The dim red light seemed to engulf the space around her as she sat quietly out of the way of the busy mariners. She had just been told they had reached their destination and the crew was making ready to resurface the submarine so that she could disembark.
When initially Simone had learned that she had been hand-picked for this assignment she had wondered what special qualities she had to offer. Then she had been told the name of the Resistance leader’s code name was “Hibou” — the French name for an owl — and her heart had caught in her throat.
It was toward the end of 1943 during the lead up to Operation Overlord where she had first met Hibou at the community of Saint-Lô located in North West France. Although at the time no one was privy to the date and actual location of the planned invasion, it was deemed prudent that all Resistance fighters throughout northern France were to be well-equipped.
Could he be the same man? She truly hoped so. Surely the Special Operations Executive wouldn’t use the same code name for someone else?
Simone closed her eyes to remember that mission. Her directive had been to reorganize a Resistance unit and to supply them with arms and explosives…
Hibou was tall and stockily built with dark curly hair. He had large gorgeous blue eyes, and she could plainly see how the code name fitted him perfectly. It had been love at first sight, and despite the dangers, they had managed to nurture a strong romantic bond. Even though their intimacy had let down their guard, they had never divulged their own real names. When it was time to leave it was as though her heart had been wrenched out, but now there was a chance to meet him again. Would they be able to rekindle their relationship? Would he even remember her? She tightened her eyes to concentrate on her memory and tried to ignore the noises about her.
At the beginning, their relationship had been strictly professional, but a close encounter with the Gestapo removed all pretense, and they found comfort in each other’s arms. One thing led to another, and before they could stop themselves, they were entangled naked on the soft straw of a stall in a barn. The only noise aside their heavy breathing was the sound of jingling bells that were tied around the necks of several goats nearby.
Simone could still ‘feel’ his touch and the sensation of fullness as his manhood slid within her. She subconsciously clenched the muscles of her lower regions as she conjured up those thoughts.
“Miss Dubois, the Commander would like a word.” The voice in her ear snapped her from the reverie. As she opened her eyes to regard the speaker she was grateful for the red light to help disguise the flushness of her cheeks.
Jessica Lauryn –
Romance and true love are strongest when they withstand the test of danger and that is definitely proven in Dragoon Serenade by Louise Roberts. Special operations agent Simone and Resistance Leader “Hibou” engaged in a romantic affair months prior during a mission in France. Now they are engaged in subterfuge operations against the Germans once again and their feelings for one another are only stronger the second time around.
Roberts paints a very suspenseful picture as hero and heroine battle against the deadliest of forces in the most dangerous of times. The author’s use of imagery paints a clear picture of the scenes which engage the reader, making them feel as though they are right in the middle of the action. This story has a very satisfying ending. I highly recommend it!
Luminosity Publishing –
Review left by Justin Sheedy – Author
HEAVEN IN THE MIDST OF HELL
This is the story of two shining young people, lovers in the most dramatic and deadly setting imaginable: Occupied France, World War Two, where the people of La Belle France have their iconic homeland occupied by a ruthless and professional enemy: the almighty military force of Nazi Germany, its reign of terror driven by the dreaded Gestapo. In this setting two lovers, one an Allied secret agent, one a French Resistance fighter, are poised to play their part in liberating the people of France, in a world of betrayal, torture and death, two lovers doomed at times to distrust each other!
In “Dragoon Serenade”, author Louise Roberts tells a tale of love only heightened in a world at war, a world where love is narrow bliss between life and death, heaven in the midst of hell where young people make love as if each time could be their last.
This is a story of bravery in its many forms: the bravery of love itself, the bravery that is the bond between women in a man’s world, the bravery of the rare man who can admit he is wrong and who strives to be a better man. Yet whether between man or woman, between lovers, family, friends or enemies, “Dragoon Serenade” is perhaps most of all a testament to the bravery that is forgiveness.
Louise Roberts’ “Dragoon Serenade” is a story of triumph in war. Where what triumphs is the ordinary heaven of family, of laughing children, of lovers and love itself: the opposite of war.