Secrets on the Shore (Taylor and Rose mini adventure)

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The Secret Shore was an incredible read. It awakened all my senses. It was a celebration of the women in war who were so very brave, whether on the home front or working. I am sad that it is now ended.

Meredith’s mother is French and she has great knowledge of the Normandy coast.this is invaluable to the National Intelligence Division and the flotillas which ran from Cornwall to Brittany. Dr Merry Tremayne has been drafted from Oxford to work at the War Office. Her skills make her one of the Navy's most skilled map makers, but as an attractive woman, it is a constant battle for her to convince her male colleagues that she is so much more than just a pretty face. However, Merry knows she can make a difference to the lives of the men fighting far away, and she is no shrinking violet. She is fortunate to be working for Commander Fleming, a man who knows only too well how brilliant and fierce she can be, and how to make the most of her skills.The story develops romantically when Merry meets the handsome American officer, Jake, and using the Virginia Woolf quote ‘passions are uncharted’

The secret service needs her skills. It is a twofold mission. And she embarks on a journey that will draw upon her skills like never before. Especially when it is discovered her widowed French mother is missing from her Cornwall home. There are whispers she might be a spy. But Merry cannot believe this of her artist-mother. This query puts her on a path of investigation. Fleming sends her to the coast to uncover the truth and assist some of his men in their missions who are transporting people and goods to and from Brittany and Cornwall. With her knowledge of the coastline, mapping skills and gift of languages she is a valuable asset to the team. Merry is a complex character and this made her even more appealing. She is deemed initially too valuable and too beautiful to be an agent but her mapmaking skills and fluid command of French, German and Breton are in great need. Commander Fleming notes that with a change of clothing and hairstyle, she could truly pass as a French woman (as a valuable agent). But there’s a fly in the ointment. Although there are no real gaps in her skills, it is her physical attractiveness that he states lets her down. Fleming makes this very clear when she asks to be sent on a mission. He reluctantly affirms that ‘beauty is always noted and remembered.’ So, covers can be easily blown. As you would expect, Merry does not let this opinion slow her down. And when a personal crisis occurs? All stops are pulled out. This was my first book by this author but it certainly won’t be my last. It contained everything I like in a novel- romance, a plot set in World War 2 and a strong female protagonist.

Middletown, Connecticut

The romance is important too! I didn’t realise how invested I was in Merry and Jake as a couple until I cried. Meredith becomes part of the team, and updates maps and the military's knowledge of the Normandy coast.

As well as following Merry’s war work, there is a mystery in the book about what happened to her mother who disappeared. Mapping, facts and details are important to Merry and she takes this approach when to trying to find out what happened to her mother. I liked that through Merry’s recollections we got glimpses of what her mother was like. Christina DeRosa plays Micha Caldwell, a young woman who comes looking for her missing sister in her hometown. The talented actress is best known for her performance as Virginia Rizzo in the TV series ‘Gravesend.’ Chelsea Vale plays Micha’s sister Maya, who suddenly disappears during a trip on the waters. Vale has done notable roles in the movies ‘Burial Ground Massacre’ and ‘Mr. Birthday.’ Her particular skills see her posted to London and then to her home area of Helford and her working with the special units preparing for a distant invasion of France. The teams she must work with are drawn from several nations and departments. It is part of Merry’s duties to help weld those different parts into a single functioning team. The teams themselves are engaged in long-range supply to forces in Brittany and the landing and evacuation of specialist personnel.Life was difficult for homosexuals. We follow a couple of ladies who have to behave very differently outside their home. They have to deny who they really are. There were several little subplots in addition, but it wasn’t too complex, and it was easy to keep up with (even if I sometimes got the soldiers names mixed up). I thought that the disappearance of Merry’s mother would be a major part of the plot, and whilst it did have some impact on the plot it was more of a side story and wasn’t the main focus as I thought it would be starting it. Speaking personally, this book had extra appeal for me as it dealt with both an area I know, South-west Cornwall) and my own milieu – as a man whose entire career as a ship’s officer has depended on the work of the mapmaker and those who made sure that we on board ship had access to the latest information and updated charts. Overall, I would have preferred the novel to be shorter and tighter and not have all these side issues that went nowhere. I would also have liked to have learned more specifics about exactly what Merry did for all those months in Cornwall, as I didn't get a real feel for her contribution.