Ahhh. Historical fiction.

What is this book about?
In this book, three brave nurses join the war effort. They are afraid and unsure of what awaits them, yet they try to hide it and comfort each other. During the war, they develop a deep friendship.

Cover
I love this cover so much! When I first saw this book in a Kindle ad, I was immediately interested. I can't help judging a book by its cover! The background is a sky filled with smoke, probably because of the bombing. On the cover, there are three women, and I love the one standing in front the most. She looks so smart in uniform!

Characters
I admire all three of the women in the story. They are all strong and courageous. Lucy wants to become a doctor, although female doctors are unheard of then. Ellie always tries to lighten the mood when the three of them feel terrible. Scarlet is always willing to share with others and listen to what they have to say.

Conclusion
This book is amazing! 4.5 stars!

I did enjoy this book . It is well written and got me interested in the story enough to keep me reading until the end.
This book gave me lots of emotions.
I so do recommend this book.
I give this 4 out of 5.

Great book! The characters draw you in and take you on the journey of life with them. Well developed characters, a multi-level plot and just a genuine good feeling of friendship.

When newly minted nurses Scarlet and Ellie meet on the beginning of their journey to be part of the war effort during World War II, they instantly latch on to each other and become fast friends. They are thrust into the deep end as soon as they step foot into the field and must depend on each other to keep up their spirits against the horrible things they experience. Once they make it to Normandy, they make a third friend Lucy and try their best to stay strong and save as many as they can. Along the way, they take on life, love and loss.

WOW what a story so very emotional as three woman become nurses during World War 2 and see things that they will never ever forget and go through emotional trauma, but they save lives and help soldiers through so much. WOW again this is a story that I can highly recommend there will be tears and yes there are a lot of places that will make you smile, I didn’t want to put this one down.

Scarlet comes from a wealthy family she is engaged to Thomas when she decides to become a nurse and help where she can but she is also on the search for Thomas you see no one has heard from him in months and she is nothing if not determined to find him.

Ellie an Irish born happy go lucky girl who comes from a hard working family on the farm wants to help and do her bit, her mother is a midwife and nursing is in her blood but is she really prepared for what she will go through?

Scarlet and Ellie meet at the train station on their way to an adventure that will see them go through a lot of changes, they become best friends fast and are always there for each other through thick and thin I think war time friendships are so wonderful.

Lucy wants to be a Doctor but will do nursing first and she is strong and reliable and learns everything she can but she keeps to herself a bit more than the others.

When Scarlet and Ellie get to Normandy amid the fighting, the bombing and the canvas hospital they meet the seemingly invincible Lucy. Lucy has already seen so much in her short time there but the trio become fast friends. And as each of them journey through events that would make most people faint and runaway these woman help and support each other and their patients and they meet the men who will become their heroes, although their journey to HEAs take some time and fears of them not making it home are ever in their thoughts.

I don’t want to give a lot away but I do highly recommend that you read this book I found it so very moving and compelling, I still have tears while writing this review. MS Lane has written a beautiful story that shows such strength and the passion and character that these woman and men had during such very hard times but also that true love can blossom. Thank you MS Lane for a story that I will not forget.

Two British nurses volunteer to work at a battlefield hospital during World War 2. Scarlet is seeking information about her soldier fiance since his correspondence has ceased. Ellie has prior experience as a nurse and feels that she can contribute immediately to the war effort. Both women are apprehensive about the risks involved but they are determined to make a difference. Their paths converge while on a train headed to their assignment and a lifelong friendship is formed.

In France they meet Lucy, an experienced nurse who is charge of operations. At first Lucy shows no interest in developing friendships but eventually she takes the women under her wing. While stationed in Normandy, the fighting escalates and they encounter tireless amounts of soldiers. The casualties are horrific and the working conditions are poor. Scared that they might never make it home, they remain courageous, and rely on one another for support.

This story has a nice mix of historical fiction and romance. It shows how deep bonds can develop during the worst of times. I enjoyed this novel by Soraya M. Lane.

WIVES OF WAR by author Soraya Lane is a Lake Union Publishing release for July 2017.

This was an epic story of survival with grit and determination during the war. The lives of Lucy, Scarlet and Ellie as depicted on the pages kept me captivated. I cried with them when tragedy befell them and celebrated their triumphs with them.

Author Soraya Lane’s writing is spell-binding. Though this story starts with a bit slower pace but then once you get into it, it will keep a reader enthralled.

Highly recommended for readers.

It’s been a long time since I have sought out an author to do a review. Most of the time, books come my way and if it sounds like something I might like or in the mood for, then I review it.

However with Wives of War, I saw the book on my Twitter feed and it totally grabbed my attention and for one reason….I loved the cover. In my never fending Twitter feed, I see tons of books go by. But with this one, the cover caught my eye which promoted me to read the description.

It sounded like something totally up my alley so I asked if I could review it. I was thrilled when the author agreed. I’m a sucker for WWII novels with romance but this sounded different because it also focused on the the friendship between two women.

London, 1944. Two young nurses meet at a train station with a common purpose: to join the war effort. Scarlet longs for the chance to find her missing fiancé, Thomas, and to prove to her family—and to herself—that she’s stronger than everybody thinks.

Nursing is in Ellie’s blood, but her humble background is vastly different from Scarlet’s privileged upbringing. Though Ellie puts on a brave face, she’s just as nervous as Scarlet about what awaits them in France.


In Normandy, the two friends soon encounter the seemingly unflappable Lucy. Scarlet and Ellie are in awe of her courage and competence, but the experienced nurse is well aware of the dangers of the job they’ve chosen—and even she is terrified they won’t make it home alive.

Pushed to their limits by the brutality of a world at war, Scarlet, Ellie and Lucy will need to rely on each other—and the power of their friendship—to survive (summary from Goodreads).

I really really loved this book. Sure there were technical things that were a little irritating and wanting, but on the whole this was a great read for me.

Some things were cliche…..love at first sights, best friends from hello…..that sort of thing. Sure it was unlikely and a little juvenile but yet I personally didn’t mind.

There were some historical inaccuracies but I am willing to give the author creative license with that because this isn’t a history book, this is a historical FICTION book so any mistakes the book had weren’t really that big of a deal for me. I like character driven novels so setting is often secondary. If you are looking for something heavy on the historical research then you might want to look elsewhere.

I noticed that some of the dialogue lacked the ring of authenticity. There were a lot of American phrases and lingo but yet the characters were supposed to be British. So that was a little bothersome but again, I didn’t go into this book thinking everything was going to be spot on when it came to historical accuracy. I read it because I wanted something casual.

So what did I like about this book? I was in it for the characters and the romance. I loved the three female leads. They were interesting and believable characters. I cared what happened to them and wanted them each to find love. I felt attached to each of them and wanted to share in their hopes and felt sad at their miseries.

Some reviewers complained about the ‘insta love’ amidst the horrors or war but honestly that didn’t bother me. In fact I felt like it actually worked rather well and gave a ring of truth to the romances. Often in times of war, soldiers (and nurses) don’t know if they are going to live and die so suddenly this ‘live in the moment’ mentality takes over and things happen quickly….typically more quickly than in normal circumstances. There were a number of marriages wheres couples met while a soldier was on leave for two weeks and suddenly married when he returned to his post. So the whole insta love in a war rang true for me. While others might not have liked it, I thought it was fine.

Overall I really really liked this book. The story moved quickly and I loved watching the romances unfold. The war played a big role in the novel and helped create an atmospheric novel that I think many readers will enjoy, especially for those who love WWII romances (like me). It had the perfect mixture of sadness/tragedy, love, and friendship. A very worthwhile summer read!

Challenge/Book Summary:

Book: Wives of War by Soraya M Lane

Kindle Edition, 350 pages
Expected publication: July 1st 2017 by Lake Union Publishing
ASIN B01LQ646C4
Review copy provided by: Author/Publisher in exchange for an honest review.
This book counts toward: NA

Hosted by: NA
Books for Challenge Completed: NA
Recommendation: 4 out of 5

Genre: Historical fiction, War lit, WWII romances, romance

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