I love just about any books set around ww2. This one was a little different than I was expecting but it was still a fantastic read and I’d be happy to recommend to anyone and happy to buy it for my shelf

This book was a little interesting but not very thrilling. It seemed to be pushing one message to you - that it is not fair for the children of those who associated with Nazi regime during their occupation of Norway to continue to be punished. There was some bones of a thriller but not really much soy activities that wowed me in the vein as James Bond novels.

This was an outstanding book.
Oslo,Norway was over run by German officers who married or lived with the women of Norway.
Many of these men had children during the 4-5 yrs.They were stationed there.
One particular German went away,but left something important in the head of his daughters favorite doll.
Unbeknownst to the Soviets,the house was bombed,but they still looked for the child,even though she no longer had the doll,they wanted the contents badly.
This is the perfect novel with great characters,and
an amazing storyline with plenty of action.
Thanks to Netgalley for the opportunity to read and review this gem.Pick up "Oslo Spies" by S.J.Slagle,you'll be glad you did !

Thank you Netgalley for an ARC in return for my honest opinion.

I don’t read a lot of historical fiction and I was Attracted to this one as I love Norway. I am so glad I had the opportunity to read this great book. It was refreshing to read a book from this time period set in Norway rather than the usual countries. The plot was well paced and I enjoyed the characters.

E

I liked the writing style and the plot was ok, but there was still something missing. I never really felt for the characters, and that was my main problem with the book. There were silly little issues that were minor annoyance, like the Norwegian first names were not used for the appropriate gender. (Helge is a male name in Norway, and Toril is a female name) I also didn’t realise the book was part of a series until I started reading it, but I don’t think I would have cared more for the characters if I had. I won’t look to read more books in the series, but it hasn’t put me off the author.

I want to say thank you to NetGalley, SJ Slagle and the publisher who gives this book to me. I have always love books where themes are like history and wars with love etc. It was nice surprise that this book was setting in the Norway because it one of country which are our neighbors in here. It was awesome to read how the writer saw Norway like part of the World War II. And how the Nazis made people fear many things and killed so many. There were many times when I started cry and many times when I was happy even thought the theme was dark and full of the war. Cover was beautiful and name was the first thing which made me to read this book. And I was happy that there was used a lot of time that places were corrects, well almost, because it is one thing which I hate. That if you set the book in other country, you need put the places right. Because there is also people who can saw that you haven't never been in the country if there is some crazy mistakes. So that was reason why I liked this book, because it looks good quality and the places seems correct and also the characters and plot was awesome

Oslo spies is an engaging historical thriller set in Norway just after WWII. I enjoyed the plot and the story was fast paced. The characters are well developed and likable. Highly recommended.

I received this ARC from the publisher and NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

The author enlightens the reader on the chaos left in many European countries after the Germans left. Not the least of these, Norway. The story revolves around spies - secret - collaboration and the slowly acquired sharing between the American and British whose goal was a rebuild a freed and broken nation.

I thoroughly enjoyed read this book! It was a good mix of history, mystery, spies, romance, all set against the backdrop of the aftermath of WWII in Norway. I knew nothing about how devastated Norway was at this time, so I learned some things as well. I also learned that this is the second book in a series, so I will definitely go back and read the first book. And I look forward to the next one !

This was the second book in the Phyllis Bowden spy series and was just released on Sept 1. I just finished the first book and found this book better than the first one.

Once again we are in the midst of recovery from World War II, and Phyllis has been transferred along with her boss, Col. Lawrence, to the American Embassy in Oslo Norway. Norway was under Nazi control for 5 years and has been broken in almost every way possible. They are distrustful of anyone who worked with the Germans even the maids who worked for them and the children who were forced to attend Nazi youth meetings. Stumbling into a horrible situation with a young child, Phyllis has to make a hard decision about doing what is morally right versus what is legally right. With the help of her MI5 boyfriend, Phyllis finds herself intwined in dangerous situations and intrigue galore.

This book gave me a in depth insight into how awful things were in Norway after WW2 and how difficult the recovery was. Great historical research that brought this time period in Norway vividly to life. A very good read that I would recommend to those interested in either the spy genre or World War II recovery.

** I received a complimentary copy of this book from the author/publisher through NetGalley. Opinions are mine alone. I was not compensated for this review.

I quite enjoyed this book, I liked the setting of Norway, and having been there I can see where the author did her research.
I felt that the book lacked depth though, almost as though it was written for the YA audience.
Thanks to Netgalley, and SJ Slagle for the opportunity to read and review this book.

Now I had not read London Spies so I do not know if my review would be different but I do not think it would.

I was very intrigued by the concept of the novel. It was a post-WWII story I had not heard much about. I was not aware of Quisling and the purges in Norway after the war so that really made this book sound interesting.

However where this book fails is with the execution. I did not care for the writing at all. I almost stopped reading after page one. I did stick with it though and was able to read the book in a couple of days. The chapters are very short so it keeps the story moving.

My biggest issue was timing. So many projects and activities for Phyllis (the main character) are shoved into the TWO month time frame that I was constantly thinking that the story was taking place over months. Phyllis seems to be the most efficient secretary in the world while taking a ridiculous about of time off. I get that the author wanted to impart as much of the history as possible into the story but as a result everything seemed glossed over and distracted from the story being told.

Based on the ending of this novel there will be a third one set in the US or Canada. Hopefully some of this is fixed in the next one.

Oslo Spies by SJ Slagle is set in Norway just after the conclusion of WW2 and is about a young girl who has lost both her parents and is an outcast in society.

The book is relatively easy going but does describe post war Norway a country which didn't usually feature in War or Spy novels.

The main characters are likeable and easy to engage with and overall this is a good read.

Recommended

3.5**** I enjoyed this book set in Oslo just after the war. I have read many books set around this time, but none which have dealt with Norway, so I found this very interesting and at times heartbreaking, especially the way the people decided to purge the country of those who had anything to do with the Germans during the war, this included children.
I liked Phyllis as the main character, she was headstrong and determined to do what she thought was morally right despite breaking the rules. I felt at times the story jumped around a bit too much, seeming to jump time and leaving some events feeling not quite finished or explained. It could have been slightly more fleshed out too. That being said I did enjoy it and would like to read book 1 to discover more about the events that are touched on near the start of the book. It can however I feel be read as a standalone, I found the background given enough that I could grasp what had happened in London. Someone called it a cosy spy novel, and I think this fits it perfectly.

Thanks to NetGalley and Sinda Slagle for a copy in return for an honest review.

This book was billed as international espionage and historical fiction, but for me it was a thinly-veiled romance novel. Compared to the dozens, perhaps hundreds, of books I've read and loved in those two genres, this was shallow stuff indeed. I didn't meet a single compelling, fully-drawn character, the dialogue lacked complexity and numerous plot elements were not plausible.

Sorry, but even when I want escapist fiction I need some substance. I kept on to the end simply because I had received an ARC through NetGalley and wanted to make sure I was being fair when I expressed my disappointment.

This is the 2nd offering, of an expected trilogy from this author. This time out we find our heroine in Oslo Norway just after WWII ended. The book does a good job of explaining what happened to Norway during WWII. As with the 1st book, I again learned a lot of history that I hadn't known....& I really enjoyed that learning experience again with Slagle's writing. I think the author does a great job of portraying that time period. Even tho it is part of a series, I think one could read it without reading the 1st in the series.....but I did enjoy the aspect that I already knew the background from the 1st book. I will surely follow up reading the 3rd installment! As with the 1st, I'd continue to classify this as a 'cozy historical mystery'. It was a good read.
I received this e-ARC from NetGalley, in exchange for my own honest review/opinion.

Rather amateurish book aboutg the situation in Norway in the aftermath of WWII. Did not finish. Don't consider it very good.

I can't quite determine what was off about this book. I liked it, the first half was, in fact, extremely good, but it was almost as if it sort of got lost at one point and forgot where it was going. The momentum just seemed to fizzle out. The kidnapping scenes were so vague and non-threatening that you really didn't get a feel for his struggle or that it was a life or death situation - it was too vague to be exciting. I also found some inconsistencies about the doll Sonja - it's not mentioned that she has a new doll until after she's mentioned carrying Sonja around which makes me confused as to why Phyllis hadn't checked it until it's mentioned that this doll is new. The circumstances of Lisbet in the end come across as far too factual when it's clear that Phyllis has a strong emotional connection. I also didn't quite understand John's character - who is he actually? Good? Bad? I would have liked a little less mystery in the end about him.

SJ Slagle has taken us to a war torn country, Norway, that is going through the purging of it's citizens (Quisling girls) that were collaborators with the German Army. Phyllis Bowden and Jay Lawlor are American and British women that are working for their respective governments in Oslo, Norway at this time of purging. Phyllis was working for the Military Attache, Lt. Col. Ronald Lawrence at the American Embassy. Prior to this duty station she worked in London where she saved the lt. Col. Lawrence as he was found not guilty of espionage by her and her friend Lorraine's finding the proof of his innocence. Needless to say he was very grateful of this and now offered her the world. Which he would undoubtedly regret later on in the story. What had happened was that Phyllis had seen some of Quislings girls being loaded onto vehicles to be interned. She later found a small Quisling girl 5 years old hiding in a bathroom at a coffee shop across the street form her apartment and decided to save her. She started hiding her from everyone. Other things happened during the story but this was the main theme. Phyllis was a pushover for helping people and this revolves around her throughout the story. I'm not giving half the story any credit because I don't want to spoil it for anyone. I enjoyed it and gave it 4 stars, it's worth reading.

I enjoyed this book based mainly in Norway at the end of WW11. The characters were likeable especially Phyllis who was a strong independent woman full of compassion. I did find the story a little weak in places but still a very good read.
Thanks to Netgalley for the chance to read this.