Book Synopsis:
The Boat Girls
It is 1943, and three very different girls are longing to do their bit for the war effort. Frances – her life of seeming privilege has been a lonely one. Brave and strong, stifled by her traditional upbringing, she falls for a most unsuitable man. Prudence – timid and conventional, her horizons have never strayed beyond her job as a bank clerk in Croydon until the war brings her new experiences. Rosalind – a beautiful, flame-haired actress who catches the eye of Frances’s stuffy elder brother, the heir to an ancestral mansion. The three become friends when they join the band of women working the canal boats, delivering goods and doing a man’s job while the men are away fighting. A tough, unglamorous task – but one which brings them all unexpected rewards.
Our Yanks
August 1943. A fighter group of US airmen descends upon the quiet and sleepy village of King’s Thorpe in Northamptonshire. The village has never seen the like of them before: they are glamorous, rich, exciting and full of bravado.
While some of the older residents are dismayed, many of the younger ones cannot help but be won over by their charms.
And for many – including young Sally Barnet from the bakery, Agnes Dawe – the Rector’s daughter, and newly-widowed Lady Beauchamp, they will have a long-lasting impact.
It will be a summer many will never forget…
The Boat Girls and Our Yanks are available in ebook and paperback now. The Ebooks is currently only 99p. You can purchase your copy using the link below.
My Review:
Frequent readers of my blog will know that I’m rather fond of world war two sagas, especially if they tell me about a part of the war I didn’t know much about yet.
In The Boat Girls and Our Yanks the author does just that as she describes the hard work of the girls on the canals during the war and what it was like when the Americans or Yanks joined the war. I had read a little bit about the work in the canals before but I enjoyed revisiting their world and rediscovering the work that they do. I hadn’t read much about the Yanks however so I found this book particular intriguing as it was interesting to note the differences between them and how they were received in England.
The author’s rich descriptions help transport the reader to the war and to get a feel about what life was like during those years. The fear and uncertainty that people had hanging over their lives is unimaginable now a days, as is the spirit of the general public to make the most of things. I found it very poignant and heartwarming to see this attitude during these books and it definitely helped me warm more to the characters.
Both books had absolutely fantastic characters in who I warned to quickly and enjoyed following throughout the book. They all seemed very realistic which made them easy to like and to care about which I always enjoy. I found myself wishing that I knew them personally and that I was a part of their groups as it seemed like a great group of friends. I found I was quite sad to finish the books and leave them behind.
Huge thanks to Anne Cater for inviting me onto the blog tour and to Transfer for my copy of these books via Netgalley.
About The Author:
Margaret Mayhew was born in London and her earliest childhood memories were of the London Blitz. She began writing in her mid-thirties and had her first novel published in 1976. She is married to American aviation author, Philip Kaplan, and lives in Gloucestershire.
Over The Rainbow Blog 
Thanks for the blog tour support Jo x
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