Review by LeDiplomatique -- Sandra Eden's War

[LeDiplomatique]

[Following is a volunteer review of "Sandra Eden's War" by Michael Low.]

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3 out of 4 stars

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During the second world war, the Gestapo troops had transformed a police station in Normandy, France, into their headquarters. Sandra Eden was a British Special Operations Executive (SOE). She was sent from London to Normandy to disrupt Gestapo’s activities by sabotaging communication, transport and anything else that could aid the German troops in winning the war. She was to be assisted in this endeavor by Maquis, a French resistance team and Captain Michel Tardivat. The Allied forces were expected to land in Normandy by June 6th 1944. Sandra Eden was dispatched to the area by a RAF plane, landing by a parachute, which failed to open, forcing her to fall 100 miles per hour. Assumed to be dead from the fall, SOE sent Sandra’s replacement, Nancy, to do the work that had been assigned to Sandra. How would Sandra survive the fall?

The setting of Sandra Eden’s War is Europe, during the second world war. It was a period when the capabilities of women were not recognized because they were considered to be the weaker sex. The author’s main purpose of writing the book is to document the activities of the Special Operation Executive in Normandy during the Gestapo occupation. He has achieved his goal because the book is very informative on the activities of SOE, French revolution team and Gestapo.

The language of the book is simple, devoid of unnecessary vocabularies. It is written from a third-person perspective and is organized chronologically. Its main themes are gender, espionage, retaliation, freedom, bravery and resilience. This is a book with a strong conflict, even though the narration is not effective enough in creating the suspense element.

I most like how the author has portrayed ‘woman power’ through the characters of Sandra and Nancy, being the main women in the operation. I also like the way the introduction and climax elements of the book have been handled. Nonetheless, the author would have done better with the description of scenes and characters. Apparently, the descriptions are superficial and do not appeal fully to the five senses. If I had to improve anything in the book, it would be to enhance the descriptions, creating word-pictures that would appeal to the reader’s imagination, creating a sense of omnipresence in them.

I did not come across any profane language and erotic content. However, I came across two minor errors. I recommend this book to history lovers, who would like to understand the operations of German troops during the France occupation and how the occupation resistance teams helped in preparing the way for the Allied forces in the quest for freedom. I also recommend it to those who love stories that emphasize women empowerment. This is a great story of a woman who prevailed in a male-dominated setting.

I will not rate it 4 stars because there is room for improvement concerning the superficial descriptions. I will not rate it 2 stars since it is professionally-edited and the story flows well. Therefore, I rate Sandra Eden’s War by Mike Low 3 out of 4 stars.

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Sandra Eden's War
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