This is a lovely story which quickly had me turning the pages.. Maggie, is lovely and a very brave young woman.. The story is set in a old manor house just outside of London during World War 2 which is well described and makes you want to find it in real life ! . The story is well written and I thoroughly enjoyed it.
Thanks to NetGalley and HQ, HQ Digital for the early read

I don’t usually read books about wartime but I am really glad that I did. It was really good and I didn’t want to put it down! Well written.

I enjoyed this book but felt it could have been much more! The story's main character, Maggie, leaves blitzed London to work with her relocated company in the Cotswolds. From the book's description, Maggie is supposedly upset with the disappearance of her German-born mother and the evacuation of her younger sister to the countryside. These two seemingly prominent storylines fell flat, in my opinion. Maggie's boss makes a few phone calls and the missing mom is found and Maggie takes a bike ride to visit her sister and she's also okay - and the chapter's not yet over! But hey, let's throw in a bunch of quirky characters and call it a book! Not bad, not great - but so much wasted potential!

I was gifted this advance copy by NetGalley and was under no obligation to provide a review.

<img src="https://www.netgalley.com/badge/358a5cecda71b11036ec19d9f7bf5c96d13e2c55" width="80" height="80" alt="100 Book Reviews" title="100 Book Reviews"/>,#<img src="https://www.netgalley.com/badge/ef856e6ce35e6d2d729539aa1808a5fb4326a415" width="80" height="80" alt="Reviews Published" title="Reviews Published"/>,#<img src="https://www.netgalley.com/badge/aa60c7e77cc330186f26ea1f647542df8af8326a" width="80" height="80" alt="Professional Reader" title="Professional Reader"/>, #FB,#NetGalley,#GoodReads,#Instagram,#Amazon.co.uk,This Book is full of delightful characters, it embodies the warmth & strength of those from the East End of London during the Blitz ,it shows the true depth of friendship & the willingness to help one another no matter what walk of life you came from. It is just a delicious book to read & I highly recommend it .

An absolutely emotional and heartwarming tale of two sister during wartime, and a very old family secret. I thoroughly enjoyed this book!

It is WW2 and Maggie takes a new job at Rosman's Merchant Bank. On her first morning she is late because the siren goes and she gets stuck on her bus. When she arrives at work she finds the whole bank is planning to move to the country for the duration of the war. Maggie is sure she will not be able to go as her overbearing and bullying father will not allow her to leave. Her mother, who is German, has already been taken away by the authorities and Maggie is tasked with looking after her father and running the house. At the last minute however, she finds the courage to leave and makes a last minute dash to the station, jumping on the train as it leaves the station.
Life at Snowden Hall is very different to Maggie's previous life in the east end of London. She makes friends with Charity, a very well heeled land girl and with Ray Maguire, the happy-go-lucky bank employee who helped get on the train. Ray helps Maggie meet up with her sister Violet who has been evacuated to a farm not to far away. Meanwhile a secret project being undertaken by Lord Ashford threatens to reveal Maggie's German roots, until she comes to realise that she can actually help the war effort with her understanding of the German language.
This a happy, heartfelt story based on some true happenings in the past. The writing style makes easy reading and the story bowls along at pace.
With thanks to Netgalley and HQ for a chance to read an arc in return for a honest review.

A wartime book wth an interesting angle of the bank staff being moved to the countryside to avoid the blitz. Good likable characters, interesting story. The book finished a bit abruptly though. Maybe there will be a sequel?

An easy and informative read set during world war 2 about a bank which relocated from London to the countryside taking with them their employees .
The main basis of the story is around Maggie who is half German and comes from the east end and her friendships with her co workers

This is my first book by Helen Yendall and it’s a brilliant introduction to her work, I liked her in-depth historical details which run smoothly side by side with the enlightening and very interesting story of a young woman who has found herself in the midst of something, with so many secrets which are swirling around her head she must do all she can to protect her family.

I loved the sound of this book from the moment I set eyes I knew that this was a book that I really wanted to read, and it didn’t disappoint. This is all about family, despite the setting and the intriguing subplot which easily entwines Maggie’s own story this is fundamentally all about family, it poses questions and eventually gives the answers as you read, which keep you engaged throughout.

During the blitz in London as a bank employee; Maggie has been transferred from London and sent to Snowden Hall, which Maggie is told is the bank’s base during these uncertain and dangerous times. But it soon becomes clear that all is not exactly what it seems at the hall, there is a secret lurking in the very shadows of the estate and the building a secret that could put Maggie in danger. On top of that a more pressing matter arises for Maggie, her mother who is German has been taken and is now interred for being German, on tp of that her sister Violet who has been evacuated brings another concern for Maggie as the letter’s she is receiving holds hints that all is not as it should be.

As you can imagine, Maggie has a lot on her shoulders, there is danger at every corner there is lots os intrigue and you feel Maggie’s worry over her family and you can certainly resonate with her and then there is what is going on at Snowden Hall which keeps you guessing and keeps you hooked and because of that this book pulls the reader into Maggie’s world from the first page, I was completely invested into Maggie’s story.

A Wartime Secret is a wonderfully, engaging and highly enjoyable story. It’s full of intrigue and atmosphere of the time, with lots of drama, hidden secrets hiding in plain sight and a mountain of emotion this is a must-read for anyone who loves their WW2 fiction.

Lovely WW2 book that is a lighter read than a lot of this era but still with a very interesting story that is apparently based on a true story. Maggie is a great character who defies her father to follow her job and goes to live in the Cotswolds as her mother has been imprisoned for being German, a secret that she wishes to keep, and finds out that she is close to where her little sister had been evacuated, can she find her. Good interesting read that certainly kept my attention

A war-time romance with a twist. Loved this story based on true events. When Maggie gets a job in a bank, it is promptly relocated to rural Snowden Hall, where her knowledge of German proves to be very useful. Maggie is glad to get away from her bully of a father but misses her younger sister, who has been evacuated. She also worries about her German mother, who has been interned. A warm and thoughtful story that makes you realise how disruptive WWII was for so many people in different ways.

I enjoyed reading this book set during the war. Its got a bit of everything and is a good and interesting read. Quite the rollercoaster of emotions. Maggies mother was German and had been detained just for being German. Her father was typical of the time and thought the rest of the family should stick together. When she goes for an interview at the bank, its revealed that they are relocating to Snowden Hall. Her father refuses to give her permission. But with her sister recently evacuated Maggie had to leave to be near her, much to her fathers anger.

I found life a Snowden Hall entertaining and found out after reading that this was based on a true event. Well researched and well written. If you love the history of the war then you will love this book.

Maggie Corbett lives in the east end of London with her overbearing, bullying father. Her German mother was recently arrested at the house and taken away by police. Maggie has no idea where she has been taken to but her mothers parting words were ‘look after Vi’. Violet is Maggie’s young sister who is now evacuated to the country for safety.
On the day that Maggie starts her new job at Rosmans Merchant bank the owner, Lord Ashford announces that he intends to move the business and all the employees to his country home Snowden Hall away from the constant bombing of the east end. Her father forbids her to go but she defies him. Snowden Hall is set in the beautiful Cotswolds a very different world to the one Maggie has been used to. She soon learns that her sister Vi is only 20 miles away and with the help of one of her work superiors Ray she makes plans to visit. She is closely guarding the secret that her Mother is German and that she speaks the language fluently. A new project that she becomes involved in with Lord Ashford threatens to uncover that secret.
This is a nice easy read and a must for fans of WW11 stories. It has everything I enjoy in a book. Intrigue, romance, adventure and true friendship. Highly recommended.
Many thanks to Team HQ, Netgalley for the opportunity to read and review and to discover another author

Last year I read (and found thoroughly riveting) the non-fiction book Our Uninvited Guests: The Secret Lives of Britain’s Country Houses 1939-1945 by Julie Summers and so I was interested to read a fictional story inspired by one of those houses. I wouldn’t myself have described this book as ‘gripping’ and I did think from the book blurb that it was going to be more adventurous than it actually turned out to be. I think as a novel it was slightly underwhelming, however it was eminently readable and evoked the flavour of the war years and I think many readers will enjoy it. A clean wholesome read.
I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book from NetGalley. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

I felt that this book replicated a lot of previous stories about WW2. I wanted to hear more about Maggie’s German mother. How did she meet Maggie’s father? What was life like for her on the Isle of Man? Although it was an enjoyable read it could have been much more.

An enjoyable, light read based around a bank which was moved to the country. Various characters but a rather weak storyline. Nevertheless, a fairly easy to read book.

Gorgeous story. I really enjoyed it.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publishers for the chance to read this book.

I thought this book would be a good read but, unfortunately nothing much happens in this book and I got very bored with it. Such a shame. My thanks to Netgalley and the publishers for giving me the opportunity to read this book in return for an honest review.

Loosely based on historical events — an actual bank that took refuge at a British country estate during WWII and continued functioning as a business — A Wartime Secret is a rather light read, if novels set during a world war can be considered light.

The plot is uncomplicated, and don’t be misled by the title, as the reader won’t be caught up in a big mystery with any twists. The secret is laid out pretty clearly from the beginning; young cockney-bred Maggie Corbett is offered a chance to escape both the air raids of London and her domineering father when the bank she works for relocates to the country estate of the owner, Lord Ashford, with all employees in tow. Maggie is also hoping to be close enough to check on her little sister, Violet, evacuated to the countryside with other London children, while living in fear that the others will discover her secret: her mother is German and was taken to an internment camp elsewhere in Britain, and Maggie herself is fluent in the language. Imagine her surprise as she discovers another ‘refugee’ at Snowden Hall, a young German boy named Rudi, and further surprise when Lord Ashford wants to engage her services as a German tutor and translator.

There is a rich cast of characters throughout the book — fellow cockney Ray Maguire, land girl Charity, the girls also working for the bank, local villagers, and Lord Ashford’s nephew Jack Rosman, to name a few. But that being said, nothing much … happens … and while these characters had potential, and parts of their stories were revealed, too many loose ends dangled at the end of the book with no resolutions. It just ended, with a tidy romantic spin, but I felt let down and wishing for more depth for the other people and the storyline in general.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publishers for the opportunity to read and review this book.

Fans of the WWII novel will like this for its different take on the Homefront. Maggie's German mother has been interned, her sister Violet has been evacuated, and now she's been moved with her colleagues at the bank where she works to the countryside. The most entertaining bits of this are how this 18 year old adapts to a very different existence with a very different group of people than those she's known in the East End. She grows up fast and, as it turns out, has something more to offer- her German language capability-than she expected. Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC. A good, if light read about a serious time and subject,