The Spy Who Loved – Churchill called her his favourite spy, and Polish-born part Jewish Countess Krystyna Skarbek aka Christine Granville, was Britain’s first female special agent of the Second World War. Despite being arrested more than once, Krystyna used her guile to save not only her own life, but also those of many of her male colleagues in three different theatres of the war. But it was her service behind enemy lines in Nazi-occupied France that made her legendary among the special forces. Not only did she make the first contact between the French resistance and the Italian partisans on opposite sides of the Alps in preparation for D Day in the south, she also secured the defection of an entire German garrison on a strategic pass in the mountains. Awarded the OBE, the George Medal, and French Croix de Guerre, her tragic early death made the papers around the world, yet her real story was kept hidden. Clare was decorated with Poland’s national honour, the Bene Merito, for this inspiring biography.
Publication of The Spy Who Loved led to Clare being decorated with Poland’s national honour, the Bene Merito.
The book has now been optioned for film.
‘This summer’s most spellbinding saga’, Vogue.com
‘Admirable and overdue’, Ben Macintyre, The New York Times Book Review
‘Highly atmospheric… scholarly and tautly written’, The Economist
‘Scintillating and moving… one of the most exciting books… this year’, The Spectator
‘Compulsively readable biography… a thrilling book’, Sunday Telegraph
‘Woven with rare perception… a text of suspense and daring’, The Times
‘Told with terrific élan and mesmerising detail… splendid’, Telegraph
‘Brings alive a glamorous, swashbuckling heroine’, Sunday Times
‘As thrilling as any fiction… Clare Mulley has made a fine and soberly thrilling addition to the literature of the undercover war… this book, massively researched and excitingly told, brings an extraordinary heroine back to life’, Daily Mail
‘Engrossing biography… as thrilling as any fiction’, Mail on Sunday
‘Inspiring… Granville was as charismatic as she was courageous’, The Literary Review
‘Ripping yarns and ripping stockings… romance was one thing, but it was danger that really seemed to ring Christine’s bell’, The Guardian
‘One British functionary described [Granville’s] dispatches from the field as “good reading”. The same can be said of Ms Mulley’s biography of this extraordinary woman.’ The Wall Street Journal
‘Scrupulously researched and expertly rendered… outstanding… more eye-popping adventures than we’d find plausible in any novel or movie’, The Daily Beast
‘Better than any James Bond novel.. the most frank and comprehensive tribute yet to Christine… a thrilling account’, Salon.com
‘A nerve-shredding read’, The Lady
‘Clare Mulley tells her story with a bravura that matches Christine’s charismatic character’, Saga Magazine
‘Sterling biography… Christine Granville has finally received a fitting tribute’, Country Life
‘Riveting… a gripping story… Hollywood should sit up and take note!’ The Good Book Guide
‘Breathtaking… This book demands to be read in her honour’, The Daily Mail (paperback review)
‘A compelling read and a testimony to the work of a dedicated opponent of Nazism. I highly recommend it’, BBC History Magazine
‘Mulley tells this gripping, tragic tale with a light touch’, Britain at War magazine
‘Mulley has a novelist’s eye for detail… in this clear, highly satisfying biography, Mulley fleshes out her subject and brings her back to life’, The Jewish Chronicle
‘A dazzling tale’, MacLean’s (Canada)
‘Mulley tells her story with brio… just the job for anyone who loved Ben Macintyre’s Agent ZigZag‘, Voyager (BMI)
‘A stunning biographical achievement’, Alison Weir
‘A breath-taking story told with panache and sympathy for an extraordinary heroine’, Anne Sebba, Les Parisiennes
‘The story of Christine Granville is both inspiring and fascinating. Her courage and guile combined with both tenderness and ruthlessness makes her such an extraordinary person. I could not put Clare’s book down! Justin Maciejewski, Director of the National Army Museum
‘Truly page-turning’, Gordon Thomas, Gideon’s Spies
‘Impressively researched, and absolutely fascinating. Christine Granville is one of those women you can’t help wishing you’d met in real life’, Jojo Moyes, Me Before You
‘I enjoyed and admired The Spy Who Loved… a really gripping account of the remarkable Christine Granville’, Simon Mawer, The Glass Room, The Girl Who Fell from the Sky
‘An astonishing story, brilliantly told. If a Hollywood movie isn’t made about Christine Granville’s remarkable life, I’d be amazed’, Charles Cumming, Foreign Country, The Trinity Six
‘Best Beach Reads 2013’, Vanity Fair
Five Best: Paddy Hayes, The Wall Street Journal
‘A Best Book of the Month So Far, June 2013’, ‘A Favourite Book of Spring, 2013’, and ‘A Best Book of the Year So Far, 2013’, Amazon.com
La Spia Che Amava (21 Lettres, 2020), Italian translation of The Spy Who Loved:
‘Clare Mulley, award-winning writer, arrives in Italy with her first, passionate, intriguing, compelling, convincing and engaging book… impeccable and essential,’ Convenzionali
‘Compelling and lively… this book makes a powerful impact,’ Aostra Cronaca
‘Brilliant… compelling… exciting’, Solo Libri
‘At times the telling becomes urgent and readers are absolutely mesmerised… The writing is fast and sharp, while still elegant and refined…’ Il Manifesto
Clare Mulley 