BELOVED ENEMY

Belbin’s debut novel delivers a stirring World War II tale of forbidden love—and its tragic fallout.

English spy Allison Grant finds a once-in-a-lifetime love with a German officer in this wartime novel. Posing as a beautiful German interpreter named Hildegard Hessler, she goes on a mission to seduce Colonel Karl Von Richter, an attractive intelligence operative. It’s a dangerous, high-stakes task, but Allison can’t help but fall in love with the kind, sensitive Karl. The two connect almost instantly, and Karl soon begins to talk about marriage. It’s all Allison can do to maintain her focus and reveal his intelligence secrets to his enemies. Over the next two years, her conflict deepens when she refuses to compromise Karl’s personal privacy, and when one of her accomplices is arrested and later found dead. Her dilemma reaches an agonizing climax when her superiors command her to do a horrible task. Years later, a shaken, traumatized Allison returns to Germany to confront the demons of her past and try to build a new future. Overall, Belbin offers a powerful and memorable tale. This story of treachery in the name of patriotism is gripping and suspenseful, as much a love story as a tale of self-discovery and laden with history and psychology. Allison’s return trip to Germany proves just as courageous as her first one, and she emerges as a heroic figure—a truly captivating, complicated heroine whose choices may haunt readers long after they reach the last page.

A highly original WWII story of one woman’s inner conflict and ultimate triumph.