Original and intriguing Second World War story
- Book: The Bookshop of Secrets
- Location: Minnesota
- Author: Mollie Rushmeyer
The first Kerry Barrett I’ve read, and it’s just my sort of book; an original story, engaging characters and so effortlessly told it’s completely immersive. One of the best Second World War novels I’ve read in a long time.
Barrett builds on one long-buried incident which happened in Portugal in 1940, and skilfully builds a whole cast of characters around it. Front and centre stage is Lara, a British wannabe actress who became stranded in Portugal on the eve of war. There she stays, working in a bar with her friend Miguel, then later in a bookshop with Bea. Slowly she becomes involved in the war effort in a way she had never imagined, but in the best traditions of espionage, I can’t tell you anymore or I’d have to kill you.
I was gripped by this book and found it hard to put down. I was so completely transported to Lisbon in 1940 I could almost smell the print on the newspapers in the bookshop, taste the Pasteis de Nata. If you read one Second World War novel in 2025 – make it this one.
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