She risked everything for her country, but now she’s fighting for her life.A gripping tale of love and espionage in Occupied France, based on true events.
February 1933: When her aunt gifts her two hundred pounds, twenty-year-old Nancy Wake embarks on a world cruise. Afterwards, she becomes a journalist and finds work in Paris. The city is glamorous, brimming with journalists, artists, and … brimming with journalists, artists, and refugees. While travelling across Europe on assignments, she catches the eye of wealthy industrialist Henri Fiocca, and destiny intervenes. But as clouds of war swarm over Europe, German troops are on the march. Horrified when she witnesses Nazis whipping Jews on Vienna’s streets, Nancy vows to stop them if she ever has the chance.
When Paris falls, an encounter with a British officer draws her into the heart of an escape network and the French Resistance. Nancy is determined to fight for the liberation of France. Soon she is caught in a deadly game of espionage. Meanwhile, the Gestapo hunt for a woman they know is working as a spy and courier for the Resistance. They call her, The White Mouse.
As the iron fist of the enemy tightens, Nancy and Henri face a heartbreaking decision.
What happens when doing the right thing is the road to ruin?
Perfect for fans of Kate Quinn’s “The Alice Network”, Sebastian Faulk’s “Charlotte Gray”, and Imogen Kealey’s “Liberation”.
“What an incredible story that becomes almost more unbelievable when you realize that this is based on the true account of Nancy Wake, a reporter for the Hearst Newspaper Group. The author has done a fabulous amount of research to bring this history alive.” NetGalley Reviewer
“Based on a true story, the words flow smoothly off the page and grabbed my interest right from the beginning.” NetGalley Reviewer
“A brilliant, captivating, thrilling read.” Amazon Review
“Thrilling wartime adventure and true story. The writer has done an amazing job of bringing this amazing woman to life for me by giving her a heart and a soul. Recommended for readers of historic non-fiction and fiction. Amazon Review
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Truly enjoyable read. Had the author’s first book which was a fantastic story about another true life event during WW2, The Beauty Shop.
After reading a good story like this one, I can’t help but suggest that you publish your book in NovelStar. For sure a lot of readers will love your work.
A story that will capture your heart and soul
Madame Fiocca tells the story of Nancy Wake. An Australian girl that leaves to Paris, something that has been her dream for years. However, when WWII arrives she’s caught in the middle and she can’t just stay sited waiting for the war to end. And so, she decides to do something. And little by little she becomes an important part of the espionage against Nazis.
This was such an amazing book! I know it took me a while to read but it wasn’t because it was bad, on the contrary, there are so many things happening I couldn’t get enough of it. I experienced so many emotions throughout the book, happiness, concern, sadness even laughter. It’s a wonderful novel and the fact that it’s based on a real story makes it way better.
Also, I loved the writing style. It’s so poetic, smooth and romantic. Suzy Henderson made an outstanding job writing Nancy’s story, no one could have done it better.
I received a complimentary copy of this book for an honest review. And I’m writing this voluntarily.
This book was a such a good glimpse into the real life of Nancy Wake. I really love reading historical romantic fiction and this book definitely captured all the key components. Nancy was more than ready to leave her home at 17 when given the opportunity due to a difficult childhood. Nancy starts her young adult journey traveling from her home in Australia to New York to England then finally to France. It’s there where Nancy becomes a journalist and finds her passion and need for justice. But it’s also where she meets her true love Henri Fiocca. He courts her relentlessly until Nancy agrees to marriage. Their time together is limited as Henri is called up to go to war. Nancy feels helpless not doing anything by staying home and she eventually begins her journey slowly only to become a decorated war hero for her efforts against Hitler. The book reads almost like a memoir giving great detail; wonderful – the times spent with friends in the bars or cafes, or the beautiful love she had with Henri, or atrocities – the beatings of jews and worse. This is a captivating read!
By Lulu
I received a free electronic ARC of this historical novel from Suzy Henderson on February 27, 2020. Thank you for sharing your hard work with me! I have read this novel of my own volition, and this review reflects my honest opinion of this work. I have joyfully added Suzy Henderson to my favorite, must-read list. She writes with heart and clarity. Nancy Wake was an actual person, her life and contributions to the war effort well researched and honestly folded into this historical novel based on fact. Nancy never met a stranger, a trait that served her well all of her life, but especially during her war years.
‘Madam Fiocca’ is WWII in Paris and Marseille, and we work around Southern France with Nancy and a branch of the French Resistance during the later years of the war. Suzy Henderson brings to life France under German rule and that of the resistance fighters over the course of the war. We meet many of them, both good and not, and live with the deprivations and joys of a life in hiding.
We actually meet Australian teenager Nancy Grace Augusta Wake in the early 1930s. Nancy ran away from home in Sidney when she was 16 and with some nursing training was able to be self-sufficient. In February 1933, she would work her way to New York and journalism school on 200 pounds gifted ‘out of the blue’ from her Mother’s rebellious older sister, Hinemoa. With a job with New York’s Hearst Newspaper Group, corresponding from Paris, Nancy takes a ship to England and then Paris where she settles in, working with a team of worldwide reporters in France to cover the war in Spain, so was in place to cover the German takeover of Europe as it happened.
On a brief long weekend away with coworkers in August 1936 at the holiday resort at Juan Les Pines, Nancy meets wealthy industrialist Henri Fiocca, the man who will become the love of her life. In the spring of 1939, they marry. With marriage, she moved to Marseille, settled in, acquired a dog, and immediately put her self back to work with British intelligence and the French Resistance. She returned briefly to London for training sessions several times, and though Henri worried about her safety, he tolerated her work with the underground.
With the German invasion of Paris and then Marseille in January 1943, their lives will have to change again. Nancy is an Australian (British) citizen and thus not protected with French citizenship, making retreat difficult as she must avoid both German and Milice (Vichy French/German Paramilitary group) roadblocks and troops. Henri must stay in Marseille to try to save the family business. He promises he will follow her as soon as possible. Through months of silent separation, Nancy returns to southern France and coordinates the Southern Resistance troops with British intelligence and through these efforts tops Germany’s most wanted list. Nancy’s only hope is for peace – and word from Henri.
5 CRANKY STARS
This is historical fiction based on the life of Nancy Wake. She was a decorated war hero in France during WWII. Born in Australia, she was a restless young girl who yearned to travel. When her Aunt left her money, her dreams came true. She had left home at 16 and trained to be a nurse. Once she started traveling, she knew she must find other skills. Soon she started studying to be a lawyer and then a journalist. Being a journalist allowed her to travel to France where she fell in love with the country and the people.
This unfortunately was happening as Hitler came to power. No one believed France would fall but fall it did. She escaped back to England where she became a spy and went back to France. There she became a vital part of the resistance. This story is full of suspense. Life was difficult for Nancy from page 1 through the end. There is a wonderful synopsis of the real Nancy Wake at the end. I must say, this author did a wonderful job making you feel you are a part of this story. The struggles were real and some incidents horrible, but the people of France found an inner strength and survived. I could not put this down and feel it is one of the best historical fiction novels I’ve read.
From the first paragraph of this enthralling biography that reads like a memoir, my attention was firmly grabbed and it never once flagged, even when it looked like Nancy’s life would be all love and roses. I had never heard of Nancy Wake, the independent, adventurous woman who seized life with both hands, living fully, embracing all it had to offer. But I immediately fell under her spell, tagging along as she made her way into adulthood and headlong into some of the most tumultuous times our world has ever known.
It took no time for Nancy to land plum assignments in Europe, where her love of food and culture bloomed. She lived a dazzling life as she made her way across the continent, reporting news of the emerging monsters—Mussolini, Franco and Hitler—as they cut a swath of misery and destruction across Europe. And in the middle of all the turmoil, Nancy fell in love with a man whose heart she had captured at first sight.
I can see why author Suzy Henderson was drawn to Nancy Wake, and the woman she would become, Madame Fiocca. As far as personalities go, Nancy was indomitable. She didn’t think twice about jumping into the fight against Hitler with both feet, regardless of the fact that she was a woman and had only minimal time to train.
Nancy relinquished her own happiness to help others to safety, to take up the fight, putting all she held dear at risk. She used her intelligence, her righteous hatred of Hitler and his goon squads, and her ability to slip past the enemy using her unique mixture of femininity, cunning and skills to her advantage. But it was her refusal to ever give up—regardless of pain or exhaustion or heartache—that make her such a fascinating character. I absolutely loved this incredible account of a legendary woman—Madame Fiocca.