Kristin Hannah continues to amaze me with the way she takes historical settings and fills them with relatable, flawed characters that you can't help but love. This story was incredible from start to finish, Im sad I devoured it so quickly and have to wait years for her next novel.

I learned so much about The Women that served in the Vietnam war, and it broke my heart to learn about how they were treated upon their return to America. They were made to feel like their trauma was insignificant, that they should just get over it and go back to being a woman, they were told that women didn't serve in Vietnam, and had people doubt their very real experiences and the horror they were through.

This novel was gripping from the very beginning, we meet Frankie and watch as she enlists to be a nurse in the Vietnam war. I couldn't bring myself to put this book down, the story and characters were so engrossing I just had to know what was going to happen next. There is such great representation of female friendship in this book as well and I loved both Ethel and Barb's characters too.

There isn't a Kristin Hannah book that I wouldn't read. She blew me away with this one and I can't wait to see what she comes up with next.

Kristin Hannah writes another masterpiece! This unflinching novel provides an accurate portrayal of the complexities and tragedies of the Vietnam War, the impacts on those who served in Vietnam, and how those experiences followed Veterans when/if they returned home.

Readers are drawn into Frankie's experiences, her relationships with those with whom she served, and how those experiences forever changed the course of her life.

Kristin Hannah is an amazing historical fiction writer. I have loved her previous novels and her upcoming one, The Women, tackling the Vietnam War, is no exception. It is one of the best historical fiction reads that I have read this year. It really drew me in; I found myself thinking about this novel and the characters even when I wasn’t reading it.

Set in Vietnam and the US, both during and after the Vietnam War, the story is about Frankie, a young nurse from a well-to-do family, who signed up to serve in Vietnam. She is a well developed and likeable character.

The story follows Frankie and her female (and male) colleagues during the war and the author does an excellent job of vividly describing their experiences helping others while trying to stay alive. Once back in America, we see the challenges faced by Frankie and other returning Vietnam vets and the open disdain of their fellow Americans for participating in the unpopular war. It is even worse for the women whose contributions to saving lives during the war were ignored.

In telling Frankie’s story, the author interweaves many themes: trauma, PTSD, friendship, the role of women, sacrifice, love and addiction. She also clearly describes the tumultuous times of the late 1960s/early 1970s in the US, weaving in key historical events like the (Robert) Kennedy and King assassinations, and the anti-war protests.

I haven’t read many novels about the Vietnam War, so this was an engrossing, fascinating and informative read - exactly what I look for in historical fiction. Lovers of historical fiction and wonderful characters make sure to pick this one up!

Thanks to @stmartinspress and @netgalley for this complimentary copy. All opinions are my own.

Review has already been shared on social media. I will repost my review on publicati0n day.

What can I say? It's Kristin Hannah, so of course the plot is detailed and the characters are well developed and sure to stick with you. The topic was well researched and there was plenty of family drama. I haven't met a Kristin Hannah book that I did not like. I always look forward to her new releases and even if I feel like I won't be interested in the topic or theme of the book, she always sucks me in with her storytelling. And this is exactly what happened with this book.

Kristin Hannah is a historical fiction queen! I was psyched to read The Women, especially because I loved The Four Winds so much.

The Women follows a young woman who sets off to find herself as a nurse in Vietnam. The struggles she faces are unimaginable to a young person of today. The losses she faces are terrible and heartbreaking. Her experiences are both gut-wrenching at times and heartwarming at others.

Hannah has written a raw and honest story that will draw you in and give insight into the lives of those who served in Vietnam- as well as the treatment of veterans after they return home after sacrificing for our country. She brings light to those who history may have forgotten or never recognized to begin with. I feel like this is an important book because of the attention she brings to the subject and because her writing brings it to life in a way a reader can connect with.

The Women will be published on February 6, 2024.

Thanks to @netgalley for the #gifted copy of this book.

This is the first story that I have read set around the Vietnam War. As a historical fiction lover, this story embodies what I love about the genre by highlighting and informing.

Frankie McGrath is a 20yr old nursing student who decides to enlist in the Army Nurse Corp after her brother is sent to Vietnam. We see her idealized idea of what her life in Vietnam will be like quickly come crashing down. The very real and sad view of the injuries she is faced with and daily life of those attempting to save them is portrayed well including how they attempted to create whatever good moments that they could in the dark environment.

When Frankie returns home she is shocked by the public opinion of those who have been in Vietnam. . More sad, perhaps is the men who have fought do not acknowledge her or the fellow woman as having been a part of the war in spite of all she endured. Her PTSD and struggles with life after her return were understandable and the author does not hold back on what she goes through.

The author has done a wonderful job of conveying in a respectful but realistic way what was faced by these woman, their importance, and the personal sacrifices they endured as a result.

Wow, just a total gut wrenching story from start to finish. It’s truly remarkable to follow the journey of Frankie, and get an idea of what Vietnam was like, both in Vietnam, and back state side. It’s sad to know that people who went to war (willingly or not) were not treated with respect (independent someone’s thoughts on the merits of the war). I think it really opens your eyes also to the traumas of war. And how not everyone has the same experiences or the same responses. Kristin Hannah just tells an excellent story that keeps you laser focused.

Thank you to Kirstin Hannah, NetGalley, and St. Martin’’s Press for providing me with an advanced reading copy.

Thank you @netgalley for the early read. This is a book that you will want to buy just so you can share it. Kristin Hannah is a master storyteller who creates deep emotions on every page.

Even though the Vietnam War was considered a war that "never should have happened", heroes were everywhere.....those that were killed, those that were severely injured and survived, those that were POW's, and those that were shot down and lost.

The women who served in Vietnam were heroes too, even though they were overlooked, forgotten, or told there were "no women in Vietnam". Frankie and her close friends, Ethel and Barb, were Army Nurses. Under terrifying conditions while trying to save the incoming wounded, they experienced all the horrors that the War had cast upon them.

After two tours in Vietnam, Frankie's date for going home arrived, bringing her back to the "real world". The naive and inexperienced girl who initially entered the war, no longer existed and she had to find a way to move forward and become a new person.

Death, multiple tragedies, sorrow, romance and the healing process, were all blended together in a story that had to be told.

I thank Kristin Hannah for writing this novel. I have read many that she has written, but this one made me realize how important the women were in this war and unfortunately, how they were forgotten and overlooked.
"Women were in Vietnam" and "Women were heroes too"......A story that will never be forgotten.

If it were possible, I would rate this book more than Five Stars! Thank you NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for allowing me to read an advanced digital copy of this novel.

Thank you St. Martin's Press and NetGalley for this arc in exchange for my honest review. I loved this book. This book is historical fiction and opened my eyes to Vietnam vets and especially the forgotten or erased females who served. Francis (Frankie) a young women in nursing school, goes to Vietnam as one of the few women and spends two years there as a nurse, but basically doing almost everything that . Frankie is naive when she first gets there, but she bonds closely with two women who are her bunkmates. This book brings to light that there were females in the Vietnam war, even though many people, from her parents to the VA who didn't think females served, never mind were war heroes. This book opens up your eyes to the female nurses and all they went through to support and serve their country in Vietnam. I had read this book in a few days because it was hard to part with it. Kristin Hannah has a way with her words and novels, and this book is just adding to her fabulous books. This book comes out in Feb. 6, 2024 and everyone should preorder it now.




I can not stop thinking about it and I think and hope it will one of the biggest books of 2024.

Kristin Hannah always weaves a tale that sucks you in and makes you feel like you walk step by step with the characters that she writes about. This time, she transports us to the 1960's and puts up squarely in the boots of the long forgotten heros of the woman serving in the Vietnam war. As soon as you meet the character Frankie at a party her parents are giving for her favored brother, you are instantly sucked in and emotionally involved with this deeply relatable and likeable character. This book follows Frankie through decades of her life as she finds herself again and again and literally learns to pull herself up by her bootstraps. As you follow her story, you feel her pride, sadness, sorrow, joy, suffering and peace as if you were her dear friend, along with her every step of her journey. As with all of Hannah's stories, this book tugs on the heartstrings, requires a box of tissues and stays with you long after you've read the last page. Many thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for providing me this advance digital copy of this eye opening, awe inspiring book in exchange for my honest opinions and thoughts.

WOW, Kristin Hannah you never ever disappoint...I am so beyond excited to attend her event for "The Women" next February and will always read whatever she writes!!!

A heart-wrenching and moving story of the contributions and sacrifices of American military nurses who served in the Vietnam War, whose agencies refused to even acknowledge that they were there. The main heroine, Francis "Frankie" McGrath, stirs compassion and tears for all the soldiers, and especially the forgotten women, who sacrificed so much! From serving as a new nurse in Vietnam, the sacrifices and horrors of war, her ignored return home even by her parents with the problems arising there in the late 1960's, and how she eventually acclimates to life at home-all with the friendship of two fellow nurses.
Frankie joins the Army in 1966 and is stationed in Vietnam, after her older brother is killed in action there. She forms a close friendship with her two fellow nurse roommates, Ethel and Barb. While there, she reunites with her brother's best friend, Rye, and falls in love, but he becomes one of the wounded soldiers in her care. Frankie and Barb are later assigned to Pleiku near the Cambodian border where the heaviest fighting occurs. The author graphically describes Frankie treating the severely injured soldiers-the gains and losses-in an eye-opening way. There are many poignant moments.
Kristin Hannah has written a wonderful, yet moving tribute to these brave women, the nurses of the Vietnam War who contributed and sacrificed so much of themselves!


My unbiased review is written after receiving and reading an ARC from Net Galley. Thank you.

Powerful Remembrance. For many, the Vietnam War is a painful subject to unearth from its place in history. The harsh impact of those harrowing years is still felt today. Sadly, the veterans of that war were not appropriately cared for or revered for the heroes that they were. And much like other facets of history the brave women who played essential roles were mostly marginalized and forgotten. Learning about the traumatic experiences of female service members during and after the war is both heartbreaking and inspiring.

I highly recommend this novel if you can handle the vivid accounts of what occurred in combat zones and struggles with healing from post-war PTSD.

I'd like to thank NetGalley for an advanced copy of The Women for my unbiased evaluation.  5 stars

Favorite Quote: Women can be heroes, too.

Story Synopsis: The Women follows the story of Frances McGrath - aka Frankie. Coming from a Naval family, Frankie grew up with stories of war heroes and military reverence. After nursing school, her brother gets his orders for Vietnam, while she’s expected to stay home, find a husband, and have children.

So, she enlists with the Army to be a combat nurse. After two tours in Vietnam and lots of on-the-job training, Frankie comes home as a changed woman in an ever-changing society. Faced with PTSD and constant comments that “women weren’t in Vietnam,” Frankie must figure out how to deal with heartbreak, trauma, and forging a life in a world where women aren’t seen as heroes.

Why does this book beguile? The Women is one of 2024’s most hotly anticipated books. When I received the copy from the publisher, I had no idea what to expect from the story. As I started it and realized it was about Vietnam and that timeframe, I felt apprehension. This isn’t my usual type of story.

That quickly went out the window. I was fully immersed by the third chapter.

Kristin Hannah’s quiet yet powerful writing style lured me in and quickly made me care about Frankie McGrath. I thoroughly enjoyed the realism of this story and how Hannah highlighted the unsung heroes found throughout history: women. The Women is beautiful, powerful, inspiring, and fast-paced.

Thank you, St Martin's Press and NetGalley, for the advanced copy of The Women.

I love Kristin Hannah. I love the emotion she puts into every chapter, every paragraph, every sentence. Feelings of longing, loss, love. Friendship, fear, camaraderie. Desire, yearning, pleading. Hope, despair, survival. The Women hits fast and hard without a single lull in the plot. Every now and then a book comes along that devours you rather than the other way around. That is this book. Another masterpiece from Kristin Hannah.

This book is so good. I will never find the right words to describe why you should read or why it is so good,
With stories of all kinds written about the Vietnam War and the effects it had on our people and our country, Kristen Hannah brought us a different perspective.
This is a heart-wrenching tale of a young woman choosing to support her country and living with that choice for the rest of her life.
Add it to the top of the TBR pile! 5-Stars for sure!

Why do we never hear about the women who served in Vietnam? Kristin Hannah details all their experiences in this masterpiece of historical fiction. As a fan of many of her previous works, I was eager to dive into this one and let it wash over me at 500+ pages. The amount of research that goes into each one of her books is extensive, and you can see that here as she tells us the story of Frankie, a sheltered California girl, who decides to contribute to her country by serving in Vietnam by following her brother. This was the war no one wanted to talk about and no one wanted to remember. Prolonged and unpopular, history only focuses on the men that came back from the war, what they saw and how they coped. We now have a fictionalized account of what this must have been like for women. Women who made sacrifices but who received no recognition or distinction. Frankie becomes a war nurse and we see the events through her eyes. She's horrified, saddened, and angry about all that she sees as she tries to make a difference. The choices she often has to make are devastating and will haunt her forever. All the women that served along with her were not considered 'veterans' when they returned home, and thus could not take advantage of any of the VA and medical benefits that men could. Sexism like this has never gone away.Some of us were too young when Vietnam was happening, or remember it vividly. The iconic little girl from the My Lai massacre comes to mind. As many of Hannah's books are, this is a sad portrayal of humanity at its worst. In looking at what is going on today in the middle east, it doesn't seem like we've learned our lesson at all, but by reflecting on works like this, perhaps history will not repeat itself so consistently.

The heartache and emotion in this book have haunted me since I finished the last page. I don’t think you can read this book and ever be the same again. I learned so much about the Vietnam War, some of it I wish I didn’t know now, but mostly I’m glad I do. It left me with a gratitude for the women who served there, but also with a deep sadness for what the people serving there went through and continue to go through since leaving there.

The authors writing brought me right into the story, and I lived there with the people that lived there, in the middle of war and in the aftermath at home. I felt their terror, pain and deep sorrow and I cried right along with them through it all. This was a story that was painful but also healing in the end and I feel privileged to have read and experienced it in the beautiful words on the page.

I highly recommend this one to everyone. It is truly life changing.

I am grateful to Netgalley for chance to read this Arc. All opinions are my own.

A heart-wrenching, gut-twisting story that everyone should read. Kristan Hannah knows how to wring the emotions out of her characters and readers, taking both on a roller coaster journey that makes you want to close the book because you’re not sure you can take any more, and yet, you can’t stop turning the pages.

My heart broke over and over and over again for Frankie, Barb, Ethel, and all of those who served during this horrific war. Yet, as a woman, I couldn’t have been prouder of these ladies (all of the women) who risked their lives to save so many others. Their strength, their resilience, their compassion… While this might have been fiction, you know there are thousands of real Frankies, Barbs, and Ethels out there who went through this, who put it all on the line to bring our loved ones home to us and Kristan Hannah did a beautiful job of showing the good, the bad, and the ugly of this time in our history.

Be prepared to cry…sad tears, angry tears, and happy tears for this wonderful story of war, heroism, love, family, loss, and friendship.