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The Secret Guests

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About this listen

Brought to you by Penguin.

It is 1940 and the bombs are falling thick and fast on London. The royal family must do all they can to assure the British public of their solidarity. But what of the two young princesses - Elizabeth and Margaret? How can they be kept safe without jeopardising morale in the capital?

Meanwhile Celia Nashe is delighted when she finally gets her long-awaited transfer to MI5. But whatever she was expecting of her mission for the war effort, it wasn't this. A crumbling castle in remote, rural Ireland, playing nursemaid to two pampered young girls.

But her posting soon turns out to be very far from tame. Questions are being asked by the locals about the identities of Celia's secret charges. And when a dead body turns up at the castle gates, it will take every effort to uncover the truth, and to stop it from coming to light.

© Benjamin Black 2020 (P) Penguin Audio 2020

 20th Century Espionage Historical Historical Fiction Mystery Spies & Politics Thriller & Suspense Fiction Royalty War

Critic reviews

Elegant and witty. Fans of The Crown will enjoy this playful novel
Brilliantly entertaining
A master of high-class crime fiction, literary noir in the tradition of Georges Simenon and Raymond Chandler
This is one thriller to read and savor
All stars
Most relevant
I like this type of "what if...." stories. The Queen and Margaret were portrayed particularly well, but the story could have been better.... but then I am very fussy.

What if......

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Engaging story but the narrator is too ridged. I'm really struggling with the attempted accents.

Poor accents

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I enjoyed the slow burn of the book, with characters developed just enough to push the story along. I disagree with some critics that suggest the thriller part was too quick and underdeveloped. I thought it was a great contrast to the gentle dance of English and Irish manners that forms the majority of the book

A good read of what might have been

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