The Light We Left Behind is a terrific addition to WWII historical/romance/mystery genre. Maddie is British and Max is a German Jew who hates the Nazis and is fearful for Jewish Mother. Maddie and Max meet when she’s a guest student of Max’s younger sister in Munich 1936. Together, they play a dangerous game of destroying pro-Nazi/anti-Semitic publications while falling in love. Maddie is caught, deported back to Britain and doesn’t see Max again until 1944 at a top secret British Intelligence facility in London. Much has happened to each of them during the years they were apart. Together can they uncover vital information from captured a Nazi general, who had been in charge of a program to develop a dangerous new weapon, in time to save Allied and civilian lives? Has their love survived and what does their future hold? No spoilers!
Thanks to NetGalley for an ARC of this book.

Maddie is a psychologist with a past. But her skills are now needed to help win the war. The story takes place in 1944 England and 1938 Germany. This book is full of mystery and suspense, love and an eye opener to only recently provided secrets on methods used to obtain information.

This was fascinating. I know little of Mi19 and this is the first novel to help bring the work of many men and women listening in to the Germans housed at Trent Park to life. It was highly skilled and dangerous especially for the ‘stool pigeons’ and shows how personal safety was put on hold in order to try and gain advantage over the Nazis.
This is an exciting historical thriller, with romance woven in. The protagonists are young and passionate, and we follow their journeys from teenage activists to hardened spies. The personal sacrifice that many made throughout the war is highlighted and very worth reflecting on. I rather hope this is made into a film, it could be fantastic.
I was lucky to receive an ARC copy thanks to the publishers and wish Tessa Harris the best of luck with The Light We Left Behind.

During WWII a lot of information was gained by listening in on enemy communications not just abroad but also here in UK.
Requisitioned by the government at the start of the war, Trent Park a stately home in North London was used to detain high ranking Nazi Prisoners of War, every room was bugged and in the the basement every conversation was monitored and transcribed in the hope that something would be picked up that could help the allies.

This area of operations was not a part of our wartime history I'd heard about before and it made fascinating reading, the fictional characters blended well into the backdrop of Trent Park their stories well told, believable and bringing this book to life. Recommended reading for anyone with an interest in WWII history.

My thanks to the publisher, HQ Digital and NetGalley for the advance copy for review purposes. I was under no obligation and all opinions expressed are my own

Maddie Gresham receives a message asking her to report to Trent Park in Middlesex, a grand country house that was once owned by Sir Philip Sassoon and it’s now being used by the British army. Maddie’s a psychologist, she works with Dr Tobias Baskin, she spends her time, trying to read her mentors terrible handwriting and typing up his notes. In 1944, England’s desperate to end the war, and very concerned by reports the German’s are working on a secret weapon and British intelligence is busy trying to stop them.

Maddie’s interviewed by Colonel McKie, her new job is all very hush hush and she has to sign the official secrets act. Captured high ranking German officers are staying at Trent Park, and in a building bugged with listening devices, Maddie’s to give a profile on each officer, look for any weaknesses, if needed meet them and she finds this daunting.

Maddie stayed in Germany as an exchange student in 1936, she was forced to leave the country and her past experience with the Nazi’s was terrifying. Her German penfriend Greta’s mother Mrs Weitzler is Jewish, and she worried about their safety and hasn’t heard from them in years. At Trent Park they have what they call “stool pigeons” cleared German speaking prisoners, who serve as batman for the German officers and they gather and interpret information for the British. Maddie’s shocked to discover Max Weitzler, Greta’s older brother is serving as one, she fell in love with him eight years ago while staying at his parent’s house and it needs to remain a secret.

As Hitler’s doodlebugs start landing in London, the pressure's on the people working at Trent Park escalates and Maddie’s worried they have a traitor in the ranks. Maddie’s highly suspicious, she’s being followed, and she doesn’t believe Dr Baskin died of natural causes, some things simply don't add up and she has no idea who she can trust?

I received a copy of The Light We Left Behind from NetGalley and HQ Digital in exchange for an honest review, I find it fascinating how everyday people signed the secret services act, suddenly they were involved in espionage, they went extraordinary lengths to help England win the war, defeat Germany and Maddie’s character is one of these brave and selfless individuals. I really enjoyed Tessa Harris's previous book Beneath a Starless Sky and her latest wartime mystery is absolutely brilliant, and five stars from me.

The Light We Left Behind by Tessa Harris is exactly the type of book that gets me excited! I love WW2 Historical Fiction books about people helping to make such a huge difference. This book had suspense and romance and developed characters that you want and care to know what happens. It moved at a perfect pace and the ending was a shocker!

My thanks to NetGalley and publisher HQ for the electronic copy.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book - I think it would make a great film! I loved the main characters and the dialogue, so typical of the war-time years. This is a WW2 story - a blend of fact and fiction, centred on the top secret activities of The Cockfosters Camp - previously Trent Park mansion, during 1944.

First of all though, we go back to 1936 where Maddie Gresham (17) is living with the Weitzler family in Germany and where she falls in love with the eldest son Max. Max's mother is a Jew and his younger brother and father are staunch Socialist supporters. Not one to stand by in the face of injustice, Maddie joins Max on night time raids to destroy anti-Jewish publications displayed in the town. This results in her being deported and, back in England, she studies Experimental Psychology at Oxford. We find Maddie again in 1944 when she is called upon to work at Trent Park. The once beautiful house and grounds have been taken over by a top secret war department - MI19; it's now a fortress housing the highest echelon of German prisoners of war who are under surveillance through a myriad of listening devices - the premise of the luxury surroundings being that the prisoners were more likely to relax and speak about their secrets. "M Room" in the bowels of the mansion is where German-speakers (among them many Jewish escapees from the country) listen to the prisoners' conversations.
Maddie's job is to use psychological profiling to find ways of getting the prisoners to talk. That is until she becomes aware of Brigadier Hammler. He's a priceless capture - he holds the secrets of Germany's latest weapon - the Flying Bomb. Her attempts to find his "weak spot" lead her into a dangerous undercover operation.

Alternately we follow Max. By 1938 his father chooses between Germany's socialism and his Jewish wife. He throws Max and his mother out of the house and we follow their progress to Paris where. in 1940, it's clear that the Nazis will overrun France and we follow the family's escape, except Max is the only survivor and he joins the French Resistance, assisting in an escape line to England. Circumstances allow him the chance to get to England.

Will Maddie ever meet Max again? It's been 8 years.

This is an emotional read as well as being extremely atmospheric. It conveys the fearful Jewish persecution and the need to escape; the juxtaposition of London still maintaining a high-end night-life amidst the fear of German bombing: and Maddie's certainty that Max must still be alive, despite the atrocities about which the German prisoners brag.

Maddie's been warned not to ask questions, but she begins to question the manner of her old mentor, Dr Baskin's death, especially when another body is found. The erstwhile seemingly innocuous "supporting characters" may be anything But - what's really going on?

Brilliant Read.

The light we left behind is my second book by Tessa Harris, I really enjoy the way she writes and brings the stories and the characters to life.

This is the story of Maddie and Max, the war has come to hunt them, the jews, their families were separated and leaving them without nothing just the hope of finding one and another again in another part of the world or in another lifetime.

The light we left behind wasn't easy to ready as many situations were happening all around the Jews, the way the Germans spoke about them and treat them like they were things to dispose of. it felt terrible to read how despicable they were. Max's father was the worst character of the whole book,
I really couldn't understand how can someone be like that with his own family and son. Maddie was witness to Max's father's terrible attitude.

Maddie finds herself in Trent Park, a place that was designated to secure the most terrible nazis and people who were linked to the rich and the war. she was recruited to help and find out what the Nazis were planning especially a weapon that supposedly was something out of this world. Maddie finds herself doing stuff that she was not so happy to do but she knew this was very important so they could finally understand the Germans.

Max has been living terrible things all around Europe, he saw his mother die and now he lost his sister and niece, he doesn't know if they are still alive but he is fighting to survive, now he is working at Trent Park helping the cause of finding out more about the weapons and plans of the Nazis.

it is only about time when Maddie and Max will get to meet again.

One of the things that I really love about Maddie's character was the beauty, the sophisticated and feminine manners she had, she was always kind no matter if she had to deal with the most terrible Nazis, she always showed education and kindness even if that meant saying something nasty to someones who didn't have any heart at all.

The Light We Left Behind has mystery, secrecy and a lot of questions to be solved. it is an intriguing book with a rollercoaster of situations that will finally bring love and justice to life.

This was a good book, I really enjoy it, although I felt like something was missing especially in the deepness of the characters and the book but still was a good read.

England and Germany - teenager Maddie is in Germany in the run-up to World War 2 and, horrified by the anti-Jewish propaganda, heads out with Max, the son of her hosts, on nighttime raids to destroy posters. Max's father and younger brother have embraced National Socialism, despite the fact that their mother is Jewish and therefore the children, in the eyes of the Nazis, are also Jews.

The war starts. Max's father divorces his wife and throws him and Max out of their house. They head to France.
Meanwhile Maddie, having finished studies in psychology at Oxford, has taken a role at Trent Park, a top secret location near London. Her role, the psychological profiling of senior German officers who have been taken prisoner and are held at Trent Park.

Based on true stories of Trent Park and other secret wartime intelligence-gathering sites, this is an enjoyable read, if a bit clumsy in places (particularly those parts dealing with relationships/romance).

Sometimes walls not only hear, but also keep many secrets, like the walls of the Trent Park.

1936 Munich, Germany.
Maddie is a young English girl who dreamed of becoming a psychologist, committed criminal acts against the Reich in Munich. After her arrest she was deported from Germany to Britain, separated from her beloved Max.

Here a story that will not leave you calm, begins.

1944 Trent Park, Middlesex.
Maddie has signed an official secret act and begun to work in the Trent Park that is better known as a luxury prison for German generals.
I had never heard of the Trent Park before reading this book, and I was so surprised to learn about its existence, about the purposes of this prison and the activities carried out in it. The book provides full information about it.

I had different feelings while reading the book. Some moments made me boiling with anger, some happy moments were like a balm for my soul.
I liked Maddie. Her loyalty to her beloved, the fight for justice, kindness and honesty are worthy of respect.

I would gladly recommend this book to fans of historical fiction, History and women fiction. I'm sure you will enjoy the book as i did.

Thanks to Tessa Harris, HQ Digital and NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review this book!

I’m fascinated by any story about Britain’s secret wartime history – this year I’ve enjoyed reading about Bletchley Park (with thanks to Kathleen McGurl’s The Girl from Bletchley Park), and discovered Buckinghamshire’s little-known Latimer House through Jules Wake’s The Secrets of Latimer House. This book introduced me to Trent Park – another secret location I hadn’t heard of before – where senior German officers were imprisoned, but in some degree of luxury, while listeners in the basement recorded and transcribed their conversations in the hope of uncovering information critical to the war effort.

Maddie Gresham – a psychologist living a quiet life in Oxford – is summoned to continue the work begun by her mentor, Dr Tobias Miskin, who has recently been found dead in what might or might not be suspicious circumstances. She’s the only one who can decipher his appalling handwriting, and she finds herself profiling the prisoners and steering the very gentle interrogation methods of others (encouragement, rather than correction) before taking a rather more unusual hands-on role. Brigadier Josef Wilhelm Hammler, also known as The Crocodile, arrives with a fearsome reputation and considerable knowledge of the new Vengeance weapon – treating him with kindness is never going to see him revealing any secrets and a rather different approach is called for, with Maddie playing a leading role.

Trent Park has also discovered the usefulness of stool pigeons, with German Jews assigned as batmen to the senior officers – and when Max Weitzler arrives in the wake of his own losses after the evacuation of Paris, he’s assigned to that role with Hammler. But Max and Maddie have a secret past, and a love that never died – she was an exchange student in Germany in 1936, staying with the Weitzlers and engaged in small acts of sabotage and vandalism in Max’s company, deported when caught red-handed one night. The book dips into Max’s own story – he’s the son of a Jewish mother, his father a rising star in the Nazi ranks, and they’re both cruelly cast out from their home, finding their way to Paris, then fleeing as the threat of invasion approaches.

It might have proved difficult melding the romantic thread with the wartime secret history and the developing mystery around the death of Maskin (and a body count that continues to increase), but I have to say that the author does it quite superbly. This is story-telling of the highest order, well-paced and compelling – the historical context is wonderfully drawn, and Maddie one of those strong and likeable women I always love to see at a story’s heart. There might just be a few small things about the story’s progress – particularly its resolution – that do push it a little in terms of credibility, but this is fact-based fiction and that’s entirely forgivable. The whole book is perfectly balanced – this was a story that swept me away, the moments of danger and the mounting suspense had me on the edge of my seat, and the romance at the story’s centre was one I totally believed in. Highly recommended – I thoroughly enjoyed this one.

Hundreds of people signed the Official Secrets act during the Second World War and only now are their stories emerging into public knowledge. The story of Maddie Gresham whilst being fiction is conceivably true and makes for an entertaining and engaging read. I did question how likely it would be that an upper class young woman would be educated to degree level and in psychology at that, but it didn’t spoil my enjoyment of the story. The pace was quick and it kept my interest throughout. Thank you to Netgalley and HQ Digital for the chance to read in exchange for an honest review.

I loved everything about this book - it has it all!

Based around the true story of some of the secret work that went on as part of the war effort, we read about Maddie's love for Max, whose Jewish heritage has forced him to flee Nazi Germany. Following both of their stories - Maddie's giving a fascinating insight into the work at Trent Park, and Max's providing a harrowing account of the persecution faced by so many and the evacuation of Paris - we are also drawn into the mysterious death of Maddie's predecessor.

This is the first book I've read by this author, and I'll be looking for more - it's well-written, well-paced, fascinating and gripping from the beginning right through to the end.

An unusual war story based on real, almost unbelievable, events. Psychologist Maddie is summoned to Trent Park to act as a stool pigeon, befriending a senior Nazi officer who is a prisoner there. Any conversations between them are to be recorded in the hope that he will let slip vital information to help the war effort. She has previously worked there as secretary to Dr Baskin, head psychologist at Trent Park, who has died in mysterious circumstances. She doesn't know that her former boyfriend Max is also nearby. Courage, treachery and a romance that defies the odds make this an unputdownable book.

Another aspect of WWII for fans of the genre. Maddie is a psychologist with very little experience in her field or in life when she's tapped to help with captured senior Nazis being held at Trent Park. The hope is that she can listen and watch and find ways to get them to provide information on German war plans. That part of the novel would have been fascinating on its own but there's also a love triangle which felt unnecessary to me but I know others will enjoy. Maddie met Max when she was studying in Germany and she knows he's Jewish so what is he doing posing as a German prisoner? And then there's the murder. This has lots of elements that didn't entirely mesh for me but it was still interesting, Thanks to netgalley for the ARC.

Light, propulsive read set in the MI19 POW camp in Trent Park during WWII and dealing with the bugging operation there. Our heroine is a psychologist brought in to figure out how to get the captured German generals to talk more and faster. The setting was probably my favourite part of this book, it is fascinating in and of itself & I def want to read more about it independently. The rest of the book was fine, just about average, the kind of thing that fans of the genre will enjoy and everyone else will probably bounce off of. I found it perfectly satisfying and in its favour it is very readable, a whole lot of short chapters and continually moving action that makes it very easy to cruise through.

That said there are still a few things that didn't entirely work for me. A few of the third act plot twists I found generally implausible, and there are a few things that really felt abandoned mid-thread. That her uncle got the heroine her job is framed in "oh no nothing I've done has been on my own merit" terms and there is... no conclusion to this? No moment where she alone resolves something of her own merit? Idk it seemed weird. Then there was a moment where the second leg of the central love triangle is a huge dick, which annoys me in itself because it always comes off like the author doesn't trust you to know who the correct choice is, but then he comes back a few chapters later and I guess the heroine is like "oh, what's a bit of classism and antisemitism between friends" because they seem way too fine with each other lmao. Also this is just a me thing and probably not really applicable to other experiences but I love spy stuff and truly felt like more use could have been made of this setting & situation to get up to more espionage shenanigans. I truly could not believe my eyes when the identity misunderstanding was resolved in a CHAPTER! Where is my ESPIONAGE-INFUSED SAD PINING? Anyway this was a fine light read with a very intriguing setting and I tore through it in a few days which is always nice. Thank you to NetGalley and HQ for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I loved this book it was so fascinating. I enjoy books like this one as not only was it a great read but, it was also very interesting. I learnt so much from this book and it wasn’t a chore to read. I read it so quickly as I couldn’t put it down. My thanks to Netgalley and the publishers for giving me the opportunity to read this book in return for an honest review.

A serious subject; espionage in WW2 conducted on British soil, using women and Germans escaping the tyranny of nazism to discover secrets held by captured high ranking officers from the German hierarchy. A premise leading to high expectations of a thrilling endeavour by relatively inexperienced individuals to use their skills , in this particular case, psychology, to expose the plans for, and ultimately quash the extensive bombing of London . Unfortunately the storyline was hampered by a somewhat sloppy love story of very young teenagers , German and British, separated several years earlier though each believing it to be a Romeo and Juliet situation to the exclusion of the official secrets act and seriousness of the task. The excitement and complications of breaking down a damaged senior gestapo officer and at times crack handed methods of doing so, seemed to be secondary to the alternative storyline which , for me, distracted from what could have been an unusual and interesting aspect of espionage by British secret service on homeland doing their bit to end the war. Many thanks to author, publisher and net galley for this ARC.

An interesting premise of Maddie working as a psychologist to peer into the minds of the German generals captured and interned during the war. The storyline falls between stools as it is part romance , part mystery , part wartime espionage with some parts elongated then others rushed in particular the ending. Maddie was a woman in a man’s world being led along . It just fell short for me

“When the walls have ears, who can you trust?”

Maddie Gresham is a psychologist who has been sent to the Trent Park mansion. Upon signing the Official Secrets Act and learning that it’s where the Nazi generals have been detained with listening devices hidden in every room, Maddie is given the assignment to gain the Nazi’s trust and coax them into giving up information.

Maddie settles into her new assumed role easily until a ‘stool pigeon’, Max Weizler, arrives at Trent Park. His presence changes everything for Maddie … you see, she knew him from her former life.

Harris’s narrative, based on true events that took place at Trent Park during World War Two, clearly portrays the pressure felt by those selected to serve here. Featuring love, sacrifice and betrayal, this historical fiction will highlight the bugging operation used during WW2 and throw you a twist you didn’t see coming! Harris’s love of history shows in her ability to make it understandable for all. I love an intriguing title and this one is perfect!

Congratulations to the design team for the fantastic cover art!

Publishes December 3, 2021.

I was gifted this advance copy by Tessa Harris, HQ Digital, and NetGalley and was under no obligation to provide a review.