A review by kdrhoton
The Last Goodnight: A World War II Story of Espionage, Adventure, and Betrayal by Howard Blum
2.0
Oof. What should have been a really interesting story was turned into a complete bore. There are two reasons for this: 1.) the author essentially copy and pasted this story from previously published and unpublished books, so it kind of felt like reading a book report, and 2.) the author left out just about anything that would humanize Betty and instead decided to focus on her bedroom exploits.
Don't get me wrong. I understand that her sexual escapades played a big part in her role within the world of intelligence and that, ultimately, Betty Pack was a pretty selfish person who thought solely of what would please her. I don't think any writer could have turned her into a wholly sympathetic character. However, she was an intelligent woman with more to offer than can be found in this book. This story probably would've been better off left in the hands of a writer (preferably female-identifying) who would've had a bit more interest in the reasoning behind her actions rather than a guy who pretty much just chalked it up to "girls just wanna have fun".
Don't get me wrong. I understand that her sexual escapades played a big part in her role within the world of intelligence and that, ultimately, Betty Pack was a pretty selfish person who thought solely of what would please her. I don't think any writer could have turned her into a wholly sympathetic character. However, she was an intelligent woman with more to offer than can be found in this book. This story probably would've been better off left in the hands of a writer (preferably female-identifying) who would've had a bit more interest in the reasoning behind her actions rather than a guy who pretty much just chalked it up to "girls just wanna have fun".