Martin’s book, inspired by the true history of America’s library spies during World War II, was published on July 26, 2022, and is available in paperback, hardcover, Kindle, and audiobook formats, as well as at your local library through the Libby App. The audiobook is brilliantly narrated by Saskia Maarleveld. The book is in dual POV alternating between the two main characters: Ava Harper a librarian at t he Library of Congress but an offer from the US military brings her to neutral Lisbon gathering intelligence in efforts to bring an end to the war and Elaine Bélanger who’s husband has gone missing in her efforts to find him, she joins the French Resistance and begins an apprenticeship at an underground printing press.

From chapter to chapter, readers and listeners are drawn into Ava and Elaine’s lives and the raging war, as the rations in occupied France starkly contrast with the lack of food and the gaunt populace, against the backdrop of opulent, rich foods and dinner parties in Lisbon. The women put their lives at risk when they connect through coded messages to help a mother and her son escape France and get to the US. Elaine knows the Nazis are searching for the press and its printers to silence them, and Ava is being followed by a Nazi spy and the Portuguese Secret Police. Her apartment is broken into and searched multiple times. Yet, they persevere in their endeavor until mother and son are reunited with their loved ones.

Martin’s research is detailed and accurate for the time period, giving readers and listeners the chance to learn about Lisbon during WWII and the importance of librarians’ roles, the influx of refugees, the intricacies of obtaining visas, travel papers, and passage on a ship to travel. The efforts of the Resistance in France, the Roneo and Minerva presses, and the significance of the underground papers, as well as the brutality of German officers towards anyone who offers help to the ‘enemy’. The only part of the storyline that doesn’t seem to fit is the underdeveloped romance between Ava and James; this aspect required more development for it to be genuine. As it is, the relationship feels flat, underwhelming, and forced. Martin would have been better off not introducing this romantic sub-plot if she couldn’t flesh it out properly.

A 3-star read or listen, with strong female leads, offering new information and showing how courage, hope, and resilience helped them survive the worst humanity threw at them.