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Loading... The Last Hope: A Maggie Hope Mysteryby Susan Elia MacNeal
None No current Talk conversations about this book.  eyes.2c | May 20, 2024 |   I have enjoyed every second of Maggie's service in World War II. She's grown from a bright yet naive young woman to a brave, resourceful agent for British Intelligence. In The Last Hope, Maggie finds herself in a moral dilemma facing betrayal and personal danger, and every step she took felt right to this reader. As usual with one of MacNeal's books, I felt right at home in the setting and time period, aided a great deal by the little details that the author added to the story. I'd often wondered how Londoners navigated bombed-out streets during the blackouts, and MacNeal mentions the "curbs painted phosphorescent white to glow in the dark." In addition, you simply have to have a bon-mot by the incomparable Winston Churchill. Once again, the man made me laugh when he said that the British "ambassador was descended from a long line of maiden aunts." I also enjoyed seeing Madrid in wartime. Maggie found it quite a change to be in a neutral country, and so did I. In The Last Hope, a character asks Maggie, "Will I ever read about you?" to which Maggie replies, "Not if I do my job well." One of the things I am most grateful to Susan Elia MacNeal for is bringing to light just what so many incredibly brave women did in service to their country during World War II. Thank you, Susan. You took splendid care of Maggie, and I look forward to your new stories. (Review copy courtesy of the publisher and Net Galley) (  ) cathyskye | May 18, 2024 | Here, Maggie is sent to Madrid to meet fashion designer Coco Chanel and bring home a peace proposal and also to meet Werner Heisenberg, the physicist behind the German atomic bomb program, to see whether the bomb is nearing completion. Besides the plot, the book offers plenty of interesting insights into life in a "neutral" country during the war. A real page-turner and, at times gut wrenching book. One I would highly recommend. (I received a copy of this book from the publisher, via Net Galley, in exchange for a fair and honest review.) ( ) lindapanzo | May 4, 2024 | The setting is July, 1943. Our illustrious Major Maggie Hope has been tasked with her most difficult assignment yet. Under the pretense of serving as a courier, chosen specifically by Nazi-sympathizer Coco Chanel, the renowned fashion designer, Maggie is to retrieve in Spain a pair of letters destined for Churchill's consideration. While also in Spain, she's to assassinate the lead German scientist on their atomic munitions program. So much is at stake, not the least of which, is the future of the entire world. There certainly were a few close calls and some riveting nail-biter moments. Yet when all is said and done, can Maggie achieve the objectives and make it home safely? This is been a wonderful series which I have personally enjoyed from the very beginning until now. It has been a great ride these last twelve years and I am rather eager to see what new projects Ms. MacNeal has in mind for her faithful readers. Excelsior! I am grateful to Bantam Books for having provided a complimentary uncorrected proof of this book through NetGalley. Their generosity, however, has not influenced this review - the words of which are mine alone. Publisher: Bantam Publication Date: May 21, 2024 No. of pages: 304 ISBN-13: 978-0593156988 (  ) KateBaxter | Mar 29, 2024 | As the war rages on, Maggie is off to Spain to meet with Coco Chanel and pick up a letter to be delivered to Winston Churchill. But there is more to her assignment . . . the assassination of Werner Heisenberg, a physicist who may be close to finalizing the creation of the first fission bomb. As Maggie finds herself surrounded by diplomats, spies, and double agents, there is danger around every corner. Can she find the ones she can truly trust? ========= “The Last Hope,” eleventh in the Maggie Hope Mystery series, brings the Maggie Hope stories to a close. As with the earlier stories in the series, the research is impeccable, detailed and part of a meticulous plot that keeps readers on the edge of their seats. Over the course of the series, Maggie has grown and matured as she became an inspiration for those around her. At the same time, the author deftly conveys the toll the war . . . and her espionage activities . . . take on Maggie. The war-time events, well-defined characters, and a strong sense of place all work together to bring readers stories that are unputdownable, intriguing, and inspiring. “The Last Hope,” filled with unexpected plot twists and surprises, offers readers suspense and intrigue in a complex, well-told tale of wartime, courage, and drama. Fans of the series and readers of historical fiction are sure to appreciate this exceptional story. Highly recommended. I received a free copy of this book from Random House Publishing Group – Ballantine, Bantam and NetGalley and am voluntarily leaving an honest review. #TheLastHope #NetGalley ( ) jfe16 | Mar 25, 2024 | no reviews | add a review
Belongs to SeriesMaggie Hope (11)
"All will be revealed in the no-holds-barred finale of the New York Times bestselling and Edgar Award-nominated Maggie Hope series as the intrepid spy teams up with fashion designer - and possible double agent - Coco Chanel to bring down the physicist behind Nazi Germany's nuclear program. Maggie Hope has come a long way since she was Mr. Churchill's secretary. In the face of tremendous danger, she's learned espionage, sabotage, and reconnaissance. But things are different now that she has so much to lose, including the possibility of a family with John Sterling, the man who's long held her heart. British Intelligence has ordered Maggie to assassinate Werner Heisenberg, the physicist who may deliver a world-ending fission bomb for Germany: she's shaken bythe assignment. An assassination is unlike anything she's ever done. How can the Allies even be sure Nazi Germany has a bomb? Determined to gather more information, Maggie travels to Madrid, where Heisenberg is visiting for a lecture. At the same time, couturier Coco Chanel has requested a meeting with the undercover agent. Chanel, a spy in her own right, with ambiguous loyalties, is meeting with the British Ambassador in Madrid - and has requested Maggie join them. And Chanel provides the perfect coverfor Maggie's trip to Spain. The two play cat and mouse as Maggie tries to get a better understanding of Heisenberg. But the most shocking curveball is from the most intimate player: Maggie's own mother has kept a hand in the war - and has secrets of her own to share. Maggie desperately wants to find her "happily-ever-after," but as the war reaches a fever pitch, the stakes keep rising. Now, more than ever, the choices she makes will reverberate around the globe, touching everyone she loves - with fatefulimplications for the future of the free world"-- No library descriptions found. |
LibraryThing AuthorSusan Elia MacNeal is a LibraryThing Author, an author who lists their personal library on LibraryThing. Current DiscussionsNonePopular covers
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Wikipedia in English
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Maggie is home, safe at last with John Sterling, her ex-fiancé. But that relationship’s put on hold when she’s called into the Special Operations Executive by Kim Philby, head of the Iberian Section of MI6
The writings on the wall for Germany. The allies are pushing through. Europe’s already been carved up at the Tehran Conference.
The German Generals want to negotiate a seperate peace with Churchill. Coco Channel is calling in markers for her lover, Nazi, Baron Hans Günther von Dincklage. Coco has asked for “Paige Kelly” that is Maggie, to be the conduit. Maggie owes her! The meeting will take place in so called neutral Spain in Madrid, a hotbed of spies—Fascists, Nazis, and Communists as well as the Americans and Brits.
Maggie though has been tasked by something even more dangerous. She’s to assassinate the scientist, Weber Heisenberg, who is believed to be working on an Atomic Bomb. Maggie however decides that if Germans are not in the race she won’t kill him. Don’t forget Maggie was a brilliant mathematician before the war. First she must somehow meet and talk protons and heavy water with Herr Heisenberg, trying to discover his progress thus far.
Coco meanwhile has a letter from the Generals for Maggie to personally handover to Churchill.
However the handover becomes complicated when Maggie’s associate, Agent Connor Sullivan, is poisoned.
There’s danger everywhere and Maggie has no idea who’s behind it. A game of cat and mouse ensues. Maggie’s life is in the balance.
A fitting end to a highly explosive series. I was captured not only by the action but intrigued by the names dropped throughout the story. Kim Philby, Antony Blunt! Hmm!
A Random House-Ballantine ARC via NetGalley.
Many thanks to the author and publisher. (