About the Book

No matter how you might try to hide in a war to escape your past, it is always close at hand.

Lady Sophia Huntington Villiers is no stranger to intrigue, as her work with Alan Turing’s Bombe Machines at Bletchley Park during the war attests. Now, as part of Simon Barre’s covert team in post-war Vienna, she uses her inimitable charm and code name Starling to infiltrate the world of relics: uncovering vital information that could tilt the stakes of the mounting Cold War. When several influential men charge her with finding the death mask of Mozart, Sophie wonders if there is more than the composer’s legacy at stake and finds herself drawn to potential answers in Prague.

Simon Barrington, the illegitimate heir of one of Sussex’s oldest estates, used the previous war to hide his insecurities about his past. Now, he uses his high breeding to gain access to all four allied quarters of the ruined city in an attempt to slow the fall of the Iron Curtain. He has been in love with Sophie Villiers since the moment he met her, and a marriage of convenience to save Simon’s estate has always kept her close. Until now, when Sophie’s mysterious client in Prague forces him to wonder if her allegiance to him—and their cause—is in question. Torn between his loyalty to his cause and his heart, Simon seeks answers about Sophie only to learn that everything he thought he knew about his involvement in both wars is based on a lie.

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Companion Book

In My Opinion

If you asked me to name one author who is an avid reader and encourages and promotes other authors, my answer would come without much thought. Rachel McMillan is a self-proclaimed book gusher. She is also an author—one that I’ve followed since her first Herringford and Watts series book—who is an auto-buy for me.

In The Mozart Code, McMillan combines the world of espionage, artifacts, romance (including a marriage of convenience), Vienna and Prague while taking readers on Sophie and Simon’s journey of uncovering their true feelings for each other.

There are a lot of World War II stories but not many, at least that I’ve read, dealing with life after the war. McMillan gives us snapshots of pre-war and post-war life for her characters (and by the way, readers will enjoy some more time with Brent and Diana from The London Restoration) as well.

My favorite parts of this book are the romance built on friendship and the familial relationships both Sophie and Simon have with their families—different in several respects, but both strain against the expectations of their circumstances.

McMillan’s detailed descriptions put me right in the cities with her characters, the action scenes had me on the edge of my seat, and the romance (my favorite part of any book) was everything I expected it to be. In short, The Mozart Code was worth the wait.

Disclosure statement:
I receive complimentary books from publishers, publicists, and/or authors, including NetGalley. I am not required to write positive reviews. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255.