Customer Reviews

Blood Moon Over Britain

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Cicely Winterbourne would be just an ordinary file clerk except for the fact that the top secrets of WWII are filed by her. She knows more than any one person should and becomes the most hunted person in England in December 1942. She posses the last piece of information to breaking the German Enigma Code and is not sure who to trust as those closest to her are being murdered. Realizing that there is only one person she can trust to turn the code over to, Cicely sets out on a journey from London to Cornwall.

Special Inspector Alistair Fielding of Scotland Yard knows that Cicely is keeping secrets. He joins her on her journey with the code, and both of them are caught up in the turmoil and espionage of warfare. Leaving a trail of bodies in their wake, both Cicely and Alistair are deep in wartime subterfuge as they risk their lives to keep the code safe from the Germans, Russians, and even spies in their own government. Strongly attracted to each other but still wary about trusting each other, Cicely and Alistair are caught up in a fierce passion during the unpredictable and harrowing times of WWII.

***** At first, the reading of Blood Moon Over Britain seems to be a bit bogged down with all the unfamiliar idioms unique to the British dialect and the WWII time period, but that is also part of the story's charm and the uniquely British expressions do become familiar as the story progresses. From the nightly blackouts and London bombings to warfare espionage, Morag McKendrick Pippin covers all the cloak and dagger aspects of a good suspense novel combined with the passion of a good romance story. I really enjoyed reading Blood Moon over Britain and found it very difficult to put down as I was very caught up in this fast paced romantic adventure riddled with intrigue. *****


Reviewed by Barbara Stabler.

By December 1942 the war looks bleak for Britain as the Americans may prove too late to save them. The rest of Europe has fallen or meekly signed a non aggression pact while the Luftwaffe seems to be winning the air war, the U-Boats the naval war, and the ground front going General Rommel's way. Publicly except for Churchill there seems no hope. However, a top secret project at Bletchley Park has provided a possibility to those involved as the German Enigma Code has been broken and decoding messages 7 has given an edge to the allied forces.

Though the local cops ruled it a suicide, Scotland Yard Special Branch Inspector Alistair Fielding treats the death like a homicide. He interrogates those who knew Graham Mason starting with his cousin Cicely Winterbourne, who works at Bletchley Park. When a second suspicious death related to the Enigma Code occurs, Cicely believes someone wants a secret kept hidden. She wants to trust Fielding who she is falling in love with, but the first law of espionage is trust no one. Cicely risks her life to uncover who would kill to insure that certain secret remains interred.

This excellent historical espionage police procedural contains a powerful atmosphere, which paints an intriguing duality of how the British feel about the war though nothing seems to be going right there is a feeling fostered by Churchill that they will win. The first paragraph above is the scenario incorporated inside the second paragraph by following the professional investigation of Fielding contrasted with the amateur sleuthing of Winterbourne. The romance just adds to the case matchmaking relationship between them. Readers will treasure this finest hour World War II thriller.

Harriet Klausner

Morag McKendrick Pippin seduced me into reading this 1942 historical romance with a one,legged body on page one. Shortly afterwards, Inspector Alistair Fielding meets Miss. Cicely Winterborne when he questions her about her cousin's apparent suicide. They feel an attraction toward each other and the tension, romantic and otherwise begins to rise.

Ms.McKendrick Pippin is skilled in her use of World War 11 slang while characters contend with rationing, blackouts, bombing, fear and each other. She gives a feeling of being there with her vivid descriptions of sight and sound.

Although Cicely claims to be an innocent file clerk, she works at Betchley Park on top secret data which spews forth from the German Enigma machine. This data may result in turning defeat into victory for the allied forces and Cicely lies and misleads like a good spy.

Alistair is repulsed by her lying and cheating and cannot imagine how they could ever settle down together though he feels more and more attracted to Cicely. He does not trust her, nor she him.

Ms. McKendrick weaves an exciting tale of mystery and romance mingled with fear, but the book is laced throughout with touches of light hearted humor.

I eagerly look forward to Ms. McKendrick Pippin's next novel.

I wish more authors would drop away from the overdone and give us something like this! Ms. Pippin provides a few hours of escape. This is a book that will keep you rooting for the "old girl" right up to the very last!! Loved it!!

All over Word War II England, the codebreakers are being killed. These people are able to decipher codes that should help the Allies defeat the Nazis, and losing them could cripple the country. As a vital link in the code breaking chain, Cicely Winterbourne's life is at stake as well, so now she must entrust not only her safety, but the fate of her country to a partially crippled war hero, Alistair Fielding. Though Alistair is attracted to Cecily, he can tell she is hiding something and he hates duplicity, therefore, romance is out of the question. Yet, as the two race to solve the mystery, it works its way back into the picture, though danger presses closer with every breath.

On the positive side, this book is very well researched clearly by the lengths taken to ensure the dialogue will sound true to the modern reader. However, that is also a drawback, as readers like me who were not alive in that time period and haven't researched as extensively as the author will often be forced to wonder what the heck they are talking about, and there are times that context does not reveal the meaning clearly.

Amanda Killgore