Ten novels that use large-scale events as a catalyst

Suzanne Rindell received her Ph.D. in English literature from Rice University in spring 2018.

She is the author of the forthcoming historical mystery, The Two Mrs. Carlyles.

At CrimeReds, Rindell tagged ten novels that use momentous events as a catalyst, including:

The Alice Network by Kate Quinn

Catalyst: World War II

Impossible to make this list and ignore the two World Wars that in many ways defined the first half of the 20th century! This novel moves back and forth between 1915 and 1947, working to unravel the mystery of a betrayal within the “Alice Network,” based on a real life network of female spies during WWI. The plot of Quinn’s book takes inspiration from real events, while the character development of her two main heroines are spurred along by the changing roles of women – an evolution that was unquestionably accelerated by both World Wars.

Read about another entry on the list.

The Page 69 Test: The Alice Network.

--Marshal Zeringue