The Paper Birds: A Novel

Imagine you have only a pencil and paper, and your puzzle-solving skills to help end the war

Gemma Sullivan lands a coveted office job in the summer of 1943, only to discover that she’s been hired to work in a top-secret codebreaking office in an unsuspecting house along the lake in Mimico, Ontario.

The ‘Cottage’ – run by the brilliant, eccentric Miss Fearing, who was trained at England’s Bletchley Park – pulls Gemma in with its urgent lure and mystery. But along with this job comes a lifelong oath of secrecy.

Gem can’t tell anyone what she does for work, not even her elderly Aunt Wren, who has raised her since the age of three after the tragic death of her parents. Her aunt harbors of a deep love of crosswords and Tarot cards and an equally passionate hatred for war since the death of her own fiancée in WWI. The last thing she'd want for her niece is a job that involves anything to do with the war. 

The codebreaking is intense, mind-numbing, at times, but as Gem is pulled deeper into wartime intelligence work, she becomes an integral part of the codebreakers’ circle. The Cottage codebreaking unit is small but determined, but in order to be successful, they must learn to work together. But when Gem begins fraternizing with a handsome prisoner at a POW camp nearby - who later disappears - she risks losing everything.

The Paper Birds is a WWII love story that reveals the struggles and sacrifices of every day working women during the war and highlights the previously unknown codebreaking work undertaken by women in Canada during the war.

JEANETTE LYNESis the author of the bestselling novelThe Apothecary’s Garden, a finalist for a High Plains Book Award and two Saskatchewan Book Awards. Her second novel,The Small Things That End the World, won the Fiction Prize at the Saskatchewan Book Awards. Her first novel,The Factory Voice, was longlisted for the Giller Prize and a ReLit Award. She has also written seven books of poetry. Her forthcoming non-fiction bookApron Apocalypse: Lyric Essaysreceived the John V. Hicks Long Manuscript Award. A settler, Jeanette Lynes grew up on the traditional territory of the People of the Three Fires: the Ojibway, Odawa, and Potawatomi Nations of Anishinabek peoples. Since 2011 she has directed the MFA in Writing at the University of Saskatchewan on Treaty 6 Territory and the Homeland of the Métis.

ISBN: 9781443472814
Format: Paperback
Pages: 320
Publisher: HarperCollins
Published: June 10, 2025

"Heartfelt and suspenseful, Paper Birds shines a light on the little-known work of Canada’s female codebreakers during the Second World War, toiling in secrecy an ocean away from Bletchley Park. This is a smart and tender take on the women whose brains were badly needed weapons in the Allied fight, juggling friendship, family, and first love alongside their vital and covert contributions. Paper Birds offers a timely reminder of Canada’s commitment, courage, and sacrifice on the global stage." — Shelley Wood, author of the Leap Year Gene"A vivid and compelling story about a sisterhood of Canadian women codebreakers. The Paper Birds explores the power of female friendship and the joy of first love during World War II.” — Maia Caron, bestselling author of The Last Secret"The Paper Birds is a deeply imagined historical novel brimming with indelible characters who leap from the pages with their endearing quirks and witty banter. Lyne's masterful prose breathes life into 1940s Toronto, intertwining the underground world of Canadian female codebreakers with two enchanting love stories. The Paper Birds is destined to become a book-club favorite." — Shelly Sanders, bestselling author, Daughters of the Occupation"Lynes’s novel, about Canada’s version of Bletchley Park, transports the reader to both a secluded house on Lake Ontario and Toronto in wartime. Gemma is barely out of high school and shouldering the burden not only of her family’s financial survival but also turning the tide of the war, holding the lives of soldiers on both sides of the war in her hands. It’s a compelling tale of family, friendship, forbidden love, and the heavy burden of secrets that threatens to unravel everything Gemma holds dear." — Donna Alward, author of When the World Fell Silent