“Wartime Sisters” follows two very different sisters in the time period prior to and throughout WW II. It was an extremely enjoyable read and truly surpassed my expectations! It provided a fascinating portrayal of the work done at the Springfield Armory during WW II, where the sisters eventually worked. And it provided an even more interesting portrayal of the complex relationship these sisters had to each other. The author developed characters and relationships that were rich in complexity and for me, thought-provoking! And while the storyline alone kept me reading well into the night, it was the character development that made this book so memorable and one that I am happy to recommend. Based on how much I enjoyed “Wartime Sisters”, I am looking forward to reading the author’s first book, “A Two Family House” which is now on the top of my “to read” list! I was privileged to receive a free copy of this book from NetGalley and the Publisher, St. Martin’s Press in exchange for an honest review.

I truly enjoyed this book, it allows us to follow the lives of two sisters, Ruth and Millie, they are as different as can be, in looks, personalities, and how the choices they made affect their lives and the lives of others they care for and love. The story is told in flashbacks from their present lives back to years before of the sisters and also between several other characters in the story on how the happenings in their childhoods shaped their destinies. I was impressed by the writing and it was very interesting to read how the women were so eager to help out in the war effort and the descriptions were so good you could envision the officers housing and several of the social events.
I could certainly relate to the relationship between the sisters as I have a sister and we also, are very different, this book opened my eyes a little bit on how our mother handled the differences between us. I wish the story would have covered the war effort a little bit more but otherwise I really enjoyed my time with Millie, Ruth, Lillian and the other characters. I would recommend this book to anyone who enjoys historical fiction with a touch of family secrets and love.
I thank Net Galley and St. Martin’s Press for allowing me to receive a free copy for my honest review. This one gets 4****’s.

I thought this was a great story, set in the US during WWII. This book is centered around 2 sisters & their relationship growing up together. The way the author described the scenes helped me to feel as if I was watching the story unfold, not just reading about it. Lynda Cohen Loigman has produced another winner!

A powerful novel about two sisters, Ruth and Millie growing up in Brooklyn during the 1930's then later moving to Springfield, Massachusetts. A deep divide has always been between the two sisters, mainly because of their mother's favoritism. Ruth, the older sister is plain, serious and very smart but is mostly overlooked because of her younger beautiful sister. There are lots of secrets that is gradually told to help the reader understand the underlying tension. The Springfield Armory during the early part of WWII was a very interesting setting for this story. I enjoyed learning more about the armory in the author's note. Highly recommended!

A life time of sibling jealousy and resentment has caused a huge bridge between two sisters. The main time setting is pre and during WWII. The story begins when the sisters were children. A lifetime of favoritism was shown to Millie, the pretty one, while the plain, but smart sister, Ruth, was practically ignored by their parents and others. As adults, one sister seems to have it all and the other sister has made bad choices and she continues to struggle to get by. The Brooklyn sisters continued to be distant and estranged into their adult lives.
In the beginning of the story I found myself siding with Ruth and understanding her jealousy and neglected feelings. As I read further my empathy and understanding of Millie grew. A “secret” that has been kept from one sister Is finally revealed during a scary encounter with someone from Millie’s past.
I enjoyed this story and I understood the rocky relationship between the two sisters. I liked both characters. I also like reading about the historical industrial aspect of WWII when women worked the assembly lines in weapons production in an effort to support the war.
I read and liked the author’s previous book, The Two Family House, a few years ago so I was happy to receive an advanced reader’s copy of The Wartime Sisters from the publisher, St. Martin’s Press, and Netgalley. This is my unbiased review.

Growing up in Brooklyn in the 1930s, Jewish sisters Millie and Ruth have always had a tense bond. Big sister Ruth has always felt like she had to be the responsible, serious one, while pretty and popular Millie often got away with silliness and sensitivity. During World War II, Ruth lives at the Springfield Armory with her scientist husband, and Millie, now seemingly a war widow, arrives with her son to stay with Ruth for the first time in five years. The book explores their relationship as secrets from the past and wartime changes begin to surface.

Any fans of historical fiction will enjoy this relatively easy and light World War II homefront read. The writing is solid and has its moments of real beauty, and the unique setting of a real-life armory definitely sets the book apart from similar stories. However, when it comes to the characters, The Wartime Sisters didn't particularly stick out to me. I enjoyed the narrations of side character Ariette and Lillian more than those of Millie and Ruth, who both came across as relatable in different ways but didn't leave lasting impressions on me. Although I understood the roles Arietta and Lillian played in the overall story, I was expecting fully-fleshed stories about them that were never really delivered. The title suggests that Millie and Ruth are the only narratives explored, but tossing in so much about the other women almost felt like a different book.

Thank you NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for an advanced reader copy. I would still recommend this to casual readers who enjoy WWII fiction.

The Wartime Sisters was one of the best books I have read all year. I could not put it down. The author makes you feel as you are part of the story and you can see the images so we'll you feel you are there in it. Everyone should have this book in their Kindle or on their book shelf.

I read this amazing book in one day as I couldn't put it down. The Wartime Sisters is about sisters Ruth and Millie. Ruth is the oldest and the responsible one. Millie is the beautiful one who their Mom wants to marry well. Both sisters have their own stories to tell and I loved the characters in the book. I also enjoyed learning about the Springfield Armory and its purpose during WW2. I truly devoured this book and it will stay with me for a very long time. I received an advanced readers copy from NetGalley and St. Martin's Press. All opinions are my own.

I love historical fiction. I love multiple points of view books. I love books that flow and just hold you in.
"The Wartime Sisters' does all of those with grace.

Two sisters, Ruth is the oldest and 'plain', Millie is the youngest by 3 years and draws all the attention. Their lives have taken separate paths but due to circumstances they must live together again. They are in Springfield Massachusetts at the Armory where Ruth's husband is working.

As the book and time progresses. you quickly realize how different they are and see why they went different ways. You grow to see how alike they are and hope that time will let them see that. The flashback scenes are great to see the changes. The chapters from the viewpoints of two supporting characters are also helpful to see the women in their true colors. You also get to see how prejudices ran rampant and assumptions became 'truths'

Thank you Netgalley for the ARC! I will definitely be reading more Lynda Cohen Loigman

Once again Lynda Cohen Loigman has brought us a story of complicated family relationships. I found this story of two sisters to be entertaining and intriguing. The story that was told of the Armory was very interesting. The author made me feel as if I was walking through the grounds. I found it very interesting how women helped fill the jobs that had to be done for the war.

This is a gem of a story with strong female characters! It takes place in the early days of WWII against the backdrop of the Springfield Armory in Massachusetts. Ruth and Millie are two estranged sisters. They have always been at war with each other, with Ruth resenting Millie’s beauty. Ruth marries and moves to Springfield with her husband, Arthur, who is a scientist with the army. Millie marries too and it seems her husband is killed while in the army, so Ruth invites her and her son Michael to move in with her for a time. It is soon apparent that the relationship between the two sisters is complex and that each is carrying a secret. Ultimately a story about the strength of a sisterly bond.

The Wartime Sisters by Lynn Cohen Loigman is an eloquent portrayal of the experience of World War II by American civilian women, an important section of society that is not usually the focus of novels set in WWII. Each of the “wartime sisters” represents a different faucet of society -- the married mother who chooses to work outside of the home, a supposed war-widow who has experienced an abusive marriage, an uber-organized military stay-at-home wife, and an African-American singer whose talent is no longer recognized.

Similar to many women from many backgrounds all around the world these women are thrown together by circumstance and by virtue of the situation become sisters as they help each other through thick and thin. (Hence, The Sisterhood.) The war provides the background for this novel as the women who are keeping the home fires burning pitch in and do what they can for the war effort.

Loigman takes great care in developing her characters. Each of them has a well planned backstory, personality, life style and behaviours. She spends a lot of time describing the childhood of the two main characters, allowing the reader to understand how the influence of their parents formed their adult decisions.

Perfect for this reviewer: there is a happy, although unexpected, ending and no loose ends are left to torment me.

I received a free copy of this ebook via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

I'm not sure how it eluded me that this book is by the same author as The Two-Family House (a book I absolutely adored!) but it did. However, once I realized this, I knew I was going to love this book. Loigman has a way of writing characters that you can relate to and feel yourself in their shoes. The multi-narrative story speeds by, giving different points of view, something I have always enjoyed in a book.

I found myself getting wrapped up not only in the story, but the time period as well. Anything set during this era is of interest to me and I couldn't read this fast enough.

I absolutely loved this and look forward to her next book!

Lynda Cohen Loigman is two for two and fast becoming a new favorite historical fiction author for me. She has a talent when it comes to telling a story about the dynamics of a family. I really enjoyed the different setting for this WWII novel, featuring the home front rather than the battlefield. We often forget what it was like for those left behind. Ruth and Millie are as different as two sisters could be. Very often in life we wish for something we don't have, whether it's curly or straight hair, a personality trait we admire in another, or the eye or admiration of a parent or friend. That happens to both Millie and Ruth in this story and almost puts a permanent rift in their relationship. I liked that there were wonderful secondary stories layered in as well. I enjoyed reading about the cook in the Armory cafeteria who was a feisty opera singer and who ultimately finds love. I also enjoyed the story of the head Armory officer's wife. I really felt these characters could have been real people they were so well written. They really added another layer of complexity to the story.

This was a very well written book about sisters who had their difficulties! This book truly had a bit of everything- history, family drama etc and was very good. I enjoyed it!

I received a free ARC of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Ruth and Millie are sisters who are like night and day. Ruth is thoughtful, controlled, intelligent, and average-looking. Millie is passionate, impulsive, and beautiful. This dichotomy develops into a chasm over the course of their adolescence and early adulthood, set against the backdrop of the Interwar Period and World War II. Eventually Ruth marries and moves away to live her own life without Millie's shadow hanging over her, only to have her sister and nephew arrive several years later in need of assistance.

The novel skips around chronologically between childhood, adolescence, and their present day. It follows several characters but focuses mainly on Ruth and Millie. The flashbacks were helpful and usually interesting, and they were not difficult to follow. However, the addition of the other characters does not improve the story. The author fixated on certain aspects of the real life individuals (ex: opera singer who volunteers in the cafeteria) and obviously wanted to weave them into her narrative, but they feel one dimensional and simplistic. All of the friends are wonderful people and all of the villains are terrible people; there's no development to them.

Overall, the novel was enjoyable, and I appreciated that it didn't focus on the War but instead used it simply as a backdrop for the relationship of the sisters with each other and their environment.

Review: This is the first time I've had the opportunity to read a book prior to it's release, and I will admit, I had no idea what to expect. Usually, I visit other blogs and websites to get a feel for whether or not I might be into it but that's obviously not a  luxury I had this time. Instead, I'm excited that you get to hear about it first from me!
Let me start this off by saying I'm a huge fan of historical fiction from the WWII era. I've read a LOT of books from that time period, so achieving four and a half meows from me is an achievement. But this one isn't completely about the war - more so, the complex relationships during the war and how it brings some people together or pulls them apart.

The Wartime Sisters started off as a story I can relate to within the first two chapters. Have you ever fought with a sibling? Maybe you felt like your parents treated you both differently with different sets of expectations? Maybe there was jealously, some resentment in there? Ruth can tell you all about how her sister is the pretty one and how her parents make her feel like she should dumb herself down to attract a man. Millie can tell you about how dull Ruth is with her math and little sense of adventure. But things change as they grow up and their parents pass away unexpectedly.

The secrets these two keep from each other are big ones that impacted the outcome of paths of their lives. When tragedy seems to strike again, they find themselves reunited in Springfield where one is the wife of a war officer and the other is a war widow. The relationships with other women on the base threaten to tear them apart again or bring them back together. 

The author does a wonderful job of exploring complex relationships and how each character seems themselves and others. You experience characters growing and learning and you start rooting for them to stand up for themselves. I was so sad when this book ended!

If this WWII-era relationships and secrets is something you're into, you'll definitely want to read this when it is released at the end of January 2019!

I wasn’t sure about reading The Wartime Sisters when I got approached to review it. I am not a fan of historical fiction. I have been burnt by too many books that were dry and uninteresting to read. I was afraid that this was going to be the case with The Wartime Sisters. And I almost turned it down. But something about the blurb caught my attention. With that, I decided to accept the request.

The Wartime Sisters is the story of Ruth and Millie. Ruth and Millie have been estranged since their parents were killed in an automobile accident. Before the accident, Ruth resented Millie. Ruth blamed Millie for stealing her boyfriends, for being popular and for being the apple of their parents eye. Millie, however, doesn’t understand why Ruth is so cold and distant to her. When Millie’s husband dies overseas, she writes to Ruth, asking for help. Ruth agrees to let Millie and her son live with them. When Millie arrives in Springfield, she finds that Ruth hasn’t changed. Ruth grows more bitter the longer Millie stays with them. But Ruth and Millie have secrets. Secrets that could destroy their relationship if they came to light. Can Ruth get over the past to help Millie in the present? Or will she allow past resentments color what she thinks of Millie? Can Millie trust Ruth enough to tell her about her secret?

I didn’t like Ruth one bit. I didn’t like how she treated Millie. I thought it was disgusting that she held on to old resentments. She was afraid that Millie was going to one-up her. I wanted to shake her and say “Get over it!!“. What she did the night of her parents funeral was awful. The author did try to change her character by having her confront Grace Peabody. It didn’t matter. I didn’t like her.

I liked Millie and I felt bad for her. I liked how the author wrote her side of the story. I understood why she left out parts of her story when she moved in with Ruth. I do think that she was unfairly judged by people. They saw how good-looking she was and thought she wasn’t that bright. Which was far from the truth. She was also stronger than most of the women in this book.

I liked Lillian. But I didn’t understand why she was getting her own chapters until later in the book. She was an amazing woman. She had been through so much in her life and she still looked on the brighter side of things. She didn’t dwell on things she couldn’t change. What she did for Millie was nothing short of amazing.

Aria was brought in later in the book. Again, I didn’t understand why she was getting her own chapters but I soon realized why about the same time I understood why Lillian did. She brought an outside perspective to Ruth and Millie’s relationship. She was the only person in the book who dared to call Ruth out on her treatment of Millie. She also was the only one who stood up to Grace and her husband when things were going down. Aria was a true friend to Millie.

I liked how the author wrote Millie’s secret into the book. I also liked what she did to get rid of it. That was also a turning point in Ruth and Millie’s relationship.

I loathed Grace Peabody. She was a nasty woman who got everything that she deserved. I do wish that her husband got the same treatment.

I did like that I got a better understanding of what a woman did to support her soldier/country during World War II. I thought it was fascinating what Millie did. I also liked the location. Having grown up in the NE part of MA, I love it when any part is represented in a book. Double kudos if it is in a positive light.

The end of the book was sweet. I liked that Millie and Ruth were moving towards a better relationship. The author did a great job at ending all the storylines. I had a question about the Aria/Fitz one. Other than that, perfect!!

What I liked about The Wartime Sisters:

The storyline
Mille
How Millie’s secret was written in and out of the book
What I disliked about The Wartime Sisters:

Ruth
Grace Peabody
Aria/Fitz relationship left up in the air
I gave The Wartime Sisters a 4-star rating. I liked the storyline and Mille. I also liked how Millie’s secret was written in and out of the story. It was Ruth who killed the book for me. She was miserable the entire book.

I would give The Wartime Sisters an Adult rating. There is no sex. There is no language. There is some mild violence. I would recommend that no one under the age of 21 read this book.

I would reread The Wartime Sisters. I would also recommend this book to family and friends.

I would like to thank St. Martin’s Press and NetGalley for allowing me to read and review The Wartime Sisters.

All opinions expressed in this review of The Wartime Sisters are mine.

**I chose to leave this review after reading an advance reader copy**

I enjoyed the story of the different lives the sisters led. having two sisters myself, the petty arguments and assumptions of what the other is like is very real. The ending was well done and shows that family is family...whether blood or not.

This book was spot on about this time in history. It was very interesting to read how peole lived and worked during the war. Characters were wonderful and I did not want the book to end. Looking forward to more books from this author.