person who just accidentally does something sort of heroic. Celia never really does anything genuinely brave or dangerous until the end, when she breaks into her employer’s flat above the bookshop to look for evidence that the man who visits the shop is a Soviet spy. Celia only cares about nuclear disarmament when her friend Daphne drags her into the cause early on in the book, and while this interest is at odds with Septimus’ opinion, which leans away from any actual action on this front, this doesn’t deter her from growing close to him. Which, maybe in the modern era would not seem like such a big deal, but in an era on the verge of nuclear war, you would think that someone’s take on the whole issue could rightly be termed a deal-breaker.
There are also many bits where Celia is, directly or indirectly, implied to be better and more innocent than her mother. While it’s stated that Jeannie was not a bad person for having a baby without first being married, Celia is constantly trying to “not get into trouble” and her innocence and virginity are frequently commented on. She is the archetypal “not like other girls” character who is less romantically-experienced than her girly best friend Daphne. For a story where Jeannie is also supposed to be portrayed as a heroine, this is off-putting. I understand that well-written characters should have flaws, but frankly I don’t think having a child before marriage is inherently a “flaw”, and Celia is presented as “pure” and “innocent” throughout the whole book.
While I don’t think that female characters need to be physically “tough” to be “strong”, I think this book leans away from the core of what makes women strong and how they come to do heroic things. Jeannie is heroic because she chose to go on a dangerous mission, knowing the risks, because she thought it was the right thing to do. The opportunity did not fall into her lap. She was not unwittingly dragged into it. She had to make a difficult choice to do the right thing. If you look at the real people who did heroic things in World War II, all or most of them had to make that difficult choice and stick to it, even when it was hard, even when they had to make sacrifices. Whereas the main character of this story is a complacent person who is waffling for nearly the entire narrative.
The problem that I have with this narrative is that, while I understand the desire for a relatable protagonist in a book, I really don’t think that a book like this *should* be relatable. Most of us do not have the bravery, moral values, or determination to do something heroic, and we should be honest with ourselves about that. In reading these books and identifying with complacent heroes who are dragged into heroism, we don’t challenge ourselves to do more, or seek out opportunities to be brave or stand up for what is right. We merely convince ourselves that we might do something great, given the chance.
Therein lies the problem with this subgenre. I’m convinced the reason these books are so popular is that they allow us to identify with some fictitious hero figure rather than being honest about what it would actually take for us to do something heroic. While I can’t necessarily attribute it to these books in particular, I’ve seen this disease at play first-hand. The UK is full of women who continue to be complicit in racist and xenophobic policies while continuing to identify with the role of some fictitious heroic woman in a secretarial role propping up the government of their supposedly great nation, who is either doing something great or could one day be called to do something great. Meanwhile, when confronted on their failure to act by someone with none of their institutional or political power, they feel “threatened” even though they know there is nothing we could do to take their power away, because they’d rather see themselves as innocent women trying to do the right thing than do any real introspection. (For instance, the woman I knew who refused to stop supporting a business that was complicit in forced sterilizations in the US, but waxed poetic about how Holocaust literature written by non-Jewish white people taught empathy.)
That brings me to the next problem, which is the simplistic way in which these books portray the issues of the Cold War and WWII. *The London Bookshop Affair* doesn’t attempt to delve into any of the sociopolitical circumstances behind these conflicts. Instead, war is treated is this unpredictable, random, inevitable thing that the characters are merely thrown into by fate. While the protagonists are young enough that they weren’t instrumental in causing the circumstances of the Cold War, it certainly didn’t come out of nowhere. However, the history of the Cold War is not investigated in any depth. There is merely an undertone that nuclear weapons are bad and the USSR, in particular, is bad. The US’ nuclear weapons are slightly criticized, but all of the villains of the story are Soviet spies. Even Septimus, who is thought to be from the US at first and is working at the US embassy, turns out to be a Soviet spy who was raised in California so he could convince people he was American while representing Soviet interests. Therefore, the early conflict between Celia and Septimus on the US’ use of nuclear weapons leads to a dead end rather than actually exploring any of those themes. Furthermore, the UK is constantly portrayed as the “good guys” and their role is never really interrogated at all.
Further, the USSR and the Nazis are both portrayed as just “the enemy” in the background, even though these were two different groups. While there was overlap between them, there were also key differences, but none of this is ever interrogated or explored.
Arguably, though, the WWII parts of the book are even worse in their portrayal of the issues. There are never more than a few passing mentions of the Holocaust or the Nazis’ ideologies. Instead, the focus is on the conflict between the UK and Germany and how spies from the UK protected themselves and France from the Germans. There’s no mention of how the UK had its own right-wing movements or how the UK was by and large more concerned about avoiding German rule than about ending fascism and fascist ideologies. Jewish people, Romani people, and everyone else targeted in the Holocaust are rarely mentioned and are instead portrayed as this nameless, faceless group of people who the Allies are supposed to be saving. While it is later revealed that Miss Clarke, the woman who was in charge of Jeannie’s spy group, was a Jewish refugee from Romania who changed her name to protect herself in the UK, the way that Celia’s initial doubts over her identity are presented suggest that she is untrustworthy. Furthermore, when Celia finds out about Miss Clarke’s background, she assumes that Miss Clarke was involved in selling out her sister to the Nazis because she’s not British, and confronts her about being a refugee. While Miss Clarke was loosely based on a real individual, portraying this person as a possible villain while ignoring everyone else targeted by the Holocaust was an insulting narrative choice. Celia’s suspicion of refugees is never confronted, even though that very suspicion is the basis for much of modern UK right-wing sentiment. Celia continues to be portrayed as a hero for being pure and defending Britain.
The author, Louise Fein, also wrote another WWII-related book, and wrote a whole blog post on how she doesn’t think people should criticize her handling of the Holocaust as a writer who isn’t Jewish or affected by it in any way. To which I say, if you are going to write a book about ANY heavy topic such as genocide, racism, or antisemitism, whether you are affected by it or not, but especially if you aren’t, you *have* to be able to accept criticism. You *have* to be prepared for it and be able to handle it in a mature way. Obviously I can not stop you from writing a book on something that I and many others think is completely outside your lane, but if you are going to ignore the perspectives of others, you have to at least be able to handle the criticism you get. Louise Fein can’t.
That said, as someone who is in the same boat of being a white female author who wants to write historical fiction books about justice and doing the right thing, I do have a gentle suggestion for these authors: Have you considered if there might be some sorts of stories in your *own* family and history that might be worth telling?
There’s still the need for research and sensitivity. I wouldn’t even write about things that *did* affect my family without a lot of careful research and discussions with people who were actually there. For instance, some people in my mom’s family lived in Communist Yugoslavia, and I think that would be a very interesting setting for a book. However, I also acknowledge that I wasn’t there myself, and neither were my parents/grandparents, and that this story should probably be told by someone with more of a personal connection to the time period and events.
But there are still plenty of things that my parents and grandparents experienced that could be the central plot of a book. I think reading a book about the Croatian-American labor unions of the early 20th century could really open people’s eyes to something they were unaware of before. It wouldn’t be revolutionary, but it might lead people to be aware of how capitalism hurt people who were very much like them and their families, even though they have been fed the narrative that their ancestors were “good immigrants” who succeeded by pulling themselves up when in reality they had to fight for improvements. Of course, these unions had their own prejudices and biases, and the people involved were not “heroic” or “innocent victims,” but that can and should be explored in books about histories that are close to us. Historical fiction shouldn’t be about this false narrative of “good versus evil” or “good guys versus bad guys” that never was. It should be about the messy, nuanced circumstances that actually *were*. Only then can we be challenged to be better in the here and now.
Unfortunately, too many of authors would rather not do any research into topics more relevant to their own lives that would require more research, tough questions, and not portraying themselves as heroic British people saving helpless victims.
Lastly, and probably least important, the writing of this book is competent but mediocre. All of the “twists” are heavily foreshadowed, maybe not heavy like an anvil but heavy like a good-sized filing cabinet. For an espionage book that’s supposed to be suspenseful, it’s really not. (Putting aside the questionable nature of using some of these topics as the backdrop for a suspense book, it’s what the author seemed to be trying to do, and failed.) The characters are one-dimensional and the prose is somewhat dry and overly direct.
Overall, I do not recommend this book. I think people would be better off reading actual history of the Cold War and WWII than this female equivalent of the archetypal cowboy movies that people watched too many of as children, that falsely reassures women that they can be heroes while continuing to uphold the status quo and makes them believe that they are heirs to a bravery to which they ultimately have no claim.

Fein has hit another book platform, one that envelops both WWII SOE and Cold War spies.
It’s all centered around a dusty bookshop in London that time forget or did it?
Celia learns a lot about her hidden past that sends her well structured world into a tailspin.
I thought Fein connected the different timelines very well.
I didn’t like two of the male characters and when more about their stories was revealed, my lips curdled in a sneer. I thought they both got what they deserved.
Fein gives a very detailed historical note at the end that explains a lot about the novel.
It’s a provocative read.

A young girl stays on to work at a bookshop full of antiquarian books whwn an American buys the shop from the previous owners. A young man comes in and a friendship begins. Spies, books, and the Cold War. The novel is wonderfully written and not to be missed.