I’m sure most of you know how books in this genre work: a somewhat romanticized story of the war with a love story, women chipping in to help the cause, and scenes of the men off fighting. However, An Angel’s Work is so much more than this. For one, the women, Jo and Mac, are the main characters and the bulk of their story is focused on their careers as nursing. In fact, most of the story is focused on nursing and the different types of nurses who were indispensable to the war effort: their love life was just a side area. How wonderful nurses are! Where would we be without them? The story of their massive effort during WWII was both engaging and adrenaline fuelling in this book. The author did a great job of visualizing what was happening at the hospital/army camps and I could really feel the emotions of everyone.

I really loved Jo and Mac. They were quite different from one another yet both strong, independent women. While it was nice to see through them themes of love, destiny, and faith, what they truly brought to this book was the theme of friendship. As An Angel’s Work scans the course of a few years we really see how relationships stand the test of time, not only in love as we are used to in this genre, but friendship too.

The only thing I would critique in An Angel’s Work is that the second half of the book did feel a bit rushed. Nevertheless, I admired the fresh approach the author took to this genre and I truly enjoyed the book overall.

I’d never heard of the author before but I’ve read and enjoyed a lot of historical fiction this year and the blurb appealed to me. I had mixed feelings about the book for the first few chapters and wasn’t sure I was going to enjoy the book. Then I sort of fell in love with the characters and their circumstances. I got swept into the drama and my heart went out to Jo and Moira (Mac). Some of the events in the book such as the bombing of Mill Road Hospital actually happened. I had no idea. The book is well written and engaging but I don’t know how accurate the depiction of real events is. The book focuses on the lives of two nurses, Mac and Jo, both involved in the bombing who go their separate ways and the physical and psychological impact of their experiences. I enjoyed the way the POV bounced back and forth between Jo and Mac, gradually revealing the impact of the bombing and the dangerous jobs they’ve chosen to do in the War. This was well written and very enjoyable.

The opening propels readers right at the heart of World War 2 in amongst the explosive action with Jo, a medic who is on her way to Normandy to nurse the troops back to health. It makes you sit up and pay attention to what becomes a compelling story along the front lines as it moves at a fast-pace with a real mix of danger, hope and sadness.

The balance between the injured troops and action draws readers in, but with nothing too graphic and gory as times gone-by are built giving snapshots of scenes as the story goes along, but at the same time, steers away from being too cosy and comfortable, in a very good way. Focus also changes to the maternity wards where also nothing is “sugar-coated” and it just adds another interesting element to the story being told and the challenges of giving birth during the war times and the height of the blitz. There is all sorts of emotions and the feeling of sheer busyness and getting on with the job and doing what is needed, throughout the book and an element of resilience that comes across to deal with all the patience in troubled circumstances. For a historical novel, this is quite a surprising page-turner and shows friendship and love, compassion and resilience through the severest adversity, which are pretty big topics to use and yet tell a story very adeptly and with slight grit here and there.

Take time to read the extraordinary “Letter From Kate” at the end of the story for an enhanced insight.

An Angel’s Work by Kate Eastham follows two nurses careers from working in a civilian hospital in 1941 to being nurses on the front line in France; they arrived in Europe a month after D-Day and are there until the war ends in 1945.
Staff nurse Josephine Brooks and staff nurse Moira MacDonald are roommates and they work at the Mill Road Hospital in Liverpool. On the 3rd of May 1941, the hospital had endured three nights of contestant bombing, Jo is working in theater in the basement and Mac is working in the maternity ward. When the hospital takes a direct hit, Mac is injured and after both women go to Jo’s parent’s farm after to recuperate.

Jo and Mac decide they want to continue working; nurses are desperately needed in France especially after D-Day and both they sign up. Jo becomes an air ambulance nurse or a flying nightingale; she’s flown across the English Channel in a small plane, returns with her injured patients to England and takes care of them during the flight. Mac works as an army nurse in a field hospital; it’s extremely dangerous, they risk coming under attack and she’s not in one place for long. Patients arrive at the field hospital straight from the front; they are dirty, have horrific wounds, terrible burns, broken bones, in pain and in shock.

It’s an interesting story to read, front line nurses had to be highly skilled, cool under pressure, make decisions quickly and they worked in very dangerous locations. The care they provide made a huge difference to the injured and mortally wounded service men they treated. A dying soldier calling out for his mother or wife, the nurses are the last person to give them comfort and care before they pass away. I really enjoyed reading An Angel’s Work, if you’re a fan of historical fiction, WW II, nurses; I highly recommend reading this book, you feel like you are actually in France, the story is very real and you care about what happens to Jo, Mac and their patients. I was given a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review and I gave the book five stars.

Jo was forced to look back into the cot,but at first all she could see wws the dust from the explosion. Then a tiny hand popped up. Jo quickly scooped up the child feeling the heat of the child's body against her own. Jo knew there was little chance of the mothers survival .
the
England, 1941: On the 3rd May after three nights of relentless bombing from the Germans, trained nurse, Jo Brooks, is told to report to the basement theatre of Mill Road Hospital. She doesn't want to leave her best friend, Moira behind. Moira is trying to soothe the new mothers on the maternity ward. Just as Jo reaches the safety of the underground, the maternity ward takes a direct hit.

Moira (Mac) is clinging to life when Jo finds her buried in the rubble. Moira has a head wound and she is taken to a near by hospital with Jo and surgeon, Angus Dunbar where Moira gets her head stiched. But she keeps falling into unconsciousness. Moira and Jo heads to Jo's parents farm to recuperate. Jo and Moira decide to sign up to comtinue nursing in France. Jo becomes an air ambulance nurse, while Moira works in a field hospital. This is an enjoyable historical fiction novel that takes us back to World War Ii.


I would like to thank #NetGalley, #Bookouture and the author #KateEastham for my ARC in exchange for an honest review

When I started this book I wasn’t sure, am I glad I kept reading! The book centres on Mac, who loves to burn the candle at both ends. One as a busy nurse and the other going out at night after a hard day. How her life is about to change, the trials she had to endure but still managing to put the lives of the battered soldiers first. I loved the descriptions of the war, field hospitals and what the soldiers went through - still in battle dress, dirt and blood dried on after having been operated on. It puts life in perspective when you read such a strong story.. loved it and will definitely be recommending it.

Thank you for the advance copy of the book and the chance to read it.

I had not read a book by this author at all but thoroughly enjoyed this book.

I had not realised that some of the events like the bombing of Mill Road Hospital in Liverpool were actually real events - it was sad really that the author didnt use the real names of those that passed away in this tragedy.

The book is mainly about two friends who were involved in the bombing in Liverpool and then went their separate ways - one in the Army as a field hospital nurse and the other as an air ambulance nurse taking supplies to the battle front and then wounded soldiers back to Blighty.
Of course there is a love story alongside and sadness and injury for both nurses - physical and psychological.

If you love a book about World War 2 and/or historical fiction then this is the book for you.

It is well written and keeps you engaged wanting to read more to find out what happens next.
I really enjoyed this book and would read others by this author.

THank you to the publishers and to Kate Eastham

Thanks to NetGalley for providing an advanced digital copy of AN ANGEL'S WORK by Kate Eastham.
If you are a fan of historical fiction, this was an excellent read. The novel revolved around the lives of two nurses, Mac and Jo, the events they were involved in during World War II as a bit of romance they experienced. I really enjoyed reading about their medical experiences as reading about nurses was my favorite thing to do as a child.
I know how much medicine has changed in the past 80 years and it waas so interesting to see how some things have stayed the same and some things have changed so much.

I am excited to be taking part in the #BooksOnTour #BlogTour for Kate Eastham's WW2 historical novel AN ANGEL'S WORK.

My first novel by Kate Eastham, AN ANGEL'S WORK follows two nurses throughout their wartime nursing careers from the May Blitz in 1941 right up to the end of the war. I enjoyed getting to know both Jo and Mac and waiting to see how their respective stories would unfold.

Liverpool, May 1941: Staff nurse Josephine (Jo) Brooks and staff nurse Moira (Mac) MacDonald are best friends and roommates working at the civilian Mill Road Hospital. The two women are different in personalities as they are in looks, with Jo dark haired and reserved and Mac the outgoing redhead enjoying life while she can. While both women loved their work they also savoured their time off as well but each time the air raid siren sounded, the nurses would report to Casualty immediately to help tend to the wounded...even if they are not on duty.

On one particular night, Mac went out while Jo stayed in reading, and met a dishy aircrew trainee named Don (his surname escapes me just now) who called Mac his "Rita Hayworth" on account of her flaming red hair. The pair enjoyed a passionate encounter leaving Don declaring his love for Mac who felt it was just the adrenaline of being caught up in wartime.

On 3rd May, Liverpool had endured three consecutive nights of bombing and Jo was working in the basement theatre whilst Mac was enjoying the new mums and babies in maternity. When the hospital takes a direct hit, Jo and the surgeon are virtually trapped in the basement with their patient until she manages to scramble out a window. Her first thought is of Mac up on the top floor in maternity and she races up there, calling her friend's name. There is nothing but rubble on the maternity ward but Jo does hear the faint cry of a baby, and scrambles through the debris to find the distressed infant, just 1 day old, her mother now dead. She gives the baby to a Sister and continues her search for Mac on the floor below since there was now a gaping hole in the maternity floor. She finds one of their friends dead beside an unconscious Mac who has a head wound.

Mac is stretchered out and taken with Jo and surgeon Angus Dunbar to a nearby hospital where he sutures her head wound in the corridor. There doesn't appear to be any other damage which is good news...they just have to wait for Mac to regain consciousness. But when she does, she is dazed and confused and it isn't long before she falls into unconsciousness again. After spending a few days in hospital, the two women head to Jo's family farm to recuperate.

But when Don turns up at the farm to see Mac he is upset to discover she has no memory of the days surrounding the bombing...including him. And Mac is incredibly distressed to find a strange man running up to her and encircling her in his arms. However, when her memory does begin to return she decides that what they had was a wartime fling and sends him on his way. But Don will not be swayed, declaring he will come looking for her after the war.

The bombing of the hospital and the injuries Mac sustained as a result has lead her to rethink how she would like to help with the war effort. Jo, it seems, has been doing much the same thinking...with neither wishing to return to Liverpool. Jo suggested they join the WAAF and work at the Morecambe Military Hospital but Mac has other plans. She has decided to join the army as a nurse and work at the front. So the two women for the first time go their separate ways - Jo as a flying nightingale with the air ambulance, ferrying injured patients from Europe back to Britain and Mac as an army nurse in a field hospital. Both are extremely dangerous of coming under attack in the air as well as on the ground.

The story is told the third person narrative from the alternating perspectives of Jo and Mac, as well as the occasional from Don and even from Don's mate Zach detailing their individual experiences. And despite Mac turning Don away three years before, she still carries a torch for him which she continually tries to suppress. But the moment she hears he is missing in action presumed dead, she goes to pieces.

AN ANGEL'S WORK is an engaging read with all the adrenaline of frontline nurses working under pressure often in dangerous locations. It is also a gentle read, an easy read of life during wartime that by the story's end when they announce "The war is over!" even I felt a building of emotion and tears in my eyes. It still has the capacity to touch your heart and make you feel as if you are in the air with Jo and in the field hospital alongside Mac. The story is very real and will leave you with a sense of having lived through it as well.

An enjoyable read, I recommend AN ANGEL'S WORK to anyone who enjoys wartime fiction.

I would like to thank #KateEastham, #NetGalley and #Bookouture for an ARC of #AnAngelsWork in exchange for an honest review.

An Angel’s Wish by Kate Eastham is a great World War II novel about two nurses. I loved these characters and was hooked from the first page.

Jo and Mac are nurses in an English hospital during World War II. One night Mac is working in the maternity ward while Jo is working in the basement theater. The last three nights German aircrafts were bombing the city. This night the hospital gets bombed. Everything changes after that.

Will Mac make it out alive? How will Jo’s life change as a result of this bombing?

I loved waiting to see how this story would unfold.

An Angel’s Wish is beautifully written. Some of the hospital scenes were so descriptive I cringed because I cannot handle blood. The story is great and the characters are even better.

Both of these women are strong and independent. They handle situations differently but always helping people and doing what they think is best. Mac falls in love quickly days before the bombing while Jo avoids love.

Jo and Mac are best friends but completely opposite personalities. At the beginning of the book, Mac is going out every night because she wants to live her life to the fullest. On the other hand, Jo stays in every night and tries to make Mac stay in to remain safe. Jo is always afraid of what will happen next in the war.

An Angel’s Wish is a story of love, heartbreak, friendship, and duty. It is an emotional World War II story.

I recommend An Angel’s Wish to World War II Historical Fiction fans.

Thank you NetGalley and Bookouture for An Angel’s Wish.

The unsung heroes of the war. The dedicated nurses who gave compassion and hope to so many wounded soldiers at a great sacrifice to themselves. They loved and lost in the end and were almost forgotten.,

A slight disconnect at start of this novel,not sure if it was meant.
Heart breaking story of nurses in the front line and the many diverse roles they played during the war. A good read.

I loved this book. This book is mainly about two women work under ww2. But for me it was also about the romance,and. friendships
What i particularly loved about this book. I loved the friendships between the 2 female.main characters. How far they would go for each other. I liked the sweet romance. And i loved that It showed how fearless women were under dismal circumstances. I would highly recommend this book.
Thank you to netgalley for letting me read this e arc in exchange for an honest review

A hospital is bombed directly in 1941 England killing nurses, doctors, wounded soldiers, and even a maternity floor with newborn babies and their mother’s die! Why would they bomb a hospital! Shouldn’t they value that they even killed some of their own wounded soldiers that were captured?

Jo & Moira were best friends and nurses who normally worked together. However, this one time they were separated and Moira was sent up to the Maternity ward which was in the upper levels. Jo was in Casualty on the first floor. Jo knew she had to help the survivors, but she also needed to find her friend.

Moira is severely wounded with a head wound, but at least Jo was able to get her out and find her a doctor.

Jo and Moira lives drastically change after this bombing. They both resume in nursing, but in totally different aspects and they split apart. It’s as though they need to grow up and discover who they are as individuals.

The author creates a tremendous insight into the war and what the nurses must have had to endure and the pain of what they seen! The sounds and the plot twists are phenomenal which you will not be able to put this book down!
I just kept reading and reading because the characters felt like they were in the room with me and I was feeling and experiencing their emotions with the things they were seeing and doing. The exhaustion and sadness, but the joy of life was so poignant and strong as well!

I definitely will read more books by this author and I recommend this book to everyone! I would
definitely give it more than 5; stars if I could!

I received an advanced copy from NetGalley and these are my willingly given thoughts and opinions.

Heart-wrenching tale of friendship and love for fans of World War II fiction. As an avid reader of historical fiction and someone who is drawn to World War II sagas, I was fascinated by the uniqueness of the perspective. Jo and Mac are nurses in Liverpool in 1941 when the hospital is taken down by bombing while the friends are on duty. The impact of the raid changes the course of the ladies' lives. The imagery of the medical scenes is powerful and transports the reader to the bedside. The nurses' interactions with the patients and care they provide portray the strength of the nurses and their passion for their patients. Jo and Mac each have a touch of romance in the novel, but the book isn't written as a romance. I would actually have enjoyed having the romance developed more because I always relish in good war romance. The novel also felt a bit choppy as if it were multiple short episodes instead of more thoroughly developing the characters of Jo and Mac. I would recommend this book to fans of war fiction with strong female leads.

I was completely glued to this book, its a fabulous tale of two friends and their crowd. I cried and I laughed. The author takes us from Liverpool to France and beyond , you can feel the fear - almost ducking your head as the bombs fall. I would highly recommend this book - reminds me of Nadine Dorris the Nightengale stories but I preferred this one. Will read more of Kate Eastham's work. I still don't know who I preferred more - steadfast Jo or madcap Mac. Brilliant, entertaining and insightful.

In this romantic story, nurses Mac and Jo are caught up in the middle of World War 2. They are both on shift at a hospital in Liverpool when a bomb hits it. Jo, who is in the basement when the building is struck, manages to escape and rescues her friend Mac from the rubble.
Mac fell through a floor and was hit by debris, causing her to temporarily lose part of her memory. All of a sudden she cannot remember the handsome Don, whom she had met only two days ago, but whom she had immediately fallen for, head over heels.
Having survived the bombing and with Mac's memory recovering, the two best friends make new plans. Jo joins an air ambulance crew, evacuating injured soldiers from the front line. Mac actually travels to the front line to work as an army nurse.
For the remainder of the war the two friends do not see each other again. Will they survive the conflict? Will Mac ever see Don again?

An Angel's Work is a very interesting read about a nurse's work during World War 2, about the life of the Flying Nightingales. The anxiety of war is felt in every word, impelling the reader to keep turning the pages. Everyone knows that the war will end one day, but will Mac and Jo be okay?
It's also a very emotional read, and from time to time a little too melodramatic. Sometimes there is a little bit too much crying going on. I am too young to have experienced a war, so maybe it is a realistic approach to the day-to-day sadness of it all. I can only say that it had me welling up with tears in certain parts.

Doing a little research online, I've found out that author Kate Eastham has written several novels centred around nurses. This is no surprise as Eastham worked all her life as a nurse and midwife, before becoming a full-time carer for her partner. An Angel's Work was therefore inspired by stories told to her by patients she has treated. Those patients were survivors of World War 2: men who fought in the war, or women who worked on the front line.

All in all, An Angel's Work is a heartwarming novel despite its gruesome surroundings in a world in ruins because of the war.

Another brilliant book from Kate and one of my favourite genre's.Kate writes such lovely stories that draw you into the pages wanting more.Excellent story well done 5*

Another interesting book about the Second world war . The story is about two nurses Jo and Mac. There is a good storyline which keeps you wanting to know what is going to happen to them. The description of the bombing is well written. I did enjoy reading this book and recommend it if you like war stories

Another brilliant book by Kate. If you love world war books, family sage and nursing you will love Kates books. Love, love ,love the story lines. Cant wait to read somemore