Jennie RooneyRecensioni

Excellent dual timeline novel inspired by the life of Melitta Norwood. Full review on my blog here: http://annabookbel.net/20-books-of-summer-1-2-rooney-torday

The story of Joan, who goes to Cambridge University in 1937, where she meets Russians Sonya and Leo. Once the war starts, Joan is posted to a secret research department working to develop the atomic bomb. The story is told in two alternating threads; Joan's life as a young woman and the "present" day (Joan is now in her 80s), when MI5 comes to arrest her for having been a Soviet spy. The novel is inspired by the real life case of Melita Norwood, although a Note at the end makes the many differences between Joan and Melita clear.

I found this novel compelling, although I didn't exactly enjoy it. Joan was quite hard to root for, not so much (as I had anticipated) because I couldn't relate to why she did what she did,

SPOILERS

but more because she didn't seem particularly clear herself what her motives had been. Was it shock over Hiroshima? Did she fear the Americans? Was it because Churchill didn't keep his word? Was it out of hero worship for Leo? She didn't seem to have any strong attachment to Russia as a country - she had never even been... I related strongly to the passage where her son Nick accuses her of arrogance in thinking it was down to her to try to right such "wrongs".

Joan was extremely naive in her dealings with Leo and Sonya (the latter was so obviously not to be trusted that it was hard to reconcile Joan's stupidity with her scientific expertise). Then suddenly, she sees the potential of the photo of Rupert and William and uses it deviously to gain her own ends.

The moment when Joan realizes her responsibility for what happened to Leo was extremely well done - worth a star on its own. Max was very lovely, although I had a bit of a shock when he forgave her so instantly for betraying him, his work, her department, her country and allowing him to be arrested and was willing to run off with her - he was definitely a keeper.

Thought provoking, but perhaps not entirely credible.½

Jennie Rooney's latest novel, Red Joan, tells the story of Joan Stanley, who, at the novel's outset, appears to be nothing more than an older woman making the most of her remaining years. But there is much more to Joan than meets the eye, and the truth about her past is about to catch up with her. Joan, who worked in a top-secret British research establishment during the Second World War, engaged in post-War treasonous activities that now, more than fifty years later, MI5 has finally uncovered.

Alternating between Joan's story in the modern-day, which focuses on her interactions with MI5 and with her grown son, and in WWII-era Britain, which showcases Joan's life during the War and immediately after it, Red Joan is an engaging story. Joan is well-drawn and the motivations behind her behaviour are clearly articulated. Given the nature of Joan's actions, however, she is not a character likely to elicit sympathy from readers. Nevertheless, readers should find Joan's story to be an interesting one. For me, one of the greatest strengths of this novel is that it illustrates how a woman such as Joan was able to engage in covert activities without getting caught (there were several times I asked myself how the authorities could be so blind), even when it was evident such activities were taking place within her small work unit.

Given the nature of this novel's plot, I found this a difficult review to write as I didn't want to inadvertently give away any important plot points by saying too much about the exact nature of Joan's actions. Keeping this in mind, I will say that I believe Red Joan will to appeal to historical fiction readers interested in the aftermath of WWII, as well as the start of the Cold War.

Note: I received a copy of this novel from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for a fair and honest review.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book. I found it easy to read and I liked the characters.

I really enjoyed this. We meet Joan as an old lady, being interrogated by the security services about her activities in WWII and her Russian friends. The story shifts between the interrogations, her unwitting son's reaction to the questioning, and her memories of her Cambridge University days. At Cambridge she met two Russian cousins who had a great impact on her life and her political views, and when war breaks out she has to handle her views about her country, war and her confidential war work. I couldn't wait to put the whole story together so I was gripped to the last page. It reminded me a little of William Boyd's Restless (another good read)

I really loved this one. It starts off slow but builds and by the end I was breathless. It's a spy story of sorts, or maybe a crime story, or maybe both. Joan is an elderly lady who is being interrogated about her role in the passing of sensitive nuclear information to the Soviets just after WW2. The narrative goes back and forth between the present tense of her interrogation and the past, and the real question throughout is why she did what she did. Was she a Communist true believer? Was she enamored of one and manipulated? What about her friend Sonya? What role did she play? And others? It's a tangled web for sure and Jennie Rooney spins out her secrets one by one. It's intense character-driven suspense. If you like Ben Macintyre's real-life spy stories read this, and read it anyway because it's a great novel.

De Engelse (originele) titel is Red Joan, dat klinkt al wat minder zoet dan Rode liefde. En het dekt wat mij betreft ook iets meer de lading. Het boek gaat over een bejaarde dame die door de Engelse politiedienst verdacht wordt van spionage tijdens en na de Tweede Wereldoorlog. In die tijd is Joan een jonge vrouw en woont ze regelmatig lezingen bij van voorstanders van het communisme. Ze wordt verliefd op één van de leiders van deze studentenbeweging. Als ze bij een geheim onderzoekproject komt te werken, waar aan de ontwikkeling van de atoombom wordt gewerkt, staat ze voor een moeilijke keuze. Deelt ze de bevindingen van haar collega’s met de vrienden van haar geliefde? Of niet?
Ik vond dit een spannend en leuk boek. ‘Never judge a book by its cover’ is een bekende uitspraak en dat geldt ook voor Rode liefde (de foto-omslag is wat truttig). Het heeft een mooie mix van spanning, wetenschap, geschiedenis en romantiek. Door de tijdsprongen tussen heden en verleden blijf je geboeid en spannend naar wat er staat te gebeuren. Het wordt nergens saai, te zoet of te ingewikkeld (al kan Joan’s geliefde Leo soms wat doorratelen). Een meeslepende, spannende roman dus!½

I'm not usually one for historical fiction, but this book captured my full attention from Page One. The weaving together of past and present, new and old revelations, and WWII and the Cold War is quite masterful. (Without giving away too much of the plot: this is the story of a woman whose past as a Russian spy is discovered when she is in her 80s and has thought she'd gotten away with it.) There are a few twists and turns in the plot that are anticipated but others that are complete surprises. I'll definitely be seeking out the author's prior novels.

In 2005, Joan Stanley, an 85-year-old widow and grandmother, is accused of passing atomic secrets to Stalin’s Russia during the Cold War. In five days of interrogation by MI5, Joan relives her days at Cambridge (where she became friends with two cousins and communist sympathizers, Leo and Sonya Galich), and her work as a secretary in a lab researching the components of nuclear technology. During her questioning, she is joined by her son Nick, a barrister who is totally unaware of his mother’s wartime activities.

Although the book deals with espionage, it is not an action-packed spy thriller. It is more of a psychological study which examines how a person could come to betray one’s country by revealing state secrets to a foreign power. The author indicates that her book was inspired by the true story of Melita Norwood, an 87-year-old Brit who, in 1999, was revealed to have served as a spy for the KGB.

Joan is a very naïve girl when she arrives at university. For example, she falls in love with Leo and the two have a sexual relationship, but he never tells her he loves her. Years later, she still “wants him to run after her, catching her in his arms and kissing her in a blaze of sunlight like a princess in a fairy tale, and declare that he loves her.” Her sheltered life until she leaves for Cambridge may account for this youthful naivety, but it is incredible that as an octogenarian she believes she can hide the truth from her son and MI5. She is also not very astute when it comes to judging people. Sonya, for instance, behaves strangely several times and even tells Joan, “’I’m a chameleon. Surely you know that by now.’” Nevertheless, in all their years of friendship, Joan never guesses the truth about this woman who convinces her to aid her cause; in fact, her typical response is to feel “guilt for having worried, even momentarily, that Sonya was not to be trusted.” These traits are not what one would expect in a spy and so are somewhat problematic in the novel.

The reader does come to see Joan as a good person who is torn between loyalty to her country and a need to do what she believes is right: “she recognizes for the first time that she is in a unique position to make things fair. To make the world a safer place. To do her duty, as her father once told her she must.” The justifications she uses for her actions are revealing: “[S]he tells herself that what she is doing is not really that significant. It is how she justifies what she is doing, being careful always to make sure that none of the intelligence she passes on is information that she actually seeks out. It is information that is given to her, one way or another; it passes into her knowledge, and then it drops out again. She shares it rather than steals it . . . ” Despite her faulty rationalization, Joan can be admired for her qualities as a mother: she loves her son a great deal, feels guilt at disrupting his life, and has a strong desire to protect him.

There are some weaknesses in this book. A message is waiting for Joan at her mother’s home even though Joan never told anyone she was going there. Later, a second message from another person reaches her there. Joan’s job at the lab presents issues. Would the recommendation of a British internee in an internment camp in Canada be sufficient to get her the job? Would she have been so easily given security clearance since her attendance at communist rallies was known? Is it logical that a secretary rather than another scientist would go on a trans-Atlantic trip with the director of the research facility at which she works?

The book is not flawless, but it gives one pause to think: Is it possible “to be certain of the things you would do and the things you would not do”? “Where does responsibility begin, and where does it end?”

Note: I received an advance reading copy of this book from the publisher via NetGalley.

Having read Jennie Rooney's "Inside the Whale", I was keen to read her latest novel.

This is a charming story about very vivid and likeable characters during the 1860s. Ursula is an early "women's lib" feminist and believes there is more to life than the stove and darning socks has to offer. She is one of the first to take a Thomas Cook excursion and is bitten by the travel bug. We are also introduced to Sally, an orphan, who is raised in a convent home/school. Her late Mother's employer becomes her benefactor and believes that Sally is destined for a more interesting life than teaching at the convent has to offer. He suggests her to Ursula as a travelling companion and she accompanies her to Niagara Falls with the aforementioned Thomas Cook.

Interwoven in to the story is Toby O'Hara who has inherited his Father's obession with flight. His tale is a sad one and he also finds himself in America, at the Falls, where he meets up with Ursula and Sally when they venture on one of his tethered balloon trips. Not an altogether roaring success for one of them at least!

I highly recommend this book. It is a little slow to get started, but once the story grips you...you won't be able to put it down. I notice that, at time of writing, I am the only person to own this book on LT. I hope this review changes that situation!

This book is about two elderly people and the cruel twist that WWII played on their lives. Michael is an elderly man now. He is in hospital and has lost the power of speech. He communicates by writing on a pad. Stevie is recovering from the death of her husband and living temporarily with her daughter Emily and granddaughter Anna. The two main characters tell their story in alternate chapters. They talk about how they met and fell in love but were then parted when Michael got called up. Neither of the two know about each other’s present day circumstances and we hear them reminiscing about each other.

This tale is poignant and heartbreaking, but filled with a gentle humour. Rooney has written a believable tale about wartime love and the hardships that people of that time endured. She has made the characters come to life on the pages and created a warm, uplifting tale about the power of love.