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The Bordeaux Bakery: A WW2 Spy Thriller Based on True Events in Nazi-Occupied Bordeaux
In Nazi-occupied France, courage is the most dangerous weapon.
As the church bell tolls midnight, Marie-Louise Dumontier scrambles from a small boat on to dry land somewhere near St Tropez, in Nazi-occupied France. Recruited as a courier for the Bordeaux SOE network, the timid British agent must find courage she’s never known. There is no choice. Soon she's working undercover in a bakery, delivering vital intelligence to Jack, the wireless operator, leading missions to sabotage German targets, and is passionately in love. War has finally awakened something in her; she feels truly alive for the first time in her life.
Meanwhile, a young, destitute Jewish refugee, Eve Abelmann, faces agonizing choices in Nazi-occupied Bordeaux; submit, flee, or starve. Will she survive?
When Marie-Louise and fellow agent, Emilie, take huge personal risks that could compromise the local resistance, the ambitious and cruel Gestapo officer, Fischer, already suspicious about the enemy network operating in Bordeaux, soon picks up the scent. In a world where silence saves lives and betrayal is just a whisper away, all three women must try to silently endure their own sacrifice and heartbreak as Fischer closes in.
From the streets of Bordeaux to the forests in the Dordogne, where Maquis guerrilla fighters wage their clandestine war against their occupiers, The Bordeaux Bakery delivers a sweep of authentic characters, each dealing with their own human weaknesses and fears while living each day under the cloud of almost inevitable arrest, brutal torture and death.
For readers who love The Nightingale, Charlotte Gray and the After Dunkirk series —The Bordeaux Bakery is a compelling thriller inspired by the true story of the British agents sent to Bordeaux to help grow the local resistance during its Nazi occupation. C rafted from meticulous research, it is a tale of espionage, endurance, loyalty and betrayal, and the extraordinary courage of women at war.
The Bordeaux Bakery is the second novel by Kate Duprez. Its sequel, The Bordeaux Betrayals, continues this enthralling story.
Meanwhile, a young, destitute Jewish refugee, Eve Abelmann, faces agonizing choices in Nazi-occupied Bordeaux; submit, flee, or starve. Will she survive?
When Marie-Louise and fellow agent, Emilie, take huge personal risks that could compromise the local resistance, the ambitious and cruel Gestapo officer, Fischer, already suspicious about the enemy network operating in Bordeaux, soon picks up the scent. In a world where silence saves lives and betrayal is just a whisper away, all three women must try to silently endure their own sacrifice and heartbreak as Fischer closes in.
From the streets of Bordeaux to the forests in the Dordogne, where Maquis guerrilla fighters wage their clandestine war against their occupiers, The Bordeaux Bakery delivers a sweep of authentic characters, each dealing with their own human weaknesses and fears while living each day under the cloud of almost inevitable arrest, brutal torture and death.
For readers who love The Nightingale, Charlotte Gray and the After Dunkirk series —The Bordeaux Bakery is a compelling thriller inspired by the true story of the British agents sent to Bordeaux to help grow the local resistance during its Nazi occupation. C rafted from meticulous research, it is a tale of espionage, endurance, loyalty and betrayal, and the extraordinary courage of women at war.
The Bordeaux Bakery is the second novel by Kate Duprez. Its sequel, The Bordeaux Betrayals, continues this enthralling story.
269 pages, Paperback
Published January 31, 2026
About the author
Kate Duprez
4 books10 followersA new voice in historical fiction, Kate Duprez writes for all who love reading about the many ‘ordinary’ women and men who have shaped history by performing extraordinary deeds. Her novels, The Warsaw Messenger, The Bordeaux Bakery, and its sequel, The Bordeaux Betrayals are inspired by several of the British agents who operated undercover in Nazi occupied Europe during WW2.
She works part time, enabling her time to research and write. She loves to travel and enjoys an outdoor lifestyle in beautiful New Zealand.
She works part time, enabling her time to research and write. She loves to travel and enjoys an outdoor lifestyle in beautiful New Zealand.
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March 21, 2026The Bordeaux Bakery is inspired by the true story of the British agents sent to Bordeaux to help grow the local resistance during the Nazi occupation. We first meet Marie-Louise who is on her way to Bordeaux, France to become a courier for the local network of the resistance, the SOE. She moves in with Emilie and they will be working undercover together at the boulangerie, trying to stay under the radar while they each have roles in the resistance.
The war seems to have awakened something in the women because Marie-Louise is doing things she wouldn’t normally do and Emilie is sleeping with a German official. They both take risks that could compromise everything they’ve worked for. We also meet a Jewish refugee named Eve, who has to suffer immensely in order to just survive. Who will stay loyal and who will betray?
Each character had their own personal hardships and struggles that they had to face. Some were more heart-wrenching than others but the war affected each person different. The author, Kate Duprez, sent this book to me after I joined her ARC team. She is a new voice in historical fiction and I’m looking forward to reading more of her books. I’m really looking forward to the sequel, The Bordeaux Betrayals, to see what happens next for the characters!
The war seems to have awakened something in the women because Marie-Louise is doing things she wouldn’t normally do and Emilie is sleeping with a German official. They both take risks that could compromise everything they’ve worked for. We also meet a Jewish refugee named Eve, who has to suffer immensely in order to just survive. Who will stay loyal and who will betray?
Each character had their own personal hardships and struggles that they had to face. Some were more heart-wrenching than others but the war affected each person different. The author, Kate Duprez, sent this book to me after I joined her ARC team. She is a new voice in historical fiction and I’m looking forward to reading more of her books. I’m really looking forward to the sequel, The Bordeaux Betrayals, to see what happens next for the characters!
Review of advance copy received from Author
Received this book from the author in exchange for a review.
I have read other novels with the World War II setting, and this one is another. Each Novel gives a different perspective on the trials of the people who endured the hardships that were caused by the War, and each has been informative.
While it is obvious that these historical stories do have components of actual historical facts in them, it is up to the author to draw the reader into the narrative by creating believable characters and situations. This has been done successfully, and it was heart wrenching to read some of the story, as seeing the hardships and situations endured by just trying to eek out a living was tough to imagine.
As the FMC expressed, decisions and actions in a time of war are often far different than that which would occur during time of peace (not a direct quote - simply a memory/impression).
It always tears at my emotions to read these stories, although I keep going back to them. It is crucial to remind oneself of what took place, to hopefully prevent a recurrence. I would never wish that we become too comfortable in our current lives that we forget there are those in the world that still endure hardships.
This story takes place in Bordeaux, France, where an agent sent by the British is assigned to work with a team there to collect information about the Germans and what they are doing in the area. Her cover is to work in a bakery (hence the name of the book), and also to perform whatever duties the team designates. During her time there, she is forced to make decisions that would not be part of her former experiences while living at home with her parents. She is torn, at times, with second guessing her options.
Her fellow team mates each have their own dilemmas, and it weaves into a story that leaves the reader struggling at times to work through the implications and whether (from a distance) you feel that the best choices have been made.
It is a story that leaves the reader emotionally charged, and is worth the effort it takes to read. I thank the author for the opportunity to review it.
I have read other novels with the World War II setting, and this one is another. Each Novel gives a different perspective on the trials of the people who endured the hardships that were caused by the War, and each has been informative.
While it is obvious that these historical stories do have components of actual historical facts in them, it is up to the author to draw the reader into the narrative by creating believable characters and situations. This has been done successfully, and it was heart wrenching to read some of the story, as seeing the hardships and situations endured by just trying to eek out a living was tough to imagine.
As the FMC expressed, decisions and actions in a time of war are often far different than that which would occur during time of peace (not a direct quote - simply a memory/impression).
It always tears at my emotions to read these stories, although I keep going back to them. It is crucial to remind oneself of what took place, to hopefully prevent a recurrence. I would never wish that we become too comfortable in our current lives that we forget there are those in the world that still endure hardships.
This story takes place in Bordeaux, France, where an agent sent by the British is assigned to work with a team there to collect information about the Germans and what they are doing in the area. Her cover is to work in a bakery (hence the name of the book), and also to perform whatever duties the team designates. During her time there, she is forced to make decisions that would not be part of her former experiences while living at home with her parents. She is torn, at times, with second guessing her options.
Her fellow team mates each have their own dilemmas, and it weaves into a story that leaves the reader struggling at times to work through the implications and whether (from a distance) you feel that the best choices have been made.
It is a story that leaves the reader emotionally charged, and is worth the effort it takes to read. I thank the author for the opportunity to review it.
May 8, 2026
The Bordeaux Bakery is a beautifully written, well researched WW2, Spy Thriller. I loved it and was captivated from the start right through to the end. During the war, in Britain, women were sent, by the Special Operations Executive (SOE), undercover, to occupied Europe, to work as couriers delivering important information about the enemy. Many were women.
Marie-Louise was one of these brave women. She arrived in a small boat to St Tropez, France, carrying forged identity papers and ration cards. She was frightened and terrified but at the same time proud of what she was about to do. Joining the SOE was an act of both rebellion and liberation. She was to work undercover in a bakery with Ralph and his sister Emilie. One of her first jobs involved delivering secret messages, which had been hidden inside her bicycle handle bars, to Jack, another agent on the other side of town. This involved riding past the German guards which was very dangerous. Marie-Louise’s life was about to change forever.
There were many themes in the story including personal hardships, suffering, struggles and horror caused by the war. Risk taking, secrets, learning new things, friendship and love.
I highly recommend reading this wonderful book. Thank you to Kate for allowing me to read this. I thoroughly enjoyed this and give it five stars. I am looking forward to reading the next book in this series, The Bordeaux Betrayals.
Marie-Louise was one of these brave women. She arrived in a small boat to St Tropez, France, carrying forged identity papers and ration cards. She was frightened and terrified but at the same time proud of what she was about to do. Joining the SOE was an act of both rebellion and liberation. She was to work undercover in a bakery with Ralph and his sister Emilie. One of her first jobs involved delivering secret messages, which had been hidden inside her bicycle handle bars, to Jack, another agent on the other side of town. This involved riding past the German guards which was very dangerous. Marie-Louise’s life was about to change forever.
There were many themes in the story including personal hardships, suffering, struggles and horror caused by the war. Risk taking, secrets, learning new things, friendship and love.
I highly recommend reading this wonderful book. Thank you to Kate for allowing me to read this. I thoroughly enjoyed this and give it five stars. I am looking forward to reading the next book in this series, The Bordeaux Betrayals.
April 18, 2026
Learning to live
Marie-Louise is an SOE Agent and must learn new things, go to new places, and do things she might rather not do, but staying alive is the top priority! The hardest thing is not being able to just stay in one place, have a family, love, and be loved.
The times are not of love, but war and doing what you have to in the moment. When she gets pregnant, that is yet another bridge she must cross...
This is a great beginning of her life, and that of her little boy.
Thank you, Kate Duprez, for a great story.
I received a complimentary arc copy of this book and this is my honest review.
Marie-Louise is an SOE Agent and must learn new things, go to new places, and do things she might rather not do, but staying alive is the top priority! The hardest thing is not being able to just stay in one place, have a family, love, and be loved.
The times are not of love, but war and doing what you have to in the moment. When she gets pregnant, that is yet another bridge she must cross...
This is a great beginning of her life, and that of her little boy.
Thank you, Kate Duprez, for a great story.
I received a complimentary arc copy of this book and this is my honest review.
April 28, 2026
A truly amazing read, l thoroughly enjoyed it would recommend it to anyone and everyone
February 13, 2026
This is one book you don't want to miss out on. Brilliantly told story of some of the SOE's during WWII. I loved all the characters, well the good ones, that is.
I was glued to the book, turning each page carefully hoping that my favourite characters were alive to live another day.
There has been a lot of research done by Kate Duprez, about the countryside, the city, how the undercover agents worked etc. Marie- Louise, Jack, Emilie and others all have a part to play at keeping us glued to each page.
I look forward to more of this genre by Kate Duprez.
I was glued to the book, turning each page carefully hoping that my favourite characters were alive to live another day.
There has been a lot of research done by Kate Duprez, about the countryside, the city, how the undercover agents worked etc. Marie- Louise, Jack, Emilie and others all have a part to play at keeping us glued to each page.
I look forward to more of this genre by Kate Duprez.
May 1, 2026
A good story that kept me entertained. Looking forward to reading the sequel.
Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews