Code Name Edelweiss by Stephanie Landsem

My Review

Code Name Edelweiss, by Stephanie Landsem, is a stand alone Christian historical fiction based in Los Angeles in 1933. When Liesl loses her job, she contacts Leon Lewis, a Jewish lawyer, for a secretarial position and ends up taking a job as a spy. She volunteers with the Friends of New Germany, an organization set out to get rid of the Jews and take over Hollywood. Leon has another agent, but the agents do not know each other and don’t know who they can trust.

This is a powerful story that gives a look into what may have been happening in the United States while the war with Hilter was happening in Europe. The story is well written with lots of details. It was easy to imagine and kept me reading to see what was going to happen. I enjoyed the family dynamics of Liesl’s family. It was very realistic with how the adult members of the family each had their own ideas of the situation. I enjoyed how the children selected their friends by who they liked and not by nationality. I especially enjoyed seeing how Liesl’s brother changed through out the story. This is a nice story that has drama, suspense, mystery and relationships.

I voluntarily received a complimentary copy of this book, this is my honest review.

About the Book

“What I am looking for—what I desperately need, Mrs. Weiss—is a spy.”

Adolf Hitler is still a distant rumble on the horizon, but a Jewish spymaster and his courageous spies uncover a storm of Nazi terror in their own backyard.

In the summer of 1933, a man named Adolf Hitler is the new and powerful anti-Semitic chancellor of Germany. But in Los Angeles, no-nonsense secretary Liesl Weiss has concerns much closer to home. The Great Depression is tightening its grip and Liesl is the sole supporter of two children, an opinionated mother, and a troubled brother.

Leon Lewis is a Jewish lawyer who has watched Adolf Hitler’s rise to power—and the increase in anti-Semitism in America—with growing alarm. He believes Nazi agents are working to seize control of Hollywood, the greatest propaganda machine the world has ever known. The trouble is, authorities scoff at his dire warnings.

When Liesl loses her job at MGM, her only choice is to work with Leon Lewis and the mysterious Agent Thirteen to spy on her friends and neighbors in her German American community. What Leon Lewis and his spies find is more chilling—and more dangerous—than any of them suspected.

Code Name Edelweiss is based on a true story, unknown until recent years: How a lone Jewish lawyer and a handful of amateur spies discovered and foiled Adolf Hitler’s plan to take over Hollywood.

About the Author

Stephanie Landsem writes historical fiction for women, about women. Her newest novel, Code Name Edelweiss, is based on a true story: how a lone Jewish lawyer and his band of amateur spies discovered and foiled Hitler’s plan to take over Hollywood. You can learn more about her and the books she has written at https://stephanielandsem.com/.