The organization trained her extensively, and Wake’s accomplishments in the pursuit of Nazi defeat were astonishing: She once biked 500 kilometers over the course of 24 hours to deliver a message; she killed a Nazi soldier with her bare hands; she presided over the firing-squad execution of Resistance fighters who kidnapped and raped women. And as Lawhon notes, there were many female spies during World War II, but Wake represented one of a very small number of female military leaders. For more local book coverage, please visit Chapter16.org, an online publication of Humanities Tennessee. About the author: Crikey! I am so glad Ariel Lawhon wrote this little-known story of one of WWII's greatest military leaders, Australian war heroine Nancy Grace Augusta Wake, who not only led successful missions with the French Resistance, but who also killed a Nazi with her bare hands!

Code Name Hélène by Ariel Lawhon | Goodreads

This fully animated portrait of Nancy Wake . . . will fascinate readers of World War II history and thrill fans of fierce, brash, independent women, alike.” All the air rushes from his lungs in a grunt. His wife hasn’t been sleeping with other men. “Is that all?” But, Lawhon writes, “some of the dialogue and many of the descriptions of people and events” are taken directly from Wake’s autobiography, The White Mouse. And the most notable and important aspects of Wake’s life are mostly unembellished in Code Name Hélène, which is as much an epic love story as an engrossing narrative of an unlikely anti-Nazi combatant. Nancy Wake... Nancy Fiocca—is the kind of woman who conquers the world. Fearless. Ferocious. Nancy is the sort of woman who bathes in a meteor shower. She is not the kind of woman who concedes to anyone. (c)

I loved this! This WWII novel tells the story of Nancy Wake, the unsung French Resistance leader who was #1 on the Gestapo’s most-wanted list by the end of the war. Lawhon has proven herself a master at her craft, and she does readers a great service with Code Name Hélène, which she penned after a friend suggested a few years ago that she write about Nancy Wake. Like many of us, the author had not heard of the Aussie legend before 2015. “In all my years researching and writing historical fiction, I have never come across such a bold, bawdy, brazen woman,” she writes. Publishing March 31, 2020, I am deeply grateful to the publisher and NetGalley for allowing me an early peek at this gem of a novel. PUT. IT. ON. YOUR. READING. LIST. NOW. Historical fiction is my favorite genre and I love books and movies about women spies. I have read quite a few about WWII and even WWI, though those women are not as well recognized. The real life story of Nancy Wake's work for the French Resistance during WWII is fascinating, but the writing style and the eye-rolling, insta-love watered down the accomplishments of this amazing woman.

Code Name Hélène by Ariel Lawhon - Goodreads Editions of Code Name Hélène by Ariel Lawhon - Goodreads

Nancy Grace Augusta Wake had several code names; Hélène was the one she used as a spy. During a large part of this novel, she is known as Madame Andrée, in charge of coordinating communications and vital drops of military paraphernalia including weapons from London, and assuming command of an army of French guerrilla soldiers as part of the French Resistance during WW11. She was fiery, intelligent, spirited, and had a right big vocabulary of curse words, which she employed liberally. Did I mention brave? She had that in spades. Originally from Australia, she left home when she was 16 and eventually landed in Paris, working for the Hearst newspaper, where she was never given a byline because she was female. While covering news stories about increasing violence against Jews, she developed a deep-seated hatred for the Nazis.Based on the thrilling real-life story of socialite spy Nancy Wake, comes the newest feat of historical fiction from the New York Times bestselling author of I Was Anastasia, featuring the astonishing woman who killed a Nazi with her bare hands and went on to become one of the most decorated women in WWII. When the story starts progressing with her investigative work, the moment I thought I was getting into it, another man’s facial description pops up. It’s like some kind of infatuation with facial descriptions. It is 1936 and Nancy Wake is an intrepid Australian expat living in Paris who has bluffed her way into a reporting job for Hearst newspaper. She is fighting to cover the disturbing reports of violence coming out of Vienna and Berlin when she meets the wealthy French industrialist Henri Fiocca. No sooner does Henri sweep Nancy off her feet and convince her to become Mrs. Fiocca than the Germans invade France and she takes yet another name: a code name.

Code Name Helene - Ariel Lawhon - LitLovers Code Name Helene - Ariel Lawhon - LitLovers

BASED ON THE THRILLING REAL-LIFE STORY OF SOCIALITE SPY NANCY WAKE, comes the newest feat of historical fiction from the New York Times bestselling author of I Was Anastasia, featuring the astonishing woman who killed a Nazi with her bare hands and went on to become one of the most decorated women in WWII.A historical novel explores the intersection of love and war in the life of Australian-born World War II heroine Nancy Grace Augusta Wake. Based on the thrilling real-life story of a socialite spy and astonishing woman who killed a Nazi with her bare hands and went on to become one of the most decorated women in WWII —from the New York Times bestselling author of I Was Anastasia. Rousselet, who is producing “Code Name Hélène,” said, “Ariel Lawhon’s novel vividly brings to life the incredible true story of Nancy Wake, whose wit and style were matched only by her bravery, courage and passionate leadership.”

CODE NAME HÉLÈNE | Kirkus Reviews

Lawhon breathes new life into Nancy Wake’s extraordinary story. Rich and thoroughly researched, an exciting, well-written account of wartime valour and the protagonist’s qualities shine through’ The Times Told in interweaving timelines organized around the four code names Nancy used during the war, Code Name Hélène is a spellbinding and moving story of enduring love, remarkable sacrifice and unfaltering resolve that chronicles the true exploits of a woman who deserves to be a household name. I’m recommending Code Name Hélène for fans of fast-paced, suspenseful, and gritty historical fiction who are OK with intense situations and graphic descriptions and for readers who make it their mission to read everything Ariel Lawhon writes. Forget about solving all these crimes; the signal triumph here is (spoiler) the heroine’s survival. First and foremost was the sexual descriptions and the fact that the author felt that including these made Nancy perhaps more palpable. Could this woman not stand on her own without the references to her beauty, her sexual prowess, and her ability to attract any man? I felt it cheapened the story for once again a woman became "something" because of her looks.

BASED ON THE THRILLING REAL-LIFE STORY OF SOCIALITE SPY NANCY WAKE, comes the newest feat of historical fiction from the New York Times bestselling author of I Was Anastasia, featuring the astonishing woman who killed a Nazi with her bare hands and went on to become one of the most decorated women in WWII. stars! I don’t read much historical fiction but when I read the publishing blurb it grabbed my attention! BASED ON THE THRILLING REAL-LIFE STORY OF SOCIALITE SPY NANCY WAKE,