This has to be one of the saddest and more depressing books I’ve probably ever read. It was written well and it was an interesting setting, trying to make it as a rancher family on the plains of Wyoming but dear God it was one devastating thing after another. I just wanted one thing to go right for them… I don’t mind sad points in a book if there is purpose and hope but there was absolutely none by the end of this one.

Thanks to Netgalley for the advanced copy of this book. All opinions are mine.

An excellently told story, from 3 perspectives about the Angels of Bataan and Corregidor, the experiences of nurses on the Philippines during WW2.

Each woman featured in the book went thru so many horrific experiences as nurses and POWs during the Japanese invasion and occupation of the islands. There are stating to be more and more stories coming from WW2 in the Pacific where there have been so few prior, which is so valuable.

I loved how invested I was in each of the characters, Eleanor, Penny, and Lita, as I followed them thru what they felt, saw, and went thru. There was so much hope that was necessary during that time just to survive what their captors put them thru, and the authors displayed that brilliantly.

I also loved the friendship and encouragement each woman had, as well as the stamina, resilience and endurance all the women and nurses put into their patients, people they determined to save, and for each other during the worst of circumstances. Any story of women building up and fighting for each other is a story I wholeheartedly root for. And with their romances, it wasn’t a tied up in a bow ending which I also appreciated.

Thanks to Netgalley for the advanced copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. Comments and opinions are mine alone.

I struggled with this one a bit and I rounded up from 2.5 stars. The story of Eva and Aleandro during WW2 in Hungary was a good perspective I haven’t yet read. And learning about how the country essentially entered into the war so late into it, it wasn’t really affected until 1943, was very interesting.

However, I really did not like the writing style of the book. It was far more narrative than anything, especially in the first half of the book, which felt more like someone retelling a story than being allowed into it. And when there was dialogue it felt very dramatic and a bit detached. Not really realistic often.

If I’m honest, I really didn’t like Eva’s character either. She came across as somewhat self absorbed when it came to her relationships other than her daughters. The decisions she made and the way she treated Eduard and Aleandro both, without regard for how it would affect them, made her very dislike-able in my opinion. I seem to be in the minority when looking at the ratings but all in all I was a bit disappointed in the book.

Thanks to Netgalley for the advanced copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Emotional, at times heartbreaking, but ultimately a beautiful story of redemption. I love the physical-to-spiritual correlations that Charles Martin makes - explaining things in a natural way that show you God’s heart and truth in the seemingly mundane and taken for granted.

The main character, Hannah, is so dislikable I couldn’t finish the book. She just made me angry at how cynical, snarky, rude, obsessive, and self-centered she was. It ruined the book for me and made it a DNF.

Such a beautiful story that was heart wrenching at times but also so full of hope and love and selflessness. Loved the characters and the history of Ireland. I have much of it on my mom’s side so I enjoyed learning more about it while silently pleading for Anne’s and Thomas’s stories to work out all the way thru.