Speakeasy - Softcover

"Alisa Smith's novel Speakeasy, set in the thirties and forties, is written with great authority and from two different points of view, that of a man, and of a woman he loves from what turns out to be a necessary safe distance: she's the girlfriend of a gangster he travels with. She is also the other protagonist. It's a wonderful read, and very convincing." ―Richard Bausch, author of Something is Out There and Peace

"A great achievement, and pure pleasure. Speakeasy drew me into its wild heart and didn’t let go. The novel’s two narrators give a stereoscopic take on a life of crime during the Great Depression, and one of them―a bold, brilliant, somewhat unscrupulous young woman―is later recruited to crack Japanese codes at a secret Allied base in the Pacific Northwest." ―Ronald Wright, author of The Gold Eaters and A Short History of Progress

“In Alisa Smith’s Speakeasy, the history of the Pacific Northwest comes alive like you’ve never seen before. This gripping tale of Prohibition gangsters and wartime code-breakers reveals an inner world of shifting loyalties and unrequited love. Smith has crafted a fascinating, thought-provoking narrative that dares you to look away.” ―Brian Payton, author of The Wind Is Not a River

"A sizzling tale of a one-time criminal now turned war hero--but what I like best is the all too rare telling of a World War II story through the eyes of a woman." ―Colin Beavan, author of Operation Jedburgh: D-Day and America's First Shadow War.