This book takes you on Frankie's journey of what it was like being a a woman serving during in the Vietnam War.
This was my first Kristin Hannah book and I loved it. I gulped it up so quickly and raved about it after I finished. I was so happy to get the chance to read this advanced copy and am looking forward to reading more from the author. I already went out and bought The Nightingale.
Thank you to St Martin's Press, Kristin Hannah and NetGalley for my advanced copy in exchange for my honest review. All the stars!

This very quickly became my favorite Kristin Hannah book, along with the Nightingale. I loved everything about this book, I read it in one sitting. I was texting my friend my reactions and to see what emotions, outrage, happiness, etc. I went through during the book was fun to read back. I thought watching Frankie's transformation from a naive young woman to building confidence to things that happened after coming back from Vietnam to her ending was magnificent. I had no idea how many women were serving as nurses in Vietnam, seeing the atrociities, and then coming home and they were not treated as veterans. Showed the misogyny at the time, that still exists to be honest, and how Frankie worked through that. 10/10 would read again and I've already recommended it to multiple friends.

This book was such a roller coaster. I have never read a historical fiction book set in the Vietnam War, and I do not feel we learn much about it in school. I learned so much about the true devastation that occurred in this war. I was so invested in Frankie's story and following her as she came back from war and tried to be a "regular person" again. It was very eye-opening to see the lack of support for veterans and their struggles during this time. I loved the friendships between Frankie, Barb and Ethel in the book and how they never gave up on each other. This book took me on an emotional ride but I really enjoyed it from beginning to end!

The Women was a very good book, we don't really think that much about women in the Vietnam War yet I realize that they have been in service for years. The setting for this book was during a dark time in US history, I believe she did a very good job catching the essence of the situation. I would recommend to others.

I received an ARC from NetGalley and the publisher and I am leaving my review voluntarily.

This book made me realize how little I actually know about the Vietnam War. I really appreciated learning more about the War, as well as the political strife in the United States during the War. I sped through the first half of the book, but I felt like the second half was harder to get through and, at times, overly dramatic. As a mental health practitioner, I appreciated the portrayal of PTSD but felt like Hannah overdid it. As many other reviewers have noted, Hannah tends to "tell, not show" and beats you over the head with some of her themes. Overall, I still really enjoyed this book and it sparked my interest in learning more about this time in history.

This is the first book set during the Vietnam War that I've ever read. My knowledge of what it was like for women there comes solely from watching China Beach, so as limited as you would assume. Hannah does not pull any punches in this unflinching portrayal of what the main character, Frankie McGrath, goes through from the moment she makes the decision to enlist and go to 'Nam until the end of the book. It's an emotional book, it's raw, it's compelling. Now that I've finished it, I want to read more, maybe some nonfiction about Vietnam War nurses.

Another absolutely amazing work of historical fiction by Kristin Hannah. I think this is my favorite of all of her works. To read about the women who were there in Vietnam was amazing! This is a very often left out piece of the Vietnam War. Highly recommend for all Adult Fiction collections.

A wonderful new one by the ever talented Kristin Hannah. Even tho I lived through the Vietnam War, I learned so much from her careful research and always good plots. Finally, women who served in Vietnam (nurses) are getting their due.

To say I was excited when I received an e-arc of The Women by Kristin Hannah would be an understatement. My mom used to read a lot of her books when I was young (if not, every single one she’s written), and would read us bits and pieces before going to bed. So not only are there fond memories attached to Hannah and her work, but the noticable shift in style and content from her most recent releases have been extremely well received.

Hannah’s most recent works have felt slightly different than others from the past, and that’s not to say her older works aren’t just as good, but these newer novels feel more abundant, extend beyond relationships and feel more connected and grounded to the real world, while maintaining that original style of writing that made us fall in love with her work in the first place.

The Women by Kristin Hannah follows the experiences of the protagonist, Frankie, who is unsatisfied with the cushy lifestyle her parents provide along with their overwhelming pressure to live what she considers to be an “unfulfilling” life. The long line of men in the family have all honorably served in the Navy, and have earned their spot on her father’s “hero” wall of Veterans. As her brother prepares to deploy out to Vietnam, Frankie decides that she too can earn a spot on the hero wall by enlisting in the Army Nurse Corps proving that women too can be heroes and that she can earn a spot on the wall regardless of the stereotypical expectations set for women at the time.

Hannah depicts the mindsets and thought processes most upper class Americans had at the time — “the war in Vietnam is barely a war”; “it’ll be over soon”; “we are winning”. Frankie and her brother serve as examples of the great amount of men and women who did not understand the gravity of what they had signed up for due to the propaganda and misinformation.

The Women is a story that represents not just the destruction and trauma of the Vietnam war, but also the aftermath. The experience of coming home to a politically divided America, believing you set out supporting a good cause, living in a constant state of life or death, but never receiving that recognition and instead met with disgust, shame, and resentment upon return.

At first, I did not like the title of the book “The Women”. I felt that it was a bit redundant — a little too blatant. But now knowing that the women Frankie, Barb, and Ethel represent, who deliberately put themselves in harms way to help others never received recognition, were completely forgotten, to know that their experiences, PTSD, and efforts to assimilate back into everyday life were met with the same response of “there were no women in Vietnam” brings about a deep respect for these women, and what better way than to honor their sacrifice and commitment than the name “The Women”.

While there is great controversy surrounding the ethics and politics of the war in Vietnam, it’s important for untold stories and experiences to be heard, and not be forgotten. While many point of views surrounding this topic have yet to be told, or rather continue to be oppressed, I believe Hannah took great care in highlighting the voices of these women.

Kristen Hannah can really do no wrong. I loved this book just as much as the Nightingale possibly even a little bit more. I haven’t read much historical fiction about the Vietnam war especially not many featuring women. Unfortunately the stories are not told often enough. Frankie, Barb and Ethel’s friendship is linked by tragedy, but is also a beautiful story. Anyone should be so lucky to have a friendship like the three of them have. This book was beautifully written, and but also difficult to read, because there was so much death. The last hundred pages put me through the wringer in the best way possible. And I loved how Kristin Hannah showed Frankie‘s life before during, and after the war. The focus on PTSD and the struggles returning from the war were real and heartbreaking. I love the ending especially the growth Frankie experienced. This was a perfect book to read during women’s history month and always.

**Thank you to Netgalley for the free review copy**

Kristin Hannah is an auto-buy author for me. The Women is an incredibly well-written novel that will split your soul in two and stitch it back together again. 5 Stars!

The Women by Kristin Hannah is a 400 plus book I inhaled in a day and a half–I could not put this down. Hannah is a masterful writer and isn’t afraid to tackle hard topics in such a readable way. I’m so glad I read this–I learned so much.

The Women is hands down the best historical fiction book I have ever read. It was a bookclub pick and everyone in my bookclub was stunned at the impact this book had on all of us. We had read many books about WW1 and WW2, but never Vietnam. This book opened our eyes to that time period in a way that was not political, just human. Beware - this book is not an easy read. Kristin Hannah gets down to the nitty gritty with details so you feel you are in the moment, right next to the main character, trying to save the lives of young soldiers in the middle of a horrific battle. It's shocking, it's sad, it's a triumph of human spirit over all of the horrible aspects of war. I cannot recommend this book enough!

Frankie is a young woman who decides to join the Army as a nurse during the Vietnam War. I appreciated that Hannah tackled this topic and focused on the female heroes of the Vietnam War. They deserve recognition. The first half of the book set in vietnam really captured the setting and atrocities of war. However, the second half of the book felt melodramatic and gave me a bit of a bad soap opera vibe. The love stories didn’t feel believable to me and the incessant traumas felt overdone.

This historical fiction novel provides insight into the events of and lives affected by the Vietnam War. Its focus is on the women who served as nurses during the war. As the author reminds readers quite frequently and dramatically, American women were not thought to have been in Vietnam during the war. The first part of the story focuses on Frankie McGrath’s traumatic time in Vietnam; the second half covers her difficulties coping once she returns.

The story is interesting and informative, but I had a few problems with it. The title implies that the story is about women, plural, but we really don’t learn much about the other nurses or any other women. Most of the characters are cliches: the handsome pilots with chiseled features and aviator sunglasses, the black nurse who becomes an activist, the small-town nurse who goes home to the farm, marries her boyfriend, and raises a family. Frankie is the poor little rich girl who returns home to her completely oblique and cruel parents who don’t understand her but nonetheless provide her with a cottage near the beach to reside in rent free. No one understands her. She spirals downward as a result of PTSD, but her plight lacks tension because the plot feels flat. This happened, then that happened, followed by this. The events are supposed to be dramatic and emotional, but that’s the issue. Hannah creates drama through the never ending tragedy of events rather than realistic characterization. And many of those plot points require an excessive suspension of disbelief. Some of the historical details lack credibility, too. The way that her friends of little means are able to fly cross-country at a moment’s notice is not typical of the time, and some of the dialogue doesn’t ring true.

Overall, The Women is readable. The recreation of the time period is interesting and important. But the cliched characters and unbelievable storyline are distracting.

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for providing me with an advance copy of this book. My review is voluntary and reflects my honest opinion.

While I enjoyed "The Nightingale", I'm beginning to wonder if it was written by someone else, b/c the writing in "The Women" is fairly cliched. Not a fan of this outing by Kristin Hannah.

I absolutely loved this book. I listened to the audiobook narrated by Julia Whelan, which made it even better. Such a powerful and heartbreaking story.

I know that Kristin Hannah has a cult following, but this is my first book of hers! I may try “True Colors” next (there’s a horse on the cover, duh). But I am looking forward to a deep dive into her backlist of absolutely epic sagas.

All I knew about this one going in is that it is about female nurses in the Vietnam War. I believe that’s all you should know, too. “The Women” truly has it all and is genre defying, with touches of family drama, romance and historical fiction. I was riveted within the first few pages, and this book never relinquished its hold on me. There was a point about 90% through that I was worried I wasn’t going to like the ending. But! I was being hasty. The ending was fantastic, and this book is absolutely one of my 2024 favorites.

“The Women” reminds me of a Judy Blume novel or “Where the Heart Is” by Billie Letts. It’s such a BIG story full of characters who feel real, who you’ll think about for a long time after the last page.

US pub date: 2/6/24
Genre: historical fiction
Quick summary: Nursing student Frankie wants to make her military family proud, so she enlists in the Army Nurse Corps. Unfortunately, they aren't as enthusiastic as she had hoped, and both her work in Vietnam and her post-war return to the States aren't any easier.

This is a tough review to write, as I really appreciate Hannah drawing attention to the previously overlooked nurses of Vietnam. I enjoyed the first part of the story as it became clear how much of a fish out of water Frankie was, and I liked seeing her bond with her fellow nurses and gain strength from them. Unfortunately, this book was too long and overdramatic for me - it didn't need to be 480 pages. At some points in the second half of the book, I felt like I was on an emotional rollercoaster a la Colleen Hoover or a Lifetime movie, and it just didn't work for me. That being said, the book has a 4.69 on Goodreads, so clearly lots of people liked it more than I did!

Thank you to St. Martin's Press for providing an e-ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Amazing! Kristin Hannah never disappoints (with the exception of The Four Winds). Up there in my top three favorite of hers.