#BlogTour ‘Code Name :Lise’ by Larry Loftis

About the book…

‘A thrilling account’ Daily Mail
‘Extraordinary bravery… made this woman one of WWII’s most remarkable spies. That she survived the war was almost miraculous’ Time
The year is 1942, and World War II is in full swing.

Odette Sansom decides to follow in her war hero father’s footsteps by becoming an SOE agent to aid Britain and her beloved homeland, France. Five failed attempts and one plane crash later, she finally lands in occupied France to begin her mission.

It is here that she meets her commanding officer Captain Peter Churchill. As they successfully complete mission after mission, Peter and Odette fall in love. All the while, they are being hunted by the cunning German secret police sergeant, Hugo Bleicher, who finally succeeds in capturing them.

They are sent to Paris’s Fresnes prison, and on to concentration camps in Germany, where they are starved, beaten, and tortured. But in the face of despair, they never give up hope, their love for each other, or the whereabouts of their colleagues.

This is portrait of true courage, patriotism and love amidst unimaginable horrors and degradation

Huge thanks to Melanie at Mirror Books for the blogtour invite and gifted review copy of the superb ‘Code Name : Lise’ which is available now in ebook, hardcover and paperback formats wherever good books are sold.

This book defies clear categorisation-apart from being a passion project which evolved from his first book, Larry Loftis seamlessly weaves a fictional narrative around factual events whilst skillfully juggling suspense, horror and accuracy.

The sheer happenstance which lands Odette in  France, spying for the Allies is incredible-a mis delivered letter leads to her being called to Baker Street and interviewed as a potential spy. Her very ordinariness, her presence as a housewife cum widow in waiting (her husband was off fighting in the war, leaving her at home with 3 children) made her the perfect foil for anyone looking out for spies. Howvere, in her eyes Captain Jepson spotted determination and courage.

As he said, ‘Direct-minded and courageous. God help the Nazis if we can get her near them‘

Her lineage included a father who fearlessly fought in WW1 so the notion of fighting on the side of France and England, her adopted country, was not something to overlook. She quickly found herself in intense training schedules before being dropped into France,in 1942, and her new life, that of Lise, began.

As Odette herself noted, she could have used her maternity as an excuse to not engage in the war, this was not something she lightly undertook-leaving effectively 3 unparented children in boarding school could not have been lightly done.

Working undercover and avoiding capture several times, she diligently reported back as part of Operation SPINDLE until 1943 when she, and her commanding officer, Peter Churchill, were captured.

What she then went on to endure is almost unfathomable. The details are not lingered over, but make no mistake, the things Odette suffered until 1945 are just truly horrific. What makes it even worse is the dignified and unflinching manner in which she accepted her ‘punishment’. She became an inspiration for fellow prisoners, and became an unwiiting hero by firstly, never divulging the identity of radio operatives or transmission codes, but also by deflecting attention away from Peter. By pretending that she was married to him and that she was the brains of the operation, she took the brunt of the torture and bought him time.

As America joined the war and tide began to turn, the panicking Nazis rounded up the prisoners they had sent firstly from prison, then to Ravensbruck concentration camp,to a subcamp called Malchow, including Odette. She would be one of the most dangerous prisoners because of the fact that she could testify against the officers about the atrocities witnessed. So as you are reading, your delight at the downfall of Hitler is replaced with the dread that Odette was not going to live to be reunited with her lover, Peter, or her children .

Her stoicism in the face of betrayal is tear inducing, I found it incredibly hard to keep reading-having no idea about Odette’s story, I wanted to come at this completely fresh and did not research it. So as a result, I put it down for a while to stiffen my resolve at facing the outcome of Odette’s imprisonment. But if she could survive the unimaginable, I owed it to her story to read the full and frank account of it. And so I did.

Odette accomplished the incredible, she was an ordinary woman whose very essence was the thing that made her unique and untouchable. Her story is one immortalised in a movie, and a book (not this one, I hasten to add) but never really given her just desserts. Her humble nature in the face of pure evil, her hope of returning to her life….all of it is written in stark contrast to those who opposed her being awarded the George Cross because she and Peter…well they fell in love. But being a woman, the powers that be felt she should have been above this, their love story, however, brought together un a state of urgency and then seperated,never knowing if they would see each other again, is heart achingly rendered.

Theirs is a story which deserves this respectful, gently handled telling. Larry has created a brilliant platfom from which the legend of Odette Marie Celine Brailly can shine like a beacon . Truly remarkable, this deserves to be widely read, lent, borrowed, retold and kept alive in the telling of a legendary spy, the first woman to be awarded the George Cross in her lifetime and the most decorated spy of WW11. Superb.

*As an aside, I was particularly tickled by the notion of ‘The Ministry Of Ungentlemanly Warfare’. This was a real organisation that later became a part of Special Operations Executive, or real life Baker Street Irregulars. The romantic in me found this detail really touched my heart!*

About the author…

Larry Loftis is the USA TODAY and international bestselling author of the nonfiction spy thrillers, ‘Code Name Lise:The True Story Of Odette Sansom,WWII’s most Highly Decorated Spy’ and ‘Into The Lion’s Mouth:The True Story Of Dusko Popov :World War II Spy,Patriot and real life inspiration for James Bond‘ which have been translated into multiple languages and published around the world.

Prior to becoming a full-time writer, Mr. Loftis was a corporate attorney and adjunct professor of law.

Links-http://www.larryloftis.com/

Twitter @LarryLoftis @TheMirrorBooks