"...a delight to read - although I suggest you keep a box of tissues to hand!"
fictional saga / romance
WWII
England
"1943: Yorkshire is the place Lana has always called home, but it’s now filled with painful memories of her fiancé, Dickie, who was killed at sea. When she accepts the challenging position of headmistress at a school in Liverpool, she hopes a new beginning will help to mend her broken heart. Not everyone at Bingham School is happy about her arrival but Lana throws herself into the role, teaching children from the local village and the nearby Dr Barnardo’s orphanage. She thrives in her work, but soon finds herself falling for a man whom she would once have considered the enemy – and is torn between what she knows is right, and taking a risk that might see her lose everything. There are children who desperately need her help, and Lana must fight for everyone’s happiness, as well as her own. But one young girl in particular shows her that there is a way through the darkness – because even when all seems lost, there is always a glimmer of hope to be found…"
Molly Green's series of stories based around the children of Liverpool's Dr. Barnardo Home, set during the turbulent and often traumatic years of the Second World War, are a delight to read - although I suggest you keep a box of tissues to hand!
Lana is a character to relate to with ease - you feel for her right from the start - as you do with Priscilla, the orphan girl. Both have suffered in different ways, both need to find hope and new beginnings; not easy at any time, let alone the horror and tragedies of war.
This is a heart-warming, cosy story, best read on a cold winter's afternoon with your feet up beside the fire, or maybe a duvet-day when all you want is a good book and delightful characters for company. One of the reasons that I have enjoyed this series (recommended by Discovering Diamonds!) is that, although set during the war years, and the novels do have their share of the heart-breaking side of war, on the whole they are about people, in particular women and children who had to survive those years as much as any soldier or trooper fighting on the front.
Well done Ms Green for bringing the 'everyday' so excellently to life.
© Ellen Hill
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Lovely review of a delightful book!
ReplyDeleteThis sounds well worth a read. ��
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