This book is set in London during 1914 and the main
character is a woman called Belle Reilly. She has married her dream man Jimmy
and has finally succeeded in her dream of opening her own hat shop. However
everything takes a sour turn for Belle and her happy family at the start of
World War One.
Jimmy enlists in the army and is stationed in Ypres.
Following many tragic twists in Belles life and the robbery of her shop she
realises she can’t just watch any more, she needs to get involved. She
volunteers as a Red Cross ambulance driver in France and becomes absorbed in
her new role. Through this she meets a man called Etienne, who played a
significant role in her childhood. She quickly falls in love with Etienne and
is torn between their passionate romance and her loyal and well-meaning
husband.
Belle also encounters other challenges and tests in her new
role which she may not be able to overcome. This book is definitely one I would
recommend, despite the twists and turns of the plot, the book is still an easy
enough one to follow and it will keep you engaged throughout. Belle and the
other characters in the book are very believable, relatable and human, which
can be a difficult balance to strike at times. This helps to hold the whole
storyline together as well as adding an air of credibility to the whole book
and Belles overall character arc. The author does a good job of balancing out
some of the tragedies experienced by both the major and minor characters in the
story with the raw emotion which is displayed and this stops the book from
becoming too tiresome or wearing the reader down emotionally. It is more of a
romance novel with a bit of a fantasy ending which is something I think we all
need from time to time and overall I would recommend it.
Comments
Post a Comment