Name: The Alice Network
ISBN: 9781432839406

Kate Quinn

A USA Today BestsellerA #1 Globe and Mail Historical Fiction BestsellerA Reese Witherspoon Book Club Summer Reading PickAn Amazon Best BookA Goodreads Best BookA Summer Book Pick from Good Housekeeping, Parade, Library Journal, Goodreads, Liz and Lisa, and BookBubIn an enthralling new historical novel from national bestselling author Kate Quinn, two women -- a female spy recruited to the real-life Alice Network in France during World War I and an unconventional American socialite searching for her cousin in 1947 -- are brought together in a mesmerizing story of courage and redemption.

The Alice Network

Georgina :)

Brittney Joy

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Morgan Wilson 

Annika McClintock

“Well, of course I like it. But when people meet our brothers, they don't just comment on their looks, they ask, How do you do in school?' or Do you play football?' No one ever does that with us."

Holly 

“ Thank you for the loan of your girl, Francis." 

 No one asked Eve if it was any trouble. Why should they? File girls, after all, were a kind of office furniture, more mobile than an umbrella fern, but just as deaf and dumb.

“Why is it always about being pretty with us?" Rose exclaimed, still glaring over the stunning view of vines and sky. 

"Don't you like being pretty? I wish I were." 

“Well, of course I like it. But when people meet our brothers, they don't just comment on their looks, they ask, ‘How do you do in school? or Do you play football?’ No one ever does that with us.”

"Poetry is like passion-it should not be merely pretty; it should overwhelm and bruise.”

Featuring an exclusive excerpt from Kate Quinn's next incredible historical novel, THE HUNTRESS NEW YORK TIMES & USA TODAY BESTSELLER #1 GLOBE AND MAIL HISTORICAL FICTION BESTSELLER One of NPR's Best Books of the Year! One of Bookbub's Biggest Historical Fiction Books of the Year! Reese Witherspoon Book Club Pick! The 2017 Girly Book Club Book of the Year! A Summer Book Pick from Good Housekeeping, Parade, Library Journal, Goodreads, Liz and Lisa, and BookBub In an enthralling new historical novel from national bestselling author Kate Quinn, two women—a female spy recruited to the real-life Alice Network in France during World War I and an unconventional American socialite searching for her cousin in 1947—are brought together in a mesmerizing story of courage and redemption. 1947. In the chaotic aftermath of World War II, American college girl Charlie St. Clair is pregnant, unmarried, and on the verge of being thrown out of her very proper family. She's also nursing a desperate hope that her beloved cousin Rose, who disappeared in Nazi-occupied France during the war, might still be alive. So when Charlie's parents banish her to Europe to have her "little problem" taken care of, Charlie breaks free and heads to London, determined to find out what happened to the cousin she loves like a sister. 1915. A year into the Great War, Eve Gardiner burns to join the fight against the Germans and unexpectedly gets her chance when she's recruited to work as a spy. Sent into enemy-occupied France, she's trained by the mesmerizing Lili, the "Queen of Spies", who manages a vast network of secret agents right under the enemy's nose. Thirty years later, haunted by the betrayal that ultimately tore apart the Alice Network, Eve spends her days drunk and secluded in her crumbling London house. Until a young American barges in uttering a name Eve hasn't heard in decades, and launches them both on a mission to find the truth...no matter where it leads. “Both funny and heartbreaking, this epic journey of two courageous women is an unforgettable tale of little-known wartime glory and sacrifice. Quinn knocks it out of the park with this spectacular book!”—Stephanie Dray, New York Times bestselling author of America's First Daughter

A Novel

Jennifer

Easy book to put down. I didn’t care about Charlie’s plot as much as Eve’s. Her character was weakly made. She started off as a math genius and then that whole characteristic fades as the story goes on. Then all she becomes is this wannabe slutty woman who only pines after one man. Boring. Her plot line fell flat. She cares about one thing then we find out the conclusion of the one thing and then she’s boring...again. So unnecessarily drawn out. Yawn. Eve’s story is much more engaging. I wish this book was just about her and not about Charlie. The best part of this story was learning about The Alice Network. That being said, this book does a poor job of making me care about it. This could’ve been so much better. I know that when there are two parallel stories, they are bound to be connected, and though I did not predict specifically the connection, I was not moved or shocked when it was revealed. My least favorite part of this whole thing was the theme of force fed feminism. Women can do things men can do (and things men cannot). Women are strong and have to face the world as a secondhand citizen yada yada yada. I guess if you need to be reminded of why women are not lesser beings, how they can make contributions to the world, and/or why women need autonomy over their bodies, then I would recommend this book.

I liked the dual timelines that weave together and found the characters to be very endearing, if not a bit hokey. Despite the backdrop of war, this book is charming and the ending is lovely. 

Jacqui Spears

Heather M

Really enjoyed the two parallel storylines, easy read, great characters with many suspenseful cliff hangers.

Cassandra Tang

Niza Contreras

This is a dual-timeline narrative in which Eve becomes part of the Alice Network of female spies in WWI, and Charlie seeks her lost relative and enlists Evie's help after the end of WWII. The stories are told in alternating voices.

I liked the timeline with Eve, but the timeline with Charlie dragged a bit and was a bit soapy. Seriously, why were all the main characters getting pregnant while not being married and dealing with that scandal?  That's a trope I don't really like. 

It was a fine reading experience, but The Rose Code and The Huntress were better executed.

Cheri McElroy

This is a dual-timeline narrative in which Eve becomes part of the Alice Network of female spies in WWI, and Charlie seeks her lost relative and enlists Evie's help after the end of WWII. The stories are told in alternating voices.

I liked the timeline with Eve, but the timeline with Charlie dragged a bit and was a bit soapy. Seriously, why were all the main characters getting pregnant while not being married and dealing with that scandal?  That's a trope I don't really like. 

It was a fine reading experience, but The Rose Code and The Huntress were better executed.

Izabela Borges

This book is simply awesome!

The story is complex and catches the reader at every page. Is great how the chapters fall into one another even if the story in them are 20 years apart. It was a great surprise about in the middle of the book finding out most of the big schemas and characters were real people living through all that mess.

I thoroughly recommend it.

Julie Rubens

This was such a beautiful book. I don't really know what to say except for the fact that everyone has to read this book! The way it was written, the characters, the storyline, even the length of the chapters was perfect! And the fact that the story is based on real life makes it even more amazing. 
It was heartbreaking and heartwarming, it was beautiful and terrible and at times it made me was to bawl my eyes out, while other times I had a huge grin on my face. 
I loved every single one of the characters (except for that bitch Rene and the germans obviously) and I am so grateful I had to read this for school! 
Go read this book!!!

Slow at the beginning but couldn't put it down at the end 

Sierra Salman

Patricia Nelson

What a wonderful story. The author does an amazing job of weaving a story around historical figures and events and the Alice Network of spies that were active in the World Wars. We were so fortunate to Skype with the author during our book club discussion, and Ms. Quinn shared how many of the events in the book were things that did happen. The story brings you along with four main characters, one of whom is pure evil, and the reader roots for the good guys at every turn. I didn't feel like I received a history lesson, but I realize I know a lot more about the history of these women than I did before I read this book. Loved it!

Elizabeth Wood

3⭐️

An enjoyable historical fiction novel about strong, brave women serving their countries as spies during both World War I and II. The first 100 pages or so were slow to warm up for me, but I couldn’t put it down by the end. I just had to find out what happened! That being said, Charlie never was my favorite character. I could have read an entire book solely written about Eve and her spy days. 

I felt like Kate Quinn did a good job of melding the historical with the fiction. Reading the Author’s Note at the end was pretty fascinating. I’m sure that Louise de Bettignies was a force of nature in her time. 💕

Andrew John Kinney

The Alice Network is a page-turner, though a little too melodramatic for me. That said, it sheds light on the women who spied for the Allies in WWI, chief among them Louise de Bettignies. I skimmed over a lot of the overly-emotional parts - frankly, I am confident that the women of the real Alice Network were a good deal more hard-boiled than the women in this book. Also, I noted errors of fact, like the idea that the Alice Network was largely involved in spiriting downed airmen out of occupied territory - there is no historical evidence of that that I can find; that was a WWII activity. Indeed, the pilots in WWI were not issued parachutes, so most who were shot down died in fiery crashes. Also, bombing of artillery emplacements does not sound like it was actually a thing in WWI - again that sounds like a conflation of WW2 activities with First World War things, but I may be wrong. 

Okay, that's a lot of criticism; now let me say that the book is compulsively readable, at least it was for me, even with all it's flaws. The author knows how to make the story suspenseful, and I share her love of France, so it was easy to draw me in. And I learned a few things about WWI that I did not know, like the attempted assassination of the Kaiser via bombing in 1915 (there was another one later in the war).

I love Kate Quinn for telling these stories of amazing women. Complex, heartwarming and heartbreaking in equal measure, with masterful storytelling to bring you along for the adventure 

Kate B-L

Mae Erceg

I really didn’t think I’d like this book at all but man did it show me. It lives up to the hype imo due to the complex plot that ties in both womens’ stories and gives them something to bond over. I love the banter, the dual storylines, and the world building of both plot lines. Great book! 5 full stars, I’d recommend and would definitely read again.

I really enjoyed the characters and the plot development. It's a bit long, slow build, but I found it enjoyable in audiobook.

Omar

Bailley Leppert

One of the best books I’ve ever read. I could read 5 more books just of banter between Eve, Charlie, and Finn.

Rachel Kanyid

4.5
Oh my goodness, I loved this. I could not put it down! I loved the characters and the intrigue, and even though it had some dark topics, it was still an easy read! Would highly recommend!

Kristen Claiborn

While I have always been aware that women did play a part in helping defeat the Nazis during World War II, I love reading books about the roles they played. This was an excellent portrayal of how women helped, and it also showed how those women coped with the emotional trauma war played on their lives. I loved how Quinn was able to use friendship as a healing factor.

Jasmine Stanway

DNF-ed this halfway through. It was good at first but the story moves along slowly and things take a turn that I really don’t care for 💀

Sandi King

What a good book. I’d have never picked this up on my own, so that you book club! In spite of the overly tidy ending, a very satisfying read that kept me turning pages well past bedtime.

Laurel Yoder

If you loved “The Nightingale” by Kristin Hannah, this should very well be your next book. Similar and very different all at once. Two very different female characters that I was mildly annoyed by at the beginning but LOVED at the end. It was a beautiful tale.

Kristen Aumiller

Livia

Kindra Flores

Enjoyable! Not much to say honestly- not obsessed but would recommend I suppose

The Alice Network

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