Summer, 1914. Clara, a passionate young London wife and the mother of two small girls, is married to Henry, a manager at an insurance company, but the marriage is not in good shape. Both of them have, in their own ways, given up on it. As the countdown to WWI begins in the capitals of Europe and war is declared, Clara discovers Henry is having an affair with a woman at work. Clara too finds herself drawn to another man, James, a divorced Foreign Office worker, and must fight against both the conventions of the time and her own conscience as they fall in love. But when Henry and James enlist, Clara must begin the long vigil, waiting to see which, if either of them, will return from the fighting.

Aileen has always been certain of a few undeniable facts-black raspberry is the only ice cream flavor that matters, vampires can't be trusted, and her loyalty, once given, is unquestionable. When a late-night visitor shows up needing her help, she agrees without hesitation. It's not long before a pounding at her door reminds her that nothing is ever as straightforward as it seems. Now, with her friend missing, Aileen realizes her simple favor leads to consequences she cannot avoid as she finds herself drawn further into a world she's done everything to escape. As loyalties are tested, Aileen will need to decide how far she will go in the name of friendship. Because bodies are dropping and the trail leads right back to one she holds dear. Will she stand fast in her beliefs or will she be forced to betray another? One thing is clear-her choice may lead to her salvation or her doom.

David Richards is a mid-level diplomat assigned to the sleepy, backwater Middle Eastern kingdom of Kutar in 1983. He spends his days on minor development projects and his nights seducing ambassador’s wives. But when news of a tribal skirmish reaches the capital, Richards soon finds himself embroiled in a civil war as Colonel Munn, a pint-sized, blustery Texan assigned to Kutar, organizes a preemptive offensive against the rebellious forces. After Munn is immediately routed and the rebellion seizes control of the capitol, Richards holes up in the ramshackle Moonlight Hotel with fellow expatriates, determined to ride out the conflict despite the growing chaos and destruction that are heading towards them. This is a stunning and thrilling novel of war and survival from an acclaimed war correspondent.

On the night of the 22 September 1943 Pearl Witherington, a twenty-nine-year-old British secretary and agent of the Special Operations Executive (SOE), was parachuted from a Halifax bomber into Occupied France. Like Sebastian Faulks' heroine, Charlotte Gray, Pearl had a dual mission: to fight for her beloved, broken France and to find her lost love. Pearl's lover was a Parisian parfumier turned soldier, Henri Cornioley, who had been taken prisoner while serving in the French Logistics Corps and subsequently escaped from his German POW camp. Agent Pearl Witherington's wartime record is unique and heroic. As the only woman agent in the history of SOEs in France to have run a network, she became a fearless and legendary guerrilla leader organising, arming and training 3,800 Resistance fighters. Probably the greatest female organiser of armed maquisards in France, the woman whom her young troops called 'Ma Mère', Pearl lit the fires of Resistance in Central France so that Churchill's famous order to 'set Europe ablaze', which had brought SOE into being, finally came to pass. Pearl's story takes us from her harsh, impoverished childhood in Paris, to the lonely forests and farmhouses of the Loir-et-Cher where she would become a true 'warrior queen'. Shortly before Pearl's death in 2008, the Queen presented her with a CBE in Paris. While male agents and Special Force Jedburghs received the DSO or Military Cross, an ungrateful country had forgotten Pearl. She had been offered a civilian decoration in 1945 which she refused, saying 'There was nothing civil about what I did.' But what pleased her most was to receive her Parachute Wings, for which she had waited over 60 years. Two RAF officers travelled to her old people's home and she was finally able to pin the coveted wings on her lapel. Pearl died in February 2008 aged 93.

MACMEANS/TROUBLE WITH MOONLIGHT

Fun historical book

The sequel “Hong Kong by Moonlight” reveals how a segment of this group of misfits handles themselves as outcasts and how they draw others into their cause. Those in similar situations due to personal circumstances befriend them, as they continue to unveil the painful facts of their sorted past and perhaps their future. Let us just pray that this assemblage remembers the words of an oath, written by the priest to prick their hearts with a spiritual intervention lesson, while attempting to improve their relationship with the Divine One and each other. Amen.