The Alice Network by Kate Quinn

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I usually avoid or get bored by anything set before the 1990s, so I have absolutely no idea how this Historical Fiction novel made it onto my ‘to be read’ pile. I was shocked when I read the first few pages and realized it was set shortly after world war 2, but could not abandon the network. 


Charlotte, or Charlie as she prefers, visited England with her mother to sort out her ‘Little Problem’. In Southampton, Charlie is haunted by the memories of her closest cousin who disappeared in the country during the second world war. Charlotte meets Eve, an ex-spy, and her ex-con (I’m not sure how I feel about this word) acquaintance, and the unlikely trio sets out on adventure to find Charlie’s long-lost cousin. 
Recounts of the first world war from Eve show how violently wars ruined people. Those who survived the war were emotionally killed by the grief and the trauma. Kate Quinn based The Alice Network on the story of a true war heroine who showed that women were at the defense forefront when it came to information, in spite of their oppression. (Ironically, nearly a century later, not much has changed.)
Rating: 8/10 because it was excruciatingly long and sometimes repetitive.

(Disclaimer: This is not a genre I’m well versed on.)

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