Review by Booklist Review
Robson, the author of Somewhere in France (2014), about women in WWI, now brings her entertaining blend of romance and home-front drama forward to the 1940s and WWII. Ruby Sutton is a New York reporter for a weekly magazine called The American, trying to find her way in the male-dominated journalism world, when she is seconded to London to work for Picture Weekly. It's summer 1940, and the European war is just starting to heat up as Ruby arrives and is immediately attracted to Bennett, a Dunkirk survivor employed by a mysterious research agency (think clandestine ops). There's no time for romance, however, as Bennett disappears and the Blitz begins. There are plenty of formulaic elements here newsroom camaraderie, bombs and heartbreak, tearful goodbyes, etc. but Robson manages the familiar elements skillfully, relying on a sharply detailed evocation of the Blitz through the fresh eyes of a young American and on characters who defy their types with just the right splash of individuality. This pairs perfectly with Lissa Evans' Their Finest (2016) and Meg Waite Clayton's The Race for Paris (2015).--Ott, Bill Copyright 2017 Booklist
From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
Review by Library Journal Review
Growing up in an orphanage, Ruby -Sutton understands how to make the best of a bad situation, but she's determined to improve her lot in life. By the summer of 1940, Ruby finally gets her big break as a journalist when she heads to London to report home-front stories for Picture Weekly. Getting to know a tight-knit group of Brits, Ruby is wary but can't resist opening herself to love and loss, even as the civilian and military tolls rise with the heavy German air raids. By making her protagonist a young woman with plenty of compassion, self-reliance, and street smarts, Robson (Somewhere in France) allows poignant moments to blossom without becoming overly sentimental or cloying. The mix of secondary characters creates a realistic network for Ruby's wide range of experiences. VERDICT Dedicated fans of World War II fiction will be surprised by new details about life during the Blitz that Robson presents here. Readers seeking history and romance will find plenty of both here.-Stacey Hayman, Rocky River P.L., OH © Copyright 2017. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
(c) Copyright Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
