The Book of Lost Names by Kristin Harmel

 

This novel predates the Brianna Labuskes books I liked so much, though it's playing in very similar territory--there's maybe at least as much overlap with Miller's The Curse of Pietro Houdini. This is just as much a novel of resistance to fascists (specifically Nazi Germany) as either of those, though it doesn't play the identity games that the Miller does and it's much less concerned with sexuality than either of the Labuskes. It's at least as romantic as either of the Labuskes, though the ending is like a romantically bittersweet gut punch. The story carries itself well and flows gracefully, and the characters are well-drawn and mostly clearly different. It's not as complex as either of the Labuskes or the Miller, but it's not trying to be, and there's no snark in any of that. Some slowish going in like the first quarter or third, but nothing horrible, never a temptation to stop.