This was an interesting read about German interment camps in England during WWII. Never knowing that these existed, I was intrigued to find out about their history. The story centers about three women who were friends with one of them being German. The book tells the story of the three women and what it means to be family. There are some plot twists along the way but the heart of the story is the unbreakable friendship and loyalty of these women. The author’s characterization of these three women is what propels the story. #thewhispersofwar #juliakelly #netgalley

Thank you to the publisher and author for providing me with a digital ARC of this title via Netgalley in exchange for my honest review.

I had never read this author before but was intrigued by the cover and that it was historical fiction, which I love. Luckily, this title did not disappoint. I really enjoyed the various narratives and how each story of these three friends wove around each other throughout the war. Lovely story full of friendship, endurance, and hope.

I absolutely adored this book. The author makes it so easy to fall in love with the characters. There is the present day and history flashbacks and it’s done so well with no jarring moments. Loved it!

World War II created a lot of atrocities performed by many nations. The Germans trying to exterminate the Jews, The U.S. interring the Japanese-Americans, The U.K. interring German emigres. There wasn't a people group that wasn't touched by the War and by the governments involved in the war.

The Whispers of War by Julia Kelly describes the war from the perspective of three young ladies who went to school together and now meet together as frequently as possible to keep the friendship alive. Nora worked for the Home Office, Hazel works in a marriage match-making office, and Marie is the secretary for the German department of the University.

When the Germans start advancing toward England, members of the Home Office begin investigating the German ex-pats who now live in England. Marie comes under scrutiny because of letters her cousin wrote to the Nazi government in Germany. The investigation even comes to include Nora and Hazel.

Julia Kelly uses a time split trope to tell the story of Marie, but she does it so well that the story doesn't seem disjointed. Her pacing of the story within story moves at a comfortable pace and the intrigue within the story is compelling. It follows Julia's first book in the series, Light Over London, which I reviewed here.

NetGalley.com and Gallery Books provided the galley I read for this review. Five Stars, Two Thumbs Up, and some false papers to get out of the country.

5 ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Thank you NetGalley, Gallery Books and Julia Kelly for an advanced copy. I truly am inspired with each new book by Julia Kelly. She always draws you in with the main characters and I feel like I am right there in the moment experiencing what they are. 🇬🇧 🇩🇪 The main characters are three best friends who meet during school. They have a bond at a very young age. As Britain starts to feel the affects of World War II, the friends find themselves in unique situations as they try to protect one of them from internment. Marie is German but has lived in Britain and considers Britain her home. Her best friends are Nora, who works at the Home Office Precautions Department and Hazel who is a matchmaker. 🇬🇧 🇩🇪 Their bond is strong, but does the war tear them apart? Secrecy, love, betrayal, friendship and much more test their friendship. Throughout it all we discover that family is important and family is not always the traditional type. If you love historical fiction Julia Kelly writes with such passion and a always draws me in. Enjoy! #juliakellywrites, #juliay, #thewhispersofwar, #netgalley, #bookreview, #bookstagram, #bookworm, #stamperlady50, #historicalfiction

Thank you for the ARC of THE WHISPERS OF WAR by Julia Kelly.

Three childhood friends living in London (Marie, Nora, and Hazel) watch along with the rest of the world as Britain enters war with Germany for a second time. Marie, German born, is a secretary in the German Department at the University, Hazel is a matchmaker and Nora works in the How Office’s Air Raid Precautions Department. When Germany invades Poland, Marie is labeled an enemy alien and her movements are restricted. As the war intensifies, she and her friends worry she will be arrested. Because of their friendship, the women will do anything to help Marie even if it is heartbreaking.

I could not put this down. I loved Marie, Hazel and Nora individually and their friendship was so beautiful. It was refreshing to read a WWII historical fiction novel set at the start of the war as so many I have read are deep in the midst.

The novel is told alternating between the current (Marie’s granddaughter, Samantha, traveling to London to visit Nora to complete her grandmother’s dying wish) and the past (Nora telling Samantha her grandmother’s full story). I felt slightly rushed through the Samantha parts—I was so taken with Marie’s story that I wanted to feel the same for Samantha. Still a most enjoyable read! Power author's note as well.

I've read a fair amount of WWII books and very much appreciated that this was not the standard holocaust story. Furthermore, I like a dual timeline--which this book was--though prinmarily set in the past [not a problem]. However--spoiler alert: the present timeline was all too obvious [to me] and telegraphed from the start. And, in several instances, the ugh factor: "It was a dreamy kiss, but the center of it held a question of more." "...they sank into the kiss, lingering in the sunlight as the water lapped just a few feet from them." [yes, there's more like this]

And three women friends--Bingo!

Nonetheless, I found the book rather bland. However, it was interesting because I was unfamiliar with the storyline--internment camps in Britain [for persons of German origin]. This was a plus. For the most part, the story centers on their friendship, and the very different lives and backgrounds of the three women--Marie Bohn [the German] who works for a German professor, Hazel, a matchmaker in a loveless marriage, and Nora--a strongwilled patrician [?] who works in the Home Office's Air Raid Precautions Department.

The present day is represented by Samantha, who comes to Britain as her grandmother, Marie, wished, after her death. She meets Nora--still alive and feisty--though naturally somewhat frail--who tells the story of the three friends. And to bring Nora a trinket.

I'm straddling the fence--neither recommend or warn away. It's a fast-paced decent read but...

This is an incredible story about three friends: Nora, Hazel and Marie. Later in the story Marie is considered an enemy alien and Nora and Hazel have to figure out how to save it. This story was about friendship and doing whatever it takes during war. I really enjoyed this book and I hope julia Kelly writes more books in the future.

I really enjoyed this historical fiction set in Britain at the start of WW2. It's about the friendship among three friends and them looking out for each other; especially, the one from Germany that was threatened to be put in an internment camp and them working to help her get out of Britain. It's about heartbreaks, loyalties, love and hope during a time of conflict. Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC.

When Samantha's grandmother Marie dies at home in Canada, Samantha is surprised to find out that she is her grandmother's executor and is tasked with delivering the necklace her grandmother always wore to her best friend Nora in England. She must also give the eulogy at the memorial service. Samantha realizes that she wants to learn more about her grandmother's story when she meets Nora. Nora relates the story of herself, Marie, and Hazel - three women who met at boarding school and became not just best friends, but family for each other. When WWII begins, England categorizes Germans and Austrians in order to be prepared should the government decide to intern them. The friends realize that Marie is in danger of being placed at an internment camp. They devise a plan to help her.
Will Nora risk her job at the Home Office? Can Hazel risk more attention at her job at a marriage bureau from Dennison, an investigator from the Home Office? As Samantha learns her grandmother's remarkable story, we all get the message to pay attention to our older relatives, to hear their stories while they are here to tell them. Me. Kelly also warns us to be aware of the way we treat immigrants, the assumptions we make. Unless we pay attention, history will repeat itself.
Ms. Kelly's historical notes at the end of the book are well worth reading. Upon completing the book, I understand the reasoning behind the dual storyline and Samantha's role. However, the beginning of the book cocnfused me, made me take a step back, and reread. This I have given 4 stars.
With just the right amount of tension, romance (not in excess), family problems, work issues, and history, The Whispers of War has an important message that is timely. I will be recommending it highly!
Thanks to NetGalley and Harper Collins for the arc in exchange for an honest review.

War may start as a whisper, but its effects are deafening… Julia Kelly’s new book The Whispers of War is set in London, in the early time-period of WWII. It presents a dual timeline with portions focused on modern-day Samantha, as she learns more about her recently deceased grandmother, Marie. Samantha has been tasked with going to London to visit with one of Marie’s oldest and dearest friends, Nora. She learns from Nora about Marie’s early life, and the circumstances that led Marie to Canada.

The structure of this book is interesting. It starts with a Prologue introducing Marie. The first chapter then sets the stage for Samantha’s visit. What unfolds next is a bit complex. Presumably Nora is telling Samantha about her and Marie’s younger years; however, the book is divided into thirds with the first third being focused on Marie’s point of view, the second focused on Hazel’s point of view (a third friend in the trio of friends), and the third focused on Nora’s point of view. Each portion propels the story forward for all the characters, and generally it works very well. However, I find myself wondering if it was meant to be a story-form type presentation from Nora or not. I think generally not, but the manner of setting up the visit between Samantha and Nora made me think it would be or should have been.

Marie’s story seems to be the center of the book, made most obvious by her granddaughter, Samantha, being the modern-day protagonist. Hers is also the thread that continues most strongly throughout all three stories. Marie is a young woman of German descent, who has been living in London for years. However, as WWII starts, many become suspicious of her (and others like her). A push for internment frightens Marie and causes her to eventually upend her life, to maintain her freedom. Hazel’s story felt the most discordant with the others. She works as a matchmaker but is herself in a loveless marriage. I also felt like I learned the least about her life after the war, which made her story feel less well developed. Of the three women, Nora seems to have the most obvious sense of agency, presenting a sort of more modern version of feminism. There is also a cast of secondary characters but these women, and the strong ‘found family’ friendship between Marie/Nora/Hazel are the focus of the book.

I sort of devoured this book in the timespan of about 8 hours. That alone is telling about how interesting the story was and how keen I was to see how everything would unfold. There were several moments that made me tear up—the friendship between these women, some especially powerful statements/quotes, and the conclusion of the book stand out to me as emotionally impactful. I also enjoyed the allegory to modern day events, which the author highlights in her final note. That all being said, if I put a critical lens on, there are a few aspects of the book that I found to be lacking.

The prologue was compelling as it hooked me. However, I later found myself wondering where that moment really fit into the story. The first third of the book, focused on Marie, felt full of information and exposition, often driven by dialogue. I wonder if some of the exposition (perhaps how the three women first met) would have fit better in the prologue—to ease the information laden feel of Marie’s section. The themes in Hazel’s section, related to her personal life, felt perhaps not entirely necessary to the overall story; although I enjoyed the revelations about the roles she was playing her matchmaking work. Nora’s section was perhaps diminished by the earlier reveal about who she married. It felt as though I had been spoiled, rather than seeing that story unfold more organically. I am not a big romance fan, and it was the historical fiction aspect that drew me to this book; I found the romantic themes unnecessary at times, overly predictable, and even cliché. Sometimes I want books to just be about strong women, supporting each other, with less focus on the men in their lives. Finally, the book had typos that were sometimes confusing to the story, but I am sure these will be worked out in the final editing.

Overall, I did enjoy The Whispers of War and I am grateful I read it. I learned about a period of time from a new perspective, and about events I previously knew little about. I am also glad to have discovered a new author. I am intrigued to read Kelly’s previous book, Light over London. It seems many of her other books are more romance themed, but I hope she will continue in this historical fiction direction as she seems to have a keen eye for how history repeats itself, and the lessons we must learn from the past.

In closing, I would recommend this book to others to read. Finally, thank you to NetGalley and Gallery Books for an ARC of this book. I plan to post a review to Goodreads. I am also working to develop my own blog and bookstagram, I will happily post a review of this book on those platforms as well.

The Whispers of War was given to me by Netgalley in exchange of an honest opinion.


This book focuses on the relationship and hardships of three female best friends during WWII. The book starts off on the present time with the point of view of one the women’s granddaughter, Samantha. Samantha’s grandmother left her with one last task before she died. Samantha is then on a trip to London and learns a lot about her grandmother through the storytelling of one of her grandmother’s best friends. The chapters are then divided into the perspectives of the three best friends with the occasional return to Samantha’s perspective. The story focuses on each of the best friends lives and their struggles to live a ‘normal’ life during a time of turmoil. WWII had just begun, and the women find themselves struggling between staying loyal to their homeland and staying loyal to each other.

I enjoyed this book because of the storytelling and the relationship between the women. The setting makes even it more exceptional because it takes place in England during WWII, where they had internment camps. The relationship between the women is very endearing, because even though they had hardships in their lives, they had each other’s back. Also, not only are we learning about the best friends’ lives, but also gave a glimpse on the conditions and rights that women had during that time.

The reasons that I am giving it a rating of 4 (rounded up from 3.5) is because some of the relationships in the story were a bit unrealistic or too rushed, in my opinion. Even though the storytelling was amazing, the writing was simple. I found that it was taking me long to get into the story because it was a bit boring at first. Although the setting is during WWII, the main focus is on the women and their friendship. There’s not much to learn of this historical period because of the lack of details. I read a good amount of historical fiction, so I was expecting to learn something new of this era.

“The three of them each had a role to play. Nora was the bold one, Hazel was the nurturer and Marie - Marie was their strength.”

This is a deeply moving story about the power of friendship. Three women living in London help each other survive WWII. Nora is a socialite working with the Home Office’s Air Raid Precautions Department. Hazel is a matchmaker for the Mayfair Matrimonial Agency. Marie is a German expat who worries she’ll be imprisoned if war breaks out, because she is labeled an “enemy alien.”

Each woman is affected by war time secrets - their own secrets and secrets of those close to them.

This is a good story about friendship and shows a different side of WWII that isn’t as well known as other stories from the time. The bond between Nora, Marie and Hazel was very touching
to read about. I especially loved that the characters were independent and strong females.


Many thanks to NetGalley and Gallery Books for the ARC of this book in exchange for my honest review.

I received an advanced copy of this book from netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

Whispers of War tells the story of three lifelong friends as they maneuver life in pre- and early WWII London. Nora is a strong, independent woman who intentionally sunk her debutante season in order to secure a more modern lifestyle, with a job and a home of her own, even if she purchased it with her father’s inheritance and throws her connections around as if they are nothing. Hazel is a matchmaker whose marriage is struggling, and is doing her part for the war effort, even if it seems a bit of a stretch. Marie is a meek German expat whose parents shipped her off to live with an aunt an uncle in Britain when she was twelve, and who is living with the fear of being German in England when that was enough to be sent to an internment camp. Though Marie is supposed to be the main protagonist, I found her bland and occasionally irritating. I much preferred the story of Nora, who at least had some personality.

The book is written as a series of flashbacks, as Marie’s granddaughter in the present is charged with writing her grandmother’s eulogy, and tracks down her 103 year old BFF to tell her all about it. Given that there were maybe 22 pages of flashbacks, which included an obvious and eye rolling match between granddaughter and grandson, I very much could have done without them.

As for the rest of the story, this book skirts around a few serious topics (Jewish refugees, internment camps, women’s rights) without actually providing any substance about them. Thus, it’s about as light as a book set in 1939-1940 England can be. Somehow these three women managed to survive a year into the war eating and drinking away without a single ration, and without any of the young men they know personally joining the armed forces.

Overall, an enjoyable read, but not serious historical fiction.

A well woven story of the strong friendship of three childhood friends during the start of World War II. The German heritage of one of the women calls forth borh sacrifice and the strengthening of honesty and self discovery from the three friends. The author brings awareness and historical detail to internment camps and classification of civilian nationals in Britain.

An absorbing story about three women and the bonds of friendship during World War II. The details about enemy aliens and the interning of Germans in Great Britain were particularly interesting.

Hazel, Nora and Marie are kind of like the three musketeers. They have been best friends since meeting at school at the age of 12. Nora was raised to be a debutante, mush to her dismay. Now she works as a matchmaker and takes her job seriously. She is very good at interacting with people. She is very dependent and loves on her own. Hazel was born of a beautiful mother, she never knew who her father was. She is very good at her job in the war Department of Britain. Marie is German. She was cast aside by her parents and raised by her Aunt and Uncle.
The war is starting and Marie has been marked as a class B German. She cannot ride a bike or travel. She is always held under suspicion because of her heritage. 0Her greatest fear is to be taken to an internment camp. Her best friends are determined not to let this happen. You will read about the unfairness of people being imprisoned in these camps because of where they were born. It is also a story of strength, loyalty, determination and love.
Excellent!

A sweet story of friendship, with young and carefree girls, suddenly burdened by the fear, and realities, of war. The story line dragged a bit at times, but the characters were likeable, and I enjoyed reading about an unknown aspect of history in England.

In England, friends Nora, Marie, and Hazel watch in fear as war with Germany seems more and more inevitable Marie, a German, faces a loyalty board, where she can be interned if she gives the wrong answers. Nora, works in the Home Office's Air Raid Division, where she is ignored and belittled as a woman. Matchmaker Hazel struggles in her marriage, as she and her husband drift farther and farther apart.

I was a bit disappointed with this book. The characters had very little personality. They were a bit one-dimensional and were not flushed out. The story seemed a bit slow and tedious. Overall, not a book I would re-read or recommend.

A very different kind of WWII book that I’ve been reading lately and a very nice change. Centered in London where three women, who are very different, become family to one another. A sweet romance and a story told by one of the London friends who is now 103. Very enjoyable read. Thanks to Netgalley and the Publisher for the ARC