2nd in the series, it's a quick and convincing immersion in Evelyne’s world of SOE, Britain's WW2 Special Operations Executive. This time Evelyne's been through the special agent training program to learn to pick locks, infiltrate suspicious locations, and survive in enemy territory. Dashing David Poole from their first, almost accidental op is back, newly promoted to be her handler for her first post-training assignment. It’s supposed to be a simple test of security at one of the many rural estates turned over to various aspects of war work. In and out with no-one the wiser.

But best laid plans rarely survive contact with the enemy, in this case a sneaky thief who is making off with essential supplies (and possibly plans) for the building of small bombs and other weapons essential to the work of SOE saboteurs in France. Soon Evelyne's facing a corpse and David's dashing to her rescue... even though he's not really needed. Evelyne draws on her previous experience and training to instruct the constable who must secure the scene while waiting for more experienced officers to arrive.

Modern women will delight in Evelyne's take-charge ways, and appreciate David's often stepping back and letting her get on with it rather than (as is more realistic still) taking over every scene to do the interrogating himself. The writing is crisp and clear, the settings economical and easily visualized. The plot moves along at a good clip without sacrificing the credibility of relationships between not only Evelyne and David but with other characters as well. Indeed, one of this book's great strengths is how well it portrays the world of wartime Britain, where any cottage in any village might be housing staff for some secret research facility nearby and nobody can tell even their best friend what their war work really consists of. Britain may never be tested like that again, and that's a good thing, because the green and pleasant land that banded together with enduring fortitude and wry humour to withstand the onslaught of one of the largest armies Europe has ever seen is barely imaginable today.

Any fan of Golden Age mysteries will thoroughly enjoy the contemporaneous crime novels that Evelyne reads on train trips and in other idle moments..

If you've chosen the audiobook, you too may find the narration very uneven. The first phrase of a sentence flies out with tween-girl speed and inflection, while the rest is slow and portentous as a wartime speech by Winston Churchill: stirring to hear for 15 minutes in an emergency but wearing on the ear, and the patience when it goes on for hours, regardless of which character is speaking and whether their content is deep and serious or debating a new haircut.

#NetGalley #WW2 #spies

This is mulybfirst in the series and I did not feel like I missed out. Both Evelyne and David have spent time undergoing training, she as a undercover field agent and he as a handler.

Their first assignment is to check security at a weapons lab. Except that it ends up as murder, and David decides to join Evelyne in the field. Lots of twists and turns later, the plot is revealed.
Very fast paced and intriguing.

The narration was okay, it took me a while to get used to the wispy, singsongy tones of the narrator.

I love this series! This is Book #2 in the Parisian Orphan series and while this book can be read as a standalone, the first book is fantastic and I recommend starting with that one. In this book, Evelyne is sent on her first official mission. She is disappointed at the simplicity of it, but things changes as soon as she gets to Blackthorn Park and there is a murder!
I love a strong female character and Evelyne is just perfect! The narrator of this book did a fantastic job and I hope that there will be a 3rd book in the series since I love it! Thank you Macmillan Audio for the audiobook! Look for this book Oct 1st 2024

I loved this book and I think I loved the audio a bit more! It is so well written and so well narrated! One sitting is all it took me. I didn’t want it to stop. Definitely one I will be purchasing when it comes out. This is an outstanding author whose books I have very much enjoyed.

I voluntarily reviewed an audiobook provided by NetGalley.

A cozy historical mystery set in the 1940s, it revolves around a secret British program aimed at helping to win the war. Along the way there is a mysterious murder and Evelyn Redfern is tapped to try to figure this one out. Is it a mystery? Yes. Is it frightening? Not even remotely. Thanks to NetGalley for the read!

The narrator was a good one for this type of book.

Kelly’s second book in the Parisian Orphan series centers around two World War Two era British spies and none other than Winston Churchill. An exciting story filled with courage, love and sacrifice

Evelyne Redfern and David Poole both secert agents during WW2 are teamed up again to solve the murder at Blackthorne Park. Blackthorn Park chief engineer is found dead of an apparent suicide. Once David and Evelyne starts on the case they will follow all the clues to solve the murder. Blackthorn Park is also facing a visit by Winston Churchill and they must have make sure that case is solved soon. With Evelyne's love of murder mysteries books Evelyne and David are the prime investigators. When another body is found at Blackthorne Park. Evelyne and David are under pressure from both headquarters and Winston Churchill vist to find the killer before the next person turns up dead. This was a great follow up to Julia Kelly's first book in the series A Traitor in Whitehall.

Betrayal at Blackthorn Park (Parisian Orphan #2)
By Julia Kelly, Narrated by Marisa Calin

This is the second book in the Parisian Orphan series and I can tell we have a lot to come after this one. In the first book Evelyne Redfern caught the eye of none other than Winston Churchill as she did work for his war cabinet. Through her work she met agent David Poole and he too was so impressed with Evelyne's work that she is sent to training as a spy for Britain. Now, much to David's displeasure, he's been taken from the field work he so enjoys and put behind a desk to work as a handler for Evelyne in the field. The job is at Blackthorn Park where Evelyne is supposed to just gather information to relay back to the home office. Almost immediately Evelyne doesn't follow orders because, of course she doesn't, things go wobbly at Blackthorn Park, and David ditches his handler job to join Evelyne at Blackthorn Park.

It's very obvious that David never had a chance at "handling" Evelyne, she's going to do whatever she wants to do and no one is going to stop her. David seems very good at following her lead though and even though the story doesn't push a romance (yet), in my eyes it certainly plays as if David is almost too smitten with Evelyne to do his handling job properly. Or maybe he knows when he's beaten and isn't going to waste time fighting a losing battle.

Even though this is a story of spies and I suspect Evelyne will eventually be working with the French resistance, so far the story feels more like old timey black and while movies with the male and female couple squabbling couples who really like each other a lot. Evelyne and David are both very smart, they have to be to do their jobs, and they are both big fans of crime novels. That's what this story is, a crime novel more than a spy story this time. This story can be read/heard as a standalone because you get enough what you need to understand what has gone on in the past. With the friendly joking and competition between David and Evelyne, it's hard to worry about the two of them too much since, despite at least one body, things have a lighthearted feel.

Can they get this job done before Winston Churchill arrives at Blackthorn Park? The danger must be found and eliminated before his arrival in just three days and it seems that there are so many people telling whoopers every step of the way. I was fortunate enough to be able to listen to the audiobook of this story while also having the ebook edition in front of me. Marisa Calin narrates this book as she did for book one and it was nice to be able to go back and forth between the audiobook and ebook, when my weary eyes needed a rest.

Thank you to Macmillan Audio, St. Martin's Press | Minotaur Books, Minotaur Influencer Program, and NetGalley for these ARCs