Everyone who knows me knows I usually avoid historical fiction set around WWII, but ever since reading Kate Quinn's fantastic Mistress of Rome, I find myself seeking out every new novel of hers, even the WWII ones. The Rose Code is one of her strongest stories, filled with real history and vivid characters. Quinn focuses on three women workers at Bletchley Park, bringing the park and the incredible machinery & decoding work to life in great detail. The cast of supporting characters is as compelling as the main trio, particularly the other Bletchley-ites.

5/5: A wonderful novel about the ordinary people who played a pivotal role in Allied warfare. Sure to be a hit with book clubs (and for good reason), The Rose Code presents a sweeping story about passion, loss, friendship, logic, and community.

I like Kate Quinn's writing - she is a beautiful storyteller. I was interested in the code breaking during WWII. Unfortunately, this novel didn't grab my interest like I thought it would. It jumped around in time and place more than I wanted to follow and there seemed to be a lot of filler - too long and bogged down on the technical stuff - I lost interest. I found the book to be heavier on the romantic storyline then the historical. I did enjoy learning about code breakers working in the secret facility of Britain’s Bletchley Park. I will continue to follow the author but this wasn't one of my favorites.

Kate Quinn never fails to write wonderful, compelling stories wrapped around mysteries that keep you guessing. I loved seeing how she painted the world of Bletchley Park and the many different personalities that worked and lived there. A joy to read!

This is my second book by Kate Quinn. Our book club read The Huntress last year, and I really liked that. This one was very good too. I found all of these characters fascinating, and I really enjoyed the way the author moves back and forth in time with the story. The story of Bletchley Park is a fantastic setting for this tale. The dialogue was snappy and so evocative of the time period. A great read--perfect for historical fiction fans.

Fantastic story! Three very different women end up helping the war effort at Bletchley Park and become friends. The story switches back and forth from post war- where Beth has been wrongly sent to a sanitarium to keep her from spilling secrets- to during the war and the friendship of the women who are now her only hope to escape. Fascinating historical detail about the code breakers, engaging characters and a fast paced story make this Kate Quinn novel another winner.

I am not typically a reader of historical fiction but we are considering this title for our annual district wide reading program and I was asked to give it a read. I am SO glad I did. My TBR list is now burdened with new genre! This book had everything I love. Deep female friendships, women in powerful unsung roles and just the right amount of romance. The Rose Code really showcased the role of women in code breaking during the war and the might of women doing the same work as men and surpassing their male counterparts. All in all I will definitely be checking out more in this genre and recommending this widely!

Three young women become friends working at the secretive Bletchley Park during the war. Secrets and lies make them enemies but several years after the war is over, they must come together to rescue one of them who has been wrongly committed to an asylum and to expose a traitor in their midst. A fabulously exciting read!

This novel does an excellent job of delving into the world of female code breakers at Bletchley Park during WWII. It follows three women from vastly different walks of life that become friends. Not only is this book a fascinating look at what goes on in the world of codebreaking during war, but it is about the lives of these women as they navigate life during war. There's a nice balance of friendship, romance, tragedy, and drama. The storytelling itself weaves a tale of intrigue as the readers knows from the beginning that things have fallen out between these characters but we don't know why. This is an enjoyable journey to uncover the truth.

Kate Quinn has done it again with her WWII historical fiction. Strong female leads, not exactly spies but working in such secret that they can't talk about their work even with each other. If you are a fan of WWII history, you've heard about Bletchley Park and the Enigma code machines. Osla, Mab and Beth all work there in different huts and each comes from vey different backgrounds. Starting in 1940 and then switching back and forth between the war and a two week span in 1947, we learn how important the women take their code of secrecy and how it affects all their lives, personal and professional.

I highly recommend this book!!

The Rose Code is something a bit different. This novel focuses on three very different women who come together to help the British solve the codes that the Germans have been sending back and forth to their troops, leaders, and such. This book is a mix of a historical fiction novel and mystery. It isn’t a quick read it has over 600 pages. It is really really good. Kate Quin n has a way with writing historical books and makes you feel like you are in the moment with the characters. My sister is a huge fan of historical novels so I went and bought her this book, I know she will love it. Thank you for the chance NetGalley and Wm. Morrow

Thank you to NetGalley for the arc of this book and to the publisher.

I always enjoy reading historical fiction especially about WWII. This book brought another aspect of the war to the forefront. I had not read anything about the code breakers. I admit I didn't understand some of it but caught the general meaning when the book discussed the codes.
The relationship between the 3 ladies was very intricate. Also the revealing of the informer and their involvement with the ladies.
I would highly recommend this book to anyone with an interest in WWII.

Osla, a dizzy deb, Mab, a girl from the impoverished east-end of London and Beth, a brow beaten abused spinster have little in common in the Britain of 1939. Osla and Mab are thrown together through their war work at Bletchley Park. They are billeted at Beth’s home which is ruled by an iron fisted abusive mother.
Mab takes Beth under her wing and recognizes her ability to work and solve puzzles. She makes the powers that be aware of Beth ‘s abilities and she joins them in the secretive war work of the Park. Each of their lives will be changed forever as they become cogs in a wheel breaking the secrets of the enemy. Osla becomes a translator, Mab is a typist and bombe operator, and Beth is an extraordinary code breaker.
Interestingly, each finds love while at Bletchley. Osla with Prince Phillip of Greece, Mab with a World War I poet and Beth with a married code breaker. Death, tensions, and secrets tear apart their friendship.
Years later, Osla and Mab are brought together by an encrypted message from Beth asking for help because “they owe her.” She is incarcerated in an insane asylum and thought to be a risk of revealing state secrets. Grudgingly, they embark on a journey to redeem Beth and foil a treasonous act by someone who worked with them at Bletchley Park.
The Rose Code was difficult to read as the realities of war, death, stress and keeping state and personal secrets inflict pain and despair on the three women. This was a fascinating historical point of view of the inner workings of Bletchley Park following the coded messages journey from it's arrival to the moment of its decryption and translation. There was also the interesting romance of Osla and Prince Phillip which was timely given his recent death.

Kate Quinn is a very interesting and brilliant writer. I really liked how she placed and weaved these women's tales so well, and kept me hooked all throughout. Timelines can always get confusing when time hopping, but these was a very interesting with some true historical details and untrue ones that made for a good book.

If you love historical fiction that introduces you to great characters and centers you firmly in a thrilling story, Kate Quinn's latest is what you need right now. Did I mention it's a historical thriller! I was transported to Bletchley Park, England, the country manor house where allied WWII code-breaking happened and was right there as three unlikely friends, Mab, Osla and Beth, struggled with secretive codes and puzzles, along with heartbreaking family situations and love lives. What a ride! Highly recommended.

The Rose Code
by Kate Quinn
Published March 9, 2021

This is not a short book, but I highly recommend it for anyone who loves historical fiction.
Great book! Just a little longer in length than I usually read. Thanks to NetGalley and the Publisher for providing me an ARC to read and review.

4 star

Kate Quinn certainly has come into her own. Her last three books have been massive bestsellers and just keep getting better. Although I gave The Huntress and The Alice Network each four stars, The Rose Code was my favorite. It’s thrilling historical fiction jam-packed with intrigue, treachery, romance, and the beauty of female friendship. You can’t go wrong with spies and codebreakers, especially when they are strong, intelligent women. I was surprised to learn Quinn is a native Californian; the nuances of her writing, her use of WWII-era slang and fashion made her sound like a Brit. My thanks to Netgalley for the ebook and audio ARCs. Excellent narration by Saskia Maarleveld. 5 stars.

Kate Quinn does it again!
This time she takes a topic (hidden history of Bletchley Park during WW2) adds 3 sassy, smart (and saucy) female characters and voila! You have a gripping novel told through the eyes of these women who secretly and tirelessly tried to beat the Nazis.

The Rose Code opens in 1947 just days prior to the British royal wedding when Osla, a codebreaker who worked at Bletchley Park during the war, receives a coded letter that makes her question certain things about her time at the code-breaking facility. Alternating between 1947 and an earlier timeline which begins in 1940, The Rose Code tells the story of three very different women who work as codebreakers at Bletchley during the war and who then must later ferret out the traitor who once operated among them. Many of the chapters open with a quote from the hilarious (and fictional) “Bletchley Bletherings”, the weekly newspaper that recounts the current gossip; an addition to the book that ties the story together well and provides some fabulous foreshadowing. Chock full of fascinating details about Bletchley Park and the many unique individuals who worked there during World War 2, The Rose Code is a must read.

Not a perfect five for me as I felt it was a bit slow going at the start . The story picked up nicely in the third quarter. The author note at the end was wonderful and I wish I had known the characters were based on actual women and actual events, I may have thought of it differently if I knew it was based on a true story. But none the less, a very enjoyable read!

As with Kate Quinn's "The Alice Network", "The Rose Code" is an expansive and detailed story about what people gave up and gained during war. Meeting at Bletchley Park, Mab, Osla, and Beth keep their work secret due to the Official Secrets Act, but that tears them apart personally. Years later, it's learned there was a traitor among their fellow colleagues and they come together to figure out who. Will they be able to catch the traitor?