The Leighs are a family living in England at the start of the second World War. Benjamin is the oldest, followed by the twins, Harry and Anne. Their parents died a few years before, leaving the children an estate, a large hops farm in the country and a flat in London.

Benjamin lives at the flat in London and works in Whitehall. At the outbreak of the war, he is sent to work at the Cabinet War Rooms (a vast, three-acre, underground complex below what is now HM Treasury in Whitehall).

Harry volunteers with the RAF (Royal Air Force) in early 1940 and becomes a fighter pilot, flying Spitfires and Mustangs on Ops over France.

Anne stays at the manor house in the country and houses child evacuees from London. She also takes care of the crops at Everley.

The Caplans are a family living in London at the start of the second World War. Stewart Caplan is a factory foreman and his wife, Elizabeth, keeps house and volunteers for the Red Cross. They have eight children, seven of whom are boys. Jack and Elizabeth are main characters in our novel.

Joseph "Joe", the only married Caplan, lives in London with his wife and two children. The children are evacuated to the country, and Joe works as an Air Raid Warden.

James "Jim" is unmarried and already a Captain in the Army when war is declared.

Julian "Jay" joins the Army in 1939 and is a combatant in the North Africa Campaign from 1940 to 1943. After that, he serves in the Mediterranean.

Jefferson "Jeff" joins the Army in 1940 and becomes a paratrooper in the British 1st Airborne Division. He is dropped over Normandy on D-Day.

Jedadiah "Jed" volunteers with the RAF and becomes a Radio Operator in a bomber.

Jackson "Jack" joins the RAF in early 1940, along with Harry. They become each other's flying mates and remain best friends for the rest of their lives.

Jessie Elizabeth is the only girl in the family. She is lovingly called "Jess" by her brothers, but everyone else calls her "Elizabeth". She joins the WLA (Women's Land Army) in 1939 and serves in the fields for the duration. She is posted to a hostel in Essex, where she meets Tamsin York, who instantly became her best friend.

Jonathan "Jon" is the youngest member of the Caplan family and joins the Army the week that war is declared (1939). He dies in the Battle of Dunkirk.

The Yorks are a family from Kent, in the South of England, at the start of the second world war. Philip York, Sr., is a member of the Home Guard. His wife, Nancy, keeps house and volunteers for the Red Cross. Tamsin is a main character in our novel.

Philip "Phil", Jr., joins the Navy, just prior to the declaration of war. He serves in the European Theatre on a submarine.

Tamsin "Tam" is eight years younger than her brother. She joins the WLA in the first months of 1940 and is sent to a hostel in Essex.

The Moliere-Valmores are a close-knit family of ten, living in France, at the start of the second World War. The parents, Stephane and Helene, own a string of hotel resorts that stretches from Paris to the Riviera. They join the French Resistance at its conception. Connie is a main character in our novel.

Yves is a city contact in the family's Underground escape route. In 1940, he is shot and loses a leg.

Margot is a line runner in the family's Underground activities.

Rodolphe "Roddy" is also a member of the Resistance, working in a sabotage movement.

Renee works in the same sabotage group and helps with her family's Underground movement. She assists in the Normandy Landings on D-Day.

Madeleine "Connie" works closely with her sister, Renee, in the sabotage unit. She also participates in the Normandy Landings.

Robert "Bobby" works at a station on the Underground escape route. He is the only member of the family never to be caught by the Germans.

Stephanie also works in the escape route, selecting airfields for Lysander pick-ups, as well as finding suitable locations for munitions drops.