I’m thrilled to be sharing my book review with you today of The Guardians of Lies, the latest novel by Kate Furnivall. Thank you to Helen Boyce (TBC) and Simon & Schuster for giving me the opportunity to read and review this wonderful book.
About the book:
Discover a brilliant story of love, danger, courage and betrayal, from the internationally bestselling author of The Survivors.
1953, the South of France. The fragile peace between the West and Soviet Russia hangs on a knife edge. And one family has been torn apart by secrets and conflicting allegiances.
Eloïse Caussade is a courageous young Frenchwoman, raised on a bull farm near Arles in the Camargue. She idolises her older brother, André, and when he leaves to become an Intelligence Officer working for the CIA in Paris to help protect France, she soon follows him. Having exchanged the strict confines of her father’s farm for a life of freedom in Paris, her world comes alive.
But everything changes when André is injured – a direct result of Eloise’s actions. Unable to work, André returns to his father’s farm, but Eloïse’s sense of guilt and responsibility for his injuries sets her on the trail of the person who attempted to kill him.
Eloïse finds her hometown in a state of unrest and conflict. Those who are angry at the construction of the American airbase nearby, with its lethal nuclear armaments, confront those who support it, and anger flares into violence, stirred up by Soviet agents. Throughout all this unrest, Eloïse is still relentlessly hunting down the man who betrayed her brother and his country, and she is learning to look at those she loves and at herself with different eyes. She no longer knows who she can trust. Who is working for Soviet Intelligence and who is not? And what side do her own family lie on?
About the author:
Kate Furnivall didn’t set out to be a writer. It sort of grabbed her by the throat when she discovered the story of her grandmother – a White Russian refugee who fled from the Bolsheviks down into China. That extraordinary tale inspired her first book, THE RUSSIAN CONCUBINE. From then on, she was hooked.
Kate is the author of ten novels, including THE RUSSIAN CONCUBINE, THE LIBERATION and THE BETRAYAL. Her books have been translated into more than twenty languages and have been on the Sunday Times and New York Times Bestseller lists.
My Review:
The Guardian of Lies is yet another brilliant page turner of an historical novel from the skilful pen of the always incredible Kate Furnivall. Set in France during the Cold War, it tells the story of a family that has been torn apart by secrets and conflicting allegiances. It centres on Eloise Caussade, a courageous young woman who idolises her older brother, André. So when he leaves to become an Intelligence Officer working for the CIA in Paris to help protect France, she soon follows him. But then André is injured as a direct result of Eloise’s actions, the guilt of which sends her on the trail of the person who attempted to kill him.
What follows is a story of courage, intrigue and suspense, with twists and turns that keep you on your toes throughout. Who is working for the CIA and who is not? Who is Eloise able to trust? And is she able to trust her own family, or are they somehow caught up in the lies and espionage?
The Guardian of Lies is Kate Furnivall at her very best. It’s an outstanding tale of love, danger, secrets and lies that once started you will not want to put down. It kept me reading long into the night, with the tension ratcheting up to breaking point as the story picked up pace as it headed towards its final thrilling denouement.
I always know I’m in safe hands with this author’s work. Her books are meticulously researched, beautifully written and full of believable characters who you quickly come to care about. I loved this book and wouldn’t hesitate to recommend it to anyone who enjoys a page turning slice of historical fiction that will keep you enthralled from beginning to end. Superb!
The Guardian of Lies by Kate Furnivall is available to buy now: Amazon UK
Cal Turner Reviews 