Series: None
Author: Veronica Rossi
Published June 23rd 2020 by Delacorte Press
Goodreads Synopsis
A reimagining of the story behind Agent 355--a New York society girl and spy for George Washington during the Revolutionary War--perfect for fans of Tatiana de Rosnay's Sarah's Key and the novels of Julie Berry.
Rebellious Frannie Tasker knows little about the war between England and its thirteen colonies in 1776, until a shipwreck off her home in Grand Bahama Island presents an unthinkable opportunity. The body of a young woman floating in the sea gives Frannie the chance to escape her brutal stepfather--and she takes it.
Assuming the identity of the drowned Emmeline Coates, Frannie is rescued by a British merchant ship and sails with the crew to New York. For the next three years, Frannie lives a lie as Miss Coates, swept up in a courtship by a dashing British lieutenant. But after witnessing the darker side of the war, she realizes that her position gives her power. Soon she finds herself eavesdropping on British officers, risking everything to pass information on to George Washington's Culper spy ring as agent 355. Frannie believes in the fight for American liberty--but what will it cost her? Inspired by the true "355" and rich in historical detail and intrigue, this is the story of an unlikely New York society girl turned an even unlikelier spy.
Goodreads
Review
I received an Advance Reader Copy from the publisher via NetGalley. This in no way impacted on my view.
Rebel Spy tells the story of the unknown Agent 355, who was instrumental in aiding the fight for independence during the American War of Independence. Francisca Tasker is struggling with her grief following her late mother's death, and trying to stay safe with her wicked step father, Sewel, in Grand Bahama. After he attempts to kill her, she discovers a washed up body of a girl who is very much similar to herself, and decides to assume her identity. Now on her way to the besieged city of New York, as the wealthy, and orphaned, heiress, Miss Emmeline Coates, she finds kinship with the dashing Asa Lane, who is a patriot, and makes her reconsider everything she had known about British rule, and slowly begins to support the move for independence. Over the next few years, she lives as Emmeline easily, but is soon caught up in mystery and intrigue, leading her to pass along information she can overhear, as a upper class lady in society. She knows she is risking everything, especially as she is being courted by a British officer, Lieutenant Duncan, but her sense of patriotic duty is too much, and soon she finds the smoking gun, so to say, that will aide General Washington, and the whole movement.
I will admit that I don't know much about the American War of Independence. I adore history - even did my degree in the subject - but being English, it's barely a blip on our radar. I know the basics - Boston Tea Party, General Washington, Benedict Arnold, July 4th and the Declaration, etc. - and had heard of Culper spy ring, but that's basically it. I knew that as soon as this book was announced, I needed to read it, and am so glad I was approved for my review copy. I do have two slight negatives about the book, but otherwise it's a solid 4 star for me. Frannie/Emmeline was an outstanding main character, who grew so much throughout the course of the book - not just through her assuming Emmeline's identity and becoming a society Lady, but also through her thought processing and realisation of the world around her.
Plot wise, it was slow to get into. I wasn't expecting it to take 31% before Emmeline even set foot on US soil, but I see how that was setting the stage of her past and transformation. Once she arrived in New York, and started to see how political prisoners were treated in the prison ships, and the ruthlessness of the British and Hessian armies on the island, Emmeline used the snippets of information she heard from officers at garden parties, especially about the allusive 'Monk', and passed it on to her contact, Townsend. She was really risking everything, and from that moment on, until she is caught, the tension really ramped up, and I couldn't put the book down. The romance in the book was good, though I never really understood the attraction to Duncan, and always wanted Asa to return, and for Emmeline to be with him. Other than it being a slow start, I didn't like the ending, as I felt it needed a bit more of a conclusion, but think it was done in that way to add to the mystery of Agent 355.
Dates Read:
June 22-24, 2020Rating
4 Stars
VERONICA ROSSI is the New York Times and USA Today bestselling author of the UNDER THE NEVER SKY series. She was born in Rio de Janeiro, grew up in California, and graduated from UCLA. She lives in the San Francisco Bay Area with her husband and two sons, one of whom just surpassed her in height. Find her online at veronicarossi.com or on Twitter at @rossibooks.
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