Blurb
Can the sins of the past ever be forgiven?
Jake Bernstein is a little baffled when he’s called upon in his position as an FBI analyst to assist Britain’s MI5 with an investigation. Turns out they suspect an American woman of having been a Nazi spy in WWII Great Britain—one who potentially cost many people their lives. It so happens the old woman and her granddaughter are taking a two-week tour of Great Britain, and they’ve secured Jake a place on that tour. So it’s off to the UK he goes!
Meg Larsen thought it would be a great idea to take her aging grandmother on a trip to Great Britain, to revisit places she hasn’t seen in many years, including her ancestral Irish home. What Meg hadn’t counted on was being so instantly attracted to a fellow member of their tour. Jake Bernstein is certainly easy on the eyes, and she feels comfortable with him. As if she’s known him forever. But when he starts asking some very strange questions, she begins to wonder what his real motives for being there are.
Jake’s growing feelings for Meg are quite the complication. Can he objectively carry on his assignment, knowing he is trying to expose Meg’s beloved grandmother as a Nazi criminal? Or will he be tempted to cross a line he very well knows he shouldn’t cross? And for what? After sixty years, can the sins of the past ever be forgotten or forgiven… and should they be?
Review
American FBI Agent Jake Bernstein is working undercover in liaison with the British MI5 to investigate a suspected Nazi war criminal 60-some years after the end of WWII. The war criminal, Mary McCoy Snider, is now an elderly American woman on tour in the UK with her granddaughter.
Meg Larsen and her beloved grandma are en route to see the latter’s Irish homeland, and she’s secretly thrilled when a handsome tourist joins the tour group at the last minute. Romance blooms, but the more she learns about Jake, the more she learns about her own grandmother—and her life is turned upside down forever.
I enjoyed this story quite a bit. The mystery of who Mary truly was kept me turning the pages. Jake and Meg were likable, flawed characters and fit well together. I liked Jake more than I did Meg, but I sympathized with her a great deal. Her life upended when she discovered the truth about her grandma, but through it all, she stayed fiercely loyal to her. Honestly, that irked me, but I understand that you can’t just stop loving someone at the drop of a hat, no matter how horrible their actions and beliefs.
Ms. Del Oro’s writing style was fast yet informative. The pictures she painted of the UK tourist spots and the various places in Germany were detailed and beautiful. Unfortunately, there were some typos, mostly punctuation errors, and the book ended abruptly with a cliffhanger (how do Jake and Meg stay together, if they even do?). An epilogue would’ve been nice.
Anyway, Undercover Lies is an exciting mystery romantic suspense novel sure to entertain WWII history buffs and romance readers alike.
4 Stars
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