Book description
In June 1952, a woman was murdered by an obsessed colleague in a hotel
in South Kensington. Her name was Christine Granville. That she died
young was perhaps unsurprising, but that she had survived the Second
World War was remarkable. The daughter of a feckless Polish aristocrat
and his wealthy Jewish wife, she would become one of Britain's most
daring and highly decorated special agents. Having fled to Britain on
the outbreak of war, she was recruited by the intelligence services long
before the establishment of the SOE, and took on mission after mission.
She skied into occupied Poland, served in Egypt and was later parachuted
into occupied France. Her quick wit, courage and determination won her
release from arrest more than once, and saved the lives of several
fellow officers, including one of her many lovers just hours before he
was due to be executed by the Gestapo. More importantly, perhaps, the
intelligence she smuggled to the British hidden inside her gloves was a
significant contribution to the Allied war effort and in recognition of
her success she was awarded the George Medal, the OBE and the Croix de
Guerre. Charismatic, difficult and fearless, Christine was an
extraordinary woman, and exercised a mesmeric power of those who knew
her.
