i love love that story! a great way to discover the most secret matter of the second world war through the story of 3 amazing women.
three women with nothing in common who will grow together
strongly recommend to read this novel!

The Rose Code by Kate Quinn
I have not read any of Kate Quinn’s other work and that is something I plan to remedy very shortly. I loved this book from the opening pages. It is set over two time periods – from 1939 to 1944 and the weeks leading up to the wedding of Princess Elizabeth and Prince Philip in November 1947.
It concerns three young women who are very different from each other but who each have their own special talents. There is Osla, the Canadian socialite who begins her war riveting together planes for the RAF. Then there is Mabel Churt, reinvented as Mab, who is desperate to escape from her East End roots and has set about “improving herself” by reading “100 Classic Literary Works for the Well-Read Lady”. Later they meet up with Beth who has been cowed by her Methodist mother and told repeatedly she is useless. Mab and Osla set out to “save” Beth and try to introduce her to a bit more excitement in life by bringing her along to their literary society meetings .
For 4 years Osla had been the girlfriend of Prince Philip of Greece and in 1947 she is distraught that all people think about is that she is the girlfriend Philip left in order to marry Princess Elizabeth. There are other real characters that appear in the novel there’s Alan Turing and Dilly Knox; even Churchill makes an appearance. The book evokes the period and unfortunately, but accurately, there are awful displays of racism and sexism.
The book is a mystery; Mab and Osla have been sent a coded message by a former friend and colleague from Bletchley Park. They have to discover what happened which resulted in their friend being incarcerated in a mental asylum for 3 and a half years?
The description of the work which went on at Bletchley Park is fascinating and the complexity of cracking those codes is mind boggling. The end of the novel is enthralling and there is a very tense race against time. It is a novel which I will be recommending to my various book groups and I would like to thank the author, Harper Collins and Net Galley for the opportunity to read this brilliant novel in return for an honest review.

For me, 'The Rose Code' was 'The Imitation Game' meets 'The Crown' with a dash of 'Downton Abbey,' - what more could you want?! Historically immersive with a cracking plot that bristled with secrets, Bletchley Park itself was palpable and I was entranced.

Kate Quinn masterfully interweaves the three narratives of glamorous Osla, determined Mab and timid Beth, and I was equally invested in them all. They were brilliantly crafted - so vivid, so human, so flawed, so quirky, so individual - so real they seemed to leap of the page. I was torn between the compulsion to finish the book and find out the truth, and yet desperate for it to never end because I didn't want to loose the characters who had become my friends. I also especially loved 'The Mad Hatter's Book Club' and dare you not to wish you could be part of it too!

One of the best books I've read so far this year. I honestly cannot recommend enough.

This is an intriguing novel featuring three very different women who all worked at the now famous Bletchley Park during World War 2. When the book begins Osla is a debutant dating Prince Phillip of Greece. Mab from East End London, a striking six foot girl and Beth from the local village who becomes a cryptanalyst. The story is told in two time zones, the first starts in 1940 and the second 1947 just before the Royal Wedding of the then Princess Elizabeth. It is fast paced and brilliantly written, I particularly loved the blending of fact and fiction ( as explained at the end ). A very enjoyable read and highly recommended.

A stunning read with so much substance!

Three young women find themselves doing their bit for the war effort in Bletchley Park; with secrecy so stringent that no-one is really sure what anyone else does. Osla is very much a society girl - and one who has the eye of dashing Prince Philip - desperate to prove that she is more than a debutante. Mab hails from the east-end of London and has hauled herself up out of poverty purely by her own efforts - and she's not finished yet. Beth meets the other two when they are billeted in the home where she lives with her parents, very much under her mother's thumb. Seven years later, with the country is anticipating the marriage of our now Queen to Prince Philip, these three are estranged due to betrayal and secrets. Can they work together to crack one final and vital code?

Like most, I am familiar with what went on at Bletchley Park during WWII and how important it was to our nation; however, this story is on a different level to any other and much more informative about what life was like for those sent there. From the very beginning, we are made aware there is a mystery surrounding the friendship of our three main characters and this slowly dissolves throughout the book almost imperceptibly as there is so much else to take the reader's attention. A lengthier read than most, there is never a lull in this one; the author has created a marvellous tale and one which would transfer perfectly to the big screen. The characters are beautifully described and come alive on the page. The sacrifices made in the name of saving this country are clearly shown and the mysteries are attention grabbing throughout. I had my suspicions of what was going on in the bigger picture but, not for the first time, I was spectacularly wrong. Very cleverly written, creating a compulsive and enthralling read which absolutely deserves my highest recommendation and all five sparkling stars!

My thanks to the publisher for my copy via NetGalley; this is - as always - my honest, original and unbiased review.

I do enjoy a historical novel-based-on-fact and this doesn’t disappoint.
The Rose Code is essentially the story of three women from very different backgrounds who meet whilst working as codebreakers at Bletchley Park during WW2.

Our key characters:
Osla Kendall: A wealthy young woman, born in Canada but with German ancestry. She is desperate to shake off the “debutante” label & do some real work to help the war effort – her fluency in German leads her to a translator role, essential to the codebreaking process. She is introduced to a young Naval officer, Prince Philip of Greece, and soon becomes his girlfriend – all under the watchful eye of her godfather Lord Mountbatten!

Mab: A down to earth East Ender who grew up in poverty but was determined to get an education, support herself & her little sister, and ultimately find a man to marry, someone of means who will help her to have a better life. Down to earth and determined, Mab finds herself assigned to work on the new “Bombe” machines thanks to her height, but soon becomes very proficient at setting up/working the machines.

Beth: a local young woman, daughter of Osla & Mab’s landlady. Beth is poorly treated by her parents who constantly tell her how “slow” and useless she is, but her uncanny knack for crosswords leads her to becoming one of Dilly Knox’s leading cryptanalysts.

The three women become best friends, until one event changes everything. – but then a final code arrives – can they overcome their differences to save one of their own & also to uncover a traitor?

The characters are very well developed, and so many are based on real people. As well as the eccentric but brilliant Dilly Knox, we have cameo appearances by Lord Mountbatten, Winston Churchill & Alan Turing but others were also real people: Sally Norton (who was a god daughter of Lord Mountbatten), and Valerie Glassborow (grandmother of Kate Middleton). The character of Osla is based on Osla Benning who really was a girlfriend of Prince Philip, but I am not sure that the “royal connection” was necessary – it seemed to somehow weaken the story for me & I would like to have seen it without.

Having visited Bletchley Park, I could picture the scenes - the huts, the people scurrying between buildings never stopping to talk, the noise of the enigma & Bombe machines … having also signed The Official Secrets Act, I also know how difficult it can be to *not* answer questions about what you do!

Overall, I enjoyed reading this & I highly recommend it for anyone interested in Bletchley Park, and also for lovers of historical fiction. It has the WW2/codebreaking element but it is also a story of friendship, betrayal, loss & hope.

Disclosure: I received an advance copy of this book free from the publisher via NetGalley. Whilst thanks go to the publisher for the opportunity to read it, all opinions are my own.
#BookReview #TheRoseCode #NetGalley

Astonishing!

I could not put this book down. It has a wonderful balance of history and fiction. I do not know how accurate the relationships in this book are but assume they have some element of truth.

The characters are all so wonderfully rounded. The history so vividly brought to life. I love learning more about the work done at Bletchley Park, as well as the intricate relationships of the 3 women thrown together by their war work.

Not only this, but the relevance of themes in this book to today’s news are significant and saddening.

An all round brilliant book, I could not ask for more. This is a must read.

The Rose Code is the highly anticipated new release from best selling author Kate Quinn. Once again we are taken back to the second world war, but this time we stay on British soil, and follow the stories of three very different women as they join the war effort and take up work at the top secret Bletchley Park, home to some of the finest minds in Britain who were working night and day to break Axis military codes.
The first of the three is Osla, a Canadian born debutante , god daughter of Lord Mountabatten, who is determined to prove that she can be useful and not just ornamental, and puts her fluent German to use in translating decoded messages. Before leaving for Bletchley she managed to catch the eye of a handsome Naval Officer, none other than Prince Philip of Greece, and the two carry on a courtship consisting of letters and stolen moments on the rare occasions he manages to get leave.
Osla's bunkmate at Bletchley is Mab, formerly Mabel, who was brought up as part of a large but poor family in London's East End, Determined to better herself, she takes a secretarial course, and is assigned to a secretarial pool at Bletchley before being redeployed to help operate the codebreaking machines. Her main goal, aside from her work, is to find a suitably well off husband who will provide a better future for her, and her family, especially her little sister.
Both Osla and Mab are billeted with a local family, and soon notice that their landlady's downtrodden daughter Beth has an unexpected gift for crosswords and puzzles, making her an ideal candidate for Bletchley despite her mother's objections. Beth overcomes her shyness with the help of her newfound friends, and soon finds herself deep in the heart of the most secret workings at Bletchley.
It seems like these women have formed a friendship that will last a lifetime but we soon learn that something happened to sever the ties that bound them together, and now they are barely on speaking terms, which makes it all the more remarkable when one of them reaches out to the others for help , not just to escape the desperate situation they find themselves in , but to uncover a traitor who was feeding information from Bletchley to the enemy, and is still at large.
I really enjoyed both aspects of the dual narratives, I found the story of the women's wartime work and their friendships really engaging , and the post war story of the hunt for the traitor was thrilling , and kept me guessing. The way the author developed the characters of the women and their friendship made me more invested in learning about what could possibly have driven them apart, and by the end of the book I felt like I really cared about what happened to them
I read and reviewed an ARC courtesy of NetGalley and the Publisher, all opinions are my own.

This is the first book I’ve read by Kate Quinn and I will be looking to read more of her books in the future. As a regular reader of historical fiction books, I loved the sound of the synopsis of this book, especially the setting of Bletchley Park.

As the book starts, we find out about how three girls from three very different backgrounds who came to work at Bletchley Park. We also discover that one of them is locked away in an asylum and she needs their help to escape and find out how the real traitor was.

This book features many stories within the main story. Osla is a debutante, battling to prove how clever she is as a linguist. Mab is determined to put her past behind her and find a way out of poverty. Beth needs to escape her bully of a mother and use her problem solving skills to help the war effort. The story covers romance, aspirations, a literary club, dedication to work, heartbreak and a traitor in their midst.

The book is full of historical detail and emotions, the highs of cracking a code and the lows of losing a loved one. At the end of the book the author explains how she based the book on real people, determined to ensure that this part of the war effort isn’t lost behind secrecy laws.

Although the workers at Bletchley Park were in less physical danger than the soldiers, sailors and aircrew during the war, the book reminds us about how their determination to succeed led to mental health issues for some of the workers, and a lifelong fear about betraying secrets.

This was an enjoyable read and a book I didn’t want to put down, an excellent way to spend a lockdown Saturday. Happy to recommend to readers of historical fiction and/or readers of how women helped win the war.

I've only read one other book by Kate Quinn - The Alice Network - but enjoyed it enough to want to read this one after a quick skim of the blurb. That and oh how I do love a WW2 historical fiction!

This was a slooooooow starter, which truly I'm not a fan of, but there was enough to keep me intrigued to get me to the good part, which started around 40% through - after that I was hooked. I'll say right up front that this could, and should, in my opinion, have been better edited and cut down: it was too long in a lot of places and I did quite a bit of skim reading which then led to me missing a few vital details (I kept confusing Mab and Osla at first as I'm guessing I missed the parts that truly distinguished the two!). But there were great parts in this, and it got better and better as the story and the characters progressed.

The story follows those working at Bletchley Park during the second world war and intwines secrets with love, mystery with hope. Betrayal, forgiveness and loyalty are at the heart of this and what really shines through is how friendships, especially those made alongside fighting a world war, can persevere despite what's thrown in the way. The main characters, as well as those on the side lines, were incredibly well developed: complex, intriguing, differing, infuriating and unique yet so very authentic with their own realistic back stories and personalities. With reference to code breaking, the royal family, abuse, poverty, women's wartime work and misogyny, this had it all - a mystery, romance and historical fiction rolled into one that had moments of pure heartbreak, humour and optimism.

A high recommendation from me and one that's reignited my love for historical fiction!

*I received an advance review copy of The Rose Code from the publisher via NetGalley.

This was rather good, if I do say so myself. Obviously made up characters but loved how some names were dropped in the plot along the way. Alan Turing, Winston Churchill Churchill, Duke of Edinburgh, Queen Elizabeth II. You're supposed to keep your work private and secret when working at Bletchley but this is put to the test between friends Beth, Osla and Mab.

Although there is tragedy and heartbreak along the way, it was good to see how the individual characters got their lives back on track and even an up to date account of what the characters were doing as they were in their elderly years.

Very interesting read to find out out who was selling secrets with great descriptions and atmosphere with the blitz scenes, tragedy and heartbreak. I never gave this part of history a thought before, of the men involved here and how the remaining people not gone to War were wondering why men who looked fit and able were not off to war. It's thought provoking.

This book makes me want to go to Bletchley Park and see for myself where the unsung heroes were working and the layouts of where the individual huts were.

Set at Bletchley Park where codes were broken during World War 2, the story follows 3 women of very different backgrounds who join the code breakers. Osla, a Canadian debutante; Mab, an East End girl with a secret who wants to better herself, and Beth, seeking to escape her abusive mother.
I've been intrigued by Bletchley Park and although we are more familiar with the men such as Alan Turing, there were many women working there doing prominent code breaking jobs too. As the people who worked there were sworn to secrecy, what went on is only now becoming known.
The story is told in duel time, the war time and just before Queen Elizabeth's wedding to Prince Philip.. I really connected with all the characters, all very real and rounded. I cared about what happened to them.
The historical detail was breathtaking. Kate Quinn has certainly done her research but made how the code breakers worked easy to understand. I was hooked.
Definitely recommended.

The Rose Code tells the story of three women - Osla, Mab and Beth - as they play their remarkable part in breaking enigma codes at Bletchley Park during WWII. Each woman has something to prove, and during the course of the story each of them face their own unique challenges with verve and vigour. This book is wonderfully crafted, it transports you to another time, and I found the characters engaging and became fully invested in their journeys. There is humour, and friendship; betrayal and redemption; love and loss. A mystery that needs to be solved to save a life.

I loved every word of this brilliant book and was fascinated by the historical truths it portrayed.

Utterly utterly utterly loved this book!

It’s not my usual genre so I admit when I was given the widget for it I was really quite dreading it, but I thought it was rude not to so I gave it a go.

It literally took me about 10 pages before I was absolutely hooked on it. I knew of the women code breakers, but not really much more than the basics. This book really bright it all home to me, and the women involved were really brought to life. The writing is phenomenal, the pace excellent, and it kept me on the edge of my seat in places.

Just utterly utterly brilliant!!

My thanks to Netgalley and HarperCollins for the advance copy

Quinn's powerful style of writing that carried "The Alice Network" to the New York Times Bestseller list in 2017 is back in this sensational story of wartime intrigue and female friendship. The heroines are more like real women than you're apt to find in most Historical Fiction. They get frustrated, get giddy, get mean or generous, and don't spend pages pontificating on the reasons behind split second decisions. They hurt, they love, and they commit to those intense, raw feelings -- they are some of the most human characters in the genre. For a novel that dances between times, locations, and characters the story moves at a nice pace with satisfying build up and a tidy series of climaxes without the "perfect" ending. I was reading this novel in the mornings and especially for the last hundred or so pages I couldn't wait to pick it up for my lunch break! Readers will not be disappointed when this release hits shelves. Find it where good books are sold March 2021.

The Rose Code by Kate Quinn

Three very different women codebreakers at Bletchley Park during WW2 - Osla the Canadian debutante accustomed to mixing with royals and high society, Mab the eastender desperate to escape poverty and her past, and Beth the shy local girl with an abusive mother. Together they triumph in their work at BP and negotiate relationships, heartache, families and everything else life throws at them. So why in 1947 do they no longer speak to each other, and why is one of them in an institution?

What a totally absorbing read - I literally could not put this book down! It has everything - fabulous characters, mystery and intrigue, romance... and the historical detail is absolutely fascinating. I'm in awe of the author who managed to create such an immersive and compelling story, and I'd love to see this as a Netflix series if it hasn't been optioned already! Very highly recommended.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publishers for an ARC of this book.

I have a weak spot for WWII historical fiction and after a fantastic experience with The Huntress I added her newest title The Rose Code to my list of most anticipated releases as soon as I first heard about it. The promise of a focus on WWII code breaking and a mysterious traitor sounded absolutely fantastic and I have been looking forward to finally pick it up ever since my request was approved. And while I somehow wasn't completely blown away by it, there is no doubt that The Rose Code is a thoroughly developed, multi-layered and intriguing read that mixes historical facts with fiction seamlessly.

This story uses a dual timeline, which can go both ways for me, but in this case it didn't bother me as much as the two timelines are not that far apart. Of course the timeline set during the war is a lot more exciting initially, and I was able to connect to it a lot faster, but in the second half the timeline set in 1947 started to intrigue me more and more as well. The strongest timeline is still the part set in the past, as we see a lot of the code breaking happening there and the chapters set in Bletchley Park were simply fascinating. The three different main characters are used perfectly to describe some of the different roles in Bletchley Park and I thought the different characters complemented each other perfectly. The timeline set in 1947 was a bit dull in comparison in the beginning, but things started to improve as soon as everything started to come together.

As a whole, I thought the development of the characters in The Rose Code was done in a very realistic way, with each character having their flaws as well as their more positive aspects. Not every character is as likeable, but there is no doubt about their strength and it was interesting to see them grow over time. The comparison to where they are in the 1947 timeline compared to the past is interesting as well, and I really enjoyed seeing everything develop and come together. The Rose Code is a mostly character-driven story, and as a consequence I did find the pace to be quite slow in points. Especially the parts relating to the romance elements... And I also found the story itself to be a tad overlong. This is probably just me not being in the mood for a slower character-driven story in these recent months though, and as a whole the story itself had me engaged enough to never want to stop reading.

I especially loved the historical setting and everything relating to the WWII code breaking and the hunt for the traitor afterwards. The chapters set in the asylum were likewise interesting... I wasn't that much of a fan of the romance elements in the story, as I felt they slowed down the story, and the story itself was a bit overlong, but as a whole I still had an excellent time reading The Rose Code. If you enjoy WWII historical fiction as well as slower paced and character-driven stories, The Rose Code is definitely recommended.

What an absolute cracker of a book. An absorbing, intriguing story with great characters (including Prince Philip) and based on a events at Bletchley Park with people who put everything they had into breaking enemy codes to protect Britain in the war. Its not often a book has the right blend of romance, adventure, thrills and sense of place and this one hooked me. The characters are fleshed out and the details of the code-breakers' work is so interesting, and the reality of signing the Official Secrets Act is vividly portrayed. This is so readable, excellent historical fiction that gave me new insight into those events and times.

Thank you very much to Netgalley UK and Hodder & Stoughton for providing me with an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I was amazed to receive an ARC for this book, but I am so grateful that I did! 'The Rose Code' may have been my first foray into Kate Quinn's writing, but it certainly won't be my last.

The book focuses upon three very different women, who likely would not have met if not due to the existence of Bletchley Park during World War II. These women are:

Osla Kendall- a Canadian-born debutante, determined to play a role in the war- utilising her talented skills as a linguist- and prove she is not a "silly socialite".

'Queen Mab'- a determined young woman who aspires to elevate herself from her Shoreditch upbringing. Her successfully self-taught elocution and constant reading are her weapons of choice to snag a husband she deems appropriate.

Beth Finch- a young woman who is initially determined to be a spinster (at the grand old age of 24) and due to the influence of Osla and Mab, becomes a talented code-breaker determined to let no enigma go unsolved.

That was the key reasonating theme for me throughout this book: the sheer determination of these women and all of the Bletchley Park workers. Living in a state of stress and secrecy and yet, united in their goals, these characters (and their real-life counterparts) are fascinating and inspirational in equal measure.

I found the integration of the traitor plot, via the use of a dual timeline to be intriguing and engaging reading. However, I did unravel most of the mysteries through information the author deliberately chose not to reveal, but this did not detract from my overall enjoyment.
I also felt uncomfortable about the use of Prince Philip as a love interest, but it did slide smoothly into the overall story.

In conclusion, just like Beth cracking codes, I was unconscious to the time and my surroundings every time I picked up this book "just to read a chapter". Without fail, I ended up going 'down the rabbit hole' with the Mad Hatter's society of Bletchley Park until the very end.

In short, I highly recommend this book.

I don’t read a huge amount of historical fiction but The Rose Code was, for me, the perfect mix of history, character development, mystery and intrigue. It’s not a short novel at over 600 pages but I found myself completely enthralled. It doesn’t hurt that it’s set during an era I find hugely interesting – World War 2. Not ony that, but it centers on women that worked at Bletchley Park helping with the top secret (at the time, but now famous) war effort to crack enemy codes – it sounds like just my cup of tea.

One of the things that makes this book so enthralling for me was the brilliant character development. Because the book is so long, I really felt like I got a chance to properly get to know the main characters Osla, Mab and Beth, as well as their colleagues and friends, over a period of many years.

The story focuses on two main timelines – the ‘present day’ of 1947 and the ‘past’ narrative set from 1940 to around 1944. I don’t want to give too much away about the story, but we find out more about their day to day lives working at Bletchley Park, the extent to which they’re expected to keep under wraps what they’re doing and their personal lives. Although they’re mostly working and living outside of central London, we still see how the blitz and other aspects of the war affects everyone in so many ways.

I loved the inclusion of some well-known historical figures in the storyline, it only added to the story’s charm, and the fact that each of the main three women are so different meant they were equally enchanting but in very different ways, each with their own very different stories and backgrounds. I hugely enjoyed this novel and now want to read much more by Kate Quinn.