Book Summary and Reviews of In Farleigh Field by Rhys Bowen

In Farleigh Field by Rhys Bowen

In Farleigh Field

A Novel of World War II

by Rhys Bowen

  • Readers' Rating (2):
  • Published:
  • Mar 2017, 396 pages
  • Rate this book

About this book

Book Summary

World War II comes to Farleigh Place, the ancestral home of Lord Westerham and his five daughters, when a soldier with a failed parachute falls to his death on the estate.

After his uniform and possessions raise suspicions, MI5 operative and family friend Ben Cresswell is covertly tasked with determining if the man is a German spy. The assignment also offers Ben the chance to be near Lord Westerham's middle daughter, Pamela, whom he furtively loves. But Pamela has her own secret: she has taken a job at Bletchley Park, the British code-breaking facility.

As Ben follows a trail of spies and traitors, which may include another member of Pamela's family, he discovers that some within the realm have an appalling, history-altering agenda. Can he, with Pamela's help, stop them before England falls?

Inspired by the events and people of World War II, writer Rhys Bowen crafts a sweeping and riveting saga of class, family, love, and betrayal.

Membership Advantages
  • Reviews
  • "Beyond the Book" articles
  • Free books to read and review (US only)
  • Find books by time period, setting & theme
  • Read-alike suggestions by book and author
  • Book club discussions
  • and much more!
  • Just $60 for 12 months or $20 for 3 months.
  • More about membership!

Reviews

Media Reviews

"…well-crafted, thoroughly entertaining thriller…a game of spy versus spy, and with every twist and turn, the reader is unsure whom to trust." —Publishers Weekly

"The skills Bowen brings to her several mystery series, including Molly Murphy and Royal Spyness, inform the plotting in this character-rich tale, which will be welcomed by her fans as well as by readers who enjoy fiction about the British home front." —Booklist

"In what could easily become a PBS show of its own, Bowen's novel winningly details a World War II spy game. It features an English aristocrat's daughter who works at London's top-secret home of code breakers, Bletchley Park, and a number of others with high-stakes plots and plans." —Library Journal

"Instantly absorbing, suspenseful, romantic and stylish - like binge-watching a great British drama on Masterpiece Theater." —Lee Child, New York Times bestselling author

"Irresistible, charming and heartbreakingly authentic. Rhys Bowen's knowing voice transports Downton fans into a unputdownable family saga—a compelling journey through history, loss, honor and love. When war gets personal, every heart is in peril." —Hank Phillippi Ryan, author of Say No More

This information about In Farleigh Field was first featured in "The BookBrowse Review" - BookBrowse's membership magazine, and in our weekly "Publishing This Week" newsletter. Publication information is for the USA, and (unless stated otherwise) represents the first print edition. The reviews are necessarily limited to those that were available to us ahead of publication. If you are the publisher or author and feel that they do not properly reflect the range of media opinion now available, send us a message with the mainstream reviews that you would like to see added.

Any "Author Information" displayed below reflects the author's biography at the time this particular book was published.

Reader Reviews

Click here and be the first to review this book!

Membership Advantages
  • Reviews
  • "Beyond the Book" articles
  • Free books to read and review (US only)
  • Find books by time period, setting & theme
  • Read-alike suggestions by book and author
  • Book club discussions
  • and much more!
  • Just $60 for 12 months or $20 for 3 months.
  • More about membership!

Author Information

Rhys Bowen

Rhys Bowen is the New York Times bestselling author of more than thirty mystery novels. Her work includes the Molly Murphy mysteries, set in 1900s New York City, and the lighter Royal Spyness novels, featuring a minor royal in 1930s England. She also wrote the Constable Evans mysteries, about a police constable in contemporary Wales.

Bowen's work has won fourteen honors to date, including multiple Agatha, Anthony, and Macavity awards. Her books have been translated into many languages, and she has fans around the world, including twelve thousand Facebook followers. A transplanted Brit, Bowen divides her time between California and Arizona.

More Author Information

Membership Advantages
  • Reviews
  • "Beyond the Book" articles
  • Free books to read and review (US only)
  • Find books by time period, setting & theme
  • Read-alike suggestions by book and author
  • Book club discussions
  • and much more!
  • Just $60 for 12 months or $20 for 3 months.
  • More about membership!

Read-Alikes

Read-Alikes Full readalike results are for members only

If you liked In Farleigh Field, try these:

  • Beyond That, the Sea jacket

    Beyond That, the Sea

    by Laura Spence-Ash

    Published 2024

    About this book

    A sweeping, tenderhearted love story, Beyond That, the Sea by Laura Spence-Ash tells the story of two families living through World War II on opposite sides of the Atlantic Ocean, and the shy, irresistible young woman who will call them both her own.

  • An Unlikely Spy jacket

    An Unlikely Spy

    by Rebecca Starford

    Published 2022

    About this book

    A twisting, sophisticated World War II novel following a spy who goes undercover as a part of MI5 - in chasing the secrets of others, how much will she lose of herself?

  • Dadland jacket

    Dadland

    by Keggie Carew

    Published 2018

    About this book

    A spellbinding journey into surprising and shady corners of twentieth-century politics, a rackety English childhood, the poignant breakdown of a family, the corridors of dementia and beyond.

We have 10 read-alikes for In Farleigh Field, but non-members are limited to three results. Join free to see the complete list of recommendations.
Search read-alikes
How we choose read-alikes

More Historical Fiction

Browse all Historical Fiction books

Membership Advantages
  • Reviews
  • "Beyond the Book" articles
  • Free books to read and review (US only)
  • Find books by time period, setting & theme
  • Read-alike suggestions by book and author
  • Book club discussions
  • and much more!
  • Just $60 for 12 months or $20 for 3 months.
  • More about membership!
Book Club Giveaway!
Win L.A. Women

L.A. Women by Ella Berman

Two ambitious writers in 1960s LA face betrayal when one writes a novel based on the other's life.

Enter

BookBrowse Book Club

  • Book Jacket
    Chelsea Girls
    by Catherine Lloyd
    A glamorous biographical novel on Mary Quant, whose daring design of the miniskirt revolutionized fashion.
  • Book Jacket
    Days of Sun and Shadow
    by India Hayford
    A young woman’s coming-of-age story set in the early American frontier, shaped by tragedy, nature, and resilience.
  • Book Jacket
    Merry-Go-Round Broke Down
    by David Woo, Margalit Shinar
    Nine linked stories reveal how globalization sparks life-changing consequences across continents.

Members Recommend

  • Book Jacket
    An Infinite Love Story
    by Chanel Cleeton
    “A tender, romantic drama that soars as high as it’s astronauts.” —Kate Quinn
  • Book Jacket
    Summer of Love
    by Kerri Maher
    Three women reshape their family's Napa Valley winery after the 1967 Summer of Love.
Book
Trivia
  • Book Trivia

    Can you name the title?

    Test your book knowledge with our daily trivia challenge!

Wordplay

Solve this clue:

The C is A R

and be entered to win..

Your guide toexceptional          books

BookBrowse seeks out and recommends the best in contemporary fiction and nonfiction—books that not only engage and entertain but also deepen our understanding of ourselves and the world around us.