The Mademoiselle Alliance
Natasha Lester
Reviewed by Helen
Natasha Lester has done it again with her new book, taken a true story and turned it into an excellent story that shows the strength and courage of the resistance group, Alliance who worked throughout World War 2 with the backing of the British MI6 team to help bring down the Nazis and it was run by Marie-Madeline, a young mother and adventurer who never gave up.
Marie-Madeline was born in France, spent her younger years in Shanghai and at eighteen married and moved to Morocco, helping her husband with intelligence work, here her true adventurous self-came out learning to fly, driving rally cars, then giving birth to her son Christian but the marriage was not always a happy one and when she became pregnant for the second time with her daughter Beatrice she returns to France and here she stays with her two children.
1938 and Europe is on the verge of war, meeting a man named Navarre, who recruits her to help with the resistance group Alliance this turns her life upside down but she loves France, her children and her family and is determined to do what she can to save them all, but her real identity and gender is not known to many people. She also meets a man and at first meeting the chemistry is there, Leon Faye hero from the Great War will also become the man she loves.
Alliance is one of the biggest resistance groups there was during WW11 having sectors in every part of France, but there was danger every day, with the Gestapo moving in there are also traitors who cause death and trouble, will Marie-Madeline survive till the end and how many of the other Alliance members will?
This story is absolutely brilliant so many emotions as MS Lester brings to life the true story of Marie-Madeline Fourcade and showed what a truly amazing woman she was, this story is an heroic story of love, tragedy, heartbreak but above all else such courage and strength as we get to know and love the characters in this story and yes there were many tears from me.
I do highly recommend this one to any lover of a fabulous historical fiction, you will not be disappointed, and I loved it.
Marie-Madeline was born in France, spent her younger years in Shanghai and at eighteen married and moved to Morocco, helping her husband with intelligence work, here her true adventurous self-came out learning to fly, driving rally cars, then giving birth to her son Christian but the marriage was not always a happy one and when she became pregnant for the second time with her daughter Beatrice she returns to France and here she stays with her two children.
1938 and Europe is on the verge of war, meeting a man named Navarre, who recruits her to help with the resistance group Alliance this turns her life upside down but she loves France, her children and her family and is determined to do what she can to save them all, but her real identity and gender is not known to many people. She also meets a man and at first meeting the chemistry is there, Leon Faye hero from the Great War will also become the man she loves.
Alliance is one of the biggest resistance groups there was during WW11 having sectors in every part of France, but there was danger every day, with the Gestapo moving in there are also traitors who cause death and trouble, will Marie-Madeline survive till the end and how many of the other Alliance members will?
This story is absolutely brilliant so many emotions as MS Lester brings to life the true story of Marie-Madeline Fourcade and showed what a truly amazing woman she was, this story is an heroic story of love, tragedy, heartbreak but above all else such courage and strength as we get to know and love the characters in this story and yes there were many tears from me.
I do highly recommend this one to any lover of a fabulous historical fiction, you will not be disappointed, and I loved it.
5 stars
March 26, 2025 by Hachette Australia