Princess Elizabeth's Spy by Susan Elia MacNeal

From Goodreads: 

Susan Elia MacNeal introduced the remarkable Maggie Hope in her acclaimed debut, Mr. Churchill’s Secretary. Now Maggie returns to protect Britain’s beloved royals against an international plot—one that could change the course of history. 
 
As World War II sweeps the continent and England steels itself against German attack, Maggie Hope, former secretary to Prime Minister Winston Churchill, completes her training to become a spy for MI-5. Spirited, strong-willed, and possessing one of the sharpest minds in government for mathematics and code-breaking, she fully expects to be sent abroad to gather intelligence for the British front. Instead, to her great disappointment, she is dispatched to go undercover at Windsor Castle, where she will tutor the young Princess Elizabeth in math. Yet castle life quickly proves more dangerous—and deadly—than Maggie ever expected. The upstairs-downstairs world at Windsor is thrown into disarray by a shocking murder, which draws Maggie into a vast conspiracy that places the entire royal family in peril. And as she races to save England from a most disturbing fate, Maggie realizes that a quick wit is her best defense, and that the smallest clues can unravel the biggest secrets, even within her own family.

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Princess Elizabeth’s Spy takes place during WWII with Maggie Hope not passing her undercover agent training for MI-5 and getting reassigned. She is then sent to Windsor Castle under the premise of tutoring the young Princess Elizabeth in math. Protecting the Princess and helping to stop the Nazi’s in their attempt to take over England becomes the real agenda for Maggie. As she tutors the young Princess, she has to deal with family issues arising, and not to mention a murder, spies, and a kidnapping plot. Maggie tries to juggle everything to the best of her abilities, but finds it challenging at times to separate her spy life from her personal one while trying to expose dangers to the Royal Family.

I have not read the previous book, Mr. Churchill’s Secretary by Susan Elia MacNeal, but that did not hamper my enjoyment of this book at all. And Maggie is a smart and brave character with a great personality that I liked from the get go. Princess Elizabeth’s Spy is a fun standalone novel that is easy to read and get into. Especially for those who enjoy WWII storylines or British Historical Fiction. 

Everything was described in such great detail that I felt like I was in England during that time period. There was a lot of action during the course of the story, which kept the excitement level high and me constantly turning the page to discover what was going to happen next. Nothing in the book was predictable for me which is good since it’s a mystery novel. The ending has me already excited for the next book in the series.

Rating: 3½ out of 5

** I received this ARC from Random House Publishing / Bantam Dell in exchange for nothing, but my honest review. Thank you.**