Everyone Brave Is Forgiven



Audiobook cover

Author: Chris Cleave
Narrated by: Luke Thompson

Publisher: London: Sceptre, 2016.

Annotation: Set during World War II London in 1939, Mary is determined to go against her family's political views and serve as a volunteer for the war effort. She is assigned to teach children who have been evacuated from London to the countryside, however these students have been shunned from the society as they have coloured skin or mental disabilities.

Tom, who is an education administrator is besides himself when his best friend, Alastair, enlists. Alastair is an art restorer who lived a quiet and peaceful life (a stark contrast to the life he has currently signed up for). Tom attempts to distract himself from Alastair's enlistment and the war that is brewing by taking interest in Mary, first as an employer and then as their relationship develops in darkened times. When Mary eventually meets Alastair, a love triangle ensues all whilst war escalates ultimately changing them and the world.

For more information: Washington Post Review   NoveList

With Every Letter (Wings of the Nightingale #1)

Author:  Sarah Sundin

Publisher: Ada, Michigan: Revell, 2012.

Annotation: Written by Sarah Sundin a notable World War II author, this novel vividly depicts the treacherous specificities of aviation and nursing with a combination of the romance genre. Bestselling, award-winning author Dan Walsh describes With Every Letter as a "beautiful love story [that] has everything you want in a novel: romance, suspense, and characters you care about from the very first page." (Amazon)

The story is based on Lieutenant Mellie Blake  who is in the midst of training to be a flight nurse. As self-esteem runs low during war time, Mellie must write a letter to a man she's never met, Lieutenant Tom MacGilliver, as part of a morale building program. Letters are traded back-and-forth between the two, and later both are transferred to Algeria where they are scheduled to meet for the first time.

Series: Wings of the Nightingale


Titles in Series:  With Every Letter (#1)  On Distant Shores (#2)    In Perfect Time (#3)

For more information: Author's Website   Annapolis Valley Library Book Review  NoveList

It Had To Be You (A World War II Romance)

Authors: Cheryl Bolen
Publisher:  Seattle, Washington: CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform , 2012.

Annotation: 1937, the onset of war. Journalist Diane Castle meets a handsome, fledging, Japanese-American named Johnny Honda whilst socialising with the self-indulgent Hollywood elite at his club (Club Borneo). With war on the world's doorstep, the time is full of trepidations, fear  and propagandist remarks regarding the "Yellow Peril". Despite all of this, Johnny and Diane fall in love...a love that doesn't seem like it will last due to the nature of the time. Threatened with being locked away in an internment camp, Johnny does not want Diane to waste her life on him. Their love for one another is continually tested during the tumultuous times that are to follow the events of Pearl Harbour.

More information: Fantastic Fiction   
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Author's Website

The Plum Tree

Author: Ellen Marie Wiseman

Publisher:  New York:  Kensington, 2012.

Annotation: "Deeply moving and masterfully written story of human resilience and enduring love. " (Goodreads)

Seventeen-year-old Christine Bolz knows there’s a whole new world beyond the German village in which she lives. It’s a world she has discovered through music, books and through the man that she works for, Issac Bauermann (a son of a wealthy, cultured Jewish family). She and Issac share the same dream; however, difficulties show themselves as Germany is a changing country under Hitler’s regime in 1938. Anti-Jewish propaganda & sentiments litters the streets, any opposition or disagreement to the regime is squashed and new laws forbidding Christine to marry and work for Issac are now in place. Subjected to Gestapo’s wrath and the horrors of the Dachau concentration camp, Christine is desperate to survive…to be with the man she loves and to speak out about the atrocities of the war.

More information:  Author's Website  Book Trailer NoveList