⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/ 5 Stars
Happy publication to Kate Thompson and The Wartime Book Club! Thank you to @katethompsonauthor and Forever ( @readforeverpub ) for allowing me to read a gifted physical copy of this book for an honest review!

Thank you to the author, Hachette Audio ( @hachetteaudio ) and NetGalley ( @netgalley ) for allowing me to listen to this book for an honest review! The audiobook is narrated by Imogen Church.

📅 Yesterday (March 9, 2024) was the pub date for The Berlin Letters. Be sure to pick up a copy from your local bookstore or Amazon! 📅

Wow! This book was easily a five star read for me! It was written so well and beautifully illustrates the importance of books, libraries, activism, and kind people during the German occupation. It also captures the meaning of true love and the determination to survive especially when all the odds are against you.

There are twists and surprises sprinkled throughout the storyline that follows best friends Bea and Grace, local postmaster and librarian. An absolute must read for lovers of Historical Fiction!

Uniuqe story told from the perspective of a librarian on an island during ww2. Beautiful loves stories were depicted through audio narration. Neurodivergence during the war through a young character was included, which is not seen much in novels during this time period.
The audio book was well done and a great way to experience the story.

"The Wartime Book Club" by Kate Thompson offers a poignant portrayal of friendship and resilience amidst the backdrop of World War II.

This book had a lot of good information and interesting storyline in it but it was just so long! I remember thinking I was probably close to the end and then finding out I was only 25% in. This could definitely have been condensed and still had the same information.

The Wartime Book Club ~WWII historical fiction novel that takes place on the Isle of Jersey during their five years of Nazi occupation.
I loved a book about a librarian hiding banned books and helping her community survive hard times through the joys of reading.

When family, friendship, love, loss, strength in the face of great loss.

Great on audio you felt like your were living the story.
Thank you NetGalley for another amazing advance audiobook!!

Five-Star Read

This is one of those stories that will stick with me for a long time. We all know the horror stories about World War II, but precious few of us know the stories of individual or communal acts of resistance. This is one of those stories.

After being told to destroy all books that have been deemed forbidden by the Nazi occupiers, Grace, the head librarian, goes to extreme lengths to not only hide the forbidden books, but to continue to distribute them to those in her community. She even provides books for her Jewish neighbors who are in hiding. Books provide a way of escape for those who can no longer walk freely and they provide a sense of community for those who are living under the rigors of occupation.

Bea, her best friend, uses her position as a postal worker to warn her neighbors that they’ve come under the suspicion of their occupiers. She does this at great risk to herself and her family, but her sense of loyalty to her community is worth the risk.

The characters are well developed and sympathetic. What I appreciated most about the characters is that they show growth — their core stays the same, but, over time, they either toughen or soften as needed, without compromising their values. Both Bea and Grace have a strong sense of right and wrong, and they use their beliefs to challenge each other, provide cover for each other, and support each other.

Some of the topics that Thompson dealt with in this novel are some that I haven’t run across in previous World War II historical fiction: abortion, book banning, restriction of medical services, and more. For example, there’s Peter {I’m sure I’m spelling his name differently than it’s spelled in the book — part of the negative of listening to a story rather than reading it}, who is autistic. He’s treated as a valuable member of the community by the islanders and plays a vital role in maintaining some sense of normalcy for those in the occupied territory. Thompson also references others in the community who would’ve been targeted by the Nazis: single mothers, members of the LGBT community, etc.

There’s also a host of supporting characters who provide humor, romance, and intrigue. Red, the American who loves books as much as Grace. The postal workers who tease Bea mercilessly, but love her unconditionally. Then there are the Bea and Grace’s mothers, who are left to deal with their individual grief while remaining strong for their families.

Last, but not least, this book is testament to the importance of libraries and books to their communities. Those who would ban book or censor ideas are never on the right side of history. Pay close attention to what is going on in your communities, support your libraries, speak up when you hear your librarians being maligned, read banned books, and call out injustice.

Narration

I cannot express how much I enjoyed listening to Imogen Church. Her narration was expressive and heart felt. There were a lot of characters for her to voice and she was able to provide enough distinction that it wasn't overly difficult to tell when one character ended and another started. And this was no easy feat, given she voiced characters of different genders, ages, and nationalities. Her reading style and narration voice {not character voice} was soothing, bordering on relaxing, which says a lot given the subject matter.

I'd definitely listen to an audiobook narrated by Imogen Church again and would recommend her to those who are new to audiobooks.

Recommended For

Book clubs, naturally, and anyone who has a love of historical fiction or novels where women's relationships are centered.

The Extras

Just when I thought the story had ended, Kate Thompson provided a treasure trove of additional resources for this novel. She talked about the people she interviewed for this story and shared bits and bobs about the meals she ate. And, oh the list of books, all while listening to the story, I kept reminding myself that I wanted to go back and write down the titles of some of the books that were mentioned, but Kate saved me the tedium of the listen and pause by providing an abbreviated reading list. She also talked about the lost art of letter writing {letter writing plays a significant role in this story}, and I found it fascinating {years ago, I was an avid letter writer}.

Trigger Warnings

Censorship, discussions of abortion, violence, and, of course, reference to the horrors of Nazi Germany.

The Wartime Book Club is set on the Isle of Jersey and I hadn't read a WWII book told from that area. I also was very intrigued by the title, but the book didn't have much about the book club. The audiobook was very long and I had to push myself to finish it. I didn't care for one of the main characters and that was probably primarily because of the way the narrator portrayed her. I did feel that the book was very well researched. It was just okay for me.

Thanks to NetGalley and Forever for the advanced digital audiobook for my opinion.

This audiobook has it all! Romance, espionage, sorrow, grief, fear, friendship and the unbreakable bonds of love.
This book immediately pulls you in, the characters are so interesting and relatable. This book is the epitome of a book lovers book! If you’re not a bookworm yet, you’ll definitely understand how a great novel such as this encourages people to read even more.
This story will live on with you well after you’ve finished it.
Thanks to NetGalley and Hachette Audio for the opportunity to listen to this awesome book.
#NetGalley #Goodreads #bookloversbook #fivestarread #HachetteAudio #KateThompson

This book swept me back in time to World War II and occupied Jersey, a small island which is part of the Channel Islands off the coast of England, who suffered their own fate during the war years.

The Wartime Book Club tells the story of Bea and Grace, best friends on the island since their childhood days, and that of their fellow islanders and how they survived the war years through heartbreak, bravery and resistance.
Bea, a local postwoman, suffers from a loss early on in the story and it is this turning point that leads her to implement her own form of resistance against the Germans and the power they hold. Grace becomes involved in her own way, as a local librarian she starts a book club, heavily censored by the Germans of course. The book club and the library become a haven for many residents as they try to survive the hardships and devastation the war brings. And of course, there is some romance!
A book of loyalty, love, bravery and strength set in a gorgeous part of the world. The narrator, Imogen Church was fabulous to listen to, she conveyed the emotions and feelings with her narration and I could easily distinguish between characters, with great expression displayed.
I recommend to all historical fiction fans, The Wartime Book Club brings real events into fiction. The author discusses this quite in depth as an after note. It was so informative. My knowledge of this time and events was expanded by this book and I learnt such a lot about Jersey in the process, a fascinating read!

The Wartime Book Club begins in 1940 as German occupation begins on the island of St Helier, Jersey. The story revolves around best friends Grace, the town librarian, and Bea, the local postwoman. Switching back and forth from each perspective is each woman's arduous and heartbreaking time through the rest of war.

Thoughts: I think going into this book I was expecting the "wartime book club" to be a bigger plot point. So it was a little disappointing that the book club was such a small part. I very much enjoyed the book club meetings because it was such solace for the townspeople in attendance. Overall I just wasn't prepared for how bleak the book would be. I did really love Grace and Bea's friendship, strength, and resilience. It was obvious how much research the author did and that is also very much appreciated. I really enjoyed the banned book chapter starters with the reason for the banishment.

I enjoyed this book as an audiobook and thought the narrator did an excellent job. It was easy to distinguish Grace and Bea's voices.

Thank you to NetGalley and Hachette Audio for the ALC in exchange for my honest thoughts.

This was a beautiful and heartbreaking story about two best friends living on the Island of Jersey during WWII. Grace is a librarian tasked with keeping the library open after the head librarian went to war. Bea is a postal worker, the only female mail carrier on the island. The two women could not be more different, but they have an unbreakable bond that keeps them together through many hard events. During the war both women do their part to help the resistance and try to keep their friends safe. This story was beautiful, and as to be expected of a book set during WWII, filled with so much heartache and sadness. A beautiful story about the power of books, friendship, and hope during dark times. I loved that this book was inspired by real life events, and all the information and pictures at the authors note at the end.

I was so happy to see Kate Thompson had written another book. I really enjoyed The Little Wartime Library and the idea of a book club is what got my interest.

This book is about so much more than just a book club and I love the way Thompson weaves books into every aspect of life during war time.

Books can unite us in so many ways and this book is an excellent representation of just that. During good times, bad times, challenging times, books can bring us all together, helping us pull together for the common good.

If you like books about friendship, bringing people together despite differences, and overcoming challenging times, this is the book for you. I loved it.

Imogen Church is quickly becoming one of my favorite narrators. Not only does she do an excellent job narrating, but her talent in changing her voice and inflections brings the story and characters to life in such a wonderful way.

Thank you to Hachette Audio for the ALC. All views are my honest opinion.

This amazing story of war, books, love, lost, hope, and so much more is based off true events. Following the story of Bea and Grace, this beautifully written story will keep you captivated from the first page. The way the story is written you will feel like you are part of this story.

I was privileged to receive an arc of the audiobook of The Wartime Book Club. Some times books with such tough topics don’t work as an audiobook. Not this book. This was a perfect book to listen to. I could feel each emotion as the narrator read. I cried, laughed, and at times wanted to scream at what many women including the 2 FMC went through. This is a great book to educate yourself, and get a glimpse of what women went through during WWII.

I plan to buy a physical copy of this book. I will tell everyone to read this amazing book. 5⭐️ for me.

This is one of the absolute best WWII Historical Fiction novels that I have read. It is the story of best friends, Bea and Grace, during the Nazi occupation of the Isle of Jersey during WWII. The idea of a librarian hiding banned books from the Nazis and using books to help people get through such a horrible time drew to pick this book up but the passion and resilience of the people of Jersey kept me reading. With so many of the book characters based on actual people from Jersey it felt so real. I LOVED THIS BOOK!

I am always amazed by the amount of research that goes into these books and the postscript and bibliography after the actual story in this book shows that Kate Thompson put an enormous amount of work and care into writing this. There is so much information given after the story that I put this book down with a whole list of new books to dive into on the Channel Islands. This is my favorite book I have read this year.

As for the audio version of the book O really enjoyed the narrators. So many times you feel like the narrator is just simply reading the words on the page when you get an audiobook but these narrators really captured the feelings and emotion of the words on the page. They drew me in so much. It was so good!!!

A harrowing tale of bravery, resilience, and perseverance of good over evil. As we follow Grace in her quest to hide stories from Nazis, we meet engaging characters and learn how they're surviving the invasion. The narrator's voice is warm and charming, even during the more intense parts of the stories, almost like a warm hug, and I very much enjoyed the story.

I received a complimentary copy of this book "The Wartime Book Club" and all opinions expressed are my own. I listened to the audio book. This was a very long book, very long but interesting. We got to know Grace and Bea and the struggles that went on in Jersey during the war. Overall I liked the book and the narration was just okay. Since it was so long I don't think I would have finished the print book.

Best friends go through the occupation of the Channel Islands together. They share loss, birth, secrets, and lies. One makes the ultimate sacrifice for the other giving herself over to the Nazis. Who will make it home, and who will have to leave to have a future? Good story but the epilogue had some details that seemed off with the ages of kids and grandkids.

To be honest, in the beginning, I was struggling to want to continue. I just wasn't connecting to the story, and I almost DNF'd. I decided to give it a bit more time, and after the 35% mark or so, I started to enjoy and get into this story. Ultimately, I am glad I gave it a solid try and didn't give up because I ended up enjoying this more than I thought I would. Historal fiction, especially those around war times, is not typically enjoyable for me. You could tell the author did a lot of research, and that shines through the story and the references and extras at the end of the book.
This was not my first experience with the narrator, and as with her other work, Imogen was great and brought the characters to life. She is a favorite narrator for me when it comes to UK reads.
Thank you, NetGalley, and Hachette Audio for the opportunity to listen and review this advanced copy.

Thank you NetGalley and Kate Thompson for the chance to listen to this amazing audiobook.

I truly love reading historical fiction and I really enjoyed the different perspective of this title! This story truly grabs at your heartstrings! It is so emotional and beautifully written.

In The Wartime Book Club we follow Bea and Grace on the Isle of Jersey during the occupation. Both women use bravery and their everyday jobs to help make life bareable for the island and fight against the Nazis in their own amazing ways.

While reading this novel I couldn't help but love these strong women and feel so much for what they were going through. Grace and Bea were both very remarkable women. The Wartime Book Club was a very insightful, emotional and beautiful book! Highly recommend !

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ Really liked it, stuck with me & would recommend
Part wartime drama, part small town snapshot, part emotional journey, I really enjoyed this extensively researched historical fiction story. Grace and her best friend Bea, try to cope with the realities of and subvert the Nazi occupation of their very small but highly strategic island during WWII. All of the sub-characters along with Grace and Bea were beautifully written with uniqueness and realness. I felt very attached to these characters. They each illustrated the small subversive acts, sacrifices, and grave danger each and every islander was in, and how they coped in their own way. The Wartime Book Club centered on themes of family, friendship, community, sacrifice, wartime desperation, love, the power of books, and resilience and I would recommend this to anyone who likes stories about strong women or historical fiction.

The narrator, Imogen Church, did a good job, I had no trouble understanding who was saying what, where, when, with what expression/intension, and the appropriate accent. It was a pleasure to listen to.

Thank you to Hachette Audio, NetGalley, and author Kate Thompson for providing me with a digital ARC copy of this audiobook in exchange for an honest review. The Wartime Book Club is out April 9, 2024.