Using memoirs, old interviews, and past historical record, Loftis recants Samson’s story of fighting the Nazis in riveting fashion, all told with the breakneck speeds typically found in spy thrillers ... Loftis also tells of the romance between Odette and Churchill, who eventually wed, providing a deep dive into her life that not only makes her relatable but also ups the ante for readers as they plow through the pages to see how her story ends ... It’s rare for writers to pen nonfiction and still deliver a reading experience that’s truly comparable to the pacing and structure of a novel. Loftis, though, has mastered that ability, having now served up back-to-back stories of heroism, courage, and patriotism in a way that only he can ... another masterpiece from Larry Loftis, the king of nonfiction thrillers. If you try just one nonfiction book this year, there’s no question . . . it should be this one.
Larry Loftis tells it again for a new generation, reweaving the usual account of her wartime activities into a kind of nonfiction thriller ... Mr. Loftis’s writing is frequently difficult to tolerate. He takes a story that is already dramatic and tries to make it more so with cheesy coats of romance and horror ... Fortunately, febrile prose can’t undercut the sheer power of Sansom’s story and of Sansom herself.
Loftis creates a tense narrative filled with verbatim conversations among more than 30 main characters. Each chapter ends on a cliffhanger, and though the prose is peppered with clichés, the author creates a readable page-turner about Odette’s dangerous missions ... A vivid history of wartime heroism.
