This book is collaboration is from three authors, two of which I have read before. The story is told through three different characters point of views, and it was fun trying to guess which author wrote which character.

Our three main characters are all nurses; Eleanor a US Navy Nurse, Penny, a US Army Nurse and Lita, a resident Filipina nurse that are all living and working in the Philippines at the start of the USA entering WW2 during the Pacific Theater. They become fast friends when they meet during a training and make plans to get together once a month for a girls night.

After the attack on Pearl Harbor, they know their lives are about to change. All three become POW's when Japan takes over and occupies the Philippines. We follow these three different women through the harrowing years of being imprisoned by Japanese forces while trying to live by the codes they each have sworn to as nurses. Going through different stages of fear, starvation and grief while all being scattered in different parts of the island, with the occasional reunions. All three women dig deep and hold on to all the hope they can to try to give them the strength to carry on day in and day out.

While this book is a work of fiction it is strongly inspired by the true mostly untold stories of the real American and Filipina women that were imprisoned on the island and fought day in and day to treat all individuals they could. They also kept the spirits up for other prisoners and even became a part of the resistance that eventually led to Japan retreating from the Philippines. This is an emotional and touching read.

Thank you to the authors, publisher and NetGalley for an advanced reader copy E-book in exchange for an honest review.

This World War II novel was enjoyable - showcasing the lives of 3 nurses stationed in the South Pacific. Each woman had their own tale to tell, intertwined with a growing friendship that highlighted the fact that time, distance, and hardships can’t break their love for one another.

I did feel like this was a little longer than it needed to be and some parts did drag on. But I enjoyed the story and the character development.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publishers for my copy in exchange for an honest review - I give this 3.5 stars out of 5.

I loved that this WWII novel was set in the Philippines instead of Europe. It gives a different perspective of the war from the other side of the world and it’s interesting to note the differences in both the cultures and how people were treated during the times.

Three nurses, Eleanor, Penny and Lita become good friends, with one serving in the Army, one in the Navy and the other a Filipina nurse. Despite their different backgrounds they shared similar goals of healing the wounded and hopes that the war would end soon.

While they were serving, Japan invaded Manilla and they became prisoners of war. While still allowed to carry out their nursing duties, they also tried to help the resistance, but lived in fear of being discovered.

Having read a previous book about soldiers in Bataan, I felt this was a well -written, yet lighter compliment to that sobering true story.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Harper Muse for allowing me to read an advance copy. I am happy to offer my honest review and recommend this to those who like historical fiction and WWII stories.

This is the story I was desperate to read but was afraid to ask for. I’ve always been a big fan of WWII historical fiction and have wanted one set in the Philippines but because I have so much knowledge about what happened, I was afraid to get attached to characters and read about their suffering. This was such a well-written, all engrossing story that drew me in and made me feel everything I didn’t want to but I am grateful for the experience. It paints a horrifying picture of what happened in the Philippines during the war, what my grandparents lived through, and it broke my heart. The story itself moves slowly, which gives ample introduction to the area and the characters, and lays the groundwork for the atrocities (although worse happened, it is not detailed) inflicted on the enemies of the Japanese. I loved this book for the stories that it told and the history it portrays. Highly recommended!

Thanks to Netgalley, Harper Muse and the authors for this ARC..I was prompted to request this book because of it was historical and 2 of the 3 authors works I read.. i normally love most historical fiction, but this one was just so slow going and i ended up skimming pages which I swore I’d never do to a book, as authors put their heart and soul into every word.they write. Unfortunately , I just couldnt seem to get interested in this book..not only was it slow going, it seemed to be a very dry read . I had very little interest in the female characters…so a rating of a hard 3 for me..this is just my opinion ..

I love that this WWII novel was set in the Philippines and follows 3 nurses who come from very different backgrounds but form the best friendship. There were times when this was a bit slow and I would have loved for each of the 3 main characters to have been built out a bit more. Overall - an amazing historical fiction.

This book is about 3 nurse who were station in the Malian during ww3 it is told by each nurse as they go though separation, imprisonment and hardship but show their friendship. The pace was slow but gave a good in-site to life durning that time

Thanks NetGalley for the arc!

I loved learning about the first female POWs in World War II, since I knew nothing about this part of history. I found the different perspectives initially a little hard to keep track of in ebook form, so I'm glad I shifted to reading a physical book because this one was so good. As a sensitive reader, I thought it touched on so many difficult parts of war and the weight of the evil and suffering, without showing too much. I deeply appreciated these characters and the very real people they represented. This was a sobering, beautiful, brave story that I'm so grateful to have read.

One of my favorite genres of books is historical fiction. And when it is set during WWII, it is a big draw for me. This amazing story, while about WWII, focused on a different aspect than those I’ve typically read. This book was set in the Pacific conflict ... specifically the Philippines. It also dealt with the little known story of the military nurses who served during this time. Words cannot describe the horrors they endured and the evil they witnessed. However, the friendships that developed were cherished and helped them face another day. I thoroughly enjoyed learning about the dedication the women displayed in such difficult circumstances, the strength of character, and their determination to survive. This is definitely one to put on your to-be-read list. It is heart wrenching but has you cheering them on hoping they will survive and be rescued.

Thank you to NetGalley and Harper Muse for my advanced review copy. All opinions and thoughts are my own.

For more reviews, please visit my blog at: https://www.msladybugsbookreviews.com/. Over 1000 reviews posted!

Based on a true story When We Had Wings is a historical tale of nurses and the danger and deception they face during the war.

From three bestselling authors comes an interwoven tale about a trio of World War II nurses stationed in the South Pacific who wage their own battle for freedom and survival.
In this sweeping story based on the true experiences of nurses dubbed "the Angels of Bataan," three women shift in and out of each other's lives through the darkest days of the war, buoyed by their unwavering friendship and distant dreams of liberation.

Overall 4 stars
Writing Quality 8/10
Image / Illustration Quality 8/10
Character Development 8/10
"Couldn't Put It Down"-ness 8/10
Intellectual Depth 9/10
Originality 9/10

I had a 6 hour. drive that I was going to make and knew that it was this book that I would want to start. It kept me engaged the whole time and I couldn't wait to find the time to listen to the rest of it. I'm not sure how these women survived being POWs but they did and their bond with each other never waivered.

I struggled to get into this book for a bit. I was having a hard time getting the “who is who” down. Once I got beyond that, I enjoyed the book quite a lot. I always love reading about women being bad*ss ladies who save the day. I also really enjoyed that we see more sides of the war. Typically we only hear about white peoples experiences, so getting to hear from Filipino Women and their experience was amazing. If you’re looking to be inspired and educated and awed all at once, When We Had Wings is for you!

I loved this WWII historical fiction book. It tells the story of US nurses in the Philippines during WWII. After the invasion of the Philippines by the Japanese, the nurses were separated and sent to different camps, where they did their best to nurse the sick and survive to see their friends and families again.
This is an gripping book with nonstop action. I highly recommend it, 4 stars.

Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed as in this review are completely my own.

War is so ugly. As a reader, we are going to watch nurses go through some terrible things during WWII. What the reader sees over the course of the pages is friendship can carry you through dark, troubling times and bring you out with a bond that can never be broken. The book has three authors and in my head, I felt like each one took one of the characters and wrote her story. Each woman has a different feel, but an underlying bond that I found myself adoring. While I am not as familiar with the work of Ms. McMorris, I am very acquainted with Ms. Lawhon and Ms. Meissner is at the top of my favorite authors list right now, so I can tell you that if you like WWII historical fiction, you will like this one.

I am sorry for my delay on this one, my copy of the book kept making my Kindle close and so it slowed me up a bit.

Atmospheric, and a wonderful read.
Many thanks to Harper Muse and to NetGalley for providing me with a galley in exchange for my honest opinion.

A great historical fiction focusing on the value and importance of friendship. It was a quick read and a good story.


I received a complimentary copy of this book through NetGalley. The opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

Absolutely unbelievable story! I was completely moved by every part of the story. I'm so glad they shared about these amazing Angels of Bataan, and I now have a whole slew of books I want to read about them.

I enjoyed reading When We Had Wings by Ariel Lawhon, Kristina McMorris and Susan Meissner. The characters in these stores will warm your hearts. Happy Reading!
**I received an ARC of this book courtesy of NetGalley and the publisher. All opinions expressed in this review are my own and given freely**

When we had wings, is one of those stories that you cannot identify what is real and what is fiction, this is one of those books that literally make you feel like you're watching a slow movie gathering the stories slowly unfolding each character story for you to feel and relive.

When we had wings, is not only about war is about friendship and the value this has in such a terrible time when everybody is looking to save themselves and rarely have the time to see for others, this is the case of these three women who happened to meet at Manila, three nurses who helped many but suffered greatly with the lack of food and safety, but always trying to be there to help those in need.

The only thing that I didn't really like about the story or the way it was written was it was way too slow, they describe every detail way too much and that kind of makes the story tedious, that's t only reason I gave this book 4 stars because I couldn't with the slowness of the words.

I really disliked the way they were treated by the Japanese, they didn't care about any convention agreement, or even if they were women, it was as if they were only an obstacle to remove from their war.

The story of three brave nurses during the worst moment in human history WWII, Eleanor, Penny, and Lita will suffer a lot but also will gain a lot during these hardships they gain true friendships that will lead them to save many, their bravery and courageous work did so much for the wounded.

Definitely a great story and book to share and enjoy and feel the amazing friendship of these brave women.

On a side note, I would definitely have loved it if I had the chance to hear the audio version of this book as I love Saskia Maarleveld her narration always gives so much to the story.

Thank you, NetGalley and Harper Muse for the advanced copy of When We Had Wings in exchange for my honest review.