Ariana Fitzroy has lost her family and her fortune. The fight for survival leads her to the shadowed card games of court, where she discovers she has quite a talent for slipping cards into her favor. While the winnings are enough to sustain her at present, they will not last forever . . .
Connor Grant, trainer of the fallen women from the English court and personal assassin to the king, is just as broken as the women he trains. After losing his own land and all his people in a brutal attack from a trusted friend, he has no choice but to rebuild any way he sees possible-even if it means going against everything he’s ever believed in.
After catching Ariana cheating at cards, Connor has a new trainee to instruct at one of the king’s many confiscated castles. In the dilapidated ruins, he discovers Ariana is more than she appears and falls in love with her incredible tenacity and dedication-a love that is challenged by Connor’s chance at reclaiming the inheritance he once lost and has sought so desperately to regain.

INSTANT NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER

“An irresistible tale which showcases the transformative power of literacy, reminding us of the hope and sanctuary our neighborhood bookstores offer during the perilous trials of war and unrest.”

–KIM MICHELE RICHARDSON, author of The Book Woman of Troublesome Creek

August 1939: London prepares for war as Hitler’s forces sweep across Europe. Grace Bennett has always dreamed of moving to the city, but the bunkers and drawn curtains that she finds on her arrival are not what she expected. And she certainly never imagined she’d wind up working at Primrose Hill, a dusty old bookshop nestled in the heart of London.

Through blackouts and air raids as the Blitz intensifies, Grace discovers the power of storytelling to unite her community in ways she never dreamed–a force that triumphs over even the darkest nights of the war.

“A gorgeously written story of love, friendship, and survival set against the backdrop of WWII-era London.”

–JILLIAN CANTOR, author of In Another Time and Half Life

“A love letter to the power of books to unite us, to hold the world together when it’s falling apart around our ears. This fresh take on what London endured during WWII should catapult Madeline Martin to the top tier of historical fiction novelists.”

–KAREN ROBARDS, author of The Black Swan of Paris

Don’t miss Madeline Martin’s newest historical novel, The Librarian Spy.

“Readers will be on the edge of their seats…. A brilliant tale of resistance, courage and ultimately hope.” –Kelly Rimmer, New York Times bestselling author of The Warsaw Orphan

From the New York Times bestselling author of The Last Bookshop in London comes a moving new novel inspired by the true history of America’s library spies of World War II.

Ava thought her job as a librarian at the Library of Congress would mean a quiet, routine existence. But an unexpected offer from the US military has brought her to Lisbon with a new mission: posing as a librarian while working undercover as a spy gathering intelligence.

Meanwhile, in occupied France, Elaine has begun an apprenticeship at a printing press run by members of the Resistance. It’s a job usually reserved for men, but in the war, those rules have been forgotten. Yet she knows that the Nazis are searching for the press and its printer in order to silence them.

As the battle in Europe rages, Ava and Elaine find themselves connecting through coded messages and discovering hope in the face of war.

“Uplifting, inspiring and suspenseful, this is one to savor!” -Natasha Lester, New York Times bestselling author of The Riviera House

For more historical fiction from Madeline Martin, don’t miss The Last Bookshop in London.