Review of The Missionary’s Wife

[nini_reads]

[Following is an official OnlineBookClub.org review of "The Missionary’s Wife" by Jonathan Hoke Barclay.]

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3 out of 5 stars

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With The Missionary’s Wife, Jonathan Hoke Barclay wrote a novel based on actual events happening in his parents’ lives during the Second World War. Alexis Hart Barclay was the only child of Roy Hart, a highly respected World War I veteran. James “Jim” Barclay was the son of a revered evangelist pastor. When the Office of Strategic Services (OSS) recruited them, Alexis and Jim were already engaged and planned to work as missionaries in Venezuela. Founded during World War II, the OSS was the first US intelligence agency to collect information on enemies and carry out covert operations behind enemy lines. Jim and Alexis were unaware of their partner’s involvement with the OSS; both were selected individually and trained in secret in Chicago, Pontiac, and New York. On September 6, 1943, the couple arrived in Maracaibo, Venezuela, and with their arrival, their work as missionaries and for the OSS began. Jim’s operations for the OSS mainly focused on hindering Hitler from gaining a foothold in South America, especially Venezuela, which at the time had one of the largest reserves of oil, gas, earth minerals, and natural rubber. Natural rubber specifically was an important resource during World War II; many German U-boats were coated in rubber to block the sonar used by the Allied forces. Jim was required to travel a lot for these operations, and Alexis was often alone in Maracaibo. And during that time, Alexis became closely acquainted with the charming German Major Jonathan Speer.

On the outside, Alexis and Jim may have looked like typical missionaries. But in reality, their life in South America was one of dangerous missions, death, temptation, love, lies, and secrets...

The Missionary’s Wife is a heartfelt tribute from Jonathan Hoke Barclay to his parents and their unusual and exceptional lives. Especially his mother, Alexis, seemed to be a remarkable, strong, confident, and independent woman. I would have loved to read even more about her life, during and after the war. Overall, this book is a surprising mix of biographical information, historical facts, and fictional scenes. Particularly in the beginning, the author focused less on the romance and more on the historical and espionage aspects of the story. Since the book is titled “A Romance and Spy Story Based on Actual Events,” I expected an action-fueled romance set during World War II; I did not expect to read as many technical facts and historical information about the war. I liked the intriguing romance between the main characters, and I would have loved if the story had focused more on that aspect. Although in the end, I really enjoyed the informational part of the story and learned a lot about the war and South America’s role in it that I did not know before. Jonathan Hoke Barclay often switched between writing about historical and biographical information and the fictional scenes with Jim, Alexis, and Jonathan Speer. I personally did not mind these frequent jumps from informative to fictional; I found them refreshing, and they kept the book from being too monotonous. I also liked how Barclay found a way to incorporate poems and snippets from Jim and Alexis’ notes or diaries into the fictional scenes.

Unfortunately, this book would have definitely profited from a more thorough editing. I spotted several errors and some inconsistencies between the past and present tenses.

To conclude, I rate The Missionary’s Wife 3 out of 5 stars. Errors aside, Johnathan Hoke Barclay created a special book to remember the special lives of his parents. I learned a lot about World War II through this book, but I expected a bit more romance. I would recommend The Missionary’s Wife to any adult interested in the Second World War and the role South America played in it. This book is also perfectly suitable for people of all religious beliefs. Even though Jim and Alexis’ work as missionaries is an important part of their story, their religious beliefs play a rather small role in this book compared to their work for the OSS and the events happening at the time.

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The Missionary’s Wife
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[Kibet Hillary]

The mix of historical facts, biography, and historical fiction would definitely be the perfect and thrilling combination for a book. I hope the author will consider having the book taken through another round of editing, as the plot itself sounds so interesting due to the interweaving of missionary life and covert missions. Thanks for the review, @nini_reads.

[goreview03]

The book's title grabbed my attention right away. However, the review revealed other aspects, such as a blend of biographical information, historical facts, and fictional scenes from this book. Thanks for the review.