di Camille Booker
Award-winning historical fiction author Camille Booker is set to return to Australian bookstores in April 2026 with Code Name Funnel Web, a WWII historical romance that blends sweeping global events with a distinctly local Australian perspective. Following her 2025 success The Woman in the Waves, Booker’s latest novel opens in 1940 in the southern Sydney suburb of Como, a rarely explored setting in wartime fiction.
From there, the story spans the early war years, moving between Australia, war-torn Europe, and as far afield as China, weaving a cinematic tale of love, loss, and moral courage. At the heart of the novel is Frances “Frankie” Davies, a young Australian woman who falls in love with Leo, an Italian immigrant with a passion for boats.
Their romance is tested as wartime paranoia grows, and Leo is detained as an “enemy alien” and interned as a prisoner of war. Frankie is thrust into a shadowy world of secrets, coded messages, and dangerous choices that challenge her beliefs about loyalty, identity, and courage, forcing her to grow in ways she never imagined. Booker uses this personal story to explore broader historical themes, particularly the Italian experience on the Australian home front during the 1940s. Even though the war in Europe seemed distant, its impact was felt locally.
Thousands of Italian immigrants were interned, not for acts of sabotage, but because they were seen as a threat to national security. The novel examines the emotional and social legacy of these actions—an echo of a dark chapter in Australia’s history that resonates today. Another key theme is the shifting role of women during the war. With fathers, brothers, and husbands overseas, women stepped into new responsibilities both at home and in workplaces traditionally dominated by men. Frankie’s journey reflects this shift, portraying a generation of women discovering resilience, independence, and moral strength in extraordinary circumstances, while also confronting moral dilemmas and social prejudices that tested their courage.
The choice of Como as the setting is deliberate. While Leichhardt is widely known as Sydney’s “Little Italy,” Como itself carries deep Italian influences. Renamed in the 1920s for its resemblance to Lake Como, the suburb features streets named after Italian cities and landmarks, and the historic Como Hotel, built in the 1880s, mirrors resort architecture from northern Italy. These local details inspired Booker’s setting, grounding her international story in familiar streets and historic buildings. With Code Name Funnel Web, Booker aims not only to tell a compelling story but also to preserve fading personal connections to Australia’s wartime history at a time when few WWII veterans remain. By situating an international story in a familiar local landscape, she invites readers to reflect on the complexities of fear, belonging, and courage during one of the nation’s most challenging eras, keeping the memory of those who lived it alive for future generations.
