New SOE Books

Below are listed some new and forthcoming SOE-related book releases. I've also compiled some other categories:

Books with a rosetterosette iconare recommended titles.


image of book The Clandestine Lives of Colonel David Smiley: Code Name 'grin'

The Clandestine Lives of Colonel David Smiley: Code Name 'Grin' by Clive Jones (Edinburgh University Press, 2020).

image of book Special Forces Hero: Anders Lassen VC MC

Special Forces Hero: Anders Lassen VC MC by Thomas Harder (Pen and Sword, 2021).

image of book The Life and World of Francis Rodd, Lord Rennell (1895-1978): Geography, Money and War

The Life and World of Francis Rodd, Lord Rennell (1895-1978): Geography, Money and War by Philip Boobbyer (Anthem Press, 2021). Though never an officer with SOE, Rennell's interesting and varied career included stints with MIR and MEW in West Africa, before taking a leading role in the Allied military government of Italy.

image of book Covert Radio Agents, 1939–1945: Signals From Behind Enemy Lines

Covert Radio Agents, 1939–1945: Signals From Behind Enemy Lines by David Hebditch (Pen and Sword, 2021).

image of book Mission France: The True History of the Women of SOE

Mission France: The True History of the Women of SOE by Kate Vigurs (Yale Books, 2021).

image of book Behind Enemy Lines with the SOE

Behind Enemy Lines with the SOE by Major Ernest Barker (Pen and Sword, 2021).

image of book A Schoolmaster's War

A Schoolmaster's War: Harry Ree - A British Agent in the French Resistance by Jonathan Rée (Yale Univ Press, 2020).

Book cover for MI9: A History of the Secret Service for Escape and Evasion in World War Two

MI9: A History of the Secret Service for Escape and Evasion in World War Two by Helen Fry (Yale Univ Press, 2020).

image of book Madame Fourcade’s Secret War: the daring young woman who led France’s largest spy network against Hitler

Madame Fourcade’s Secret War: the daring young woman who led France’s largest spy network against Hitler (Penguin, 2019).

image of book Albanian Assignment: The Memoir of an SOE Agent in World War Two

Albanian Assignment: The Memoir of an SOE Agent in World War Two by David Smiley (Sapere Books, August 2020).

image of book A Woman of No Importance by Sonia Purnell

A Woman of No Importance (Hardback) by Sonia Purnell (Virago, March 2019).

image of book Saboteur: The Secret War of Tony Brooks, SOE's Youngest Agent by Mark SeamanRecommended book rosette

Saboteur: The Secret War of Tony Brooks, SOE's Youngest Agent by Mark Seaman (John Blake, November 2018). The first biography of F Section's Tony Brooks, who was recruited at the age of just 19 and created one of SOE's most successful sabotage networks in France. Reprinted in paperback under the title Undercover Agent.

©2009-2023 Nigel Perrin