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artemisienne's review
4.0
A solid 4.5, rounded down.
I picked up The Spy Who Loved last year at the annual Big Bad Wolf book festival in my city. When I first saw the book and read the blurb, I thought, a true story about a woman who was a spy in WWII with a history of seducing every man she came across? Sign me up! At the time, I was looking to widen my horizons to non-fiction books, but so far I had only read psychology-related ones. A non-fic that read like the most thrilling spy fiction novel was the perfect starter for me.
Alas, like a true bookworm, I forgot about the book once it was added to my TBR pile, and only just remembered it after I read my last book, The Da Vinci Code, and was looking for another good thriller.
Due to my inexperience with biographies of historical figures, I didn't quite know what to expect with this one. Even so, The Spy Who Loved exceeded my expectations. Written in a clear and comprehensive manner, I was able to plot out Christine's life chronologically and juxtapose it with the timeline of the war. Considering how many sources Mulley used to corroborate stories and events, I am very much impressed with the way she was able to construct a narrative that provided readers with context into the cultural, historical, and military happenings at almost every part of Christine's life.
Despite the factual basis of Mulley's timeline in the book, The Spy Who Loved is not just a massive fact dump, although sometimes the introduction of many names at once can overwhelm a reader. In fact, one of the best parts of the book for me was the way Mulley conveyed the vivid emotions felt by Christine and those she closely worked with during various times in the war. I could feel the frustration, resignation, betrayal, determination, and whatever other emotion that Christine strongly felt at every roadblock she encountered. The last chapter was one of my favourites in the book, simply because it read like the climax of the reveal of a murder mystery: Christine's own murder. Reading it felt like watching a snowball roll down a hill, picking up speed and size as it rolled to finally hit you at full force.
It took me over a week to finish the book even though it wasn't too long because there was so much to process on each page, but because of this, I felt like I knew the main characters so well, to the point where I felt angered and heartbroken at Christine's post-war circumstances and her death and touched at the determination and respect that Andrzej and the rest of the men that formed the committee to protect Christine's name and reputation had for her. Honestly, I wish Christine's story was told more, but like the committee, I know that more publicity will bring on those that hate on and portray Christine as less than she is. The Spy Who Loved was, I think, a fair portrayal of Christine: adventurous, full of life, courageous, fiercely patriotic, unapologetic, loving, gentle, and flawed. It didn't demonise or worship her, but it gave readers a balanced account of her as a person, with as many weaknesses as she has strengths.
The Spy Who Loved is a great book for fans of spy thrillers, historical (WWII) fic and non-fic, and even feminist lit. Christine's story deserves to be heard, and everyone deserves to hear about her.
I picked up The Spy Who Loved last year at the annual Big Bad Wolf book festival in my city. When I first saw the book and read the blurb, I thought, a true story about a woman who was a spy in WWII with a history of seducing every man she came across? Sign me up! At the time, I was looking to widen my horizons to non-fiction books, but so far I had only read psychology-related ones. A non-fic that read like the most thrilling spy fiction novel was the perfect starter for me.
Alas, like a true bookworm, I forgot about the book once it was added to my TBR pile, and only just remembered it after I read my last book, The Da Vinci Code, and was looking for another good thriller.
Due to my inexperience with biographies of historical figures, I didn't quite know what to expect with this one. Even so, The Spy Who Loved exceeded my expectations. Written in a clear and comprehensive manner, I was able to plot out Christine's life chronologically and juxtapose it with the timeline of the war. Considering how many sources Mulley used to corroborate stories and events, I am very much impressed with the way she was able to construct a narrative that provided readers with context into the cultural, historical, and military happenings at almost every part of Christine's life.
Despite the factual basis of Mulley's timeline in the book, The Spy Who Loved is not just a massive fact dump, although sometimes the introduction of many names at once can overwhelm a reader. In fact, one of the best parts of the book for me was the way Mulley conveyed the vivid emotions felt by Christine and those she closely worked with during various times in the war. I could feel the frustration, resignation, betrayal, determination, and whatever other emotion that Christine strongly felt at every roadblock she encountered. The last chapter was one of my favourites in the book, simply because it read like the climax of the reveal of a murder mystery: Christine's own murder. Reading it felt like watching a snowball roll down a hill, picking up speed and size as it rolled to finally hit you at full force.
It took me over a week to finish the book even though it wasn't too long because there was so much to process on each page, but because of this, I felt like I knew the main characters so well, to the point where I felt angered and heartbroken at Christine's post-war circumstances and her death and touched at the determination and respect that Andrzej and the rest of the men that formed the committee to protect Christine's name and reputation had for her. Honestly, I wish Christine's story was told more, but like the committee, I know that more publicity will bring on those that hate on and portray Christine as less than she is. The Spy Who Loved was, I think, a fair portrayal of Christine: adventurous, full of life, courageous, fiercely patriotic, unapologetic, loving, gentle, and flawed. It didn't demonise or worship her, but it gave readers a balanced account of her as a person, with as many weaknesses as she has strengths.
The Spy Who Loved is a great book for fans of spy thrillers, historical (WWII) fic and non-fic, and even feminist lit. Christine's story deserves to be heard, and everyone deserves to hear about her.
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