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Loading... Mr. Churchill's Secretary: A Novel (Maggie Hope) (edition 2012)by Susan Elia MacNeal
Work InformationMr. Churchill's Secretary by Susan Elia MacNeal
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Sign up for LibraryThing to find out whether you'll like this book. No current Talk conversations about this book. This is a lighter, less complicated version of the "war gals" subgenre. In this case, Maggie solves mysteries during WW2. Would appeal to those who like feisty girls coming out ok after suspenseful events. For the more hard-core, I refer you to Jacqueline Winspear's Maisie Dobbs series (set around WW1). ( )
MacNealâs first novel offers such a giddy premise and gathers so much impulse in its opening half that we root for her to close the deal in the second half. Alas, no such luck. The setting is London during 1940âs Battle of Britain; the heroine is a plucky young American named Maggie Hope who wins a job as a secretary to Winston Churchill. Maggie soon finds herself up against German spies, traitorous English Nazis and IRA terrorists. She outwits all the villains with much aplomb until the story stumbles on its own preposterous plot twists. A plucky heroine isnât enough to salvage a plot overly dependent on contrivances, as shown by MacNealâs debut set in 1940 London, the kickoff to a series. The murder of Diana Snyder, a secretary in Prime Minister Winston Churchillâs office, creates a vacancy that American expat Maggie Hope agrees to fill, despite her umbrage at having been previously passed over for a more substantive position there. Maggie adjusts fairly quickly, even as the people of London strive to withstand both German bombs and IRA outrages. Since those behind Snyderâs fatal stabbing as well as their motive are identified early on, the suspense mainly lies in whether Maggie will be able to use her intellect to foil a plot aimed at decapitating the British government. On several occasions, disaster is averted purely by chance, undermining efforts to credit Maggie with saving the day. Belongs to SeriesMaggie Hope (1) Is contained inAwards
Fiction.
Mystery.
Thriller.
Historical Fiction.
HTML:For fans of Jacqueline Winspear, Laurie R. King, and Anne Perry, Mr. Churchillâ??s Secretary captures the drama of an era of unprecedented challengeâ??and the greatness that rose to meet it. London, 1940. Winston Churchill has just been sworn in, war rages across the Channel, and the threat of a Blitz looms larger by the day. But none of this deters Maggie Hope. She graduated at the top of her college class and possesses all the skills of the finest minds in British intelligence, but her gender qualifies her only to be the newest typist at No. 10 Downing Street. Her indefatigable spirit and remarkable gifts for codebreaking, though, rival those of even the highest men in government, and Maggie finds that working for the prime minister affords her a level of clearance she could never have imaginedâ??and opportunities she will not let pass. In troubled, deadly times, with air-raid sirens sending multitudes underground, access to the War Rooms also exposes Maggie to the machinations of a menacing faction determined to do whatever it takes to change the course of history. Ensnared in a web of spies, murder, and intrigue, Maggie must work quickly to balance her duty to King and Country with her chances for survival. And when she unravels a mystery that points toward her own familyâ??s hidden secrets, sheâ??ll discover that her quick wits are all that stand between an assassinâ??s murderous plan and Churchill himself. In this daring debut, Susan Elia MacNeal blends meticulous research on the era, psychological insight into Winston Churchill, and the creation of a riveting main character, Maggie Hope, into a spectacula No library descriptions found. |
LibraryThing Early Reviewers AlumSusan Elia MacNeal's book Mr. Churchill's Secretary was available from LibraryThing Early Reviewers. Current DiscussionsNonePopular covers
Google Books — Loading... GenresMelvil Decimal System (DDC)813.6Literature English (North America) American fiction 21st CenturyLC ClassificationRatingAverage:
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