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Thursday, April 29, 2021

Book review of An Act of Love by Carol Drinkwater

French Village Diaries book review An Act of Love Carol Drinkwater
An Act of Love by Carol Drinkwater


An Act of Love by Carol Drinkwater

 

This is the latest brilliantly written historical novel from author and actress Carol Drinkwater, whose writing I have admired for many years now. 

 

Set in a small village in the Alps during The Occupation, we follow Sara’s war journey from adolescent refuge, whose family are given lodgings in a small mountain village, to a life filled with danger when change was forced upon them once more. 

 

In this beautifully descriptive book, it was easy to visualise the village and the mountains, and to feel Sara’s emotions. In the small mountain community, we meet those who are prepared to fight, those who crave acceptance, whatever the cost, those who care and those who are driven to do what they can, no matter the consequences. As the changing of the seasons mirrored Sara’s maturity, I could feel her determination to fit in, her frustrations at her parent’s reluctance to embrace their new haven of peace, as well as her fear of change, and strength of character. 

 

Carol’s words painted a vivid picture of the Occupation in the south of France and the situation of the Jewish refugees. Things here were very different to Paris, but no less shocking, and the liberation came later than on the northern coast, something I hadn’t fully appreciated before. 

 

Sara’s story gripped my attention and I lost hours among the pages, my heart in my mouth, fearing for her safety.

 

There was a plot twist that totally took me by surprise and in one particularly moving scene Carol gave death a sense of peace and beauty that I’d not experienced before. This book will stay with me for a long while. I may have finished reading it, but I’m not ready to let Sara leave me just yet.

 

An Act of Love was released today by Penguin Michael Joseph in paperback and ebook format and links to Amazon can be found below. 


You can follow Carol on Facebook and Twitter and visit her website here

 

  




French Village Diaries book review An Act of Love Carol Drinkwater
From the Writing Desk interview with Carol Drinkwater



In case you missed my From the Writing Desk interview with Carol yesterday, click here to read more.

 

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