The Dark of the Moon

by Fiona Valpy

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Pub Date Sep 23 2025 | Archive Date Oct 14 2025

Amazon Publishing UK | Lake Union Publishing

General Fiction (Adult) | Women's Fiction

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Description

From the bestselling author of The Dressmaker’s Gift comes an unforgettable story of wartime courage, enduring love, and a decades-long search for the truth...

In 1943, Philly Delaney would do anything to help win the war. As one of the brave "Attagirls" ferrying military aircraft across Britain, she never expected to fall in love with Ben, a dashing Spitfire pilot. But their whirlwind romance is interrupted when her talent for solving cryptic crosswords leads her to Bletchley Park's legendary codebreakers.

Soon, Philly's skills make her the perfect candidate for a perilous mission into Nazi-occupied France. But when Ben's plane vanishes during a similar covert flight, her world shatters. Despite searching for decades, she's never discovered what happened to the only man she ever loved.

Now in her nineties and staying on the beautiful Île de Ré, Philly has all but given up hope. But in young Finn, her hosts' mathematically brilliant but struggling son, she finds an unexpected ally. As she shares her extraordinary story, they discover that some lost things are waiting to be found – and that love's power to heal never dims with time.

A wonderfully immersive, atmospheric and moving story of wartime resilience, hope, loss—and the enduring power of love.

From the bestselling author of The Dressmaker’s Gift comes an unforgettable story of wartime courage, enduring love, and a decades-long search for the truth...

In 1943, Philly Delaney would do...

A Note From the Publisher

Fiona Valpy spent seven years living in France, before returning to live in Scotland. Her love for both of these countries, their people and their histories, has found its way into the books she’s written.
She draws inspiration from the stories of strong women, especially during the years of the Second Word War, and her meticulous historical research enriches her writing with an evocative sense of time and place.
An acclaimed Number 1 bestselling author, Fiona Valpy’s books have been translated into thirty languages worldwide.

Fiona Valpy spent seven years living in France, before returning to live in Scotland. Her love for both of these countries, their people and their histories, has found its way into the books she’s...

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A Note From the Publisher

Fiona Valpy spent seven years living in France, before returning to live in Scotland. Her love for both of these countries, their people and their histories, has found its way into the books she’s written.
She draws inspiration from the stories of strong women, especially during the years of the Second Word War, and her meticulous historical research enriches her writing with an evocative sense of time and place.
An acclaimed Number 1 bestselling author, Fiona Valpy’s books have been translated into thirty languages worldwide.

Advance Praise

“A captivating and poignant story of wartime bravery and enduring love, told with warmth and heart. Unforgettable.” —Imogen Clark, bestselling author of In a Single Moment