Code Name: Lise
The True Story of the Woman Who Became WWII's Most Highly Decorated Spy
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3.9 • 222 Ratings
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- $13.99
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- $13.99
Publisher Description
NATIONAL BESTSELLER
A Goodreads Choice Awards semifinalist
Florida Book Awards Silver Medalist
Featured in The New York Times, The Atlantic, Time, New York Newsday, and on Today!
Best Nonfiction Books to Read in 2019—Woman’s Day
The Best Nonfiction Books Coming Out This Year—BookBub
“A nonfiction thriller.”—The Wall Street Journal
From New York Times and international bestselling author of the “gripping” (Michael Connelly, #1 New York Times bestselling author) Into the Lion’s Mouth comes the extraordinary true story of Odette Sansom, the British spy who operated in occupied France and fell in love with her commanding officer during World War II—perfect for fans of Unbroken, The Nightingale, and Code Girls.
The year is 1942, and World War II is in full swing. Odette Sansom decides to follow in her war hero father’s footsteps by becoming an SOE agent to aid Britain and her beloved homeland, France. Five failed attempts and one plane crash later, she finally lands in occupied France to begin her mission. It is here that she meets her commanding officer Captain Peter Churchill.
As they successfully complete mission after mission, Peter and Odette fall in love. All the while, they are being hunted by the cunning German secret police sergeant, Hugo Bleicher, who finally succeeds in capturing them. They are sent to Paris’s Fresnes prison, and from there to concentration camps in Germany where they are starved, beaten, and tortured. But in the face of despair, they never give up hope, their love for each other, or the whereabouts of their colleagues.
In Code Name: Lise, Larry Loftis paints a portrait of true courage, patriotism, and love—of two incredibly heroic people who endured unimaginable horrors and degradations. He seamlessly weaves together the touching romance between Odette and Peter and the thrilling cat and mouse game between them and Sergeant Bleicher. With this amazing testament to the human spirit, Loftis proves once again that he is adept at writing “nonfiction that reads like a page-turning novel” (Parade).
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
With evident sympathy, Loftis (Into the Lion's Mouth) tells a well-researched, novelistic story of a heroine and patriot whose face recently graced a postage stamp in the U.K. This exciting portrait of Odette Sansom, a French Mata Hari at the forefront of the Resistance, vividly captures her years in occupied France, complete with lively dialogue. Marriage to an Englishman finds Odette raising a family in Somerset when, at age 30, she is recruited by the spy branch of England's War Office, known as Special Operations Executive, or SOE, to help "set Europe ablaze." Loftis follows Odette as she undergoes rigorous training, assumes a new identity ("Lise"), and is shipped abroad. Guided by a strong moral imperative in her fight against Nazis, Odette risked her life on multiple occasions yet managed to cheat death each time; at one point she opines that nothing she endured could compare with the pain of being separated from her children. Meanwhile, she became entangled with her supervisor, Capt. Peter Churchill (no relation to Winston), and their love is the stuff of romance novels. Swift and entertaining, Loftis's work reads less like a biography and more like a thriller. Photos.
Customer Reviews
Code Name-Lise
I was engrossed with this book from the start. A couple sleepless nights to finish it. I am amazed at the complete dedication to her cause.
Riveting!
Couldn’t put it down, read the whole thing in 2 days!
Loved It
I was engrossed in this book! I have it in paperback but thought I’d stop by and write a review. I finished it in two days. The outcome was not what I expected it to be, but I suppose that’s what life often is. I recommend reading Sarah Helm’s “Life in Secrets” and “Ravensbrück / Is This A Woman?” if you want to learn more about the other women in the SOE.