I received an advice copy of this title from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. I really enjoyed "The Last Lifeboat." Many of us have heard of children evacuations to the English countryside during WWII but there were also evacuations via sea to Canada, South Africa, Australia, New Zealand and the United States.
A young schoolteacher and temporary librarian, Alice King, finds herself searching for purpose during WWII. She finds that purpose in helping evacuate British children overseas. Lily Nichols, as a widow with two young children, debates sending her children on the evacuation boats, as do many other parents. Alice King becomes the escort for Lily's children on the S.S. Carlisle to Canada. Aboard, Alice finds enjoyment in taking care of her new charges and the thrill of meeting new people. However, the unthinkable happens, and a German U-boat torpedoes the S.S. Carlisle. Aboard the lifeboats, many lives become unexpectedly entangled. Hazel Gaynor does an excellent job of conveying the desperation, loss, and co-mingling of different walks of life that happen during war. I could taste the salty sea, the un-ending storm both physically and mentally on the survivors but also was moved by the resiliency of humans and our ability to connect on many different levels.

Alice King and Lily Nichols had never met until the day Alice volunteered to be an escort for her children and other children on the SS Carlisle (SS City of Benares) from London to Canada.

The SS Carlisle was surrounded by a convoy of Royal Navy ships that were to protect the SS Carlisle from German U-boats, but the ship was torpedoed and sunk. Where did the convoy go?

This left everyone scrambling to the lifeboats as they watched the ship sink along with those who didn't make it out.

What horrible news for the parents whose children were on the ship.

There were no other lifeboats in the water except for Lifeboat Number 12 that had been miscounted and mixed up with another lifeboat that was thought to have been rescued.

How did the other lifeboats make it to safety or did they?

Why are they the only lifeboat in this vast ocean?

We follow Alice, the children, and other adults as they wait for a rescue boat for eight days in the rough waters.

THE LAST LIFEBOAT is based on true events and tells us this heartbreaking story through Ms. Gaynor's marvelous research and writing style.

You won't want to stop reading to see how it all turned out.

You will cry and cheer along with the characters when they are rescued and as some of the children are reunited with their families.

You will also cry for those who perished.

You will find lots of interesting information about what is kept in a lifeboat for emergencies.

This is another event I was not aware of....were you?

This book was given to me by the publisher via NetGalley for an honest review.

The Last Lifeboat
By Hazel Gaynor
Pub Date: June 13, 2023
Berkely
Thanks to the author, publisher and NetGalley for the ARC of this book in exchange for my honest opinion.
Inspired by a true story, a young teacher evacuates children to safety across perilous waters. Fascinating story told through the POV of Alice and Lily.
I loved reading the historical note at the end . This author did their research well!
5 stars

This book is based on historical fact during WWII. At a time when children were thought to be possibly safer away from the war in England, there were transport ships taking them to America, Canada or other locations away from the trauma of war in .England. This is the story of one of those ships and the fate that befell its passengers.

The story is told from the perspective of .Alice, a former teacher who wants to help in the war effort somehow and is a chaperone aboard the fated ship. Also the perspective of Lily, the mother of two of the evacuees, who remains in England.

The way the author alternates between the POV of Alice and Lily made for interesting reading, in my opinion.

The historical note at the end of the book helps me know the author, Hazel Gaynor, did her research well. I’ve read her books before and will in the future. Four stars.

I received this book from the publisher via net galley in exchange for an honest review.

An interesting spotlight on little known incident in Workd War II.

The story began well, as Alice King, a well mannered teacher in England, signs up to escort children traveling to North America to escape the Blitz

The ship is torpedoed, and Alice finds herself on a lifeboat with children rescued from the wreck.

The real suspense occurs when their lifeboat is adrift on the ocean with no other boats in sight.

I enjoyed the historical background, but felt the story lost focus after the wreck.

It began to feel like a documentary about the marooned lifeboat, and less about Alice's struggles and personal development.

Still well written and researched.

I enjoyed this book and the different glimpse into a little known event of world war II. However, I would have enjoyed it more if I had not previously read Lifeboat 12 by Susan Hood. I found Lifeboat 12 a bit more engaging and kept me on my edge of my seat. As they are geared to different audiences, there may not be many readers who read both books and find differences between how the historical parts play out.

A beautifully haunting book about survival in the face of great trial; about longing and love; and about the threads that bind people in desperate situations together.

The Last Lifeboat is a well-written, well-paced novel based on actual events. Alice is a young schoolteacher in Kent in 1940. Her idea of adventure is in the pages of a good book. As war gets closer to British shores, she has no choice but to get involved. When Alice and her brother witness a plane crash close to home, she searches for a way to help. Alice answers an add and is hired with other teachers to accompany the children who are being evacuated overseas. Lily Nichols, a young mother in London, was a mathematician before she married and started a family. Now her husband is embroiled in the war and she's forced to decide between keeping her children with her, in bomb ridden London, or enrolling them in a risky evacuation program. Alice is the teacher assigned to the Nichols children and things proceed smoothly until their ship is attacked just outside of the protection zone. Many are lost, but many are saved in the numerous lifeboats, except the boat containing Alice and her charges. What follows is a harrowing account of survival and the persistence of a mother during a time when women weren't listened to and couldn't possibly know more than the bureaucrats. I had to stay up to finish this and find out what happened. Read this book if you like tales of adventure, bravery and courage. Fans of Gaynor will love this book as will fans of books the the Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Society and other WWII fiction. Many thanks to NetGalley for the chance to read the ARC.

Thank you to NetGalley, the Author, and Berkley Publishing Group for an ARC of this book!

3.5 stars!

My favorite kind of historical fiction is one that teaches me about a new subject or topic. I am an avid reader of WWII HF, but this is book takes on a unique angle and is based on a true story. It weaves the tale of two women, one who decides to relocate her children to safety on the other side of the world and the woman who is responsible for their safe journey from England to Canada. The beginning was a little slow for me, but when a U-boat destroys the SS Carlisle, the book gets much more face paced. A great story of survival against all odds.

✨ The Last Life Boat ✨

Thank you to NetGalley, the author, and the publisher for an eARC in exchange for an honest review!

Publishing June 13, 2023

I found this book so amazing! What makes this so emotional and powerful, is the alternating POV throughout the book. We have two main characters, Lily and Alice. Both of their storylines intersected and worked with each other beautifully. Hazel Gaynor did a spectacular job of switching POV at just the right moment, and the stories flow so smoothly together. I was so emotional at the end of this book. I felt all the emotions with these characters.

I love how the author used real life events and tried to stick closely to things that actually occurred. This story was very well put together, and I am glad that I was able to learn more about these historical events.

I would recommend this book to any fellow historical fiction lover! If you are a fan of Kristen Hannah or Ruta Sepetys, this would be a great read for you.

I did not expect--in any way--to enjoy Hazel Gaynor's The Last Lifeboat as much as I did. It's a great book, packed with interest in suspense. I am reluctant to ruin the plot for other readers, but the core focus is the transport of children to Canada in World War II when England seemed on the verge of being invaded. Gaynor captures the tension and fear of the time with great skill. I really loved this book and have no choice but to give it five stars.

Based on a true story, Gaynor's book highlights a torpedoed ship carrying British children during World War II. It touches upon the horrors of the Blitz, the gut wrenching decision to send children overseas for safety, survival, and loss.

This book is a heartbreaking account of what happened during WW2 when people sent their children to other countries to keep them safe. This is a fictional account of something that actually happened in 1940. In September of 1940.

Told from two women's lives. Lily Nicholls and Alice King.

Lily has two young children. Georgina who is ten and Arthur who is six and a half. They are the light of Lily's eye. She loves her children more than life. When things get bad and England is getting bombed she makes the hardest decision ever. She is going to send her two children to a safer place. She wants nothing but to keep them safe from the things that are happening all around her. She's already lost her husband and can't fathom losing her children. Just keep them safe. That's all she wants. That's all anyone wanted that sent their children to safety at this time.

Alice is a woman who wants to do something different with her life. She's a little older and has never been married. She was very close to her father and is very close to her sister and brother. She applies to be an escort for the children who will be evacuated. Her life is about to change is many ways. More than she ever expected.

This book takes you through so much. So much anguish and heartbreak. So much loss. It's all about one lifeboat that carries what remains of the last passengers from the Carlisle, the ship carrying children to safety. Everyone has had to get off this ship after it was torpedoed. There are twelve lifeboats and Alice is on THE LAST LIFEBOAT!! There are five boys and one girl that she will be responsible for. Also there are several men. A lot of people didn't make it. A lot were on other lifeboats. This story is about The Last Lifeboat and what all they endured. The quick thinking. The horrors. The eight days they are at sea. Totally alone.

This book is so beautifully written. So full of deep emotion. It made me weep. I do mean weep. I did laugh a few times at the antics of some of the children but for the most part it was very sad. In a historic way sad. Hazel Gaynor has written a wonderful story here based on actual facts. Actual events. I fell in love with some of these children. Especially Arthur and Billy. Billy is one that I rooted for. He was just a little child full of wonder. Arthur was a great child also. He was so very brave.

Do not forget to read the HISTORICAL NOTE at the end. There is a lot of info that is vital to this story there. There is no doubt that this author did a lot of good research. It's so sad that this ever happened.

Thank you #NetGalley, #HazelGaynor, #Berkley for this ARC. This is my own true thoughts about this book.

Five huge stars. Don't let this one pass you by. Grab it and several boxes of tissue.

In 1940 Alice King is what most would call a spinster. At thirty years old she remained in her childhood home with her overbearing mother in the small village of Kent. By trade a teacher and librarian, Alice’s world shrunk even smaller as war and threats from Germany worsened. Alice wanted to do something meaningful with her life. She dreamed of making a difference as if she were a character in one of the books she cherished. When an opportunity arose to chaperone children being evacuated to Canada - Alice signs up. At the same time Lily Nichols, recently traumatized by the loss of her husband had two small children in London. The bombings had them trapped uncomfortably in shelters for hours, their uncertain futures terrifying even to the bravest souls. When the “seavacuees” program was offered, Lily could not resist the chance to spare her son and daughter the dangers that lurked nightly. Alice was to be their “auntie” on the S.S. Carlisle. What started as an adventure at sea turns into a nightmare when the ship is torpedoed by a Nazi U-boat. Inspired by a true story, this spellbinding novel is filled with stormy seas and unparalleled bravery. Well written, fast paced - a must read!

Historical fiction at its best!! "The Last Lifeboat" is a gripping story inspired by actual events of a ship carrying evacuated children being torpedoed during WWII on their way to Canada. Told from two different points of view, one a mother, Lily, who is trying to keep her children safe, and another a school teacher, Alice, who wants to do something to help the war effort. Lily makes the difficult decision to send her children to Canada. Alice decides to volunteer to escort the children on board the ship to help them arrive safely. Little do they know that their lives are going to change in ways they never thought possible.

This is a unique story about survival and courage as not much is out there about children being taken overseas during WWII to escape the war. I did not want to put this book down as I had to know what was going to happen to Alice and the children in the lifeboat. A truly remarkable and emotional story!

Thank you to Berkley Books and NetGalley for this ARC.

I am a huge fan of historical fiction, especially World War II stories, so this book appealed to me right away. It is loosely based on an actual event that took place in the beginning of the war when Britain started a program to evacuate children by boat to Canada in hopes of keeping them safe from war. The story is told from the perspectives of two different women, Alice and Lily, who are strangers at first but whose lives become entwined and ultimately dependent upon each other. Alice is a timid schoolteacher who sees the effects the looming war with Germany has on her country and decides to volunteer as a chaperone to children being evacuated to Canada. Lily, having recently lost her husband and raising two young children on her own, feels the increasing impact of war daily and fears for the safety of her children. She makes the heart wrenching decision to send her children overseas for the duration of the war to ensure their safety. As a mother myself, I kept thinking about how incredibly difficult a decision that must have been! Ultimately the boat that Alice and the children are traveling on is torpedoed by the Germans and what follows shows the strength and determination of both of these women on land and sea. This is the first book I’ve read by this author and it won’t be my last. I love her writing style - her character development is superb and her descriptive writing skills make you feel as though you are part of the story.
Special thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an advanced readers copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

The Last Lifeboat by Hazel Gaynor A riveting emotional tale based on a little-known WWII trauma that not many people have read about. Well written with unique vibrant descriptions and realistic characters that will keep one turning the pages late into the night to discover the fate of Alice and the children.

Thank you to the author, Berkley Publishing Group-Berkley, and Net Galley for the opportunity to preview the book.

The Last Lifeboat is a fictionalized account based on the little-known story of the ship City of Benares. The ship was on the way to North America with a full load of passengers in September, 1940. Ninety British children being evacuated to ride out the war in ‘safer’ lands were on board when the ship was torpedoed at 9:45 one night. Casualties were high, especially among the young evacuees. Another ship picked up many of the survivors but one lifeboat drifted off and its passengers were on their own for eight days.

The Last Lifeboat speculates on how those eight long days were spent until the group was finally rescued. The courage and heroism of individuals and the anguish of parents who made the decision to send their beloved children away, only to lose them makes for a poignant read. Reminiscent of the writings of Ruta Sepetys, Gaynor brings to light an obscure event and exposes readers to a small piece of difficult history.

Recommended for those who are fascinated with WWII, shipwrecks, and historical fiction.

Excellent book! I couldn't put this one down. Enjoyed the interaction between the characters and the fact that the lifeboat survivors did not turn against each other.
Can't even imagine what those parents went through to make the decision to send those children away. Don't think I could have done that.
Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC of this book. I will be recommending it at our library!

This utterly immersive, pulse pounding, and emotionally searing tale of wartime tragedy should not be missed. My full review will appear in my Book Smart column in Boston’s Patriot Ledger/ USA Today network newspaper online and in print within the next week or so!