Cover Image: Dreams of Peace

Dreams of Peace

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Member Reviews

I thought the story was interesting and it kept my attention.
I thought it was a good portrayal of how people and family were affected by the war. It was the final book in a series and while I had not read the previous ones I had no problems following this book. I did think it ended rather abruptly almost like it ran out of time.

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A book about the war, future, and hope. Not giving up or giving in, but carrying on. Dreams of Peace could of really happened.
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I love a good historical fiction and this one didn’t disappoint. It told a story of war, family, friendships, hope and eventually peace! It had everything you want from a good book and kept me reading as I wanted to know what would happen to these characters.
The characters were people you could relate to, stories you could imagine having happened and the resilience of the people that went through these horrific times. It made me think how lucky I am and to even feel emotion about what happened all those years ago.
I haven’t read the other books in the series so will go back and read them and then even reread this one to see how they all fit together. But having said that I don’t believe you need to read the other books to enjoy this one.

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This is the second book of the four-part series that I have read by Summers. I can honestly say that it isn’t necessary at all to read the books in sequence as they can easily be understood as stand-alone novels. However, despite having the opportunity to read this conclusion, I felt detached and unappreciative of the characters. I wonder… if I had read the entire series, would my enjoyment have been more elevated?

There is a lot of cattiness between the Caldwell girls in this novel. Daisy, the protagonist, is quite negative and I frequently disliked her attitude during the story. Whilst she continues with her own war effort as a nurse and sees many, many horrors, her attitude towards her personal life reflects an immaturity I would not have expected from someone who has witnessed many things. Indeed, Vanessa is portrayed as a spoilt teenager, and Immy frequently disgruntled that the war has prevented her from seeing her beau.

This level of characterisation certainly reduced my enjoyment of the novel. With all of the negativity, I found it difficult to relax with the story. Perhaps the author has done this deliberately. The frequent snappiness of the characters could easily reflect the pressure and strain of the war and how it was often believed to be nearly over, before another bout of terrible attacks and casualties occurred.

I found that I really and truly enjoyed the narrative after the halfway point. In my opinion, the story became more interesting and the pace intensified. It felt like there was less chat and more action. Whilst there is tragedy and upset for many of the characters, I felt that Summers was being more realistic. Undoubtedly, I did enjoy reading a war novel that wasn’t centralised in London, but I feel like this meant the narrative lacked pace and energy that it would have typically had.

Ok, so I wasn’t overwhelmed by this story. It followed the same thread of the other book I have read although I was hoping for something a bit more dynamic by this stage of the series. The novel seems to be a countdown to the end of the war, with all the characters (naturally) longing for peace. Until the tragedies began to strike, I felt that this meandering narrative did not grasp my excitement or interest as much as other war stories out there.

With thanks to Netgalley and Agora books for providing me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

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Thank you to NetGalley, Timeless Fiction and Agora Books for a review copy.

I enjoyed reading Daisy's War earlier this year and enjoyed reading this sequel. The story of the war for the Caldwell girls, their family and friends continues to the conclusion of WW2.

I found the book pleasurable to read and a good conclusion to the saga.

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Interesting story of life during WWII. A look at how individuals and families were effected. This is the last book in the series.

Summers writes in a way that the characters come alive. I was so engrossed in this last book, that before I knew it was 11 at night and I had finished it.

There's heartache and triumph for the Caldwell family. Love is in the air for one, heartache for another, all while London is still being bombed. Daisy is still a nurse helping with injured soldiers. Immy is driving for the General, but something is in the air and she's not sure where she may end up. Elise is still in Yorkshire. What will the final year of the war hold for them? What happens when the war ends, where will they all be?

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This book was presented as a standalone, but while reading it I became disappointed that I had not read the previous books in the series.
The plot was well put together but I found the lack of depth to the characters a pity. No doubt this would not have been the case if I had read this book as the last one in the series. Unfortunately, having read the concluding story I am no longer tempted to read the others.
Otherwise it was an enjoyable, pleasant read with good period details.

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Let this book take you back in time to war time for families living in war torn England.as they send their loved ones off to fight for their freedom. Families fought the sadness of losing loved ones, their beloved homes where families were raised, but they also had joy at the same time with the birth of babies and marriage within families.
#DREAMS OF PEACE
#NETGALLEY
#AMAZON
#GOODREADS

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I thought the story was interesting and it kept my attention.
I thought it was a good portrayal of how people and family were affected by the war. It was the final book in a series and while I had not read the previous ones I had no problems following this book. I did think it ended rather abruptly almost like it ran out of time. Historical fiction fans will enjoy this book. Thanks to Netgalley for the early copy

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This book documented on what people went through during WW11. This included family issues, relationships and friendships of a family and extended families. It is set apart from other similar books as the reader can feel as they are alongside as they read what each character is going through. The author writes all sides of the characters stories and what they went through during the war. The ending is not exactly a cliffhanger but leaves the reader wondering on how the family is and what happens to the evacuee children do they return home or stay with their foster family?

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Dreams of Peace is the final book in the Caldwell saga, that focuses on three sisters experiences during WWII.
Imogen works for the AVS as a driver, Daisy is a nurse and Elsie the last sister is a young married mother. I really enjoyed this series of books and look forward to reading more from the author in the future.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publishers for this ARC

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