A few years ago, I was researching topics for my next book when I discovered the amazing true story of Vera Atkins and the women who had served as agents for Special Operations Executive (SOE) under her leadership in Britain during World War II. I was immediately captivated by the heroic endeavors of these brave women, who went unheralded for many years after the war. I was struck, too, by the fact that many of the women never came home.
As an author of historical fiction, I must constantly navigate the delicate balance between the needs of the story and the obligation of historical integrity. While some of the characters and events in The Lost Girls of Paris are based on fact, the novel is first and foremost a work of fiction. There was no way I could adequately capture the heroics of the many women who served at SOE, and so I have created composites in Marie and the other female agents in the book inspired by them. Eleanor Trigg, Colonel Winslow and all other characters in my book are fictitious. I have taken great liberties with the ways the women trained and deployed. The places in which they operate and the missions they undertake were created for purposes of the story. And without saying too much and spoiling it for those who read the Author’s Note first, the ultimate explanation as to what happened to the girls, while inspired by the many articulated theories, is also a product of fiction.
For those who are interested in reading more about the real women of SOE, I recommend A Life in Secrets: Vera Atkins and the Missing Agents of World War Two by Sarah Helm and Spymistress: The True Story of the Greatest Female Secret Agent of World War Two by William Stevenson.