Code Name Helene by Ariel Lawson

A fast-moving and remarkable story of an Australian journalist who comes to Europe marries a well off Frenchman and becomes one of France's greatest resistance fighters and little known heroes. Nancy Wake was known by many names, had no formal training in spying or weapons and yet she led a powerful band of fighters with a big price tag on her head. While she always seemed close to being captured and death she never turned her back on a friend, her adopted country or the love of her life.
With a swipe of her red lipstick, she would bravely go into whatever situation was called for and never looked back. Nancy Wake seemed larger than life but Ariel Lawhon tells this nail-biter with wit, more than a bit of suspense and helps us view her as a real woman, not as a superhero. This will appeal to historical fiction lovers with heroic female characters.