The best books about intrepid women spies of World War II

by Maryka Biaggio
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5 books
Many women served as spies or worked for the war effort during World War II, but their stories were largely unknown at the time. Here are some of the very best books about the intrepid women who served the war effort in the European arena.
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The Rose Code

Kate Quinn, 2022
Kate Quinn’s spy novel is unique in that a good deal of the action takes place after the war, in 1947. Readers get an inside look into intelligence training at England’s remote country estate, Bletchley Park, where three women become fast friends as they train and go on to work as code-breaking cryptanalysts. Of course, female friendships can be complicated, and this proves to be the case for these three. After the war they are brought back together by a mysterious encrypted letter.

Code Name Hélène

A Novel
Ariel Lawhon, 2020
This novel is one of Ariel Lawhon's best works. Not many people have heard of Nancy Wake, but she was an Australian expatriate living in Paris during the years preceding World War II. Her story is one of those “I can hardly believe this really happened” tales. Nancy Wake started out as a reporter, but when Germany invaded France she joined the Resistance and smuggled people and documents across the border. The Nazis nicknamed her “The White Mouse” and put a bounty on her head, forcing her to flee France. Any ordinary person would have called it a day. But not Nancy Wake. She returned to France as Hélène under the aegis of England’s Special Operations Executives. Her cleverness and courage are guaranteed to thrill any reader.

Three Hours in Paris

Cara Black, 2021
The heroine of this novel is an American markswoman from rural Oregon. She is recruited to go to Paris and assassinate Adolf Hitler during the three hours that Hitler spends there in June 1940. Kate Rees is wracked with a vendetta and fierce resolve, and her state of mind leaves the reader wondering if this baggage will help or hinder her on her mission. This is a riveting read about one woman’s ultimately unsuccessful but courageous mission.

The Lost Girls of Paris

Pam Jenoff, 2019
Pam Jenoff is perhaps best known for The Orphan’s Tale, but here she takes on World War II and lands another great read. In this carefully plotted novel Jenoff reveals the story of twelve actual female secret agents who served courageously, only to be forgotten as the war waged on. The story is interestingly framed. The narrator discovers an abandoned suitcase with pictures of a dozen women and sets out to investigate their stories. This is a mesmerizing tale of women willing to make the ultimate sacrifice for the war effort.

Code Name Verity

Elizabeth Wein, 2020
One of the things readers generally love about spy novels is the heart-thumping intrigue they typically deliver, and Code Name Verity is, simply put, harrowing. The action begins in 1943 when a British spy plane carrying two good friends crashes in Nazi Germany. From that point on Verity is tested to the limit. This novel is a master class in what it means to show courage.