In Farleigh Field - by Rhys Bowen Reviewed February 7th 2017

In Farleigh Field

by Rhys Bowen

Reviewed February 7^th 2017

This story takes us back to early WWII. It is a period piece of WWII fiction that develops from the ancestral home of Lord Westerham in Farleigh Place, now being used as the headquarters for one of the British armed forces special groups.

You never know who you can really trust...seems like a theme that everyone can relate to, and one that defies the ages, regardless of the time. In this WWII story we have neighbors hiding secrets from other neighbors, friends hiding secrets from other friends, and even family members hiding secrets from other family members.

Three of Lord Westerham's daughters, are prominent characters in this story, Pamela, Margot, and Phoebe. Pamela works with code-breakers trying to decipher German codes, Margot works with the French Resistance, and little Phoebe is the one who discovers the soldier whose parachute failed, while landing near Farleigh Place.

There are many sub-plots and twists and turns, but the questions that arise from the discovery of the fallen soldier sets off in motion the story we have. Much of the early part of the book is in developing the characters.

Enter Ben Cresswell, who grew up in the area, and as such, he became the ideal candidate to be sent in as a covert operative to investigate the Farleigh Place accident. Ben is also a family friend of the Westerham family and has always loved Pamela.

As our story progresses, Ben's pursuit of spies and traitors proves to be difficult, especially when it seems as if one of Lord Westerham’s daughters might be involved. Ben seems to find more questions than answers, and it's the latter part of the book where everything takes off. Now, can Ben expose the secrets and unmask the traitors before it’s too late to save Britain from the Germans?

If your cup of tea is WWII Historical Fiction then this one's for you.

Cheers!

*There really was a group of aristocrats that existed. Their goal was to try to make peace with Germany. They were known as the Link. In this work of fiction the author calls them the Ring.

*This MI5 spy-mystery draws inspiration from Robert Harris’s Enigma, the story about breaking German naval code, and Stephen Poliakoff’s Glorious 39 which was about the group of British aristocrats that wanted to make peace with Hitler.