Triumph and Tragedy: A Novel of World War II

by John Rhodes

1945. World War II is now in its sixth agonizing year. In Europe, the Allies are closing in on Hitler’s horrific Third Reich, but victory remains elusive. In the Pacific, US forces are locked in a grinding island-by-island struggle against Imperial Japan.

Summoned from the battlefields of Europe, veteran tactical analyst Eleanor Shaux finds herself unexpectedly thrust into the greatest secret of the the Manhattan Project. Agonizing decisions must be made about the dangerous new weapon that could end the war in both theaters in a single stroke. Eleanor—pulled apart by the moral ambiguities and nuances of war, worn down by the stress of living through years of incessant conflict, and shocked by personal disaster—struggles to survive.

Meanwhile, even as victory beckons, the great alliance between Roosevelt, Churchill, and Stalin is in danger of unraveling, strained to the breaking point by rivalries and ambitions. No one doubts that Germany will lose the war in Europe, but who will win it?

The future of the world hangs in the balance as the war reaches its shattering climax in a time of triumph and tragedy. Which fate awaits Eleanor?

345 pages, Kindle Edition

Published May 8, 2026

About the author

Librarian Note: There is more than one author in the Goodreads database with this name.

Reviews

[Patricia N. · Rating 5 out of 5]

Rating: ★★★★★

Breaking Point:
Triumph and Tragedy by John Rhodes

This was a strong and emotional WWII novel that felt more personal than a lot of war books. Instead of only focusing on battles, it also shows the stress, fear, and hard choices people had to make near the end of the war.

The main character, Eleanor Shaux, was the most interesting part of the story for me. She’s a tactical analyst who gets pulled away from Europe and into the Manhattan Project, where she has to wrestle with the moral questions surrounding the atomic bomb. She’s smart, exhausted from years of war, and struggling emotionally from personal loss and everything she has seen.

The story also includes major historical leaders like Franklin D. Roosevelt, Winston Churchill, and Joseph Stalin as tensions rise between the Allies even while victory is getting closer. That part made the story feel bigger than just one person’s experience.

What I liked most was how the book balanced triumph and heartbreak. There’s action and suspense, but also quieter moments that show the emotional cost of war. The ending was powerful and thoughtful without spoiling everything or trying to wrap things up too perfectly.

Overall, this was a memorable historical fiction read with strong characters and a lot of emotional depth. I’d definitely recommend it to readers who enjoy WWII stories with both action and human drama.

Thank you, #NetGalley , #JohnRhodes author, and #RoundelHouse publisher, for sending this book for review consideration. All opinions are my own.

#NetGalley
#TriumphandTragedy
#JohnRhodes
#RoundelHouse

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[Ciara · Rating 3 out of 5]

John Rhodes has fictionalised the months leading up to and following on from the German surrender in 1945 by intertwining it with the story of Eleanor Shaux, a recently widowed British mathematician whose renowned understanding of mathematics and probabilities sees her present at some of the most paramount diplomatic moments of the final months of WW2. She brings two elements to the retelling of these events. Firstly, she is the peripheral narrator for the reader, and secondly, she is the presence of logic - her conversations with characters such as Churchill and Eisenhower may not be based on real life conversations, but present the reasoning that these individuals will have had with either themselves or obscure staff. This is an interesting approach to the retelling of this time period - the imposition of this narrator character is a fresh take on the factual retelling of key events, and a way to engage a modern reader. I also enjoyed the integration points of Eleanor and the key historical points - namely Charlie and his relationship with Fala, which seemed almost symbolic of a loving relationship!

I did have some reservations however. Whilst I appreciate Eleanor's purpose in the story, the idea that a female mathematician became the unquestioned top advisor to the likes of Eisenhower, Stalin, Churchill etc. seems entirely infeasible. Her direction is never challenged (with the exception of the nameless station CO who immediately buckles when she reveals who her deceased husband was) and given what we know of gender politics at the time, this lack of friction feels unrealistic.

She also falls slightly too far into cliches - Kay Summersby is the only other woman in the story and the two have an unexplained mutual dislike of each other. Most of the men she meets fall madly in love with her - the rest hang on her every word. Which leads into my final issue with her character - her relationship with Johnnie and his untimely death. It's the first thing we learn about Eleanor and yet his death doesn't appear to give any dimension to her character or given any further development. Any mention of him feels forced in at random points until it's vaguely tied up towards the end.

Overall - a good read for a fictional lens on a very factual retelling of critical events some criticism of the main characters credibility, with the added bonus of a very sweet relationship between two doggy pals!

Thank you to the team at Girl Friday for the ARC, always appreciated ❤️

[Scarlet Haze · Rating 3 out of 5]

Thank you, NetGalley, for the opportunity to read this book and review it.

Triumph and Tragedy fictionalises the closing months of World War II through Eleanor Shaux, a recently widowed British mathematician placed at the highest diplomatic and strategic levels of 1945. John Rhodes uses her as a moral compass, present at pivotal moments from the Allied push against the Third Reich to the decisions surrounding the Manhattan Readers who lean into the history will find a lot to enjoy: the tactics, the weaponry, the strategic mechanics of warfare are all rendered in real detail.
Where the novel shines is in the warmth of smaller moments, like the relationship between the dogs Charlie and Fala, which provides a welcome counterpoint to the surrounding bleakness.

Eleanor herself, however, is where the book struggles. The premise that a female mathematician became the unquestioned top advisor to people like Eisenhower is presented with almost no friction and feels deeply unrealistic, given the gender politics of the era.
The narrative flow is also uneven at times, and some characters feel purposeless. Johnnie is the clearest example: his death is the first thing we learn about Eleanor, yet it never meaningfully shapes her arc, with references to him feeling inserted at random. Overall, a solid read for WWII and military history enthusiasts, but the main character's credibility and some narrative drift hold it back. For me personally, it was a 2-2,5 ⭐️ read and it took me a bit longer to finish than I would have anticipated or enjoyed.

[Loz Eardley · Rating 3 out of 5]

A WWII story centred around aviation strategy and the Allied war effort, following a fictional character, Eleanor, placed into real historical events and decision making. It focuses on the final year of the war, leading up to the atomic bombs being dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki.

There’s a lot of aviation and Air Force jargon in this, and you can tell a huge amount of research has gone into it. It also spends a lot of time deliberating between the B-29 and the Lancaster, which may work for some readers but did drag a little for me.

I did really like Eleanor as a character. She’s a total badass and commands respect in a very male dominated environment. I can see how some might find that unrealistic for the time, but I was happy to go with it. It did feel a bit wild that Winston Churchill, Eisenhower and Truman want to meet her multiple times.

Maybe I’m just a hopeless romantic, but I really wanted a different outcome with Johnny. He’s missing presumed dead throughout, and for that to just remain the case/body found felt a bit anticlimactic. Not sad just disappointed.

If you go into this as a dramatised retelling of real events, that’s essentially what it is. It feels like the author has stayed close to historical fact and then inserted Eleanor into that world, so you do come away having learned something along the way.

[David Radulski · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another great book from a great author

A fantastic read! Rhodes has done it again. His epic of World War II is the best I’ve read. Rhodes brings personalities and events alive. His writing style is compellingly good. Rhodes combines history, drama, humor and love into a tale well worth reading from the beginning. I liked the series so much I may start again at the beginning. More please, Mr. Rhodes!

[Michael Bird · Rating 5 out of 5]

As with the other books in this series I can only say "Fantastic."

Brilliantly written and authentic in character.

It reminded me of so much that me parents told me about their wartime experiences. I was born and adopted in 1050.

Thank you John Rhodes.

[nantankaol.com · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great Series

Obviously, well researched. The fictional characters led me through a better understanding of of the events and actions of the actual participants,