Roseanna has done it again–crafted a fascinating story filled with romance and a healthy dose of intrigue and heart. I think that I become a bigger fan of her writing with every book of hers that I read!
Zivon Marin was one of Russia’s top cryptographers until the October Revolution tore apart his world. Forced to flee to England after speaking out against Lenin, Zivon is driven by a growing anger and determined to offer his services to the Brits. But never far from his mind is his brother, whom Zivon fears died in the train crash that separated them.
Lily Blackwell sees the world best through the lens of a camera and possesses unsurpassed skill when it comes to retouching and re-creating photographs. With her father’s connections in propaganda, she’s recruited to the intelligence division, even though her mother would disapprove if she ever found out.
After Captain Blackwell invites Zivon to dinner one evening, a friendship blooms between him and Lily that soon takes over their hearts. But both have secrets they’re unwilling to share, and neither is entirely sure they can trust the other. When Zivon’s loyalties are called into question, proving him honest is about more than one couple’s future dreams–it becomes a matter of ending the war.
Roseanna’s entire Codebreakers series has been FABULOUS, and I’m so sad to see it end! But what a brilliant conclusion to an equally brilliant series. Roseanna once again deftly brought to life the War War 1 era and all of the intrigue and drama that went on behind-the-scenes in the top secret British intelligence division. In each book Roseanna has highlighted a particular area of intelligence work, and in A Portrait of Loyalty she focuses on the role photography played. It’s so fascinating to hear how “photoshopping” was done before Photoshop ever existed! Talk about some detailed historical research!
Speaking of, as always, Roseanna’s attention to historical detail is top notch. She brings history to life in a way that feels deeply immersive and allows the reader to relate to and connect with the events on a deeper level. This book, especially, deals with some complicated and even controversial history–the Russian Revolution–which must have been very challenging to research and then write in a relatable way. How Roseanna portrayed the Russian characters and the experiences, emotions, and motives that led them to make their individual choices helped me to actually understand this portion of history better. While I cannot agree with their Socialistic views, I could at least understand why these characters (and their real-life counterparts) believed the way they did.
Roseanna mentioned before the release that this book ended up being a very timely story. The social injustices and frustrations that led to the Bolsheviks overthrowing the Russian monarchy felt eerily similar to some of things going on in our world today. And the 1918 Spanish flu pandemic hit close to home, since we are currently going through another pandemic 102 years later. Many of the scenes depicting the spread and heart-breaking effects of the sickness felt extremely familiar. And while some might not like the idea of reading about a pandemic when we are hearing so much about it in our daily lives, I actually enjoyed this aspect of the book. It was interesting to see the similarities and differences between what they went through back then and what we are experiencing now.
I was surprised by how emotional I got over this book, since Roseanna’s recent works haven’t been ones that made me cry. But this one made me bawl my eyes out! Seriously, take my word for it and keep some tissues on hand if you read this!
My greatest takeaway from this book was without a doubt the message of being still and believing that God is in control, no matter what circumstances you may find yourself in. The world may be experiencing a pandemic, nation may be rising against nation, and countries turning inside out as their people rise up in revolt… but God is still there. And everything will be okay. Things may not turn out the way we want or expect them to, but we can trust that His ultimate will is perfect.
If you love historical fiction, especially books set in the Edwardian/WW1 era, you NEED to read A Portrait of Loyalty and the rest of this expertly written series. I guarantee you will not be disappointed! 5/5 Stars!
