Reminiscent of Martha Hall Kelly's Lilac Girls and Kristin Hannah's
The Nightingale, this sweeping, entrancing story is a must-read for
fans of remarkable women rising to challenges they could never have
predicted.
It's always been easier for Cara Hargraves to bury herself in the past
than confront the present, which is why working with a gruff but
brilliant antiques dealer is perfect. While clearing out an estate, she
pries open an old tin that holds the relics of a lost relationship:
among the treasures, a World War II-era diary and a photograph of a
young woman in uniform. Eager to find the author of the hauntingly
beautiful, unfinished diary, Cara digs into this soldier's life, but
soon realizes she may not have been ready for the stark reality of
wartime London she finds within the pages.
In 1941, nineteen-year-old Louise Keene's life had been decided for
her--she'll wait at home in her Cornish village until her wealthy suitor
returns from war to ask for her hand. But when Louise unexpectedly meets
Flight Lieutenant Paul Bolton, a dashing RAF pilot stationed at a local
base, everything changes. And changes again when Paul's unit is deployed
without warning.
Desperate for a larger life, Louise joins the women's branch of the
British Army in the anti-aircraft gun unit as a Gunner Girl. As bombs
fall on London, she and the other Gunner Girls relish in their duties to
be exact in their calculations, and quick in their identification of
enemy planes during air raids. The only thing that gets Louise through
those dark, bullet-filled nights is knowing she and Paul will be
together when the war is over. But when a bundle of her letters to him
are returned unanswered, she learns that wartime romance can have a much
darker side.
Illuminating the story of these two women separated by generations and
experience, Julia Kelly transports us to World War II London in this
heartbreakingly beautiful novel through forgotten antique treasures,
remembered triumphs, and fierce family ties.
