The Librarian Spy: A Novel of World War II

by Madeline Martin Narrated by Saskia Maarleveld

Overview

A NATIONAL BESTSELLER-for fans of All the Light We Cannot See and The Tattooist of Auschwitz!

“Readers will be on the edge of their seats.... *A brilliant tale of resistance, courage and ultimately hope.” *-Kelly Rimmer, New York Times bestselling author of The Warsaw Orphan

From the New York Times bestselling author of The Last Bookshop in London comes a moving new novel inspired by the true history of America's library spies of World War II.

Ava thought her job as a librarian at the Library of Congress would mean a quiet, routine existence. But an unexpected offer from the US military has brought her to Lisbon with a new mission: posing as a librarian while working undercover as a spy gathering intelligence.

Meanwhile, in occupied France, Elaine has begun an apprenticeship at a printing press run by members of the Resistance. It's a job usually reserved for men, but in the war, those rules have been forgotten. Yet she knows that the Nazis are searching for the press and its printer in order to silence them.

As the battle in Europe rages, Ava and Elaine find themselves connecting through coded messages and discovering hope in the face of war.

“Uplifting, inspiring and suspenseful, this is one to savor!” -Natasha Lester,*New York Times*bestselling author of*The Riviera House
*
“Madeline Martin is a fantastic author. The Librarian Spy is a stunning tour de force of historical fiction.” -Karen Robards, author of The Black Swan of Paris

Don't miss Madeline Martin's next heartwarming historical novel, The Booklover's Library!

Also by Madeline Martin:

• The Last Bookshop in London
• The Keeper of Hidden Books

Editorial Reviews

JULY 2022 - AudioFile

Narrator Saskia Maarleveld brings her notable talent for accents to this WWII novel set in Lisbon, Portugal, and Nazi-occupied Lyon, France. She performs dialogue with several realistic accents, though she maintains an American accent for the narrative sections. The story focuses on Ava, an American employee of the Library of Congress who is working for the U.S. government in Lisbon, and Elaine, who is working with the Resistance in France. Their lives are very different. Ava lives in comparable comfort seasoned with wariness and occasional real danger, while Elaine lives under the brutal Nazi regime and is constantly at mortal risk. Eventually, their lives intersect. Maarleveld’s narration, including her fine work with character voices, keeps the listener’s attention. G.S. © AudioFile 2022, Portland, Maine

From the Publisher

The wartime ambience in both Lisbon and Paris and the thoroughly fascinating story of the IDC will please all lovers of WWII espionage.” –Booklist


“This story blew me away. Readers will be on the edge of their seats as they are transported to 1940s Portugal and France with Madeline Martin's vivid and inspiring characters. The Librarian Spy is a brilliant tale of resistance, courage and ultimately hope.”—Kelly Rimmer, New York Times bestselling author of The Warsaw Orphan

“Madeline Martin immerses us in the expertly rendered and fascinating worlds of Lisbon and Lyon during the war as we follow the stories of two brave women who are willing to risk everything for the cause of freedom. Uplifting, inspiring and suspenseful, this is one to savor!” –Natasha Lester, New York Times bestselling author of The Riviera House

“Madeline Martin is a fantastic author, and this beautiful, heartbreaking tale of two young women who risk everything as they use the power of words to fight back against the Nazis will have you glued to your chair. The Librarian Spy is a stunning tour de force of historical fiction.”—Karen Robards, author of The Black Swan of Paris

“In Madeline Martin’s stirring new novel, readers will be whisked into her brilliantly depicted portrayal of 1940’s Lisbon, Portugal, and Lyon, France. Martin captures the essence of the French resistance in war-riddled France as we race with hearts in our throats through Elaine’s harrowing tale, juxtaposed with Ava’s thrilling and engrossing passages illustrated with sensory delights. Both heroines push the boundaries of their worlds, risking much in their shared missions for survival and hope. Not to be missed, The Librarian Spy is an inspiring novel that highlights the women who dared to resist in the face of adversity." —Eliza Knight, USA To bestselling author of The Mayfair Bookshop

"Martin shows great reverence for the power of the written word in her pacey new novel, The Librarian Spy, set during the tumultuous backdrop of WWII in Lisbon and Lyon, when Nazis attempted to silence the press of the Resistance. This engaging, lively read featured a cast of characters I loved to root for and I couldn’t put it down!"—Heather Webb, USA TODAY bestselling author of The Next Ship Home

The danger of Resistance Lyon and the uncertainty of refugee life in wartime Lisbon leap off the page in Madeline Martin's The Librarian Spy. She artfully weaves an incredible, tense tale that will set your heart pounding as her characters navigate life and death decisions in this incredible novel of sacrifice, struggle, and hope. This is historical fiction at its absolute best! —Julia Kelly, international bestselling author of The Last Dance of the Debutante

“From Lyon to Lisbon, the settings in The Librarian Spy are every bit as vivid and appealing as the women working in Resistance. Madeline Martin takes readers into the belly of the beast, but with characters of such determination, heart, and strength, hope never fails. In increasingly dark times, The Librarian Spy is the book we need.” —Erika Robuck, National Bestselling Author of Sisters of Night and Fog



“The description and events in this novel prove to be deftly researched. The different locations and the vernacular used highly add to the tale's credibility, offering depth and insight into the happenings of this era. With suspense and tension throughout, this reads like a stealthy shadow lurking around a dark corner, producing hair-raising situations sure to raise one's hackles while making the reader ponder why this horror was allowed.”—New York Journal of Books

"Resistance and activism... vividly reimagined."—The Washington Post

“Another powerful, moving historical novel by Martin that will stay with you long after the final page is turned. Beautifully written and meticulously researched, it’s a story I’ll be recommending to all my readers.”—Soraya M. Lane, Kindle #1 bestselling author of The Last Correspondent

“The Librarian Spy is a truly captivating read.”—BookPage (starred)

"Powerful and unforgettable reading. ... I highly recommend this book."—Historical Novels Review

"The Librarian Spy is a beautifully written, well-researched work of historical fiction."—The Plain-Spoken Pen

"The Librarian Spy is another gorgeous read by Madeline Martin. The writing is fluid and beautiful, and the story touching. ... Full of courage, resistance, and sacrifice, this story was a lovely read."—The 52 Book Club

"Full of twists, turns, and international intrigue, The Librarian Spy is about two women facing overwhelming odds with courage, daring, and heart."—The Register Herald


“The Librarian Spy by Madeline Martin is a taut story of courage, endurance, and hope at a time when the world was anything but normal.”—Herald-Whig

Library Journal

02/01/2022

Chiaverini's Switchboard Soldiers chronicles the women of the U.S. Army Signal Corps, who weren't even eligible to enlist in the army but helped facilitate communication on the battlefield as bombs fell around them and pandemic raged during World War I (150,000-copy first printing). French Resistance fighter Elise and German soldier Sebastian fall in love in Occupied Paris and face moral crisis at war's end in Druart's The Last Hours in Paris (45,000-copy first printing). In Kidd's The Night Ship, sad-eyed young Gil is sent to live with his grandfather in a Western Australian fishing community and learns about the 1629 sinking of a ship whose passengers included the newly orphaned Mayken, sailing to what was then the Dutch East Indies (75,000-copy first printing). In Martin's latest, Ava is The Librarian Spy, working undercover in World War II Lisbon to collect intelligence and finding connection through coded messages with Elaine, apprenticed at a press run by the Resistance in Occupied France (150,000-copy first printing). Lock continues his successful "American Novels" series with Voices in the Dead House, which braids together the experiences of Walt Whitman and Louisa May Alcott in Civil War-torn Washington, DC. In Sister Mother Warrior, celebrated Island Queen author Riley conveys the Haitian Revolution through the stories of two women: Marie-Claire Bonheur, the first empress of Haiti, and West African-born warrior Gran Toya (100,000-copy first printing).

JULY 2022 - AudioFile

Narrator Saskia Maarleveld brings her notable talent for accents to this WWII novel set in Lisbon, Portugal, and Nazi-occupied Lyon, France. She performs dialogue with several realistic accents, though she maintains an American accent for the narrative sections. The story focuses on Ava, an American employee of the Library of Congress who is working for the U.S. government in Lisbon, and Elaine, who is working with the Resistance in France. Their lives are very different. Ava lives in comparable comfort seasoned with wariness and occasional real danger, while Elaine lives under the brutal Nazi regime and is constantly at mortal risk. Eventually, their lives intersect. Maarleveld’s narration, including her fine work with character voices, keeps the listener’s attention. G.S. © AudioFile 2022, Portland, Maine

Product Details

BN ID:	2940176063677
Publisher:	HarperCollins Publishers
Publication date:	07/26/2022
Edition description:	Unabridged
Sales rank:	890,735

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