We are living in a world where the heros of WWII are quickly leaving us. This is the last point in history we will have the ability to speak to, or read new first hand accounts from these brave men and women that saw themselves through one of the darkest points in history.

To read Pippa Latour's account of her time as a British Spy was an honor. The fact that she stayed silent for her entire life speaks to me of the type of woman she was. Committed. Honorable. Fierce. Strong.

The book itself is well written and offers a glimpse into not just Pippa's story but the story of others that she met during her time in France. She described her time and the people with a refreshing honestly and honored the memory of the events and people she encountered.

Thank you Pippa. Thank you for service. Thank you for your bravery in writing this book. Rest easy and in peace.

And thank you Jude Dobson for taking on this project and giving us Pippa's story.

Wow! This is an amazing book! If you love history, especially WW2 History, this memoir is for you. "The Last Secret Agent, My Untold Story Behind Enemy Lines" is a memoir by Pippa Latour with Jude Dobson. This true story has been published posthumously, because of the secrecy vows these Secret Agents of the SOE (Special Agents Operative) took while working behind enemy lines for the protection of their teams. Pippa Latour was the last agent to pass away, but she realized how valuable this story is to history, and completed this memoir before she passed.

Pippa parachuted into Occupied France in 1944. Sh tells her story of the trainings involved, passing secret messages, daily survival, and the horrors of being behind enemy lines. I could not put this book down. She speaks conversationally, and it draws you in. This is a memoir of someone working "for the greater good," and being brave enough to do anything she needed to do. I highly recommend it! 5 Stars

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for the ARC of this book. My opinions are my own.

While the Last Secret Agent is a memoir of the last SOE agent, it is more a recollection of Pippa’s memory of what happened. Written more as her memories instead of a story of what happened throughout the was as an agent.

Thank you to St. Martin's Press for providing this book for review consideration via NetGalley. All opinions are my own
A Fascinating Portrait of a Forgotten Heroine

This book delivers a gripping and moving account of Pippa Latour's extraordinary life as a British spy in Nazi-occupied France. Her bravery, intelligence, and resilience shine through every page, and it's refreshing to see her story finally given the spotlight it deserves. From her resourceful use of everyday items to conceal codes, to the high-stakes operations leading up to D-Day, the narrative is rich with tension and humanity.

Pippa does a great job painting the historical backdrop and offering a personal lens into the covert world of wartime espionage. Pippa's journey—from orphaned childhood in South Africa to the front lines of resistance—is as compelling as it is inspiring.

The only reason for holding back a fifth star is that some sections felt a bit rushed or lacked the depth I was hoping for, particularly in exploring her emotional world during those harrowing missions. Still, it's an important and captivating read that sheds light on an unsung hero of WWII.

Highly recommended for anyone interested in history, espionage, or stories of remarkable women who defied the odds.

History buffs will love the posthumous memoir of Pippa Latour, the last surviving female British spy from World War II. Before her death in 2023 at 102 years old, she shared her stories with journalist Jude Dobson, revealing new historical details of Nazi-occupied France. Even knowing the Allies would be successful, her story keeps you on your toes, as she goes undercover selling soap to German soldiers and risks her life to share critical intelligence from behind enemy lines. (Recommendation will be sent to readers of WordSmarts.com email newsletter)

The Last Secret Agent was enlightening, enjoyable and educational. Pippa Latour led a fascinating life before she found herself ideally suited (if that can be) to return to France as a secret agent during World War Two.

Pippa Latour was born in South Africa to a French father and British mother, She lost both her parents at a young age but was surrounded by love and chosen family who raised her with an incredible world view and mastery of many languages. It was these attributes that made her the perfect choice to be sent in to France to spy for the Allies. Following her history from childhood through an unconventional (to me, though I’d love to have the same opportunities!) education was eye-opening. Her skills and talents were recognized and she trained and developed the necessary skills to perform well behind enemy lines. Her mathematical abilities were especially helpful.

It was give too much away to detail her exploits but suffice it to say they are varied, harried and successful.

She believed so much in her vows of secrecy that she didn’t reveal her heroics to her own family until they discovered her past on the Internet.

Pippa Latourn was a secret agent, but she was also a hero.

Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC.

I think the important thing when jumping into this book is to not expect it to be written as narrative fiction or historical fiction, this book is what you would expect to get it you talked to Pippa herself. This book reads more of like if you asked an historian what it was like to be a secret agent during world war 2. Once you accept that fact this book is great, really describing the very small details that the secret agents has to watch out for too ensure they do not get caught. I would say a necessary book to add to your WWII collection.
The book reads well, feels very conversational. I highly recommend reading.

Thank you to St. Martins Press and NetGalley for an advance readers copy of this book.

While the start of this memoir seems a bit stilted, it soon turns into a riveting account of the colorful life and experiences of Pippa Latour. Even before her time as a secret agent in WWII, this young woman of French and British descent had a life of tragedy and adventure.

Born as her parents disembarked from France to South Africa in 1921, she lost her father (a doctor, killed in a local uprising of traditional healers in the Belgian Congo) as an infant and her mother (in a car crash) before she was four years old. She then was raised by a loving hodge-podge series of cousins, aunts, and godmothers, who all seemed guided by her best interests and happiness.

Her education was a jigsaw puzzle of living in the beauties of her guardians’ African land, home-schooling, boarding school in Kenya, and finally finishing school in France.

In 1939, as the Nazi’s entered France, she was sent to England, and there joined the SOE: the “Special Operations Executive,” a British underground army that sent secret agents to enemy-occupied countries to work with resistance forces. She arrived in Normandy in May 1944, and was part of the preparations for D-Day.

Though she never spoke of her experiences, her children learned she had some role in WWII, and she finally opened up and worked with writer Jude Dobson on this memoir. She died at the age of 102, just before its publication, as she hoped.

Her story is a primer on WWII Britain – simple, straightforward descriptions of both events and the war’s effects on people. Her description of her SOE work is detailed but fast-paced. This is a book to become absorbed in and from which to learn little-known information about both WWII France and the kind of vital work that was rarely reported.

When you read this book and the story of Pippa's life, you'll almost believe that she was [literally] born to do the job she does in the war; everything in her life leading up to her time as a spy during WW2 was exactly what she would need to accomplish the very missions she would embark on at the tender age of 23; it IS a bit mind-boggling as it all unfolds. What she [and the other SOE operatives] did and accomplished was nothing short of amazing and miraculous and I am in awe of them and her and this whole story.

I am so glad that, after decades of silence, that Ms. LaTour decided to write her full story down - this is a story that everyone should be reading and may we ALL be as brave as she and all those who fought so valiantly during that time of war.

Jilly Bond is an excellent narrator and does a fantastic job telling this story. I cannot even imagine reading some of this story out loud without bawling my head off, but she accomplishes it and accomplishes it well, and I commend her for being able to not only read this often difficult story, but to do it in a way that just sucks you and keeps you there until the very end. I highly recommend listening to this amazing audiobook!

I was invited to read/review this by the publisher [St. Martin's Press] and I thank them, Pippa LaTour, Jude Dobson, Jilly Bond - Narrator, Macmillan Audio, and NetGalley for providing the eBook and audiobook ARC's in exchange for an honest review.

The incredible true story of the last surviving undercover British female operative in WWII. Pippa Latour parachuted into occupied France in 1944 to conduct sabotage and subversion behind enemy lines. Selling soap to German soldiers and hiding codes on a piece of ribbon, she sent back crucial information about troop positions in the lead up to D-Day, and continued her work until Paris was liberated. From her childhood as an orphan in South Africa to her years as an undercover agent, Pippa's story is that of a determined woman honoring her principles and risking her life to fight against the greatest evil of the 20th century.

The Last Secret Agent is a posthumously published memoir, co-written with writer Jude Dobson. Pippa was decorated highly for her actions, including being made a Member of the Order of the British Empire and receiving the Légion d’Honneur in France. For years, Pippa kept her involvement in the war effort secret from everyone, including her family, but for the first time, her story can now be told. Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for allowing me to read this book.

This fascinating memoir depicts a gut-wrenching espionage journey with a young Pippa Latour as she assists the Allied troops in the days leading up to the start of D-Day.

Pippa’s story is an adventure from start to finish, beginning in South Africa, culminating at the end of WWII, and, ultimately, her move to New Zealand to live out her final years. Her unorthodox childhood laid the foundation for the “special set of skills” which she ultimately developed and used to keep her alive behind enemy lines while operating as a Special Operations Executive (“SOE”) in Nazi-occupied France. Pippa’s cool, calm demeanor while posing as a 14-year-old selling soap helped to get her out of many close calls, despite the uncertain havoc and death all around her.

I thoroughly enjoyed this memoir of Pippa Latour, a truly amazing woman. Given the state of the World these days, it is imperative that we be reminded of the face of true heroism.

Kudos to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for the opportunity to read a complimentary copy of this memoir. I was free to provide a review, negative or positive, of The Last Secret Agent and was happy to do so.

After decades of silence, Pippa Latour, the last surviving WW2 British Spy, opens up about her time as a British female operative in German Occupied France working with the French Resistance.

Wow, this was a fascinating read that I connected with quite a bit. Pippa was roughly the same age as my grandmother is now at 98 when writing this book. In addition, her messages that she was sending back to England were guiding my grandfather’s bombing missions as a pilot of a bomber in the same region. For this reason, I spent a good bit of time googling locations and facts. I loved the atmospheric writing and story telling that Dobson was able to capture. This was a great read for history buffs!

For the first time ever, read the true story of Pippa Latour--the last surviving WWII spy operating in the deadly world of Nazi France.

As a daring agent of the Special Operations Executive (SOE), she risked everything—her freedom, her identity, her life—to transmit vital secrets to the Allies from deep behind enemy lines. The book captures the intensity of her covert missions, the ever-present threat of betrayal or capture, and the heavy emotional burden of living a life in shadows. It’s a powerful, dramatic portrait of unsung wartime heroism that unfolds in the hidden corners of history.

A gripping read from beginning to end!

🎧Jilly Bond delivered a masterful performance, capturing the intensity and suspense of Latour’s perilous missions behind enemy lines. Her narration was vivid and immersive, powerfully conveying the courage and resilience of one of World War II’s unsung heroines.

This is an action packed memoir that reads like WII historical fiction. I knew that Pippa was going to live but through her eyes you could see the last testaments to the people who where spies and members of the resistance alongside her. She also had close calls of her own and regrets that humanized the spies in WII.

It is so hard for me to wrap my head around the events of today after reading stories like this. The sacrifice and bravery is purely unmatched. When the time came this generation stepped up all around the world.

These stories desperately need to be kept alive. We cannot forget the world we fought to keep…. I believe sadly so much is taken for granted… especially as we witness what is currently happening in the US.

The strength as a 102yo woman to tell her story in sometimes horrific detail is amazing enough but her awareness to not want her history to be lost is SUCH a gift to all of us.

Pippa’s story is truly inspiring, remarkable and heroic. The world must keep her alive by her story.

This is a fun read (if that can be said about a WWII memoir with people being killed). It's written in a very personal and conversational style based on interviews with a woman who was an undercover passer of information in occupied France near the end of the war.

I appreciated that The Last Secret Agent was written more like a historical fiction and not like your typical memoir. Pippa Latour’s life was so unique and such a far cry from my own sheltered suburban lifestyle. I found her account captivating to say the least. Clearly, tragedy followed this woman her entire life, and that fact alone is heartbreaking.

This novel is very well written, almost feeling like I’m reading a work of fiction and not a true tale of heroism and extreme bravery in the face of adversity. Her photographic memory clearly served her well as she is able to recall such incredible details all these years later when I can barely remember what I ate yesterday! People who are able to have such vivid recall are astounding to me.

This is such a harrowing tale, and I am so thankful that Pippa was able to tell her story before her passing. Her being such a private person, I wonder what else she could’ve told about this time in her life, as this is already such an incredible story. I cannot even begin to imagine the fear that must’ve been felt to be in an occupied territory during that time, let alone using an alias, acting much younger than you are, and not speaking in your native language. Truly terrifying.

I am so grateful to Pippa and all the hard work that it took to bring her story to light. I don’t know how she carried the secrets that she did her entire life and it shows the immense strength that this woman empowered. May Pippa and her story never be forgotten.

The Last Secret Agent by Pippa Latour with Jude Dobson – Fascinating, Gripping, and Inspiring Memoir

After reading the description of The Last Secret Agent by authors Pippa Latour and Jude Dobson, I wanted to read this story about the last female British secret agent in WWII.

This memoir is a fascinating and gripping account of Pippa Latour’s early life and her experiences as a British female operative who was dropped behind enemy lines in France during WWII. Pippa’s early life and experiences uniquely equipped and developed her character to be well-suited for the work she would sign-up for in her early 20’s.

I never knew that women were used as secret agents and deployed in war zones. It was interesting to read about her training and the dangerous work she engaged in to transmit information on Germany’s troop movements back to Britian. The dangers that these operatives encountered in the battle against Nazi Germany is almost unimaginable. The life span of the operatives behind enemy lines was short. They had a greater chance of being taken captive, tortured, and murdered than coming out alive. The courage that Pippa displayed, along with the men and women like her, who served their county and the Allied Nations is awe-inspiring.

We owe a great debt to the men and women fought in the critical battle against the great evil that Hitler’s Germany unleashed on the free-world.

Pippa Latour’s recollections were beautifully recorded, researched and written by writer Jude Dobson. This is an excellent memoir about an extraordinary woman who lived in a unique and critical time in history. I highly recommend The Last Secret Agent by Pippa Latour with author Jude Dobson.

I would like to thank St. Martin’s Press and NetGalley for the opportunity to read a complimentary copy of The Last Secret Agent by Pippa Latour with Jude Dobson. I was under no obligation to give a favorable review.

As a child in South Africa, Pippa was orphaned at an early age. She spent her formative years in the South African wilds, learning on the go. After attending a finishing school in France, she moved to London to assist in the war. Barely an adult, Pippa was recruited as a secret agent and parachuted into France. There she encountered danger with every step. However, she bravely reported on troop movements and items of interest. Often places were bombed shortly after she sent in her radio reports. At the end of the war, she made her way to Paris on foot before being sent back to England. From there she moved to New Zealand and moved on with her life. This story represents one of the first times that she spoke about her wartime activities.

I thought Pippa’s childhood and training was very interesting and intriguing. Although she tended to downplay her courage, she was very brave and instrumental in ending the war. A true hero! The book seemed a bit detached at times, but I attribute that to the passage of time and the blurring of memory. Overall, 4 out of 5 stars.

This was the life of an amazing woman not just the years of her acting as a spy for England. I have read various books that describes these British female operatives in WW2, their courage and determination to help the war effort in any way they can. Not all of them survived the war. The ones that did had bad memories to deal with and trying to adjust a normal life, it is shameful to realize how long it took for these women to be recognized by the British government for the sacrifices they had taken. What makes Pippa Latour unique is that she was the last Secret Agent from World War II to be alive. She had a unique upbringing from birth till age 18, the time she started training.
I first listened to the audio narrated by Jilly Bond. She did a wonderful job in presenting the story, made for easy listening. I waited a couple of weeks and then read the kindle version. I enjoyed both. Reading it this way brought extra clarity to the events taking place.