August 2, 2022

The Codebreaker’s Secret by Sara Ackerman

Genre/Categories: Historical Fiction, Women’s Fiction, WW11, Hawaii, Pearl Harbor

*This post contains Amazon affiliate links.

My Summary:

Welcome to my stop on the Harlequin Trade Publishing 2022 Summer Blog Tour for Historical Fiction. Thank you #Netgalley @HarliquinBooks (Mira) @HTPBooks @BookClubbish for a complimentary e ARC of #TheCodebreakersSecret upon my request. All opinions are my own.

Set in 1943, The Codebreaker’s Secret by Sara Ackerman is a story about Isabel and the codebreakers who work in the “dungeon” at Station HYPO in Pearl Harbor. They are racing to retrieve data from the airwaves to help bring down the enemy. Isabel is grieving the loss of her brother as she faces sexism and other difficult working conditions. Circumstances look a little brighter when she meets her brother’s best friend, a hotshot pilot. A second timeline takes place in 1965 as journalist Lu Freitas covers the grand opening of a glamorous Mauna Kea Beach Hotel and meets a veteran photographer. As a team, they uncover a secret from the war days.

My Thoughts:

Trusted, Auto-Buy Author: I look forward to Sara Ackerman’s books because I’ve come to trust her as a solid author. In her trademark style, her books (so far) are set in Hawaii around the time of Pearl Harbor. Her stories are a perfect blend of historical fiction/women’s fiction that feature island descriptions, strong, independent women, friendship and women supporting women themes, and sprinkles of intrigue and romance. I appreciate no profanity (or very very limited), closed-door romance, and uplifting content.. I’m proud to be an Ackerman completist and I can recommend her books to anyone!

Likable and Inspiring Character: Ackerman’s main characters are likable, determined, inspiring, and brave. I feel like Isabel and I would be friends if I were a codebreaker, and I cheered for her as she held her own in a field dominated by men in the 1940s. I especially appreciate Ackerman’s themes of women helping women and friendship present in The Codebreaker’s Secret and in her other work.

Writing and Structure: Ackerman has an easy reading and pleasant writing style: wonderful character development, page-turning plot, and vivid, descriptive details without being overwritten. In her recent releases, she has been stretching herself as a writer by implementing dual timelines. She handles the transitions well, and I’ve enjoyed the more complex storylines.

Highly Recommended: The Codebreaker’s Secret is perfect for readers who appreciate a historical fiction/women’s fiction mashup, for fans who love a sprinkling of (closed door) romance and mystery, for readers looking for a vacation or weekend read, and for book clubs who enjoy discussable themes. This is a heartfelt, compelling, pageturning, and uplifting story that women of all ages will enjoy!

Other Ackerman books I’ve reviewed on the blog: Island of Sweet Pies and Soldiers, Radar Girls (this might be my fav), The Lieutenant’s Nurse, Red Sky Over Hawaii

My Rating:  4.5 Stars (easily rounded to 5)

The Codebreaker’s Secret Information Here

Meet the Author, Sara Ackerman

Sara Ackerman is the bestselling author of Radar Girls (2021), Red Sky Over Hawaii (2020), The Lieutenant’s Nurse (2019), and Island of Sweet Pies and Soldiers (2018). Her highly anticipated novel, The Codebreaker’s Secret, releases August 2, 2022.

Sara’s books have been labeled “unforgettable” by Apple Books, “empowering & deliciously visceral” by Book Riot, and New York Times bestselling authors Kate Quinn and Madeline Martin have praised Sara’s novels as “fresh and delightful” and “brilliantly written.” Amazon chose Radar Girls as a best book of the month, and ALA Booklist gave The Codebreaker’s Secret a starred review.

Find out more about Sara and her books at http://www.ackermanbooks.com and follow her on Instagram @saraackermanbooks and on FB @ackermanbooks.

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QOTD:

Is The Codebreaker’s Secret on your TBR or have you read it?
Have you read a Sara Ackerman book?

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