ARC received by NetGalley. Thank you!

A solid historical fiction read for anyone interested in WWII era novels with strong female characters. The Traitor Beside Her follows Justine Byrne, a new undercover operative working in the Washington DC area. When it is discovered that there is a traitor working in the code-breaking department she is tasked with uncovering the truth and stopping the traitor. Her failure will change the tide of the war towards favor of the Nazis. Working alongside her best friend Georgette and a great cast of supporting characters Justine works towards achieving her task and learns more about herself along the way.

Absolutely an interesting read that explores a part of 1940's history that is often overlooked in recent HF books. Arlington was a major area that helped the US win the war but often books focus on the European front. It was enjoyable to read something based stateside in areas that I have visisted.

Highly recommended read.

It's late 1944 and whilst WW2 might be drawing to a close, espionage is peaking. Justine Byrne has just recently finished a crash course in spying; utilising her intelligence, and gift for math and languages. When it appears that an enemy has infiltrated the high-level security at Arlington, stealing secrets from the code breakers, Justine is sent in to work as an undercover agent. It is imperative she discovers the mole before more people are killed, 'Wars are won with information.' But in an agency full of professional secret keepers, code makers, and code breakers, how do you discover who is lying? 'The world was full of coded messages. But how was she to know which ones were deadly?'

'The Traitor Beside Her' is very much like a female James Bond story, complete with nifty gadgets and disguises. The utilisation of other characters' voices to tell the story was a great way to add depth to the story. I would have liked to have read more about the actual secrets and code-breaking going on, as well as further character development. The book ends on a high and it clearly leaves room for a sequel. I thought it was an ok read.

The Traitor Beside Her by Mary Anna Evans is a great WWII-era historical fiction that takes place in the States over a week in December of 1944.

This book has it all: fictional narrative, historical facts, mystery, suspense, intrigue, secrets, wisps of romance, and had me pulled in from the very beginning.

I loved the full character cast of Justine, Jerry, Georgette, Paul, and the full set of secondary characters as well.

The author kept the pace going, the dialogue snazzy, crisp, and realistic. I felt fully invested in this mission myself, and thoroughly enjoyed the experience.

Maybe next time…Los Alamos.

5/5 stars

Thank you NG and Poisoned Pen Press for this wonderful arc and in return I am submitting my unbiased and voluntary review and opinion.

I am posting this review to my GR and Bookbub accounts immediately and will post it to my Amazon, Instagram, and B&N accounts upon publication on 6/6/23.

[arc review]
Thank you to NetGalley and Poisoned Pen Press for providing an arc in exchange for an honest review.
The Traitor Beside Her releases June 6, 2023

This historical mystery hooked me from start to end.
Readers that enjoy WW2 settings, undercover work, traitors/spies, decrypting coded messages, secrets, female friendship, and statements such as “trust no one” will for sure like this book!

Set in Arlington during one week in December in 1944, we meet Justine, whose task is to determine who among the coders in Room 117 is a traitor. But mere minutes into her first day, her disguise is busted by a longtime family friend. With quick thinking from their government team, her best friend Georgette gets reassigned as her roommate, and takes over the false identity of Samantha.

This had exciting elements of purses with false bottoms for hidden compartments, a tiny camera built into a handheld matchbox, pens and pencils disguised to hide a functioning blade, a gun with a singular .22 bullet, and a chamber with pepper spray.

I really enjoyed how we didn’t just get the narration of the main character Justine, but also had perspectives scattered throughout of most of the secondary characters. It allowed this to be well-rounded and gave the reader the opportunity to piece together clues from all angles.

I was expecting a bit more detail or incorporation of actual decrypting of messages/codes, but overall I was quite satisfied with the progression of the story and how everything wrapped up and was revealed. Sometimes the best kept secrets are hidden in plain sight.

With the way this book ended, I feel like there’s a high chance that this could turn into a series — at least, I hope so! I’d definitely read about Justine/Georgette/Jerry/Paul’s next adventure.


“You can’t afford to ignore everything going on around you. You can’t afford to ignore anything. You have to see everything around you, all the time.”

“And if you do decide you want him, do not be fooled into believing that you must want him forever. At every juncture, you must ask yourself whether he is worth what you’ve sacrificed to be with him. And make no mistake, there is always a sacrifice for both parties.”

My original love of reading came from historical fiction (specifically those Dear America books) and I’ve since become engrossed in thrillers. Mixing historical fiction with a thriller was not something I’d read before and as I expected of me, I devoured this read in a single sitting. This was straight thriller magic from beginning to end

With all the action and intellect of a Bourne movie, this book kept me wanting to read just one more chapter! An avid mystery enthusiast, I had several guesses to our traitor, but wasn't prepared for what fully unraveled. And the thought that there just might be another one to follow this...well, I'll be watching this author to see when it publishes. A clean, historic mystery, perfect for curling up with through a long winter snowstorm....

This was a really well done novel, it had a great historical element going through it. It worked in the time-period set and the people in this felt like real people in this time-period. I enjoyed the way Mary Anna Evans wrote this and really enjoyed getting to know the characters. I can't wait to read more from Mary Anna Evans.

"Karl might have been out of breath, but that didn’t keep him from chuckling. “Exactly. But the Navy, all along, felt that it needed its own code breakers. The situation came to a head with this war, with the Army and Navy sometimes forgetting who the enemy was in their hurry to be the first to break an important code or message.”