Mother Daughter Traitor Spy

Susan Elia MacNeal's first stand alone novel, Mother Daughter Traitor Spy is an unnerving story of life in the United States in 1940.  This is not a mystery or horror novel, but a story that portrays real life as Hitler was taking over Europe and German Americans who supported Hitler and his ideas were trying to influence American citizens to follow the German example of how a country should be run and  join the Bund.

Basing the characters in this historical novel on the real life occurrences of an actual mother, daughter spy team from California during the 1940s.  Their story is built into the plot of Veronica and her mother Violet, who leave New York and move across the country to Santa Monica, California.  Being of German heritage, they are befriended by a group of German Americans as they are starting their new lives in this very unfamiliar environment.  This group is sympathetic to Hitler and the Nazi party.  Violet and Veronica find the beliefs of the Nazi German group abhorrent and feel strongly it's their patriotic duty to do what they can to stop their hateful activities.

They also find a small contingent of like minded friends, that engage them to help the effort to suppress the efforts of the Nazi sympathizers. The Nazi group believes that all minorities are dangerous to American ideals and should be sent away or killed. They are feeding the public propaganda and want to put America first . They are against helping other countries and upholding democracy.

Veronica gets a job as a secretary to the leader of the Bund group in Santa Monica.  She spies on their activities reporting to a spymaster who is in contact with the FBI, helping them to gather the information they need to arrest the German propagandists.  Her mother, Vi looking to meet other women, make friends and keep busy, becomes apart of the local German social group.  She is sewing and embroidering for them listening to the propaganda speakers who come to their social events.  

It happened so long ago, but many of the topics in the book are so similar to what is happening now in this very  country.  Jonah says to Veronica as they finish a mission to turn in some Nazi sympathizers, "I'm absolutely sick at all the ignorant  things people are saying - in private and public.  We cannot dismiss it because under that rage is fear - and below that, pain.  Letting go of the rage means facing the pain and fear. .."

So perfect an explanation of how people are caught up in these movements and willing to listen to and agree with propaganda that makes them feel justified.

So many times history seems to imitate itself.  An interesting and compelling book.