Assignment in Brittany

Rating:
Summary: Excellent
Review: Great story of wartime bravery and treachery. Many things stand out about this book, among them the way MacInnes always seems to find the right location for each scene, the sharp dialogue that avoids cliche, strong characters and the action that is never allowed to become gung-ho as in many wartime adventure stories. The fact it was written during the war only adds to its quality.

Rating:
Summary: very early MacInnes WW2 novel
Review: Helen MacInnes became known for her cold war spy novels, but she started out (during WW2) by writing WW2 spy thrillers. Assignment In Brittany is my favorite of these early novels.

When an injured French civilian (rescued from Dunkirk) happens to look almost exactly like a British spy, the spy is sent over to France impersonating the Frenchman. But unbeknownst to him, the Frenchman is really a Nazi collaborator. So he gets more intelligence information than he had bargined for, but runs a much bigger risk as well.

The story works as kind of a cross between a spy thriller and The Return Of Martin Guerre. In particular, the spy falls in love with the fiancee of the Frenchman (an arranged marriage of convenience, not love). But he has to pretend to love the Frenchman's girlfriend, who is one of the Nazi agents. Inevitably his cover is blown, and he is forced to try and make a desperate escape.

The novel was written while France was occupied.