Carol

Women in the Resistance Movement/Spying #WomensHistoryMonth #TopTenTuesday

For #WomensHistoryMonth and #TopTenTuesday I’m shining a spotlight on amazing books I’ve read about women involved in resistance and spying. This post is reblogged from 3/18 so that I can link up with That Artsy Reader Girl for Top Ten Tuesday: March Freebie. (even though I have a few more than 10!

Top Ten+ Books About Women in the Resistance Movement/Spying

Six young women standing on a bluff with itheir hands on the shoulders of the girl in front of her ... all facing sideways looking at the ocean

Image Source: Canva

Do you enjoy a side of thriller/suspense with your historical fiction?

What is Resistance?

There are specific real-life Resistance Movements like the French Resistance Movement. Then there is the concept of general resistance where just surviving or having hope for the next day is a form of resistance. Most of the stories I list here feature women (some real-life) involved with an organized form of resistance.

Authors writing in the historical fiction genre can approach a story in a few ways:

  • they can create fictional characters experiencing an actual historical event
  • they can base a story on real-life characters experiencing a true historical event
  • or they can set their story in a time period from the past (at least 40-50 years in the past) and create fictional characters living in the time period with possible references to historical events and/or culture.

My FAVORITE hisfic stories are inspired by real-life individuals.

Most of the selections on my bookshelf represent my favorite type of histfic. Do you prefer a certain type of histfic?

Thank you for joining me today in celebration of Women’s History Month, Women authors, and inspirational women!

***Titles are Amazon affiliate links or links to my reviews.

(In no particular order)

The Girl From Guernica by Karen Robards

The Girl From Guernica by Karen Robards (cover) Image: a young woman looks to the side and behind her at planes circling a townFast-paced, page-turning, riveting, and unputdownable. Fictional spy in Germany during WWII. My favorite read of 2022.

Code Name Hélène by Ariel Lawhon

Code Name Helene by Ariel Lawhon (cover)

Fictionalized story of a bad-a$$, real-life socialite spy, Nancy Wake. (WWII France)

The Invisible Woman by Erika Robuck

The Invisible Woman by Erica Robuck (cover) Image: a woman stands with her back to the camera and shadows of airplanes on the ground surround her

One of my favorite real-life heroes is Virginia Hall who trades in a safe life to work as an Allied Spy with the Resistance Movement in France during World War 11.

Resistance Women by Jennifer Chiaverini

Resistance Women by Jennifer Chiaverini (cover)

In pre-warII Germany, real-life Mildred Fish, her husband, and their friends join the resistance and risk their lives to gather intelligence to bring down the Third Reich from within.

The Nightingale by Kristin Hannah

Two fictional sisters work in their own ways to aid the Resistance Movement in France during WWII.

The Last Train to London by Meg Waite Clayton

The Last Train to London by Meg Waite CLayton (cover)

This is a memorable story of real-life hero Truus Wijsmuller, a member of the Dutch resistance who risked her life smuggling Jewish children out of Nazi Germany.

The Winter Orphans by Kristin Beck

The Winter Orphans by Kristin Beck (cover) Image: white text over the background picture of a young girl wearing a coat and hat and carrying a suitcase trudging through snowfall

Rösli Näf and Anne-Marie Piguet are the real-life Red Cross Volunteers (heroes) who smuggle Jewish orphans out of France.

The Postmistress of Paris by Meg Waite Clayton

The Postmistress of Paris by Meg Waite Clayton (black and white cover with red text) Image: a women in silhouette walks out of a building with her back to the camera and overlooks a view of the Eiffel Tower

A young American heiress, Nanee (inspired by real-life Mary Jayne Gold), helps artists and intellectuals escape from Nazi-controlled Europe.

The Daughters of War by Dinah Jefferies

Daughters of War by Dinah Jefferies (cover) Image: a woman stands with her back to the camera in a field with trees and a house on a hill in the distance

In 1944, as WWII comes to their doorstep, three sisters take risks as they fight to survive and resist in their own ways.

The Book of Lost Names by Kristin Harmel

The Book of Lost Names by Kristin Harmel (cover) Image: a young woman holds an old book in her hands with her hands behind her back and back to the camera

Inspired by true stories from WW11, a young Jewish woman creates documents that will help hundreds of Jewish children flee the Nazis.

Sisters of Night and Fog by Erika Robuck

Sisters of Night and Fog by Erika Robuck (two women wearing hats and business suits walk away from the camera in a field of low fog)

The fictionalized account of two real-life young women, Virginia d’Albert-Lake and Violette Szabo, who join the resistance movement in their own ways and eventually meet at Ravensbruck concentration camp.

Code Name Sapphire by Pam Jenoff

Code Name Sapphire by Pam Jenoff (cover) Image:

In Code Name Sapphire we learn how the Sapphire Line (inspired by the Comet Line) rescued downed pilots, and sabotaged a train on its way to Auschwitz, liberating as many prisoners as possible.

Goodnight From Paris by Jane Healey

Goodnight From Paris by Jane Healey (cover) Image: a young woman with blong hair wears a red dress and black shawl and stands with her back to the camera gazing at planes overheadThis compelling story is the fictionalized account of real-life hero and Hollywood actress, Drue Leyton and her work with the Resistance to rescue downed allied pilots during WWII.

The Alice Network by Kate Quinn

The Alice Network by Kate Quinn (cover) Image: a woman wearing a coat and hat and carrying a suitcase walks away from the camera toward a car

In one timeline, a courageous female spy (Eve) is recruited to work in the real-life Alice Network in France during World War l.

QOTD:

Have you read a book about women in a resistance movement?
What book have you read that I could add to this list?

 I’m also linking up with Deb @ Deb’s World and Sue @ Women Living Well After 50, Donna @ Retirement Reflections, and Jo @ And Anyways…. for the March installment of #WhatsOnYourBookShelfChallenge.

Whats On Your Bookshelf Challenge

Happy Reading Book Buddies!

“Ah, how good it is to be among people who are reading.” ~Rainer Maria Rilke

“I love the world of words, where life and literature connect.” ~Denise J Hughes

“Reading good books ruins you for enjoying bad ones.” ~Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society

“I read because books are a form of transportation, of teaching, and of connection! Books take us to places we’ve never been, they teach us about our world, and they help us to understand human experience.” ~Madeleine Riley, Top Shelf Text

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All books I review are bought or borrowed from the library unless explicitly stated that they are free (arcs).

Amazon or an author’s (or publisher’s) website receives all credit for book covers and author photos used in the creation of a blog post.

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32 comments

  3. Hi Carol! Oh gosh I just love your list today! The Alice Network and The Nightingale are two of my favorite books ever. The Last Train to London just broke my heart. Such a brilliant and sad story.

    Happy TTT!

    Elza Reads

    Reply

  4. This is a cool topic! I recently read a nonfiction book called The Woman’s Hour about how women got the right to vote in the US. It’s hard to keep fighting for what you want when the people in power keep telling you no.

    Reply

  5. Thank you. I enjoy the reading ladies blogs and recommendations.
    The Alice Network is amazing.

    Reply

  9. Great topic this week, Carol! I recently read The Nightingale and just loved it. I just put The Book of Lost Names by Kristin Harmel on my library list

    Reply

    • I’m so happy to hear we share the love! Yes, Resistance Women is a bit of an info dump but so interesting to read about the buildup to the war and to read about a real person!

      Reply

      • I did find it interesting, and I loved learning about the real people, but I just felt that 17 years is an awfully long time to cover in one book, I think if the author had covered the same time period over multiple books, I may have enjoyed it more. I also studied the rise of the Nazis A LOT at school so I just didn’t really feel the need for all the background in the same way that other readers may have.

  15. I love this list Carol, mainly because there are several on here that I haven’t read, so now I have some great historical fiction books based on real characters that I can look for.

    Reply

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