Betty is a lovely and interesting character and I loved this story split between past and present. A fascinating story that I thoroughly enjoyed as it's well written and well plotted.
Recommended.
Many thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for this ARC, all opinions are mine

Brilliant! Just a wonderful tale that was so heart warming but gripping as the dual timelines revealed secrets. I loved it.

More than a novel this is a historical story. Operation Moonlight is about Betty, who is one of the countless people who risked their lives in secret operations during WW2, as she reaches her 100th birthday. Set over two timelines this tells her story. An informative read.
Thank you to NetGalley and Random House UK for the advance copy of this book.

Operation Moonlight is the first book I have read by Louise Morrish and I really enjoyed it. The dual narrative follows Elisabeth in 1940s wartime Britain and France, and then as she approaches her 100th birthday in 2018, with her Mauritian carer Tali.
Bilingual Elisabeth is approached by the War Office to join the SOE for 'dangerous and isolating' work in France.
The story is fast paced and switches back to the present just as you are wondering what will happen next! I found myself reading late into the night having originally just told myself 'one more chapter'!
I thought Morrish's skillful weaving of the love stories and well drawn characters gave the story a hugely authentic feel. Her descriptions of the cold, rationed world of war-torn Northern France made me feel like I was there too.
Operation Moonlight goes beyond just another historical fiction tale of a woman in WWII to a real page-turning literary account which was a pleasure to read. Well done Louise Morrish - more like this please!
Many thanks to Netgalley and the publishers for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

What a brilliant book! It caught my attention from the start and kept me wanting to read more. I never thought about the many different types of sacrifices people made and how important all the roles were. Just ordinary people put in situations to help our country. I would recommend this book to everyone.

This is the story of two strong ,independent ,courageous women ,Tali from Mauritius and Betty from Guildford.
In this century Tali cares for and protects Betty from the challenges of old age and her obnoxious,grasping son Leo.

Tali discovers that Betty was a former SOE agent.The training of these incredibly brave women and their existence in wartime France is very well described.At the time their survival was calculated at 50%in the grim conditions in France, where really they could not trust anybody at all.

Both women triumph.Tali protects Betty,standing up for herself and her sexuality despite her family and peer pressure.

A lovely well constructed novel.

Told between present day and the last years of the Second World War, we follow newly trained agents as they are parachuted into France as well as the people around them in the present time. The selection and training of agents is detailed and it is only as we get over a third in do we see what happened in war time France. What was great was that we saw the minute details of day to day life and how agents were living and trying to blend in. We see the nicotine stained fingers, the soft mouldy potatoes and the joy that a fresh cabbage can bring. We also see what happens when an agent is captured and the lives that can be ruined through self preservation and betrayal.

Betty lives in her family home with her cater Talia. Betty is about to reach the milestone of her 100th birthday.

However Betty had a secret live during WW11 where y she was a spy in France.

The story is split evenly between 2018 and her time training and being a spy

A lovely story, and easy to read ... thoroughly enjoyed it!

OPERATION MOONLIGHT by Louise Morrish
BOOK - 448 pages
Published date: 21 July 2022

I was looking forward to reading this novel and I wasn't disappointed! I enjoyed the writing style, the details, descriptions and characters. The story moves back and forth from 1944 to 2018. Some characters I liked, others I did not. I found the novel well researched.

I would recommend this book, which will stay with me for a while if not forever.

I give a 4 star rating

I WANT TO THANK NETGALLEY FOR THE OPPORTUNITY OF READING AN ADVANCED COPY OF THIS BOOK FOR AN HONEST REVIEW

A really engrossing read told in two timelines. Betty is approaching her 100th birthday when her carer Tali takes her along to the Century Society to create a memory box. Betty is reluctant to open up but when Tali finds an old suitcase of Betty’s belongings it raises some interesting questions about Betty’s past. In the historical thread (my favourite part of the book) we follow a young lady called Elisabeth who is recruited into the Special Operations Executive, a secret British organisation put together to sabotage the Nazis in occupied Europe during WW2. Both threads worked perfectly together as Betty’s history is revealed and the story came to a neat and satisfying end. It was evident how much research the author had done and it blew my mind to think how the SOEs were trained in such short time and how terribly scary it must have been to be out there doing what they did and to have to come back home and slot back into their original lives without being able to tell anyone what they had been through. They were absolute heroes. Reading the book definitely made me want to find out more about those women.

Thank you for allowing me to read this new book. I enjoyed reading it and was quickly absorbed into the story of Elisabeth. She was the daughter of a French mum, living I England during the 2nd World War recuited for her dual language skills to serve on secret operations. The story is told as she approaches her 100th birthday from her memories as her carer, Tali takes her along to the local Centurian Club.
The story was told from a different view to others I have read recently set in the same period. It is worth reading if you enjoy historical fiction.

I found this book hard to get into. I was reading it mainly for the S.O.E part of the story and this took quite a while to get going. Once it did come into it I found the story picked up a lot.
However, I never took to Elizabeth in either time line. It's nothing I could put my finger on I just had no empathy for her. She did have a lovely relationship with her Carer, Tali who certainly had her own problems.
There's an episode that takes place in France and while I had a slight inkling of what might happen it still came as a surprise to me. This part of the book could have been fleshed out more. It could have done with more tension and the mission was a bit too simple.
It's still a very good read. I've read lots about the S.O.E and you can tell the author has done her research thoroughly.

A thoroughly engaging historical novel. Operation Moonlight is about Betty as she reaches her 100th birthday. But Betty is no ordinary woman. As the book flips between WW2 and the present day, we find that she is one of those unsung heroes of the war; one of the countless people who risked their lives in secret operations.

I enjoyed the historical aspect of the novel, but for me the real treat is the interaction between Betty and her Mauritian carer, Tali. Older people are often written as one-dimensional characters but here Morrish expertly writes about a woman who is still very much the person she always was despite her age. I feel like we're quick to dismiss people as just old without considering the lives they've led, the things they've done, but here Betty is still so vital.

A real page turner and truly enjoyable.

I loved everything about this book, which is set during WW2 and the present day. The relationship between Betty and her carer as she reaches her 100th birthday is beautifully written. The story of the important work this lady did in the war is fascinating, how often do we see an older person not appreciating their history. A beautifully written book with interesting support characters, although her son is not a very nice character

I really loved this book by Louise Morrish. it was well written and captivating. It was full of interesting detail about the Second World War and was really moving and well researched.

What a lovely little book, it did flip from 1944 to current time but that was not a problem. Towards the end I thought I had missed a chunk, but after going back realised the book had jumped forward alot.would recommended for a good light read.

This WW2 book starts well with young, secretary, French speaking Elizabeth recruited by the SOE to help the British war effort in France. The book then switches back and forth to her life back in England, at the age of 100 joining a Centurion Club encouraged by her carer, Tali.

A satisfying read but I was expecting more WW2 stories rather than the present day. I therefore felt frustrated
and lost interest quite quickly. That being said, the present day relationship between Elizabeth and her Mauritian born carer was enjoyable and engaging.

Thanks to Net Galley and random House UK Cornerstone for the chance to read and review.

Free courtesy of Netgalley.

Really enjoyed this book, it took a bit to get into bit once I had established the characters it was an easy read.

Elizabeth/Madam Betty is recruited by the SOE to work in occupied France as a spy. As her mother is French, and her dual language they feel she is the ideal candidate.

The story is split between 1944 when she is being trained as a spy and the operation that she has to take part in in France and when she is just about to turn 100 years old, with her carer, Natalia, who is from Mauritius. Natalia convinces Madam Betty to join the Centaurian club, where she meets others in her age group.

It is a wonderful story based in the stories of real women who were recruited into the SOE and told never to talk about what they did.

I would certainly recommend the book to anyone who likes WW2 stories.

A fairly engaging read set in two different times, 1944 and present day. It almost felt like two separate books with the present day flowing along quite nicely but the past sections seemed to be slightly stilted and lacked substance. The present day with Betty, an old lady nearing her century, and her carer Tali was quite quirky with many light moments. In contrast, younger Betty or Elisabeth was in darker times being involved in the SOE operations in France. A number of different relationships bubbling in the background especially in the modern era which kept the interest and were quite heartwarming.

A little predictable in parts but certainly worth a read.

With Operation Moonlight, it does what it says on the box. It’s your standard dual time SOE book. I enjoyed the relationship between Talli and Mme Betty, but felt the SOE parts felt a bit distanced without the dramatic tension that would flesh them out. There was a moment where I thought it was going to surprise me, but it then settled back!
A perfectly good read, but I am quite fussy with this genre.