Set against the backdrop of the early 1960s, I'll Be Seeing You by Karen Triplett introduces us to five young women at the University of Washington. Each with distinct backgrounds, they share a common goal: to secure an education and forge their own paths in a world that often pressures women to conform to traditional roles.

As the Vietnam War looms and demands for women's equality grow louder, Linzi, Marie, Helen, Jody, and Dorothy navigate friendship, love, heartbreak, and societal expectations. Their innocence gives way to turbulent times, and their devotion to one another becomes their anchor.

Karen Triplett masterfully weaves their stories together, and doesn’t shy away from the harsh realities faced by women in the 1960s workplace. These young women challenge societal norms, pursue dreams and ambition beyond marriage and motherhood, and capture the essence of the era. This story speaks to resilience, friendship, and the unwavering spirit of those who dare to defy expectations.

Thank you to NetGalley and Rhododendron Press for a temporary e-ARC in exchange for my honest review.

I'll Be Seeing You is the story of five young women who become friends at college in Seattle in 1963. The novel spans their college years and early adult years in the 1960's. They take different paths: Pan Am, the Peace Corps, a career as a teacher, law school, a writing career. They also face a number of hardships and heartbreaks along the way, including an unwanted pregnancy that haunts one of the women for years. The news of the 1960's is interspersed through the novel and helps create a sense of time.

I wanted to read this novel because I love historical fiction. I was born during the 1960's and find this time period especially interesting.

I found the storyline of this novel interesting, with the different stories that each woman faced. I wish their stories had been developed a bit more. I found the dialogue had a same quality, rather formal, without a lot of differentiation between characters.

This novel has a strong feel for the 1960's and the period details are wonderful. I loved descriptions like this:

"At Christmas, families would make an outing of going downtown to F& N to look at the stunning window displays, with hundreds of lights and even more ideas for that perfect gift. There was a button that a child could push to make the train in the window display climb mountains and careen through tunnels with a whistle and a stop at the depot. Inside the store, every surface held merchandise lit by the majestic chandeliers. Mannequins in beautiful clothing overlooked shoppers from ledges under the high ceilings as if welcoming them to the place where dreams come true. Upstairs, there was only one word for the toy department and something called the Frango milkshake—unbelievable. As the slogan went, 'Christmas is not Christmas without a visit to Frederick & Nelson.'” (eBook location 2427).

Rounded up from 3.5 stars because of the vivid period details.

A story from 1963 when five young women attend University in Washington. They all want to make a better life for themselves, to be a part of the world in a way in which they are treated as equals. This is their story and it is a wonderful story.

I love the strength and courage of these women and found the quite endearing. They forged a path for those to come and it wasn't all that easy. I love the well thought out charters and the story flowed so well that I find it easy and enjoyable to read. It is not a long book and I sat down to read and before I knew it I was finished. A great read and I highly recommend it.

Thank you NetGalley and Rhododendron Press for giving me the opportunity to read and review this book.

Karen Triplett nails it! I felt taken away to an era I adore reading about, especially the women from this time in history. “I’ll be Seeing you” is truly engaging and enlightening!
I cannot help but feel attached to women during this time with the huge change in climate! This a a group of women that I’d be proud to call my friends.
While fiction, I imagine these characters come alive off of the page!
I recommend you read “I’ll be seeing you” by Karen Triplett!

#IllBeSeeingYou #NetGalley #KarenTriplett #AnnieMcDonnell #BookClubBooks

Triplett brings the chaos and activity of the 1960s to life in this fascinating historical fiction novel. Following a group of female students at the University of Washington, beginning in fall 1963, readers then follow Linzi, Marie, Helen, Jody, and Dorothy through their college educations, social lives, workplace routines, and marriages, with all of the ups and downs that life provides. Readers live alongside the girls as the girls come up with their future plans and meet their future partners while experiencing the major international, political, and social historical events of the 1960s and 1970s. Triplett’s characters are the heart of the story, and the girls’ relationships, with individual girls and as a group, are heartwarming, vibrant, immersive, and genuine. Triplett has also successfully brought the college culture of the 1960s to the pages of her latest novel, while also bringing the historical events into the girls’ lives. Triplett has created a fascinating, immersive world for readers, and she has filled this world with a diverse, fascinating cast of characters whose lives, adventures, and experiences pull readers into the 1960s through the multiple perspectives that Triplett balances so well. I’ll Be Seeing You is a great introduction to the 1960s and to historical fiction for new readers.

I received a digital ARC from Rhododendron Press through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. All opinions expressed are my own.

I did enjoy this novel. I appreciated learning about how five women became friends and experienced college, and life during the 1960’s. I learned a lot about the time period. This novel is character driven, and each section is from a different woman’s point of view. I did relate to each character, and rooted for each of them throughout the novel.

I'll Be Seeing you by Karen Triplett follows five women attending at the University of Washington. The time period is 1963-1967 -a period that I find fascinating as women are beginning to find their place in the world. Chaptr by chapter we meet the women and their story comes together. Current topics of the times such as Vietnam war, protests, equal rights, fashion, drugs, and women's lib make for interesting reading. Triplett portrays the time period accurately and blends it with the friendship storyline. It was a little hard for me to get into and at times confusing with so many characters but I really enjoyed it.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for the Kindle ARC. I'll Be Seeing You follows a group of young college aged women who become friends while attending the University of Washington in Seattle. The time period is the early to late 60's when women realized the world was on the cusp of change for them but that they would have to work harder than men to achieve their goals, if at all. The story covers the introduction of birth control, college classes that women take that don't necessarily guarantee a job in their desired field, pregnancy and adoption and the Vietnam war. The young women realize that they should be granted the same rights as men, the same job opportunities as men and be able to make their own decisions without a marriage or children. The women find and lose love and find a sense of purpose even if the purpose they find wasn't their original intent.

This one just wasn’t for me I liked the premise of the story but it just kind of dragged and didn’t hold my interest.
Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for letting me review this book

I'll Be Seeing You by Karen Triplett is set during the turbulent 60s. Five women become friends at the University of Washington and experience the biggest events of the era: the assassination of JFK, the Vietnam War, the fight for the ERA, the introduction of The Pill, civil rights protests. It was a fascinating look back at US history and a great nook. Highly recommend!

Karen Triplett’s novel I’ll Be Seeing You follows five women attending at the University of Washington from 1963 to 1967. Each chapter focuses on one woman individually and incorporates parts of their story with others as a group. We see their friendship form and each woman grow as individuals. This is a time where the world was changing: Vietnam war, protests, equal rights, fashion, drugs, premarital sex, birth control, and women’s rights. Triplett navigates all these “current events” well into the storylines of these career-oriented young women. The limitations and expectations placed on women in the early sixties and the cultural events of that time were well portrayed.

Triplett has a nice way of telling a story, at times with all the characters it might have been confusing, and she did not always let you into what they were feeling, but you had an inclination. I foresee some great books coming our way from Triplett 

Thank you @netgalley for an advanced copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

I am sad to say I dnfed this book at 35%. It Just was not a book for me.
Thank you to netgalley for letting me read this e arc in exchange for an honest opinion

In the autumn of 1963, five young ladies begin college at the University of Washington in Seattle and it's a big change from high school. Linzi, Marie, Jody, Helen and Dorothy, all want to further their education, without giving into parents and societies pressure to get married and have children.

The girls settle in and share dorm rooms, find their way around the campus and begin studying. Socially they are invited to parties, sporting functions and here they meet eligible men, who have one thing on their mind, Linzi, Marie, Jody, Helen and Dorothy have to decide how far they will let their dates go, the girls only have a basic idea about sex and contraception.

The 1960's is one of the most turbulent times in history and many things changed, from the assignation of John F. Kennedy, protests about civil rights, America’s involvement in the Vietnam War and the draft, the rights of women, forced adoptions and what was thought about unwed mothers, the invention of the pill and who’s allowed access to it and the silly idea it will make women promiscuous.

I received a digital copy of I’ll Be Seeing You by Karen Triplett from Rhododendron Press and NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Through all of this the women remain best friends, they support each other during the good times and the bad, the numerous challenges and will they be able to fulfilling their ambitions and how many graduate?

It was interesting reading about the University of Washington, Pan Am's R&R flights home from Vietnam, and the places the Peace Corps went and the work they did. The restaurants in Seattle, the changes in fashion, hairstyles and music was a major influence of the time. The Beatles, Peter Paul and Mary, The Righteous Brothers and The Beach Boys. Three stars from me, the story did drag a little, I was pleased when the pace picked up and I enjoyed the ending.

Karen Triplett does a great job in creating this great historical fiction plot. I enjoyed getting to know each woman and what was going on with them in this novel. They all felt like they were real people and enjoyed getting to know them.

Thank you to Net Galley for the opportunity to read and review this book. This was an interesting story about five young women attending college in Washington state in the early 1960’s, this was an era of the beginning of unrest about Vietnam, hippies, drugs, premarital sex, birth control, and women’s rights. The story focused on each of the women individually and as a group. I enjoyed this story although at times it was difficult to follow each individual story and keep it all straight.

It took me a while to get into the rhythm of this author’s writing style, but once I did become engaged, I could not put the book down. Perhaps it is because the cultural events of this time (1963-1967) are imbedded in my own personal remembrances. There are some challenges in tracking the intermingling stories of five women protagonists as their bond of friendship develops on the University of Washington campus. At times the transitions felt abrupt with the storyline missing depth, skipping over some aspects that would have enriched the character development. Nonetheless, I found the book a fascinating exploration of the evolving women’s movement; the turmoil of the civil rights movement; the disillusionment of the assassination of JFK; the heartbreaking impact of the Vietnam War; and the altruism of the Peace Corps – all viewed through the viewpoints of these women as they mature from naïve freshman to young adults on the cusp of their careers. Although it is a work of fiction, it also has the quality of a memoir based on the author’s own experience as a UW student and the extensive research documented in the end notes.

My thanks to the author, the publisher, and NetGalley for the privilege of reviewing this book. The opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

This review is being posted immediately to my GoodReads account and will be posted on Amazon upon publication.

Interesting premise - my first thought was Mona Lisa Smile. Unfortunately any time the focus is on five protagonists, we're bound to only scratch the surface with each one, their voices start to blend together, and we just get used to one's story when it's time to switch to another. There just wasn't enough time to really explore any of the individuals, particularly because the context was so complex - gender roles, feminism, equality, freedom, civil rights, war... there's a lot going on.