Young, Brave and Beautiful : the Missions of Special Operations Executive Agent Lieutenant Violette Szabô, George Cross, Croix avec Etoile de Bronze

SOE agent Violette Szabô was the daughter of an English father and French mother, and widow of a French army officer killed in action in North Africa in 1942. On her second mission she was captured by the Germans, interrogated and tortured, and deported to Germany where she was eventually executed at Ravensbrück concentration camp. The bare bones of her story say nothing of the sabotage, gun battles, betrayal. Violette was the second woman ever to be awarded the George Cross and she was immortalised in the film Carve Her Name With Pride. What marks out this book is the simple, extraordinary fact that it is written by her daughter, Tania: she would have been two years old when she last saw her mother, the woman fellow agent Odette Churchill called 'The bravest of us all'. SOE agent Violette Szabó was one of the most incredible women who operated behind enemy lines during the Second World War. The daughter of an English father and French mother, and widow of a French army officer, she was daring and courageous, conducting sabotage missions, being embroiled in gun battles and battling betrayal. On her second mission she was captured by the Nazis, interrogated and tortured, then deported to Germany where she was eventually executed at Ravensbrück concentration camp. Violette was one of the first women ever to be awarded the George Cross, and her fascinating life has been immortalised in film and on the page. Written by her daughter, Violette (formerly Young, Brave and Beautiful) reveals the woman and mother behind this extraordinary hero. SOE agent Violette Szabo was one of the most incredible women who operated behind enemy lines during the Second World War. The daughter of an English father and French mother, and widow of a French army officer, she was daring and courageous, conducting sabotage missions, being embroiled in gun battles and battling betrayal.