Good, tense plotting. "Love story" gets in the way sometimes or maybe it's the weakness of the female protagonist. ( )

I believe the 1st time that I read a novel by Evelyn Anthony I was in high school and I've never forgotten her name as this author was my introduction to reading spine-tingling thrillers of intrigue and espionage. I haven't read a novel by Evelyn Anthony in several years so it felt like a treat to myself to purchase another title. I didn't realize until 2012, when I read "The Janus Imperative" that Evelyn Anthony was the pen name of Evelyn Ward Thomas, a British female writer. Her pen name is derived from the name of St. Anthony of Padua, patron saint of lost things. I was also fascinated at that time to learn that one of my all-time favorite movies was actually written by Evelyn Anthony the year I graduated from high school. WoW! "...1971 The Tamarind Seed was adapted for film in 1974, starring Julie Andrews as Judith Farrow, a British Home Office functionary and Omar Sharif as Feodor, a Soviet air attaché- lovers involved in Cold War intrigue."

"Stranger at the Gates" is a story written about post-WWII. On an ordinary day in the de Bernard household there is a woman at the property gates that widow Louise de Bernard never expected to meet let alone invite her into her home. The stranger is the wife of a former SS Officer that is now on trial in Germany for wartime atrocities when he was billeted with the de Bernard family in Paris in 1944.

There are many secrets in wartime not only held by the military but also by civilians that live to preserve as much normalcy as possible for themselves but more importantly for their children. But sooner or later, everyone must decide what side they wish to follow, what side should prevail, what actions should they take during wartime so their consciences will allow them peace in all the days thereafter. This is one such riveting and page-turning story. ( )