Code Name Hélène

Product Information

I love a good historical fiction story and Code Name Hélène did not disappoint. This powerful and thrilling WWII story is fictional but it’s based on the remarkable young socialite Nancy Wake who went off to war while her French husband stayed behind. Did you read the Author’s Note before or after finishing the novel? How did it change your feelings about the novel? It is 1936 and Nancy Wake is an intrepid Australian expat living in Paris who has bluffed her way into a reporting job for Hearst newspaper. She is fighting to cover the disturbing reports of violence coming out of Vienna and Berlin when she meets the wealthy French industrialist Henri Fiocca. No sooner does Henri sweep Nancy off her feet and convince her to become Mrs. Fiocca than the Germans invade France and she takes yet another name: a code name. Lawhon's first novel, The Wife, the Maid, and the Mistress (2014) is centered around the still-unsolved disappearance of New York State Supreme Court Judge, Joseph Crater. Ariel believes that Story is the shortest distance to the human heart. Anonymous Content is synonymous with smart, sophisticated storytelling and is the perfect partner for us on ‘Code Name Hélène.’ It’s a gripping, epic tale with a wonderfully colorful, feisty and daring woman at its core whose bravery can’t help but inspire us all,” said Rousselet.

narrator, Barrie Kreinik, brings Nancy Wake to life! It wasn't like she was reading it; more like living it on the spot! Her realistic retelling was like watching a good movie! Are we really going to stand here and argue about the tangled nature of my family tree while my guests are left unattended?” (c) I highly recommend this story about sacrifice, betrayal, friendship, loyalty and love for historical fiction and/or WWII fans alike!I developed a keen admiration for Nancy Wake and her heroics during a time when it seemed heroics were secret, scary, and death defying.

Readers will be transfixed by this story of a woman who should be a household name’ Library Journal It is 1936 when Nancy Wake, an intrepid Australian expat living in Paris who has bluffed her way into a reporting job for Hearst newspaper, meets the wealthy French industrialist Henri Fiocca. No sooner does Henri sweep Nancy off her feet and convince her to become Mrs. Fiocca than the Germans invade France and she takes yet another name: a code name. Inspired by true wartime events, Code Name Hélène is a gripping and moving story of extraordinary courage, unfaltering resolve, remarkable sacrifice – and enduring love. It made the reader once again realize that women, along with men, fought for freedom, for justice for all, and for the ability to throw off oppression and totalitarianismStarred review) [P]lenty of fireworks and heroism as they converge to explain all. The author begs forgiveness in an informative afterword for all the drinking and swearing. Hey! No apologies necessary! [C]ompulsively readable… Lawhon's best book to date. The fictional Wake’s response is no doubt true to life. Lawhon writes in her author’s note that the real Wake used profanity “Liberally. Unapologetically. And with flair. It was one of her greatest weapons in gaining dominance and respect with the Maquisards of the French Resistance. If she was to lead those men, she could not appear weak, delicate, or easily offended.”

Wake got her start as an operative after her courtship and 1939 marriage to the French industrialist Henri Fiocca, with whom she lived briefly and happily in Marseille. When the war began and her husband was called to fight, she drove an ambulance to ferry the wounded. And once France fell to Nazi occupation, she aided the escape network of British officer Ian Garrow, whose release she arranged from a concentration camp by bribing a guard. Ultimately, her husband returned from the war, but the Gestapo discovered her Allied loyalties, forcing Wake to flee the country into Britain and leave her beloved husband behind.The descriptions of her trials and what she accomplished were mesmerizing and worthy of the highest note and regard. Nancy is accused of using "profanity as a weapon" to gain her male colleagues’ respect. Do you think this is true? Nancy became one of the most decorated women of World War II, she was a strong and respected military leader. Inspired by true wartime events, Code Name Helene is a gripping and moving story of extraordinary courage, unfaltering resolve, remarkable sacrifice - and enduring love. There is something for everyone here. There’s the tension and thrills as the resistance fighters pit themselves against the German war machine and that’s countered by the touching love story of Nancy and Henri.

I have read many stories of the famous Australian, Nancy Wake; I even have her biography autographed by Nancy herself. I found Code Name Helene to be refreshing and heartwarmingly real. Nancy Wake went through several years of pure hell during WWII but it was when she met her husband-to-be, Henri Fiocca in 1936 that she found, for the first time in her life, true love. Nancy and Henri hadn’t been married long when war was declared and Henri was called up to fight, leaving Nancy home alone. It didn’t take her long to start working for the French Resistance and she eventually became the White Mouse, named because the Germans were unable to find and capture her. I finished this a few weeks ago and I'm still thinking about Helene . . . exceptional' 5 stars (Goodreads reviewer) It once again disappointed me because I felt that this courageous stalwart woman's story was overwhelmed by the love at first sight and titillation of the sexual attraction between her virile, gorgeous wealthy husband and herself. Was this not a story of how Nancy could and did stand on her own? Ariel Lawhon is co-founder of the popular online book club, She Reads, a novelist, blogger, and life-long reader. She lives in the rolling hills outside Nashville, Tennessee with her husband and four young sons (aka The Wild Rumpus).But, Lawhon writes, “some of the dialogue and many of the descriptions of people and events” are taken directly from Wake’s autobiography, The White Mouse. And the most notable and important aspects of Wake’s life are mostly unembellished in Code Name Hélène, which is as much an epic love story as an engrossing narrative of an unlikely anti-Nazi combatant. A compulsively readable account of a little-known yet extraordinary historical figure—Lawhon’s best book to date.