Book Review: The Guernsey Girls Go To War by Mary Wood @Authormary @panmacmillan #TheGuernseyGirls #MaryWood #Saga

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Book Synopsis:

From the bestselling author of The Jam Factory Girls, comes the second heartfelt installment in Mary Wood’s The Guernsey Girls trilogy.

War separates them, but it cannot dampen their spirits . . .

Spring, 1940. Annie’s new husband Ricky leaves to fight, but she soon discovers battles brewing closer to home. As her sister Janey begins to unravel, only Annie can pick up the pieces – and, with London’s police officers on the front line, she must also step up at work and do her bit for the country.

In Guernsey, Olivia finds herself without her husband and son just as Hitler’s forces invade the island. Trapped and heartbroken, she faces untold horrors as the Germans tighten their hold on the islanders.

How will Annie manage her responsibilities to her family and her country in the thick of the Blitz, while suffering the heartache of not knowing what is happening to her beloved Ricky? And can Olivia survive in Guernsey at the hands of the enemy?

My Review:

I’m a huge fan of Mary Wood and always enjoy her books so I was incredibly excited to learn that she had a new book out, especially as it was the second book in a fantastic series.

This book continues from where the last one left off and it was great to be back with the fabulous characters Annie and Olivia.  The author has clearly done her research and I loved learning more about the invasion of the Channel Islands as well as more about the Blitz in London.  I hadn’t read anything before about women having to step in to help police London during the second world war as I had assumed that it was a protected profession so I especially enjoyed learning more about that.  

I thought the book had a great pace to it and I felt that there was always something exciting happening to keep me interested.  Even in the slower bits I didn’t mind as I was just enjoying hanging out with the wonderful characters.  Mary is known for her gritty, emotional reads and this one is no exception with Mary laying bare the full horrors of war without sparing the readers feelings.  This was quite difficult to read at times but I felt made the reader more aware of the truth of what happened during the war.  

There were lots of twists that kept me guessing and I thought the ending was brilliant. I’m now very excited to read the next book in this fabulous series.  If you haven’t read anything by Mary yet then I highly recommend you do!  

Huge thanks to Phillipa from Pan Macmillan for inviting me onto the blog tour and for my copy of this book.  

About The Author:

Born in Maidstone, Kent, in 1945, the thirteenth child of fifteen children, Mary’s family settled in Leicestershire after the war ended.

Mary married young and now, after 54 years of happy marriage, four children, 12 grandchildren and many great-grandchildren, Mary and her husband live in Blackpool, United Kingdom during the summer and Spain during the winter – a place that Mary calls, ‘her writing retreat’.

After many jobs from cleaning to catering, all chosen to fit in with bringing up her family, and boost the family money-pot, Mary ended her 9 – 5 working days as a Probation Service Officer, a job that showed her another side to life, and which influences her writing, bringing a realism and grittiness to her novels

Mary first put pen to paper, in 1989, but it wasn’t until 2010 that she finally found some success by self-publishing on kindle.

Being spotted by an editor at Pan Macmillan in 2013, finally saw Mary reach her publishing dream.

When not writing, Mary enjoys family time, reading, eating out, and gardening. One of her favourite pastimes is interacting with her readers on her Facebook page. http://www.facebook.com/HistoricalNovels

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Published by jojosovertherainbowblog

Book mad mum of three and Bookseller for Rossiter Books. Sharing the love one book at a time!

34 thoughts on “Book Review: The Guernsey Girls Go To War by Mary Wood @Authormary @panmacmillan #TheGuernseyGirls #MaryWood #Saga”

  4. I’m going to wait until all the books have been published before I start this trilogy. I am looking forward to this one and am sure I will not be disappointed.

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  5. I always pre order Mary’s books.

    I was trying to save this book for my holidays but I failed as can’t resist as need to find out the next chapter in these girls life’s. I didn’t know about police woman out on the streets during the war and the risks they took.

    So far I’m hooked a few chapters in.

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  7. mine arrived on time on my kindle. Can’t wait to start it, but must finish this one first, I live in France and found a fiction book that is set about 1/2 km from my house. And your ones set in Blackpool are not far from my Lancashire home of Preston.

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  10. Lovely review of this latest book by the very talented author Mary Wood. Have read all Mary’s previous novels (also those as Maggie Mason) and very much looking forward reading “The Guernsey Girls Go to War” to seeing what happens next for Annie and Olivia. (salvationsangel – Sue McCreadie)

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  12. What a fabulous review! Love Mary’s/Maggies’s books they never dissapoint. They take you on an emotional journey and are un-put-downable!

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  14. I’m just coming to the end of my book.can not wait to read this one .
    I leant my book to my bestie she loved it .waiting in anticipation for the guernsey girls go to war . Great reads

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  15. Have followed Mary for many years absolutely 💯 fantastic read you really get into the characters plight from beginning to end and the Guernsey girls go to war is amazing enjoyed reading good luck with future adventures ❤️

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  18. A great review, thank you xx

    I am reading this now and I agree with absolutely everything you mentioned in your review.

    I feel as though I never left Olivia, Annie and the other fabulous characters. I’m going to be sad when I’ve reached the end.

    Well done, Mary! xx

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