Today I am taking part in a Brook Cottage Books
virtual book promotion event for A Kiss from France
by Susan Hughes, published in July by
Silverwood books.
by Susan Hughes, published in July by
Silverwood books. |
| A Kiss from France by Susan Hughes |
Synopsis provided.
London, 1917. Lizzie
Fenwick is young, ambitious, and in love. At least, she thinks she's in love
with the soldier who answered the note she concealed in a box of ammunition
shells. She spends her days filling shells with TNT, and her nights dreaming of
the mysterious Harry Slater.
Eunice Wilson knows the
exact moment her marriage to Jack began to fracture. He refused to enlist, and
their patriotic neighbours never let her live it down. Now he's been
conscripted and she can't help but feel regret for shunning Jack before his
departure.
As separate tragedies
cause Lizzie to make hard choices and Eunice to cope with loss, the two women
are unsure how to adjust when peace finally returns. Little do they know that
an earlier war-time betrayal will force Lizzie and Eunice to confront
everything they knew about friendship, loyalty, and love.
A Kiss From France
is a historical fiction romance novel set in London's East End during World War
I. If you like compelling human stories, believable female protagonists, and
the suspense and intrigue of war-time London, then you'll love this heartfelt
tale of two women who yearn to feel alive in a broken world.
My review.
I really enjoy historical fiction set during the First World War and the title of this one grabbed my attention. A note
posted in a box of ammunition shells, wishing luck to a soldier on the front
line, gets a reply and life in the East End of London changes forever. The war
had already forced change on the role of women; girls free from a life in service were
now working in the munitions factories, living with more freedom and money than
they ever had before, but life was far from easy. Lizzie is a strong and
independent woman who may not always make the best choices, but certainly has
great passion for life and wasn’t afraid to make decisions that some might have
felt inappropriate for her position. Eunice initially came across as cold, hard
and in control, but as the story unfolds and we learn of her pain and suffering, my feelings towards her softened.
There were quite a few twists in the plot and plenty of story lines to keep me page turning, but some
things that were hinted at in later parts of the novel seemed to fizzle out
unexpectedly. It may be that I am a bit of a drama queen, but I was expecting
more drama from the end of the book, although it did reach a satisfactory conclusion.
It is certainly an emotional novel with passion, compassion, deceit, loss and
grief, which seemed to me to be a realistic portrayal of life during the First
World War, mainly from the point of view of the women left behind, but not
forgetting the horror of life in the trenches. This would be a great read for
lovers of historical fiction.
 |
| Susan Hughes |
Susan Hughes grew up
near a small mining village in Northumberland, England. When she didn’t have
her nose in a book and, careless of the class and gender expectations of her
upbringing, she was climbing trees, catching water boatmen in a jar from a
nearby burn or go-karting round country lanes with the kids next door before
taking herself off to University.
A career in the City of
London during the frenetic ‘Big Bang’ boom of financial de-regulation was
followed by marriage, children and a desire for a change of gear. A move to the
rural West Country enabled her to raise her sons near the coast and indulge her
penchant for visiting stately piles while finding time to keep up her reading
habit.
After she found a
handful of WW1 silk postcards among her grandmother’s possessions, the romantic
greeting on one of them inspired her to weave a story around its imagined
sender and recipient. It became her first novel, A Kiss from France. She is now
working on her second book set in inter-war London. You can follow Susan here:
 |
| Brook Cottage Books A Kiss from France Susan Hughes |
Brook Cottage Books is holding a giveaway to win a paperback copy of this book. To enter, use the Rafflecopter link below. This giveaway is open internationally, good luck!
A Kiss from France
is available in paperback and ebook format and links to Amazon can be found below.
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