Code Name Edelweiss

by Stephanie Landsem

Overview

“What I am looking for—what I desperately need, Mrs. Weiss—is a spy.”

Adolf Hitler is still a distant rumble on the horizon, but a Jewish spymaster and his courageous spies uncover a storm of Nazi terror in their own backyard.

In the summer of 1933, a man named Adolf Hitler is the new and powerful anti-Semitic chancellor of Germany. But in Los Angeles, no-nonsense secretary Liesl Weiss has concerns much closer to home. The Great Depression is tightening its grip and Liesl is the sole supporter of two children, an opinionated mother, and a troubled brother.

Leon Lewis is a Jewish lawyer who has watched Adolf Hitler’s rise to power—and the increase in anti-Semitism in America—with growing alarm. He believes Nazi agents are working to seize control of Hollywood, the greatest propaganda machine the world has ever known. The trouble is, authorities scoff at his dire warnings.

When Liesl loses her job at MGM, her only choice is to work with Leon Lewis and the mysterious Agent Thirteen to spy on her friends and neighbors in her German American community. What Leon Lewis and his spies find is more chilling—and more dangerous—than any of them suspected.

Code Name Edelweiss is based on a true story, unknown until recent years: How a lone Jewish lawyer and a handful of amateur spies discovered and foiled Adolf Hitler’s plan to take over Hollywood.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781496460677
Publisher:	Tyndale House Publishers
Publication date:	03/07/2023
Pages:	432
Sales rank:	112,761
Product dimensions:	5.40(w) x 8.20(h) x 1.10(d)

About the Author

Stephanie Landsem writes historical fiction for women, about women. As a child, she was the girl who always had her nose in a book and enjoyed her history class. Today, she loves to talk fiction, history, and general literary nerdiness. For more information, visit StephanieLandsem.com.

Neil Hellegers is a narrator, actor, and educator who lives in Brooklyn with his wife, son, and mutt. His voice work can be heard in various commercials, video games, and numerous audiobooks.

Pete Cross is an Earphones Award-winning narrator. He holds a BA in theater from the University of Toledo and an MFA in acting from the California Institute of the Arts. His experience on stage includes Carnegie Hall, and he has also acted in film. He has served on the faculty at Cal Arts and with Aquila Morong Studio in Hollywood. He has coached for film and theatrical productions and continues to work with private clients all over the world.

Cady Zuckerman is an audiobook narrator, an actress, and a voice coach located in Los Angeles. A lover of language and storytelling, she works as a teaching artist for the Actors' Gang Prison Project and Education program.

Editorial Reviews

Stephanie Landsem’s transfixing Code Name Edelweiss (Tyndale House, $26.99, 9781496460660) is peppered with rich descriptions of Los Angeles in 1933. Amid widespread unemployment and poverty, few people in LA are fully aware of the growing threat of Nazism following the appointment of Adolf Hitler as chancellor of Germany. Like many, Liesl Weiss is preoccupied with her own troubles; she has just lost her job but must take care of her children, brother and mother. Jewish lawyer Leon Lewis is concerned about the growing threat of the Nazis and believes they plan to infiltrate the Hollywood film industry. To stop them, he is enlisting spies for a dangerous mission. Liesl finds Leon’s fears absurd, but she needs the cash, so she signs on as a spy. The more information she uncovers, the more alarmed she becomes, and she soon realizes she cannot remain neutral and must choose a side. From its suspenseful start to its exciting ending, Code Name Edelweiss commands attention. Landsem sustains tension throughout as Leon’s team works to outpace the Nazis. Liesl, along with the elusive Agent Thirteen, spies on members of the German American community, hoping to find clues and deter the Nazis’ plans. The central characters all have fascinating backstories, though Liesl is crafted particularly well. She is sensible and dependable, and her lovely friendships add depth to the story. The novel is also enlivened by a subtle yet vital strand of romance.

BookPage

02/13/2023

Amateur spies attempt to foil a 1933 Nazi plot in this high-voltage thriller from Landsem (All That Glitters). After German-born single mother Liesl Weiss is fired from her secretarial job at MGM Studios, she’s desperate to find work to support her children. Her search leads her to Leon Lewis, a Jewish attorney, who offers her handsome pay to spy on the Friends of New Germany, an organization he suspects is plotting against American Jews. Despite her misgivings, Liesl is driven by her Christian sense of morality to accept the offer. Soon, Leon, Liesl, and the mysterious Agent Thirteen uncover Joseph Goebbels’s plan to transform Hollywood into a Nazi propaganda machine. As they work to foil the plot, Liesl confronts fears for her own (and her children’s) safety; guilt at hiding her double life from her family; and latent sorrow over her policeman husband’s disappearance two years earlier. It adds up to a riveting spy story and a nuanced look at the way religion can either justify prejudice or fuel moral action. Liesl’s adventures will keep readers hooked to the last page. (Mar.)

Publishers Weekly