Operation Tulip – a gripping new release from Deborah Swift

Deborah Swift is an author I greatly admire, delivering books set in various historical eras. Operation Tulip is a WWII novel, third in a series, and to celebrate this her latest release, Ms Swift has taken her book baby on tour with The Coffee Pot Book Club. Further down, you will find my review, but first some basics – like the blurb!

Holland, 1944: Undercover British agent Nancy Callaghan has been given her toughest case yet. A key member of the Dutch resistance has been captured, and Nancy must play the role of a wealthy Nazi to win over a notorious SS officer, Detlef Keller, and gain crucial information.

England: Coding expert Tom Lockwood is devastated that the Allies have failed to push back the Nazis, leaving Northern Holland completely cut off from the rest of Europe, and him from his beloved Nancy. Desperate to rescue the love of his life, Tom devises Operation Tulip, a plan to bring Nancy home.

But as Nancy infiltrates the Dutch SS, she finds herself catching the eye of an even more senior member of the Party. Is Nancy in too deep, or can Tom reach her before she gets caught?

Inspired by the true events of occupied Holland during WW2, don’t miss this utterly gripping story of love, bravery and sacrifice.

Praise for Deborah Swift:

‘A well crafted tale… this book did not disappoint’ NetGalley reviewer, ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

‘There is action, mystery and romantic entanglements stirred into the story for a fantastically entertaining read’ NetGalley reviewer, ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

‘Deborah Swift never disappoints’ NetGalley reviewer, ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

‘A joy to read‘ NetGalley reviewer, ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Buy Links:

Universal Buy Link: http://mybook.to/Tulip

Buy Link for bookstores: https://harpercollins.co.uk/products/operation-tulip-ww2-secret-agent-series-deborah-swift

My review

It is 1944 and the Netherlands is a divided country: the southern half has been liberated by the advancing Allied troops, but the north still bows under the Nazi yoke. Food is scarce-has been for years. There is a shortage of fuel, the Germans confiscate clothes and blankets to clothe their own soldiers. Jews and other unwanted are still being rounded up and sent due east, and in the Hague Scottish agent Nancy Callaghan has just undertaken her most dangerous mission ever: to get close—very close—to Fritz Schneider, the commander of the Scheveningen Prison where captured resistance fighters are held prior to execution of transportation.

Nancy’s mission is a desperate attempt to free one of the leaders of the resistance, but it fills her with deep unease: she is impersonating Danique Koopman, the attractive widow of a known Nazi collaborator, a woman believed to be dead. But is she? Further to this, the mission may require intimacies she is very uncomfortable with.

In England, Tom Lockwood is worried about his Nancy and sets out on an unofficial (and unauthorised) mission to save her. All he knows is that she is somewhere in the occupied Netherlands—but where?

It is a grim picture Ms Swift paints—one with very few heroes but all the more victims. The starving, exhausted resistance fighters rarely score any significant wins against the Nazis, but they persevere all the same. People die, starving children fight over rats, the Germans round up the few remaining healthy men and send them off to work in Germany, desperate mothers tear up the floorboards to use as fuel, and the Dutch collaborators are everywhere, hoping to curry favour by pointing out potential resistance fighters.

Nancy is an engaging character, a complex mix of derring-do in some situations and paralysing fear in others. Compassionate and brave, she shoulders on with a mission that fills her with fear and disgust—especially once Fritz Schneider initiates physical intimacies. A plus point for giving Fritz a voice of his own, thereby making him more than a caricature Nazi villain. Fritz has done very many bad things, but Ms Swift allows a glimmer or two of humanity, of emotions to shine through, thereby making him more relatable.

Fritz Schneider has not achieved his position by being stupid, which is why he investigates the fair Danique. Meanwhile, Tom is slowly makes his way north. He has no idea where Nancy is. She believes Tom is in England, and Fritz is starting to suspect he’s been bamboozled. Things are quickly coming to a head, but how it all ends I leave for future readers to find out for themselves!

As always, Ms Swift has done her research. As always, her prose is fluid, her characters well-depicted and her setting vivid. Warmly recommended!

Author Bio:

Deborah Swift is a USA TODAY bestselling author of twenty books who is passionate about the past. Deborah used to be a costume designer for the BBC, before becoming a writer. Now she lives in an old English school house in a village full of 17th Century houses, near the glorious Lake District. After taking a Masters Degree in Creative Writing, she enjoys mentoring aspiring novelists and has an award-winning historical fiction blog at her website www.deborahswift.com.

Deborah loves to write about how extraordinary events in history have transformed the lives of ordinary people, and how the events of the past can live on in her books and still resonate today.

Recent books include The Poison Keeper, about the Renaissance poisoner Giulia Tofana, which was a winner of the Wishing Shelf Book of the Decade Award, and a Coffee Pot Book Club Gold Medal. Her most recent books are The Silk Code and The Shadow Network both set in the Second World War.

Author Links:

Twitter https://twitter.com/swiftstory

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/authordeborahswift/

Website www.deborahswift.com

Pinterest https://www.pinterest.co.uk/deborahswift1/

Bookbub https://www.bookbub.com/authors/deborah-swift

Amazon http://author.to/DeborahSwift