A USA Today Best Selling author and two-time Readers’ Favorite Gold Medal winner, S. R. Mallery–as her fans say–“brings history to life.” Here is her newest, a romantic suspense thriller.It’s 1941 in New York City, a time before Pearl Harbor, when Nazi spies are everywhere in the U.S. and no one knows who’s working for whom. In comes beautiful Lily, paid to gather intelligence by setting up a … up a “honey trap” for Joe Stiles, a supposed German infiltrator. Problem is, she soon faces a danger she isn’t prepared for–falling in love.
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This book hooked me in from the first page. So, many books about the Nazis in WW2 are set in Europe. This one is different, it’s set in the USA. It exposes all of the tactics that the Nazis used to try and convert Americans. Frightening! But also fascinating! However, not only is this book historically interesting, it’s also has an intriguing plot that keeps the reader on the edge of her seat. And…to add to all of that, there’s a tender love story. All in all, I highly recommend this book!!!! Loved it!
USA Today Bestselling author S.R. Mallery has written an intriguing period piece set in NYC during the paranoid era just before the U.S. joined WW II. The fascinating plot weaving German spies, the FBI and underground Nazi organizations was peopled with vivid and eminently likable characters, fully developed, each with stories of their own.
in fact, I was a little in love with Joe, the Tender Enemy and hero to heroine Lily. He’s the quintessential decent man, not extraordinary, but heart-melting al the same, doing the right thing when it’s hard and a caring and protective of his love Lily.
The authentic landscape of the time, the pop culture references, the details about the places, added to my enjoyment of the story.
But most of all, beyond the intrigue and need to know who the real bad guys were, I kept turning the pages, rooting for Joe and Lily to be safe and together at the end.
I will be quick to read more of Ms. Mallery’s stories after enjoying this well crafted, highly entertaining intrigue!
Five Stars for Tender Enemies! In this action-packed romantic thriller, S. R. Mallery not only captures the WWII era with authenticity, she’ll capture your heart with a budding romance under a constant barrage of espionage. Surrounded by danger, the heroine, Lilly Campbell, must tread softly in order to carry out her assignment––luring the handsome Joe Stiles into a “honeytrap” with intent to gather intelligence. Prepared for a perilous mission, Lily never expects to encounter the most unexpected danger of her career––falling in love with her mark. Twists and turns abound, leaving Lily [and the reader] suspicious of everyone. When the walls close in Lily’s life is at stake. Who among her acquaintances are the real spies?
Mallery weaves a suspenseful thriller with believable, fleshed-out characters, and lovely villains, keeping me turning the pages from the first paragraph. If you love romance, suspense, and thrills set in WWII, this is a must-read. I highly recommend Tender Enemies!
I’m always pumped to get my hands on another story by the talented S. R. Mallery, so I wasn’t the least bit surprised to find her story Tender Enemies to be a delightfully satisfying addition to her amazing catalogue of novels.
Tender Enemies is a World War II espionage thriller that takes place in New York City, specifically 1941. The reader is introduced to Lily Campbell, the female lead, and I quickly empathized with her innocence, but also her strength, as she agrees to become a secret spy to earn extra money for her mother’s upkeep for her employer John.
John’s an older man who rescued she and her mom from change of life circumstances back in her childhood, and from Lily’s uncle.
(Heh – some uncle, but no spoilers, just a hint)…
Back to the story – Lily’s employer John wants her to lure the handsome Joe Stiles into a ‘honey trap’, thus beginning a whirlwind of romantic entanglements that has our heroine confused and longing, as she hopes the German traitor, also known as Josef Schmidt, is not the conspirator John claims him to be. Romantic feelings can do that to a person…
Tender Enemies is action packed, secretive, and powerful. It could easily be made into a film about the era on the brink of WWII when governments were unsettled, friend and neighbors didn’t know who to trust, and dictatorships were reasons for democracies to beware. Seems like nothing much has changed these days, though.
The descriptions of place and activity put this reader right along side of the characters. I could actually smell the boozy, smoke-filled bars, hear the clackity thumps of the early model automobile motors, and feel the grit on my skin from a dirtier New York City than we know today, especially in the lower class neighborhoods where one of the secondary characters is forced to live.
Also, this award-winning author’s gift for dialogue from the early forties reminded me of how my parents spoke, once upon a time, and had me sighing with fond memories.
The surprising twists during the story and the climatic ending had this reader thinking, “Well, I sure didn’t see that coming!” and made me go back to the beginning to find out how I’d missed the clues.
There weren’t any…sigh –
So, if you’re a reader who savors a wonderfully mapped-out tale of espionage with a historical background and crafted to keep a reader completely in the dark, Tender Enemies is definitely your next go-to book.
Bravo, Ms. Mallery! Five golden stars awarded for keeping me so vastly entertained.
This was a very interesting book to read. I couldn’t put it down. 5 star book. Highly recommend this book. I already know some people who read this.
This espionage thriller is a definite page turner with lots of twists and turns and a climatic end. It had me totally immersed in the well written story with its intriguing characters. The author definitely did her research as I found it all so realistic for that time period and made it so easy for me to actually see visual pictures in my mind as I read. I highly recommend.
Tender Enemies is a contrary title, hinting at a contrary plot where the main characters are being led astray about the true loyalties of both friends and enemies. The book is based on meticulous research into American history during 1941, when Nazi spies are secretly at work within American society in order to ‘liberate’’ the American people from their ruling clique, and nazi camps are being established on American soil in the guise of innocent youth organizations. This tumultuous era serves as a dramatic backdrop for a love affair that evolves in spite of Lily’s deception not to let it happen. She is paid to gather intelligence by seducing Joe Stiles, who is rumored to be a Nazi operative. But is he? And what about her newly acquired friend, Anna? Is she a traitor? Who can be trusted?
“Suddenly, she became that little girl again, seeing her father lying on the street below, her mother’s screams echoing up toward her. Her knees buckled under her.”
Lily can be beset by emotions, but on the other hand she can be quite determined when it really counts: “I’m coming one way or the other,” she says, forcing others to accept her presence in dangerous situations. “Once our gal sets her mind on something, all limits are off.”
Five stars.
An Engaging Journey Back in Time with WW II on the Horizon
In 1941, while World War II rages in Europe, Nazi spies infiltrate sympathetic German communities in New York City. Using aliases, they persuade immigrant families to support their cause and attempt to undermine the government.
When Lily Campbell was young, John McMillan saved her from an abusive uncle. Lily views McMillan as her protector and works at his store. For extra money to support her mother, McMillan has enlisted the beautiful Lily to entrap suspected Nazi spies. She applies her charms until her targets unsuspectingly reveal valuable information she passes onto McMillan.
The handsome John Stiles is her newest target, but unlike the others, she is immediately drawn to him. Stiles, a newspaper reporter, is also attracted to Lily, but he has a family in Germany and will do whatever is necessary to keep them safe. Can their love affair survive their divided loyalties or was it doomed from the start?
“Tender Enemies” is a gripping historical tale with a great blend of suspense, romance, and mystery. The compelling characters face constant danger. No one is sure whom to trust. The author has expertly woven Lily and John’s personal struggles into the period in time when the Nazi movement was in full swing in New York City prior to the U.S. entering the war.
I discovered S. R. Mallery’s books when both of us were invited to take part in Love Under Fire, a boxed set. Since then I became a great fan of her writing. She has a wonderful way of bringing history to life and she’d done it again in “Tender Enemies.” I highly recommend this great read!
TENDER ENEMIES is a wonderful, can’t put down historical romance by S. R. Mallery. It’s the story of Lily Campbell. We see how her past formed who she is and where her hearts wants her to go. The story takes place in New York City in 1941 in the time before Pearl Harbor, but when Nazi spies and double agents walked among United States citizens and people didn’t know who to trust.
Lily works for John McMillan in his vacuum store. Every grateful for John saving her all those years ago from her Uncle, she is glad to do his bidding. With promise of extra money to help with her Mother’s expenses, she gladly sets up honey traps to help John and the FBI in defending this great country against Nazi spies and this country’s enemies. After the child abuse at her uncle’s hands, being with the men was just part of her job – no emotion involved. That is until she was assigned to find out information from Joe Stiles.
She was told Joe was a Nazi spy who the FBI needed information about, but her heart can’t believe that the first man to make her feel loved and worthy could be on the wrong side. She has to keep reminding herself of her mother and why she needs this extra money, but the tug on her heart is slowing winning the battle.
The only constant in her life have been Dottie and Charlie (aka Mr. Potato Man) – neighbor’s from way back when. They gave her a place to run when she had no place to go and have always been her physical and emotion support. She has finally made a new friend, Anna, and they seem to have so much in common.
Who is this Joe Stiles? Is he working for the Germans? Why would John, who has always looked out for her, say he was if it wasn’t true? Should she follow her heart? Who is Anna – friend or foe? Why was Anna with John? Do they know one another and if so how? Is the man she has trusted and worked for really who he says he is or was all that a lie too? Can Lily get her Mom to safety and out of harm’s way? Who can she trust? Was Dottie right and I do have the smarts and no one can take them from me?
TENDER ENEMIES is a fabulous historical romance that is accurate in historical details while telling a riveting story that will have you falling in love with Lily, feeling her pain and wanting her to finally find true happiness. S. R. Mallery does a fabulous job or telling an intriguing story with facts and fiction blended so smoothly you don’t know the difference. She’ll have you scratching you head while trying to figure out who is on what side and then throws in something completely unexpected at the end making this one exciting read. Highly recommend this book and this author! I have never been disappointed with one of her books. I look forward to reading more by S. R. Mallery.
this was actually a really great book! there are so many people you cant trust cause there spies. so she is sent into a honey trap. only something is very wrong. you must read to find out what happens.
Wow-what an entertaining and suspenseful story, I was hooked the whole way through.
Action-packed, a romantic thriller set in the 1940s during WWII superbly written, superbly researched I’ve found another awesome new to me author.
Loved the History
I loved how it he history of a time that most young now see as irrelevant. Weaving in a story with the time of one of our worst historical consequences was brilliant. I very rarely read past fiction it this one was well written. Characters development was smooth and easy to read. Well done.
Kudos to S.R. Mallory for a well thought out story of espionage, false identities and historical accuracy. You’re kept on your toes just trying to figure out who is who. Bravo for a well written read!
This book is a whole lot of who is spying on whom. Lily is supposed to be spying on Joe because is believed to be by her boss a German spy in America for his Family back in Germany. Joe is supposed to be spying on Lily because of some of the same reasons. There was a lot of turmoil in the book which is probably what that time frame was like in real life. As I was reading I was trying to figure out whom I could trust in the story. Good read. I liked Lily and Joe. Quick good read.
I received this book for free from eBook Discovery. I voluntarily review this book. This is my honest review. The opinions in this review are 100% my own
A suspenseful, war-time romance, this story highlights the dreadful effect of war on people and their relationships. In a country that had become the land of opportunity and a melting pot of nations, it had become difficult to tell the difference between friend and foe. What appeared to be a rescue by a well-meaning friend, became a grooming operation for something far more treacherous. As Lily is coerced into trapping John Stiles into revealing his secrets, when her feelings become involved Lily has a hard time separating truth from fiction. Although Joe is a gentle hero, he has his own set of problems discovering the truth about Lily. However, he is also protective and when the truth comes out, he uses all his resources to keep her safe. Lily is somewhat naive, but when an unexpected revelation comes her way, she knows that she has to take her chances with Joe. The story is well written and suspenseful and although it comes to a bitter-sweet conclusion, it does have a happy ending. I received this book for free from eBook Discovery. I voluntarily post this review. This is my honest review.
One of the things I love about an S.R. Mallery novel is how well researched it is. Years ago, I became interested in Germany during WWII and read extensively about the rise of the Nazi party. I also learned about the German American Bund, which in 1936 began openly supporting Hitler and his merry band of henchmen. It’s astonishing to me that such a thing could occur in this country, but there you have it. Not only were grown men and women engaging publicly in a giant PR campaign to convince Americans that the Nazis were a great bunch of people, the Bund also established camps for kids so that they could be indoctrinated—much like the Hitler Youth.
In Tender Enemies, we get a chance to see all of this firsthand through the eyes of a beautiful and good-hearted amateur spy. If you enjoy riveting historical fiction featuring characters who are realized wonderfully, I urge you to pick up this novel. After reading it, you may come away asking yourself—as I did—how in the world could something like this have happened in America?
Stilted language. Predictable – certainly not one of my favorite reads.