The Rose Code

Kate Quinn has written a gripping novel about Bletchley Park, an estate in London where men and women worked together during WWII to break the secret Enigma code of the Germans. Three young women are featured: Mab, Osla and Beth, each with unique talents. But there is a traitor in BP, who has Beth locked up in a mental institution before she can figure out who it is. Quinn also uses real historical figures in her novel: Alan Turing, the father of artificial intelligence who created “Bombe” machines to enable Enigma codebreaking; Dilly Knox, a brilliant cryptographer who ran the Enigma research team, Winston Churchill, the PM who pays a visit to Bletchley, and Osla’s love interest, who turns out to be Prince Philip. This was a fascinating glimpse into the lives of these codebreakers, who had a huge effect on the success of the Allies. Highly recommended for history buffs.