I loved the premise of this one, women in science just after the war and what started out well went down hill for me unfortunately.
Rosalind is a scientist who helped work on the atomic bomb, not that she knew at the time that it was going to get dropped on Japan. She is being followed by Charlie an FBI agent who wants to recruit her help to find a mole giving information to the Russians.
I liked both Rosalind and Charlie as characters, but the storyline didn't flow for me very well and I found myself not wanting to pick the book up. I found Charlie's recounts of his time in a POW camp were unnecessary after the first one and brutal so CW for those.
There was a lot going on and I didn't feel that there was a satisfactory ending for any of them.

Set in early 1950s America this is a love story/espionage thriller that encapsulates the post war nuclear threat. The characters were somewhat couched but it was an enjoyable read.

I didn't feel comfortable reading this book at all.
I couldn't decide if it was thriller or a romance although I suppose there is no real reason that it couldn't be both. There is certainly plenty to keep you on your toes.

Set in the USA of the 1950's, Rosalind is feeling guilty of her role as a nuclear physicist. The FBI then begin to notice her and Rosalind is left with a rather difficult decision to make.

I felt no real connection with any of the characters though and I didn't feel as though I cared either way with what was going to happen in the end.

Found this book quiet difficult to get on with but others who enjoy espionage and romance will probably disagree with me.

Unfortunately this book just did not grip me and I did not finish it. Other readers may enjoy this one more

I devoured this book in one sitting - espionage, nuclear science, and more, it was an interesting read. I don't *do* romance books often, but this was an incredible and amazing book with memorable, amazing characters, and a storyline that can't be missed. If you like historically accurate (as far as I could tell) books, with a solid background and a good, gripping read, this is the book for you.
4.5 stars.
I was given a copy of this book to review on Netgalley by the author or publisher, in exchange for an honest opinion. Thank you for the opportunity.

The politics and ethics of the Manhattan Project underpin this post-world war two love story between Rosalind, a nuclear scientist and her old and new men. One, Wheeler, who had broken her heart and her career is now back in her life and the FBI want Rosalind’s help to convict him of espionage. Rosalind is now working in a department store, after a letter from Wheeler discredited her at the project as emotionally unstable in the aftermath of the bombs dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki. This absence of science in her life is the biggest heartbreak in Rosalind’s life and she now lacks the confidence to apply for jobs that are now mostly filled by the men who returned from war. This novel charts Rosalind’s journey in an involving and engaging way.

This book was so much fun to read. It has the thrill of a spy story with with joy and pain of romance, and I always looked forward to reading more.

A multilayered novel that is aptly titled as it explores the attraction and repulsion of love. Set in the politically charged arena of 1950s North America. In addition to losing her job and lover, Rosalind also has guilt about her former role as a nuclear physicist. Determined, and intelligent Rosalind succeeds in a male-dominated world, but emotions rule her life choices and relationships.

When her ex-lover comes back into her life, the FBI take an interest, and Rosalind finds herself in a challenging and dangerous situation. The plot unfolds with betrayal, espionage, politics and romance. The reader empathises with Rosalind as she tries to make the right decisions in a world of competing and dangerous alternatives.

This is an intriguing story.

I received a copy of this book from Penguin Books UK-Michael Joseph via NetGalley in return for an honest review.

Five years after the end of the war, spies and communists couldn't really get any better!! Rosalind is struggling with the guilt over her work over the design of the atomic bomb which ended the war with Japan, the sudden ending of her relationship with her co-worker Thomas Weaver, and the loss of her job. Weaver gets back in touch, and the FBI ask her to spy on Weaver. Weaver has secrets to share, and it is not just the FBI who are watching. Fast paced, plenty of twists and turns would totally recommend.

Intriguing central figure whose story of past incidents in scientific world and its effects on her life are utterly persuasive .. not the conventional writing style either which was absorbing .. intelligent ... sophisticated and gripping.

Is this a romance novel at heart, although primarily about espionage and a thriller of a ride? Hard to say, but I felt like I was reading two different novels at one point! The characters aren't well rounded enough to keep you on their side, so it leaves you with an empty feeling and I was glad when I reached the end. Sorry, but this is definitely not for me.

I loved this engaging page turner. Rosalind is a great heroine, and I loved the espionage backdrop.

Thank you to NetGalley and to the publisher for the opportunity to read this book in exchange for an honest review.

An unusual story is full of intrigue, espionage, and romance.

I really enjoyed this book; it was so unusual in its context and plot and soon became one of those books that I was reading in every spare moment to find out what happened.

When we first meet Rosalind Porter, it is 1950, and she is 30, single and working on a jewellery counter. We soon discover however that before and during the war, Rosalind has been part of The Manhattan Project working on the atomic bomb that decimated Japan. Rosalind has always been a brilliant physicist, and despite her huge feelings of guilt over the horror, her work entailed, she was happy and fulfilled. She was also in a happy relationship with her lover, Thomas Wheeler. Suddenly everything in her life had fallen apart, her lover suddenly abandons her after 5 years for another woman and also writes a report complaining about her work and her mental health problems which means she loses her job.

Out of the blue, Thomas reappears, desperate to rekindle their relationship and to state that he has only ever loved Rosalind. Her first reaction is to tell him she never wants to see him again. However she is then approached by FBI agent, Charlie Szydio, it appears that Thomas Wheeler is suspected of being a spy and giving secrets of the nuclear bomb to the Russians. The only way the truth can be discovered is by Rosalind trying to find out the truth about Tom Wheeler.

There were many aspects of this book that I enjoyed. The complex emotions that Rosalind feels not only due to her love/hate relationship with Tom but also her growing attraction to Charlie. The setting of the scene during the Cold War when everyone in America seemed to be under suspicion of being a Communist. The storyline also portrays the way women are cast aside - once the men have returned from the war -taking back all the jobs. There were so many different themes running through this book that made me think about how difficult it was for an intelligent woman to succeed because of her brains and not her gender.

It was refreshing to read a book about a time I know little about, and I would recommend this as an excellent read.

Dexter

Elite Book Group received a copy of the book to review

I wasn’t sure about this book initially. Communists, spies, a confrontation that verges on cartoonish between a once-jilted lover and his now regretful ex (‘look what a bed she’s made for herself,’ I assume we’re supposed to think as he walks away, all dignity, leaving her shrieking in church). But it soon won me over and the pages wouldn’t stop turning, no matter how late it got. At its essence this is a love story, told by the two parties involved, set in post second world war America. High stakes, high emotion (not all of it remotely cartoonish), and totally engrossing.

Initially I was disappointed at the title of this book - it’s about the Cold War, and science, but of course, it IS a love story too, and a very good one.
Rosalind is a feminist, when the word was hardly recognised, and although she sometimes comes over as a bit dim, she’s an interesting character.
I enjoyed it!

A Nice love story with a interesting historical background, from Japanese POW camps to the Manhattan project. Both main characters are interesting and this is a book I really wanted to know the ending of.

Rosalind Parker is working at a jewellery counter in a department store in the 1950s but during the war she was a key member of the Manhattan Project to develop the atomic bomb. She is traumatised by the bomb in japan and also by the betrayal of her lover, Thomas Weaver. Weaver suddenly turns up in her life being shadowed by an FBI agent, Charlie Szydlo who persuades Rosalind to report Weavers movement to him as he is a suspected Russian spy.

Rosalind is portrayed well as a fragile personality with a tragic past. It is a romantic story but the background of the atomic project and the period are very interesting and well written. I very much enjoyed this book

Atomic Love (a title I struggled with I confess) from Jennie Fields is a romantic spy story. The main character Rosalind is a scientist who worked on the H bomb and, since the war ended, has found herself working on a jewellery counter in a Chicago department store. As a scientist she had an all-consuming affair with a colleague, Wheeler, who dumped her suddenly and without explanation. When she is approached by a strange man, later identified as Szydlo, she is asked to reconnect with Wheeler in order to spy on him. There are some lovely family dynamics here with Rosalind’s niece, Ava, in particular and with her sister and her husband but ultimately I was unconvinced by Rosalind’s feelings both towards Wheeler and Szydlo though the ending did surprise me. Thanks to NetGalley and Penguin for the ARC.

One of the things I love most about book blogging is being offered books that I would have probably not picked up.

Atomic Love is one of those books, Rosalind was a top class scientist in the war, but now finds herself working in a jewellers. She has a feeling that she is being followed and more and more she keeps seeing this tall man wherever she goes.

This tall man is Charlie Szydlo, an FBI agent and he is interested in Roz’s ex lover Thomas Weaver. Roz does not want to get back in touch with Weaver who has been ringing her to meet up as he hurt her badly. Roz is torn between doing what is right and her feelings for Weaver.

Charlie has had an awful time in the war and he is still suffering. Living at home with his sister he is just existing and when gets to know Roz better, he is scared of what he feels for her.

I liked Rosalind she is a strong woman character who is very ahead of her time and she wants more in life than what is offered to 1950’s women. Intelligent, but also afraid of being hurt again by Weaver she agreed to help Charlie to find out what secrets Weaver has. Rosalind knows what they created in the lab, but she finds out that Weaver has many more secrets and he is willing to share with the woman he loves.

I really enjoyed this book, the pace and the setting post war Chicago. I enjoyed reading about Roz’s experience in the war as a scientist and her relationship with Weaver. It has romance, espionage, betrayal and feminism. A great read!