A classic noir thriller, worthy of anything the Golden Age produced.

It's 1947 and Elinor White lives a quiet life in a cottage in the Kent countryside. She rarely speaks to anyone and keeps herself to herself, but when out walking, she overhears an argument at the house of a young couple, and spies a pair of rough-looking gangsters outside. Despite appearances, it soon turns out that "The White Lady" of the village knows a lot more about her neighbours than seems proper.

And so the reader is drawn into a dark and dangerous tale of war, torment, family and honour. Elinor is soon immersed in the goings-on of a London-based family - a mafia that that established power over many people, including their own. Along the way, through flashbacks, we learn how a young Elinor was involved in fighting in both the first and second wold wars, and learned many skills which now help her in her quest for justice.

Not part of the Maisie Dobbs series, this is a stand-alone novel, although it features themes from a couple of the author's previous novels. The detail is superb - the occupation during WW1 and WW2, the SOE training and operations, and the problems society faced in the aftermath. Elinor herself is a tortured soul, and she meets others along the way. There are friends and colleagues who may or may not be what they seem, all struggling with past events. The prose is crisp, the descriptions are clear, and the atmosphere nicely in tune with the times.

I was lucky to score a Netgalley ARC, which I thoroughly enjoyed this and can heartily recommend it. The book also features a lovely cover, so I'll be first in the queue for a proper copy when it's released.

Miss Elinor (Linni) White (actually De Witt) is a half-Belgian/ half-British woman living in a small Kent village in a 'Grace and Favour' cottage. She keeps herself to herself and is known locally as the White Lady. Little do her neighbours know that she served in the Belgian resistance in World War I whilst only a teenager and was a member of SOE in World War II. Despite the war being over, Elinor still keeps looking over her shoulder, obsessing over being watched and having multiple entries/exits to her home.

One day Elinor's peace is shattered when the young couple with a small child who have moved into the village from London are visited by the husband's brothers. He is the son and grandson of scions of a notorious South London crime family, the Mackies, and his family want him to do another job for them. Elinor is enraged that these men could hurt a woman and child and decides to interfere, getting in contact with her former SOE colleague and lover who is now a senior detective in Scotland Yard.

Told in flashbacks to World War I and World War II from Linni's 'present day' of 1947, this is a meticulously researched historical novel, as I have come to expect from Jacqueline Winspear. However, the risk with a novel spanning three time periods is that the focus is unclear, they are like pen and ink sketches, lacking the finer details and this is how I felt about this novel. So for example we saw a lot of detail about petrol rationing and cups of tea, but lightly skimming over Elinor's SOE experience.

Also, I could see where this was going from quite early on but it relied upon someone explaining the whole thing to Elinor, who just happened, by coincidence, to link the two stories together - a deus ex machina if you will.

I was going to write a puzzled comment about how this is the third book I have read about Belgium in WW1 in less than a year and went to remind myself of the facts and I see that one of the other two books was also written by Jacqueline Winspear In This Grave Hour and featured the Belgian resistance group known as La Dame Blanche, did she find the research so fascinating that she felt compelled to use it in another book?

Overall, I loved the writing (as always), but I felt it lacked a bit of edge, the ending was closer to a cosy mystery with everything neatly tied into a bow than I am used to with Jacqueline Winspear.

I received an ARC of this book from the publisher via NetGalley in return for an honest review.

Set in the period just after the end of World War 2 with flashbacks to both the First and Second World War, “The White Lady” is the story of Eleanor De Witt/ White , half Belgian and half English, who is recruited into helping the allies when she is a teenager living in Belgium during the Great War.
Haunted by what she has to do to survive she escapes with her mother and sister to London and excels at languages whilst regretting her necessary acts in a time of war.
In 1947 she is living in the countryside after completing and surviving important work in the Second World War where she subsequently meets Rose and Jim Mackie and their young child who have problems of their own. Eleanor resolves to help and calls on some of her old contacts to do just that.
This was a slow burner for me but once I got into the story I was really drawn to Eleanor who came across as brave and daring despite mentally suffering for acts she had carried out during times of war. I liked the way she tried to help Rose and Jim borne out of a desire to do the right, thing despite not knowing them well. The story was told over 3 timelines which ultimately helped to explain the nuances of Eleanor’s character and her motivation.
Above all the book shows that although acts committed in war can be explained and maybe even justified, they remain with the perpetrator causing guilt which does not leave them once hostilities are over.
Thanks to NetGalley and Allison and Busby for my advance copy.

I'm a fan of this suthirs Masie Dobbs books so was pleased to get access to her latest title via Netgalley.
The story has 3 time lines all focussed around Elinor White. We meet her as a teenager in WW1 Belgium. Keen to help her country she becomes part of the resistance movement with her family, we also find her 30 years later in 1947, living a quiet life in a small English village. Meeting a young family thee she feels she needs to protect them when she finds out they are being threatened by a criminal gang. The family reminds her of her time as an SOE operative in Nazi controlled Belgium in 1942-44 and of a terrible tragedy that took place there.

The story is slow to start but picks up pace. The characters are well rounded and believable. I have a feeling this may not be a standalone book and if not I would be happy to read more about Elinor as she rebuilds her life in post war Britain.

They say it’s always the quiet ones that you’ve got to watch… and no truer is that than with Elinor White. Miss White lives a very sedate life in a grace and favour cottage in a picturesque village, and is keen to keep herself to herself. Locals call her ‘the White Lady’ though it’s unlikely that they know her history – or that she’s a trained killer formerly involved in espionage. But there comes a moment when Elinor is drawn into another mystery, that of a nearby neighbour and her family. And not just that: these new neighbours are linked to one of the most dangerous crime families in London. So no pressure on Elinor, then. Fortunately she’s more than able to get involved, but can she deal with her own past at the same time? That’s the problem with going back, it often brings up purposefully hidden memories… A cracking standalone from the author of the Maisie Dobbs series.

I’ve always been a fan of this author and thought this book sounded incredible.

It was a bit slow to warm up but once you got in to the main narrative it was exciting, sad and beautiful.
The only thing that let this book down was the rather predictable ending.
Given the depth of feeling and story that was presented throughout I was a bit disappointed that it ended the way it did.
Having said that, I’d still recommend it as a good read.

As a fan of the author’s other books following her character Maisie Dobbs I was intrigued to read about her new character Elinor White. The book is set in 1947 where a seemingly retired Elinor, living in rural England, comes to the aid of a young couple being intimidated by relatives who are part of a London gang family. As the story progresses we are transported back to Belgium at the outset of WW1 where a young Elinor De Witt, barely a teenager, gets recruited into the resistance movement against the occupying German army. Through such flashbacks we learn how the family are smuggled out of Belgium where they set up a new life in England and change their name to White. Elinor, who had impressed with her courage and skill, inevitably is drafted back into action during WW2 working for the SOE where she meets some of the characters who now feature in her struggles to help this young couple from her village. It’s a fast paced story of good versus bad but in the end it’s not so clear who is who.
If you like Maisie Dobbs then you will enjoy The White Lady and become a big fan of Elinor White. Both are champions of the oppressed and bullied yet they are quite different characters. Whereas Maisie benefitted from having a strong mentor guiding her development from a young age, Elinor has had dramatic life changing events which have shaped her character and there are clearly some scars remaining. I am sure there are further adventures of Elinor to come and it will be interesting to see how her character develops.
Many thanks to Netgalley and the publishers for providing access to this pre publication edition.

With Elinor White and her tumultuous life from 1916 to 1947, Ms Winspear has created one of her most fascinating heroines to date.

A compelling and cleverly plotted thriller that follows Elinor from her traumatic experiences during WWI and WWII to the violent shenanigans of a London crime family in 1947.

Unputdownable from the get-go, this brillant novel simply deserves to be discovered and enjoyed without any moderation whatsoever!

Many thanks to Allison & Busby and Netgalley for this terrific ARC!

In 1947, Elinor White, is living a quiet life in rural England, until she is compelled to protect a young couple and their daughter when they are threatened by a notorious crime family. Elinor’s past as an operative during both World Wars has left her scarred, but will serve her well in the present. But even as she works to neutralize present threats, she faces new threats involving a terrible event from her own past. Will she ever truly be able to work through her past— and put violence behind her. .

Winspear has written a story told through three alternating time lines that eventually merge to create an atmospheric and compelling read. While there is an element of mystery, this is more thriller than anything else. Either way, Winspear has created an intricate and well-crafted plot, with enough twists and turns to keep readers guessing until the very end.

In Elinor, Winspear has created a character who has been shaped by her experiences during WWI and WWII. But while she has been deeply affected, and damaged, by her past, she is also intelligent, determined, and empathetic, making her a relatable and likable protagonist.

Winspear’s attention to historical detail adds depth and richness to the story. Her use of real events and figures from the time period gives the book a sense of authenticity, making it feel as though you're reading a slice of history. The themes of love, loss, and the aftermath of war are explored in a nuanced and thought-provoking way, giving the book emotional depth.

Overall, Winspear has created a story that is both compelling and timeless. I highly recommend The White Lady.

I would like to thank Netgalley and Allison & Busby for an advance copy of The White Lady, a stand-alone novel featuring former resistance operative, Elinor White, set in 1947 and earlier.

Elinor, known as The White Lady locally, is living quietly in Kent in a grace and favour house, when she becomes aware that her neighbours are being threatened by members of a criminal Gand from London. Determined to help she finds her own past affecting her actions.

I thoroughly enjoyed The White Lady, which is more Elinor’s personal journey than a crime novel. It is thoughtful about war and its conditions without lingering on the more gruesome aspects. I have read a couple of the author’s Maisie Dobbs novels and have always enjoyed the apparent simplicity that masks a thorough investigation of the human condition. This novel cements that enjoyment.

Elinor White is a complicated person, not that it is immediately apparent. She starts as a shy figure who sticks to the shadows, but the novel gradually reveals why she is as she is through flashbacks to key moments in her life, starting with WWI and ending in WWII. It is an emotional and difficult read at times and while I thought “you poor woman” I was also impressed at her strength of character. The actions and mentality of the Intelligence Services speak for themselves in not particularly flattering terms.

As I said the novel is all about Elinor and her moving history, so crime takes a back seat and what happens is lacklustre. Little is resolved, which is frustrating for this crime fiction aficionado, but there is a nice touch at the end and a more optimistic outlook for Linni as she is known to friends.

The White Lady is a good read that I have no hesitation in recommending.

A stand-alone novel by the author of the Maisie Dobbs series, The White Lady is a gripping read. The story tells how a female veteran of undercover work in Belgium in both the First and Second World Wars has her quiet peace in the country disturbed when she realises that her young neighbours are being threatened by an organised London crime gang. This spurs her into action to protect their small child and in doing so she finds out more about her own past and finally finds peace.

A different character from Jacqueline Winspear, the popular Maisie Dobbs author. I loved the character and hope to see her again. This book was a pleasure to read, the characters are full and interesting. The dual story was almost like reading 2 books in 1. This book felt comforting and reassuring and like a warm hug. This is how books should be.

Very impressive novel which has left its mark on me!!! Written in three timelines (WWI, WWII, and 1947). Not confusing at all as The White Lady herself reminisces the earlier periods throwing much light on her behaviour, her way of thinking in 1947. As a spy at 12 years of age in the first World War, and again in the second one, I was impressed, but also angered, sad to know how children could be used for the country!!! I can rationally understand the reasons why, but difficult to accept! Her psychological development has been well thought of by the author. My first novel by the author and definitely not the last one! Highly recommended.
I received a complimentary ARC of this novel from NetGalley and I am leaving voluntarily an honest review .

The White Lady is a standalone historical thriller by Jacqueline Winspear, best known for her long-running and very popular Maisie Dobbs series.

The White Lady of the title is the reclusive Miss Elinor White a middle-aged woman living quietly in a grace and favour cottage in the Kent countryside of 1947. A very private person, Miss White enjoys the brief passing exchanges she has with a young family on her walks and when she sees their distress when "visited" by London heavies she decides to step in. That might sound ridiculous but the redoubtable Miss White is a trained killer and undercover agent who has seen violent action in 2 world wars against far bigger enemies than London underworld figures.

This is a great read on a number of levels, with Miss White calling in favours from former colleagues and infiltrating a crime family to help her new found friends,the book tells the story of her exploits in both wars to lay the background for her lethal skills and mindset. The book is a lot more than a gung ho yarn, it's realistic and intelligent with interesting characters and outcomes where lesser writers would have succumbed to stereotypes.

I really enjoyed this book and will be reading a lot more by Ms Winspear

Elinor White has led an exciting life starting in the Great War as a pre-teen as she and her sister are enlisted in aid to their native Belgium. Haunting descriptions of the brutality of living in an occupied country are deftly illustrated. Fortunately for Elinor, she and her sister and mother finally escape Belgium and spend the remainder of the war in London. When the second world war convenes, Elinor is once again called upon to do espionage work for the SOE. The brutality and horrors of the war never leave Elinor and the story is told through flashbacks to her experiences in both wars. Now the war is over and Elinor has retired to a “grace and favour” cottage courtesy of the crown. A young family settle nearby who have links to a prominent London mob family. Elinor takes it upon herself to research the family and ultimately finds connections to her past. Old wounds are healed and a conscience is cleared. No graphic illustration of violence or bad language, but lots of tales of the horrors of war. Not the light read I expected, but gripping and interesting throughout.
Thank you to netgalley, the author and the publisher for an advance copy. Worth reading, especially if you enjoy historical war fiction.