Stevie‘s review of Operation Moonlight by Louise Morrish
Historical Fiction published by Penguin 21 Jul 22
I’ve always been very interested in the roles women have played in major conflicts, particularly – though by no means exclusively – the two World Wars. The work of the Special Operations Executive has mostly been documented in terms of those who didn’t survive, since most of those who got through World War Two, and returned to their everyday lives, stuck to their vows of secrecy, even when speaking with their own families. As each year passes, there are fewer and fewer of them left to tell their stories, so we have to rely on fictional composites to get an idea of what might have occurred.
Betty is approaching her hundredth birthday, when she receives an invitation to join a social group for people who have reached their century. Initially sceptical, she is persuaded to attend by her live-in carer, Natalia (Tali), who has come to the UK from Mauritius to escape her overbearing family and a failed love affair with another woman. At the first meeting they attend, Tali is very taken with Jo, the volunteer coordinating the group’s activities, while Betty is reluctant to join the others in making her own “memory box,” restricting her work to drawing a representation of the river close to her house on the outside.
Back at the house, Tali searches for items for Betty to put in her box and comes across an old suitcase. This contains various mysterious objects, including a handgun, which Betty insists be thrown into the river. Meanwhile, we slowly learn about Betty’s life during the war, from living with her mother and working at a mundane office job, to being recruited by the SOE and leaving home to be trained and then sent into occupied France, where she will aid the Resistance.
In the present day, Betty and Tali continue to attend the Century Society, and Tali grows closer to Jo. She visits the boat on which Jo lives and a relationship develops. As Betty’s birthday approaches, Tali’s plans for a celebration are disrupted by the return of Betty’s son from Australia. He wants his mother to move into an assisted-living facility, enabling him to sell the house and putting Tali out of a job. Tali’s family are anxious for her to return to Mauritius, but she enjoys her life and freedom in England and fears how she will support herself if she can no longer work for Betty. Over and above that, however, Tali fears for the emotional damage Betty will suffer if she is forced from her home.
The story of how Betty’s son gets his comeuppance is poignant, as is the background to his resentment of his mother. Betty’s wartime love affair and her subsequent marriage are treated sensitively, and it is easy to understand why she wanted no reminders of that time for her memory box. All in all, this was an excellent debut from an author I definitely want to see more from. There were a few places where I could have done with a little more explanation of who was doing what, but overall the story was well plotted and gave a great picture of intersecting lives.
Grade: B
Summary:
1944: Newly recruited SOE agent Elisabeth Shepherd is faced with an impossible mission: to parachute behind enemy lines into Nazi-occupied France and monitor the new long-range missiles the Germans are working on.
Her only advice? Trust absolutely no one. With danger lurking at every turn, one wrong move for Elisabeth could spell instant death.
2018: Betty is about to celebrate her 100th birthday. With her carer Tali at her side, she receives an invite from the Century Society to reminisce on the past.
Remembering a life shrouded in secrecy and danger, Betty remains tight-lipped. But when Tali finds a box filled with maps, letters and a gun hidden in Betty’s cellar, it becomes clear that Betty’s secrets are about to be uncovered . . .
Nostalgic, heart-pumping and truly page-turning, OPERATION MOONLIGHT is both a gripping read and a novel that makes you think about a generation of women and men who truly knew what it meant to survive.
Read an excerpt.
