World War II may be over, but former Resistance fighters and concentration camp inmates Josie Anderson and Arlette LaRue are still haunted by its horrors in the latest novel from book-club favorite Kelly (Lilac Girls; Sunflower Sisters). Josie is undercover, helping the U.S. government track down and recruit Nazi scientists to the American space program, but as she closes in on the sinister German doctor who once experimented on her mother, she has darker things on her mind than aeronautics. Meanwhile, Arlette is so desperate to find the son who was ripped from her arms in the camp that she follows a possibly dubious lead to French Guiana, where both women soon find themselves fighting together to expose Nazis in hiding, uncover their secrets, and make it out alive. VERDICT This well-written and emotional tale of daring women, espionage, and lasting friendship should appeal strongly to fans of Kelly's previous novels, especially Lilac Girls, which shares a few characters as well as the setting of the Ravensbrück concentration camp. This is also a great read-alike pick for the novels by Kate Quinn, Pam Jenoff, and Ariel Lawhon that feature women spy protagonists.--Mara Bandy Fass

Two former Allied spies reunite following World War II in a mission against ongoing Nazi activity in Europe and French Guiana. During the war, American Josie Anderson and Frenchwoman Arlette LaRue lived together in Paris--along with Arlette's young son, Willie--and worked as spies. They sent information on Nazi communications to the Allied forces in London and were so successful that they were known across Europe as the Golden Doves. Then they were caught and sent to the Ravensbrück concentration camp. Now, seven years after the end of the war, they are each immersed in new work: Josie is working for U.S. Army intelligence in Fort Bliss, Texas, as part of Operation Paperclip, interviewing former Nazi scientists to determine if their work would be useful in the knowledge race against the Soviet Union, and Arlette is working at a cafe in Paris and searching for Willie, from whom she was separated at Ravensbrück. The friends cross paths on an unexpected joint mission when Josie is sent to Europe to track down the notorious Dr. Snow, who led experiments on women--including Josie's mother--at the camp, and Arlette travels to French Guiana to visit an organization caring for war orphans on a tip that her son might be there. Kelly's latest work of historical fiction revisits Ravensbrück, the German concentration camp for women that featured in her bestselling debut novel, Lilac Girls, and explores the long-term effects of the war and the ethical consequences of Operation Paperclip. In alternating first-person sections that move over a seven-year-period, Josie and Arlette narrate their experiences in detailed and evocative prose, though the story takes a while to get going given its efforts to develop a detailed backstory as well as a complicated plot. A compelling portrayal of turmoil both personal and global. Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.

Kelly (Sunflower Sisters, 2021) returns to World War II with this tale of Josie Anderson and Arlette LaRue, resistance fighters known as the Golden Doves. Josie is the daughter of an American diplomat and his Jewish wife. Arlette finds herself pregnant by a young German soldier and is handed over to the Lebensborn program by her aunt, though she escapes after her child is born. After being caught with subversive propaganda, the two are transported to Ravensbrück without being identified as the Golden Doves, even though they are revered across France and wanted by the Gestapo. Their paths cross again 10 years later when Josie is an army-intelligence officer tracking down Nazi war criminals and Arlette is trying to reunite with her son, Willie, who was taken from her in the camp. Josie's handler sends her to French Guiana in search of the doctor who experimented on her mother, where Arlette has also traveled in hopes of identifying Willie among the boys in an orphanage run by a French dilettante and his mother. Once again Kelly weaves a fascinating tale of lesser-known heroes, inspired by true events, to enhance our understanding of history. Offer it to fans of plucky women, found family, and beating the odds.

Two women involved with the French Resistance become embroiled in postwar espionage in the intriguing latest from Kelly (Lilac Girls). Josie Anderson, an American diplomat and daughter of a French Jewish singer, works in 1950s Fort Bliss, Tex., where former Nazi scientists are brought to keep them away from Russian intelligence agents. When Josie's assigned to bring in the elusive Dr. Snow, a Nazi physician who experimented on prisoners during Josie's imprisonment at Ravensbrück, she jumps at the chance. In Europe, Josie reunites with former fellow Resistance worker Arlette LaRue, with whom she thwarted Nazi efforts in Paris before they were captured. While Josie chases leads, Arlette meets Luc Minau, who offers to fly her to French Guiana, where Luc operates a charitable Catholic home for children orphaned during the war. Suspecting there may be a more sinister purpose behind the children's home--namely, medical experimentation--Arlette and Josie come to believe that Father Peter, the home's priest, might in fact be Snow. Kelly informs her dramatic narrative with rich historical details, such as the Catholic officials who transported former Nazis to South America. Historical fiction fans will be delighted. Agent: Alexandra Machinist, ICM Partners. (Apr.)