So Brave
The Last Agent In Paris by Sharon Maas is a powerful, historical novel that I read in just two sittings, pausing only to sleep.
This is the story of Noor Inayat Khan. As a historian I knew the bare bones of her story but this book puts flesh on those bones.
Noor Inayat Khan was the first female wireless operator in France in World War II. The average life expectancy for wireless operators in France was just six weeks. She was small in stature but hugely brave and courageous. Her lips were forever sealed as her fate was marked.
We hear of Noor Inayat Khan’s life story from her birth in Russia in 1914 right up to her ending.
Her character was largely shaped by her father, with whom she had a close relationship. “Some people are just mean, you can’t change them… You’re the only person you can really change.” Wise words from her father. Noor Inayat Khan lived by these words as she worked on her own character. She was by nature a pacifist so war did not come easily. As the Nazis spread their lies, she believed “the pen is mightier than the sword… Peace starts in the home with children. We must nourish the minds of children.”
As a resident of Paris, Noor Inayat Khan decided “I’m training as a nurse, I will fight this, in my own peaceful way.” However, as the Nazis marched into France, the whole family, along with many others, marched south, eventually ending up in England.
Noor Inayat Khan wanted to help her beloved France. She used her skills and became a wireless operator, despite knowing there was little chance of returning.
The Last Agent In Paris was a powerful true tale. The reader marvels at the bravery of a small in stature woman. This book must be read in her memory. May Noor Inayat Khan never be forgotten.
I received a free copy from the publishers. A favourable review was not required. All opinions are my own.
JULIA WILSON
Book Description:
As the bombs rained down on Paris, my family fled before the Nazis could take us. I never thought I’d see my beloved home again. But I’ve come back to fight for the people I love. And now, I’m the last agent standing. The freedom of the world rests on my shoulders.
Paris, 1940. As Nazi soldiers march down the Champs Elysees, Noor’s heart is shattered. Her family is forced to flee their home to the safety of England, and as Noor watches the French coast disappear in the distance, she vows to do everything she can to stop Germany from devouring her beloved country.
Training as a wireless operative in England, Noor’s perfect French makes her the ideal candidate for undercover work in her beloved Paris, and she is soon assigned to an illustrious spy network led by a mysterious man named Prosper.
Day after day, Noor walks the treacherous streets of Paris looking for safe places to broadcast messages to London. But Nazi officers lurk around every corner, and Noor’s heart thunders in her chest as she evades detection, tightly clutching the briefcase containing her radio equipment. She knows it would take just one stop and search for her life to be over.
With each passing day her mission becomes more lethal as, one by one, her fellow agents are captured. Someone is betraying them, but who? And when Noor becomes the last agent in the network, can she keep the links with England alive, to help win the war?
An utterly gripping and emotional World War 2 novel inspired by the incredible true story of Noor Inayat Khan, the first female radio operator sent by SOE into Nazi-occupied France. Fans of Suzanne Goldring, Ellie Midwood and Siobhan Curran will be swept away.
Author Bio:
Sharon Maas was born to politically active parents in Georgetown, Guyana, in 1951. She was educated in England, Guyana, and, later, Germany. After leaving school, she worked as a reporter with the Guyana Graphic in Georgetown and later wrote feature articles for the Sunday Chronicle as a staff journalist. Sharon has always had a great sense of adventure and curiosity about the world we live in, and Guyana could not hold her for long. In 1971 she set off on a year-long backpacking trip around South America, followed by an overland trek to South India, where she spent two years in an ashram. She lived in Germany for forty-three years and now lives in Ireland. She is the author of The Violin Maker’s Daughter, The Soldier’s Girl, Her Darkest Hour and many other novels.
https://www.instagram.com/sharonmaaswriter
Sign up to be the first to hear about new releases from Sharon Maas here: https://www.bookouture.com/sharon-maas
Buy Links:
Amazon: https://ow.ly/EaZ450TVaHn
Apple Books: https://ow.ly/nBhT50TVaHo
Kobo: https://ow.ly/ZYct50TVaHq
Google Play: https://ow.ly/mfhq50TVaHp
You can sign up for all the best Bookouture deals you’ll love at: http://ow.ly/Fkiz30lnzdo
—
Sarah Hardy
Publicist
Bookouture
Storyfire Ltd
Carmelite House
50 Victoria Embankment
London EC4Y 0DZ
Storyfire Limited, a member of Hachette UK Group, registered in England and Wales under company no. 7893911
Follow Bookouture on Facebook
Follow Bookouture on Twitter
Follow Bookouture on Instagram
Follow Bookouture on TikTok
If you’d like to sign up to our reviewer database you can sign up here!
For the best deals on books you can’t put down, make sure to sign up to our Bookouture Deals mailing list!
Sign up here!