by Patrick Read ~
"PLAUSIBLE . DIFFICULT TO PUT DOWN!" The December Conspiracy is a gripping new thriller which rivals the work of Robert Harris and Len Deighton. Kirkus Reviews hails it for, "Mixing real and fictional characters, Read has constructed an entirely plausible scenario. The plot makes the book difficult to put down, and it certainly lingers in the mind." In late December 1940, the British people are fighting for survival in the war against Germany. The Earl of Westrow, a Fascist supporter, puts into effect a plot which has been conceived by the Germans. He kidnaps the fourteen-year-old Princess Elizabeth. Westrow warns the King that if he wants to see his daughter alive again he must use his Christmas Day broadcast to instruct his armed forces to cease hostilities. Despite the danger to the young princess, the King and his advisers recognize that at this stage of the war there can be no peace treaty with Germany. 'Peace' would mean surrender, and Britain would become a vassal state in the Great German Empire. However, Jane Padget, daughter of the King's Legal Secretary, and Seymour Jensen, son of a US Embassy official, are witnesses to the kidnapping. With time running out, these two young people embark on their own mission to rescue the missing Princess. Jane takes the lead in this enterprise, and during their search Seymour falls in love with her. It's a race against time in this story of a conspiracy to change the course of the war. If the plot succeeds, the Germans will hold a victory parade through London, Joe Kennedy will become President of a newly united Ireland, and Wallis Simpson will be Queen of England. But not if Jane Padget gets her way - and she's willing to sacrifice her life to ensure Elisabeth will be Queen, instead!