His Majesty's Hope: A Maggie Hope Mystery
*Starred Review* In 1941, Maggie Hope, the first female agent to be dropped behind enemy lines, is sent to bug the home office of Clara Hess, the high-ranking Nazi operative who’s also Maggie’s estranged mother. But without her knowledge, Maggie also is intended to serve as bait to bring in Hess, whose recent operations in ­England—intended to kill Winston Churchill and to kidnap Princess Elizabeth—were foiled largely by Maggie. In Berlin, she also meets nurse Elise Hess, the half-sister she never knew she had, who has just been stunned by viewing Operation Compassionate Death, the mass killings of children with disabilities. When an opportunity to stay in Berlin beyond the completion of her mission presents itself, Maggie seizes the chance to gather additional intelligence, putting herself and her contact in the German Resistance at risk. Historical reality makes the third in this meticulously researched series darker in tone but just as compellingly readable as its predecessors (Mr. Churchill’s Secretary and Princess Elizabeth’s Spy, both 2012); viewing WWII through Maggie’s exploits provides an intriguingly human perspective on the era. --Michele Leber