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The Limping Lady: Based on the True Story of America's Most Decorated Female Spy
In the heart of occupied France, the Gestapo is hunting a ghost. They only know one thing about their most dangerous her limp.
Sent to Lyon, a city built for conspiracy, an American spy with a wooden leg codenamed "Cuthbert" begins a one-woman war against the Third Reich. Under the guise of a naïve journalist, Virginia Hall orchestrates sabotage and builds escape lines, her every move shadowed by the threat of discovery. Her limp is her signature, the one flaw in her performance that could betray her to the ever-watchful Gestapo.
When the enemy’s top spy hunter is brought in to eliminate the mysterious “Limping Lady,” Virginia must escalate her mission from espionage to open warfare. Tasked with forging a unified army from the feuding tribes of the Maquis, she must command bitter rivals in a series of audacious heists and devastating attacks. From the rooftops of Lyon to the treacherous peaks of the Pyrenees, Virginia wages a war of wits and wills against a relentless enemy who is determined to unmask her.
An epic and thrilling novel based on the true story of Virginia Hall, the spy who became a myth.
Sent to Lyon, a city built for conspiracy, an American spy with a wooden leg codenamed "Cuthbert" begins a one-woman war against the Third Reich. Under the guise of a naïve journalist, Virginia Hall orchestrates sabotage and builds escape lines, her every move shadowed by the threat of discovery. Her limp is her signature, the one flaw in her performance that could betray her to the ever-watchful Gestapo.
When the enemy’s top spy hunter is brought in to eliminate the mysterious “Limping Lady,” Virginia must escalate her mission from espionage to open warfare. Tasked with forging a unified army from the feuding tribes of the Maquis, she must command bitter rivals in a series of audacious heists and devastating attacks. From the rooftops of Lyon to the treacherous peaks of the Pyrenees, Virginia wages a war of wits and wills against a relentless enemy who is determined to unmask her.
An epic and thrilling novel based on the true story of Virginia Hall, the spy who became a myth.
216 pages, Kindle Edition
Published August 23, 2025
566 people are currently reading
195 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 35 reviews
November 23, 2025
Based on a true story, this is a truly remarkable story of great courage!
November 22, 2025
Wonderful
I am an old man and I read a lot. But out of the thousands of books I've read this one ranks right at the top of the pile with the best of them!
I am an old man and I read a lot. But out of the thousands of books I've read this one ranks right at the top of the pile with the best of them!
November 5, 2025
As a history lover I found this book hard to put down. The author captured the fear, pain, and self doubt of Virginia overcome by her courage, loyalty and brilliant strategic mind. Highly recommend.
December 20, 2025
Intrigue Abounds
Having just visited Lyon, this novel mixed past and present for me. Written with a wonderful pace of excitement and allowing the reader to anticipate the next steps, yet finding the story escalates in a new direction. Marvelous writing! The Resistance should never be forgotten. Real people bravely gave their lives. My next step will be to research "Diane.". I stayed on Rue Rene Leynaud and learned he was part of the Resistance and they met on that very street before he was killed by the Gestapo. Thank you for a wonderful read!
Having just visited Lyon, this novel mixed past and present for me. Written with a wonderful pace of excitement and allowing the reader to anticipate the next steps, yet finding the story escalates in a new direction. Marvelous writing! The Resistance should never be forgotten. Real people bravely gave their lives. My next step will be to research "Diane.". I stayed on Rue Rene Leynaud and learned he was part of the Resistance and they met on that very street before he was killed by the Gestapo. Thank you for a wonderful read!
October 20, 2025
Inspiring
Beautifully written, hard to stop reading. Very real, real life scenarios. A great strategic mind that kept a promise to a young orphan girl. Amazing description of the final that liberated Lyon, France. Conrad Samayoa.
Beautifully written, hard to stop reading. Very real, real life scenarios. A great strategic mind that kept a promise to a young orphan girl. Amazing description of the final that liberated Lyon, France. Conrad Samayoa.
December 14, 2025
Amazing!!!
You have heard that truth is stranger than fiction. This woman's life was more amazing, intense, and incredible than fiction.
You have heard that truth is stranger than fiction. This woman's life was more amazing, intense, and incredible than fiction.
October 31, 2025
Living Breathtaking History
A fascinating story, well told and gripping. Makes the reader feel and respect the sacrifice of a daring woman who became a legend.
A fascinating story, well told and gripping. Makes the reader feel and respect the sacrifice of a daring woman who became a legend.
November 28, 2025
Fantastic story with historical context that will keep you on your toes and ultimately have you cheering for the “Limping “Lady”
December 10, 2025
Cold Cruel Violence
I have read many WWII genre books. This was one of the most cold, cruel and violent ones I have read.
The writing was mediocre. Many phrases were repeated over and over again. The word "surgical" was over used.
I read it to the end hoping for something redeeming, but alas, I was disappointed.
I have read many WWII genre books. This was one of the most cold, cruel and violent ones I have read.
The writing was mediocre. Many phrases were repeated over and over again. The word "surgical" was over used.
I read it to the end hoping for something redeeming, but alas, I was disappointed.
October 7, 2025
A phenomenal story!
January 4, 2026
I typically enjoy historical fiction and especially stories where the protagonist is female, but… there are a few things I really didn’t enjoy about this book.
To be fair, I thought the writing was pretty good and the plot had great potential. The story itself is not bad, but is only loosely based on Virginia Hall. Much of the story and the characters are totally fictitious.
What I didn’t like:
There are no real descriptions of what anyone looks like other than “stern” or “weary”, etc. Sometimes there’s a mention of graying hair or wrinkles, beady or stern eyes, etc. but I have no idea what the main character, Virginia, looks like, other than walking with a limp, until I Googled her. There are a few references to the men’s appearance but no one is ever given a true description.
The characters were not developed well at all. A Dr. and his daughter somehow grow attached to Virginia, but they’ve spent very little time together and other than pulling over a stool for Virginia to sit on, there is little interaction between them. The relationship with the daughter and what it signifies, is what Virginia claims to be fighting for, yet there is no developed relationship.
There are flaws in the story that could easily be fixed as well. For instance, Virginia is handed a loaf of bread that feels heavier than it should be which she knows from years of training, has a hard object inside, that turns out to be a small piece of folded paper. I’m assuming that the small piece of paper was inside the object inside, but no connection was made.
Page 211 – a makeup artist works for weeks with Virginia and shows her how to apply liquid latex to her skin to create the fine, crepe-paper texture of an old woman’s wrinkles. He creates what they call a “mask”. She goes on to live in the forest, in a cave and in the tunnels under Lyon with no mention of her “make-up” having to be redone to maintain the illusion that she’s an old woman. How would she have maintained her died gray hair, and makeup, etc.?
While in France in the beginning of the book, how is Virginia able to change her identity? Who forges her papers? Where does she get money to move into different flats? The omission of this information was distracting.
Some phrases or ideas were repeated enough to be a little annoying. Example: several different people being “a spider caught in a web”.
There is very little mention of her eating. Crossing the Pyrenees, how did they eat or did they? Sometimes they had to travel lightly, what did they survive on?
I'm glad that I read the book, just wish there were not so many flaws.
To be fair, I thought the writing was pretty good and the plot had great potential. The story itself is not bad, but is only loosely based on Virginia Hall. Much of the story and the characters are totally fictitious.
What I didn’t like:
There are no real descriptions of what anyone looks like other than “stern” or “weary”, etc. Sometimes there’s a mention of graying hair or wrinkles, beady or stern eyes, etc. but I have no idea what the main character, Virginia, looks like, other than walking with a limp, until I Googled her. There are a few references to the men’s appearance but no one is ever given a true description.
The characters were not developed well at all. A Dr. and his daughter somehow grow attached to Virginia, but they’ve spent very little time together and other than pulling over a stool for Virginia to sit on, there is little interaction between them. The relationship with the daughter and what it signifies, is what Virginia claims to be fighting for, yet there is no developed relationship.
There are flaws in the story that could easily be fixed as well. For instance, Virginia is handed a loaf of bread that feels heavier than it should be which she knows from years of training, has a hard object inside, that turns out to be a small piece of folded paper. I’m assuming that the small piece of paper was inside the object inside, but no connection was made.
Page 211 – a makeup artist works for weeks with Virginia and shows her how to apply liquid latex to her skin to create the fine, crepe-paper texture of an old woman’s wrinkles. He creates what they call a “mask”. She goes on to live in the forest, in a cave and in the tunnels under Lyon with no mention of her “make-up” having to be redone to maintain the illusion that she’s an old woman. How would she have maintained her died gray hair, and makeup, etc.?
While in France in the beginning of the book, how is Virginia able to change her identity? Who forges her papers? Where does she get money to move into different flats? The omission of this information was distracting.
Some phrases or ideas were repeated enough to be a little annoying. Example: several different people being “a spider caught in a web”.
There is very little mention of her eating. Crossing the Pyrenees, how did they eat or did they? Sometimes they had to travel lightly, what did they survive on?
I'm glad that I read the book, just wish there were not so many flaws.
January 11, 2026
This story itself is probably a four, but I found the writing to be it's downfall. The antagonist was a brilliant and masterful strategist of war. Through her multitude of disguises and aliases, she was able to fly under the radar by being written off due to her disability. An annoying aspect to her brilliance is that she continually failed to plan ahead to the reaction and paybacks to her plans. She was constantly needing to outmaneuver someone who was outmaneuvering her. What really ruined the story for me was that for "Diane's" 3 lieutenants, they were given their own descriptions but those were repeated over and over and over throughout the entire last part of the book. There was no creativity there. Just like how throughout the entire book you could count on Virginia/Diane/Marie/Marcelle's pain coming from her leg. We got it, it just didn't need to be discussed continuously.
January 9, 2026
4.25/5⭐️
The Limping Lady was fantastic. I want to dig deeper into the history behind it to see what is factual and what was fictional within the story. If the majority of it was true, this woman held weight on her shoulders and had the willpower of a leader.
The plans of disruption were artistic and the story of her determination was unforgettable. I’m honestly surprised I have yet to hear anything about this woman considering how much she had done (again depending on what was true).
I don’t think I could have done half of what she did, mainly because there were consequences of the actions she made. Consequences I don’t think I could live with.
The Limping Lady was fantastic. I want to dig deeper into the history behind it to see what is factual and what was fictional within the story. If the majority of it was true, this woman held weight on her shoulders and had the willpower of a leader.
The plans of disruption were artistic and the story of her determination was unforgettable. I’m honestly surprised I have yet to hear anything about this woman considering how much she had done (again depending on what was true).
I don’t think I could have done half of what she did, mainly because there were consequences of the actions she made. Consequences I don’t think I could live with.
December 8, 2025
Uses language in a unique and creative way.
I loved her use of language; Many authors will have a couple of good phrases that are memorable, Olivia has MANY. I think she did a great job of conveying the work of a strategist. There is a redundancy that is tedious at times, but overall it is my favorite book if the year.
I loved her use of language; Many authors will have a couple of good phrases that are memorable, Olivia has MANY. I think she did a great job of conveying the work of a strategist. There is a redundancy that is tedious at times, but overall it is my favorite book if the year.
February 3, 2026
A very interesting story. Given that it is a true story it is amazing what human spirit can achieve. This was a wonderfully written story and explained beautifully what actions were required to be taken to free Lyon and ultimately the country of France from the Nazi occupation. The story of Victoria, a lady with a false leg was truly gripping and what she achieved was incredible.
November 17, 2025
Could not put down once started — fascinating, riveting, frightening page turning suspense. The short 2-3 page) chapters contributed to the pace. Surely a mix of fiction and non, you will be captivated and will remember. Creative writing.
January 22, 2026
"The Limping Lady" had an interesting premise that definitely caught my attention. However, I found the writing style a bit lacking, which made it hard for me to fully enjoy the story. Additionally, the author repeated a lot of phrases throughout the book, which became very annoying.
February 8, 2026
I started this book on January 1st, wanting to start the new year reading something important. It was a heavy topic that took me some time to finish. I am glad I came back to it and finished it. Important and sad. It was a heavy book.
December 28, 2025
This was a good story of WWII. I enjoyed it and hated to see it end. People need to read it. I would recommend this book to young and old readers.
January 1, 2026
a female hero of war!
This was a wonderful portrait of a woman who won, showcasing brains over brawn. I couldn't put this down...reading this instead of going out for NYE!
This was a wonderful portrait of a woman who won, showcasing brains over brawn. I couldn't put this down...reading this instead of going out for NYE!
January 5, 2026
Brenda
I greatly enjoyed this book. Amazing story of the life of a true soldier and the army she created to help end the war.
I greatly enjoyed this book. Amazing story of the life of a true soldier and the army she created to help end the war.
January 14, 2026
Beautiful
This is a book of beauty and bravery written about the cruelty of war.
A true masterpiece that will resonate for a long time.
e masterpiece.
This is a book of beauty and bravery written about the cruelty of war.
A true masterpiece that will resonate for a long time.
e masterpiece.
January 16, 2026
Well written well read
January 23, 2026
Great story!!
January 26, 2026
Revenge
Great story, well written, and kept me in suspense. This is a book that you can't put down because of the mind-blowing schemes that make you want to keep reading.
Great story, well written, and kept me in suspense. This is a book that you can't put down because of the mind-blowing schemes that make you want to keep reading.
January 26, 2026
An amazing story about an amazing woman!
Highly reccomended
Highly reccomended
January 27, 2026
Great Story of A Hero
This story held my interest throughout the book. I now want to research more about this woman or should I say hero. Until now, I never knew she existed.
This story held my interest throughout the book. I now want to research more about this woman or should I say hero. Until now, I never knew she existed.
January 30, 2026
Kept me wanting to read more
I loved this book. It kept me on my toes and wanting to read more. The story is truly amazing
I loved this book. It kept me on my toes and wanting to read more. The story is truly amazing
February 4, 2026
A must read
An amazing true story of an amazing woman. The author has great style and way of putting together Virginia's story. I hope to read more of her books.
Ruth Muckle
An amazing true story of an amazing woman. The author has great style and way of putting together Virginia's story. I hope to read more of her books.
Ruth Muckle
Displaying 1 - 30 of 35 reviews