Live event with Katherine Reay/The London House

Join Anderson’s bookshop for an in-person event with author Katherine Reay to discuss her new book, The London House!  

Uncovering a dark family secret sends one woman through the history of Britain's World War II spy network and glamorous 1930s Paris to save her family's reputation.

This event will be held in our Naperville store, and pre-registration is required as space is limited.

Please read these COVID protection requirements carefully:

Masks are required of all customers, regardless of vaccination status, and must remain properly covering the face for the entirety of the event.

A ticket is required for all attendees, attendance will be capped at 50, and seating may also be restricted in order to allow for social distancing.

Anderson’s Bookshop, the author, and the publisher reserve the right to change the format of this event to a virtual one at any time if it becomes necessary.  A change in format will not entitle ticket holders to any refund.

Failure to follow these guidelines and to treat all participants with courtesy and respect may result in your expulsion from the event.

Please be advised that Anderson’s Bookshop assumes no responsibility or liability for any personal injury or other loss you may incur as a result of your decision to attend an event, including the transmission of Covid-19 or related illnesses.  We expect that for the protection of everyone, all applicable Covid related protocols will be followed.  

Thank you for your understanding and cooperation!

More about the book:

Caroline Payne thinks it's just another day of work until she receives a call from Mat Hammond, an old college friend and historian. But pleasantries are cut short. Mat has uncovered a scandalous secret kept buried for decades: In World War II, Caroline's British great-aunt betrayed family and country to marry her German lover.

Determined to find answers and save her family's reputation, Caroline flies to her family's ancestral home in London. She and Mat discover diaries and letters that reveal her grandmother and great-aunt were known as the "Waite sisters." Popular and witty, they came of age during the interwar years, a time of peace and luxury filled with dances, jazz clubs, and romance. The buoyant tone of the correspondence soon yields to sadder revelations as the sisters grow apart, and one leaves home for the glittering fashion scene of Paris, despite rumblings of a coming world war.

Each letter brings more questions. Was Caroline's great-aunt actually a traitor and Nazi collaborator, or is there a more complex truth buried in the past? Together, Caroline and Mat uncover stories of spies and secrets, love and heartbreak, and the events of one fateful evening in 1941 that changed everything.

In this rich historical novel from award-winning author Katherine Reay, a young woman is tasked with writing the next chapter of her family's story. But Caroline must choose whether to embrace a love of her own and proceed with caution if her family's decades-old wounds are to heal without tearing them even further apart.

About the author: