A dual timeline book. In 1942, Pamela Jackson is about to finish school. She is looking forward to going to Oxford University but after a recommendation from her tutor, Pamela is offered a position at Bletchley Park. Having signed the Official Secrets Acts and, as required, joining the Wrens, she sets off with no idea what work she would be doing to help the war effort. All the while having to keep secretes from friends and family, Pam loved her time at Bletchley and build some great lifelong friendships.

In 2019 Julia runs her own successful IT company. She is married to Marc and they have two sons. Her brother, Bob, inherited their grandmother's house and while clearing the property he discovered boxes of photos which he hoped Julia would be interested in researching. It turns out that their grandmother worked at Bletchley Park during the war. After an interesting day out at Bletchley Park with her sons, Julia contacts a friend of her grandmother, hoping that she would be able to give some information about life at Bletchley.

It was great to learn about Bletchley, the work carried out there and the everyday life of those who worked there and lived in Woburn Abbey.

This was a dual timeline story with Pamela, doing secret war time work, and Julia in modern times, dealing with the stresses of running her own business and an unfaithful husband.

The book in itself felt a little simplistic and I was frustrated that Julia couldnt see her husband's cheating behaviours or the fact that her business partner was stealing from her business. I found that element a bit frustrating.

3.5 / 5 from me. Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.

3.5 stars

"The Girl from Bletchley Park" has an interesting premise but I could have done without the two timelines. The modern day storyline didn't really do anything for me and felt a lot like an info dump in several places.

The storyline set in WWII was a lot more interesting, but the conclusion felt rather rushed.

I loved the character development in this book! Really pulled me in and flew through it! Such a good read!

I really enjoyed this story because of the dual-timelines. Both stories were equally engaging and I think this is another great read from this author.

I have recently read a story set at Bletchley Park and I think I have got my interest piqued! This story is about the code-breaking that took place, with mathematical genuises pulled from around the country. Pam is one of those workers and I liked how the writer referenced historical figures that were a part of this significant movement of the war. However, it does not make for dry reading as the plot explores Pam’s connections with those around her, the pressure of not revealing any information and who she can trust. Although I could foresee how the story would develop, I still enjoyed reading about what would happen next.

The theme of secrecy continues in the present day narrative with Julia and I liked how McGurl establishes these parallels between the two timelines. For Julia, life seems to be going very well with her own business being increasingly successful and a seemingly happy marriage. Yet, secrets from her husband, children (to an extent) and work colleague means that life for Julia changes irrevocably. Personally, I think this is for the best and exactly what her character needed; I was satisfied by her story’s conclusion and the optimism she feels.

Along the way, Julia begins to learn more about her grandmother, Pam. Pam’s best friend, Clarissa, wrote a journal of her life and from digital scans, she explores the importance of Pam’s past. I thought this cross-over between characters added further depth to the plot, especially when Julia visits Bletchley Park with her family. The importance of knowing one’s family history is emphasised and I felt this meant that Julia’s grandmother was more alive and relevant in the present.

This was another great read from McGurl and, whilst I have read many historical books during the Second World War, I think the combination with Julia’s life made a really engaging plot and one I highly recommend.

With thanks to HQ Digital and NetGalley for providing me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

I normally enjoy a dual timeline story and have read previous books by this author and enjoyed them. This time there was far too much focus on Julia and her modern timeline and the Bletchley Park element wasn’t developed as much as it could have been.

I found most of the characters in Julia’s story annoying but Marc was like a caricature of a bad husband, it felt really unbelievable and made it difficult to read. I wanted to skip through these chapters to get back to the wartime parts.

What an excellent read. I've had this in my tbr pile for several years and I'm so glad I finally had a chance to get to it. A beautiful time-slip historical fiction novel taking place in 1942, Bletchley Park and modern times. I know when I read a time-slip I usually connect with one of the time periods more but in this book, I've enjoyed reading both time periods equally.
A young married woman, Julia is frustrated. She has two young boys, an inattentive husband, jealous of her being the breadwinner in the family. He just doesn't seem to have the time or interest in her anymore though she tries to hold it all together, cooking, cleaning, being super Mom, working and being there for her husband. Her brother thinks he'll help distract her and gives her forgotten photos of her grandmother during a family clean out after her death. Once she starts investigating, she finds out so much.
Pamela, her grandmother has given up a fantastic schooling offer at Oxford University to become a codebreaker at Bletchley Park. Julia had no idea her grandmother had done this because she never once spoke of this. The older generation kept secrets of this tragic time they were told to never talk about even to family members and their secrets died with them.
While at Bletchley Park, two men vie for her attention, but she makes her choice and the other remains her friend. As Julia finds out more information from her grandmother's best friends daughter things become clearer. The secrets are slowly unwrapped like tissue paper, not too much is revealed at a time. Each story progresses in its time period, I could hardly put this down and read it in one day. Some very surprising events happened to each woman, but these women are strong and have the support of family. They know what's important is not themselves but their family. Heartbreaking but the light shines through with these women's resilience.

Pub Date 03 Nov 2021
I was given a complimentary copy of this book.
All opinions expressed are my own.

A most interesting and informative read, well presented a excellent story line with a good ending.I would recommend this book to anyone who likes a mystery story

I wanted to like this book, I really did. A foray into a genre I rarely go to, the lure of Bletchley Park was too much to ignore.

However, I found this book to be too predictable.

Two timelines - Julia in the present day, struggling against the daily battle of ‘having it all’; of running a successful business and managing the family and the household. However, the plot involving her husband and the one involving her business partner are so obvious, they could have been written in neon. How an intelligent business woman missed it, I have no idea.

Julia’s grandmother, Pamela, is a mathematical whizz who defers her place at Oxford to go to Bletchley Park and make a difference to the war. However, there is a love plot that has the subtly of an incoming Stuka.

As is often the case, I find myself in the minority when I read other reviews, so it may just be that this genre isn’t for me.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read this book in exchange for an honest review.

Powerful and full of inspiring characters!
When it comes to WW2 novels, history, films, drama (you get the idea) nothing seems o ignite the imagination and draws people into the mystery more than Bletchly, even to this day people are still fascinated by what they did there and I have a feeling that what we know what happened there is only the tip of the iceberg, after all, most of the Bletchley girls have only just started telling their stories in the last ten or so years, so who knows what other secrets and intrigues will be revealed over time. It's the mystery and the secrets which surrounded the place which makes people completely transfixed so when a new book appears set in Bletchley all of us who are fascinated instantly grab and devour it and this is a great addition!
I have read this author before and I loved the previous book by Kathleen McGurl so I was excited to read this one too and it does not disappoint.
This is fascinating and inspiring and looks behind the scenes of Bletchly, I loved the story it was compelling and intriguing, it instantly drew you into the pages and you wouldn't let yourself come up for breath once. The characters are amazing; inspiring, intelligent, real, and lovely but with lots of heartache and drama thrown in for good measure.
This book is a duel timeline story, set both in the present and during the Bletchly years and it follows two very different women; Pamela and Julia they share a heartbreak as they have both been let down and betrayed by people they thought they could trust.
I liked getting to know both, but for me, it was the story about Bletchly itself which captured my attention more than anything else.
Overall, this is a powerful and poignant story of love, duty, betrayal, friendship and secrets.

The Girl from Bletchley Park is a duel time novel set in the present day, and during the Second World War. Julie runs her own IT company and is married with two children. When her brother Bob begins sorting through their grandparents house, he uncovers information from their grandmother Pamela’s past that hints at important work she did during the war. The novel also follows Pam’s life as she undertakes code cracking work as her time as a Wren at Bletchley Park.
I absolutely loved this novel and found both timelines equally engrossing. Julia’s life is relatable as we are all busy and our free time is scarce, while Pam’s shows the important work many woman took on during the war. Highly recommended.

Twostories that intertwine very cleverly. Pamela who is clever enough to be working at Bletchley Park during the war but has her own mystery to solve, Julia her granddaughter, clever in her own right has her own company. Both seem to trust the wrong person but thankfully realise in time. Julia wears blinkers where her husband is concerned and Ian her partner at the company. Pam is young and easily influenced. I f you haven't already visited Bletchley Park make it a priority, be warned, one visit isn't enough

This historical fiction novel has a dual timeline set in both 1942 and the present day. Julia is a mom, wife, and business owner struggling to juggle it all when she learns her grandmother could have played an important role in her country's battle against Germany during WWII. Pamela is a young woman who loves mathematics and gives up an opportunity at Oxford to serve her country as a codebreaker at Bletchley Park.

I found this story to be incredibly predictable from the very beginning. There was no question where the story was going and it was difficult to sympathize with either timeline. I think it would have been more interesting if the author had focused on Bletchley Park and given those characters great depth.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the advance copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

This was my first book by this author, It was pretty enjoyable. I would give this book a 3.5 star rating! It was a pretty Quick and easy read!

Another obsession of mine, stories about Bletchley Park. I really enjoyed this book and finished it over a weekend. I liked the 2 time lines with Pam back in WWII deciding to postpone Oxford to go to Bletchley Park and work as a codebreaker and Julia here present day granddaughter. Simple, well written story.

I could not put this book down! If you're a fan of historical fiction then this book is for you. It has suspense, love, thrills, history and more which will keep you gripped from the very first page to the very last page. A superb book!

I was excited to receive an eARC of The Girl from Bletchley Park, as I enjoy reading about women in WW2 and BP code breakers. Unfortunately, the dual timeline of this story did not work for me, and it impacted my overall enjoyment of the novel. Thank you Netgalley and HQ Digital for a copy to review.

This just seemed slow and ultimately lacking in direction. I was left feeling it was all a bit aimless. So much had been left out and it could have been so much more. A shame because I find Bletchley Park endlessly fascinating.

A dual timeline drama set in WW2 and the present day. Whilst I like stories about Bletchley Park, both main characters did not interest me and the narrative lacked a spark. Thanks to netgalley and the publisher for the arc.

A wonderful read and I always enjoy a good timeslip narrative between the past and the present. Great characters and plot. Another really good read from the author.