Review of 'The Secret Shore' by Liz Fenwick
Release date: May 11th, 2023
Publisher: HQ
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Praise by Author Amanda Geard of Liz Fenwick’s novel
I read late into the night to finish The Secret Shore because I just couldn’t put it down! It’s a gorgeous, sweeping novel, impeccably researched and threaded with mystery and romance. Move over Elizabeth Zott, Meredith Tremayne is my feminist hero of the year! A sparkling protagonist with a memorable voice. Whenever I want to visit Cornwall, Liz Fenwick is the author I turn to.
I LOVED the first person voice for Merry. I’m a geologist, and I felt her struggle being a woman in a similar field. Liz’s writing is impeccable and I was delighted to see County Kerry get a mention!
My favourite line, I think, was tied between ‘The Victorians become quite competitive with some of those big houses,’ and ‘I’m mapping you.’ Liz writes with such authority, of course, about the water and boating conditions, and it adds a real sparkle.
Oh, and a GREAT author’s note (the mouse!) - I hadn’t realised just how true to history the story was, so I was fascinated to read it.
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My REVIEW
Wow! What a fascinating and heartfelt story of love, sacrifice, courage and survival! Intelligent Merry Tremayne is a brilliant mapmaker who craves field experience and temporarily leaves her teaching post at Oxford when summoned to play her part in the war. It is 1942 and the world is caught in the grips of a ruthless enemy. Her sought-after skills and daring interest will lead her down some dangerous paths, not only to help bring victory on the war front but also force her to make difficult personal decisions and face heart wrenching loss. Dealing with the archaic views of 1940’s British society, when women cannot have both love and a career, she faces a fierce internal battle. Although she has worked hard at the university to gain her high position and it has taken priority in her life, her determination to stick to the plan is tested after meeting a certain American officer. As she learns of the differences between their countries and, although, the US has been slow to enter the war scene, she realises it is a country ahead in the area of women’s rights and positions. This new wave of freedom on the horizon could prove useful to a heart that dares to have both.
Merry is a complex character and this made her even more appealing. She is deemed initially too valuable and too beautiful to be an agent but her mapmaking skills and fluid command of French, German and Breton are in great need. Commander Fleming notes that with a change of clothing and hairstyle, she could truly pass as a French woman (as a valuable agent). But there’s a fly in the ointment. Although there are no real gaps in her skills, it is her physical attractiveness that he states lets her down. Fleming makes this very clear when she asks to be sent on a mission. He reluctantly affirms that ‘beauty is always noted and remembered.’ So, covers can be easily blown. As you would expect, Merry does not let this opinion slow her down. And when a personal crisis occurs? All stops are pulled out.
The secret service needs her skills. It is a twofold mission. And she embarks on a journey that will draw upon her skills like never before. Especially when it is discovered her widowed French mother is missing from her Cornwall home. There are whispers she might be a spy. But Merry cannot believe this of her artist-mother. This query puts her on a path of investigation. Fleming sends her to the coast to uncover the truth and assist some of his men in their missions who are transporting people and goods to and from Brittany and Cornwall. With her knowledge of the coastline, mapping skills and gift of languages she is a valuable asset to the team.
Through the investigation process, Merry takes us on a journey of memories through her childhood and home experiences spent with her brother and parents, while she explores her mother’s correspondence, favourite locations and belongings. Discoveries are made that lead to more questions. It is a breadcrumb trail that keeps us all (including Merry) wondering the whereabouts of Elise. Sifting through her mother’s belongings is tough: especially knowing she may never see her again. But Merry clings to hope and many happy memories when ‘everything was certain and love came in the form of a steaming bowl of soup.’ We learn a lot about Elise: where she is from, her use of floriography, her work in World War I as a nurse, how she met Merry’s father and how she saved his life. Merry consistently uses her mapping terms while describing her relationship with her mother. In one beautiful analogy she shares that her mother is her ‘legend’ on a map, the key to her life and she does not want to think about navigating this world without her.
The Secret Shore is brimming with exceptional descriptions that whisked me away to the daisy heads peering through fields of long grass and the well-hidden smugglers’ path overgrown—all the beauty of the Cornish coastline. We are reminded of the tales of the boats hiding in the creek and how it may have inspired Du Maurier’s Frenchman’s Creek. There are other lovely literary references, too. And the Cornish people’s spirituality ‘that don’t require works or rituals but actions and belief’. Liz delivers not only unforgettable characters and a riveting plot but the magic sprinkle of picturesque settings in stunning detail put my senses on high alert. I was drawn into the story and completely immersed to the point I forgot everything around me.
The study of mapmaking is a fascinating profession and this story explores it in great detail. Merry represents all the ‘map girls’ who used their geographical skills and training for vital war work. Many did this under university teaching positions and contributed to the Naval Intelligence Handbook, hydrographic and meteorological charts. Others helped train military personnel in geographical skills, secret land surveying and land modelling. Some were in overseas service and the armed forces. All important positions that contributed to winning the war. Liz gives us a close up view of what it would have been like for these women back in the 1940’s and how difficult it would have been—not in ability to do the job but the prejudices woman faced. Women did so much in the war but did not receive the recognition for their hard work and dedication. Merry is a good representative of all those women who finally get to tell their story. Through the uncovering of historical documents and novels such as Liz’s, women can now be given the credit they deserve for their important efforts. Women were expected to make sacrifices (not asked of men) to succeed in the Academic world. Marriage was unacceptable. They were told they could not have both.
But Merry is the sum of two strong parents with ‘one foot on the land and one on the sea.’ Her father said she was a strange mix of them, loving land as he did and the sea as her mother had. Merry learned a lot from her parents, particularly to never give up. The influence of family is evident in The Secret Shore including from a devoted sibling relationship. Merry and her brother, Ollie, are very close. It was he who inspired her to take up mapmaking. This bright and cheery airman has so much to offer but like others, becomes caught in the battle—doing his part in the war. Heartache will visit Merry again. And her moving statement will forever haunt my heart. ‘I already knew what it was like to love what death touched.’
Besides family and a mystery, Liz’s stories always have a fiery romance and this one is no exception. Merry meets Jake, a journalist American officer, working in secret operations. He is also a romantic and son of a fisherman. While Merry works along-side of him, a relationship blooms—even though she often denies it and fights hard against the attraction. But events will alter her and even break her heart. Has she been right all along to remain single, unattached and love-free? I loved these few lines where Merry explains the importance of maps to her—even in the domain of love.
Merry: ‘Maps tell stories…about who made them…It tells how it was used.’
Jake: ‘Why do you make maps?’
Merry: ‘To make sense of my world.’
Jake: ‘What story does our map tell?’
Merry: ‘I haven’t drawn it yet.’
Merry thinks to herself: ‘Any map of us would involve an ocean and that never made for happy endings.’
They were from opposite sides of the sea (England and United States) and with that came many reasons a transatlantic relationship could easily fail or at least have multiple obstacles to overcome. Who would be making the sacrifices? But love is a powerful motivator and source of hope to achieve the seemingly impossible. This couple certainly are given their fair share of high mountains to climb or wide oceans to cross to grasp the elusive, fragile wonders of love. The surrender of oneself to another for intimacy, passion and commitment comes with a high price, as they soon discover.
The novel begins on mapping and ends on it, too, with the bookends of love holding it all together. This is a powerful story that clings to my mind as images, phrases and descriptions keep surfacing. I will never forget The Secret Shore, its touching characters and moving messages. For it has inspired my imagination, melted my heart and educated my mind on mapping and the women who carried out this valuable task—including the academics. They made great sacrifices, gave their best and were still forced to choose between love or a profession. Five cheers to Liz for her exceptional delivery of such a fascinating story that showcases an important war activity championed by women who deserve to be remembered. 5 Stars ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Many thanks to Liz and her publisher for my review copy.
