The Spy Keeper of Marseille by Roseanna M. White Review

 

So, I absolutely LOVE both of Roseanna M. White's series that take place during WWI. Her Shadows Over England series made me a fan, and I was thrilled when I learned that her Codebreakers series included beloved characters while introducing new ones. I loved that the reader would go from the beginning of WWI through the end of WWI by reading both series. And then last year I read The Collector of Burned Books which takes place in Occupied France during WWII. So, yes, when I learned that she had a new book that takes place during WWII, I was excited. And I am so glad I had a chance to read it, because I loved it. 

The Spy Keeper of Marseille takes place mostly in Free France, though at the beginning of the book our FMC, Zelie Bellarose is crossing the Demarcation Line into Occupied France. It is here that she meets our MMC, Marcel Laurent who had just been freed from a POW camp. Marcel is a well known musician whose friend is introducing him to Zelie in hopes he can help with the Resistance. 

I love how the Youth Orchestra that Marcel heads is used to help the Resistance, and also how much the beauty of music played a part in this story. But there is so much more to this book and all the different things the Resistance is doing. There is quite the cast of characters coming and going. There is intrigue, and suspense, and betrayal, and sacrifices, and a blossoming love as our characters work toward freeing France and helping defeat Germany and the Axis powers. 

I loved how I learned more about WWII. And I was intrigued to learn that Zelie is based on a real life woman who led a spy ring during the war. I loved the relationship that grew between Zelie and Marcel. They had so many obstacles to overcome, but I was definitely rooting for them. Through all they were dealing with, Zelie also needed to learn to turn to the Lord who she'd long been ignoring. I loved seeing her faith growing. And I think I caught a little nod to the Codebreakers series, which is so cool.

Though the beginning of the book was a bit slower, from the middle through the end of the book I was zinging through the pages. It definitely got quite intense at times, which I love. 

This was another great book from an awesome author. I highly recommend it. 

I received an e-copy of this book through NetGalley and was not required to write a favorable review. These are my own honest thoughts.