A sensitive and beautifully written book about women in wartime.

This is a beautiful written story where each one of the characters are described in such a way as to draw you completely in to the lives and events of the french women who have enlisted to serve in the Second World War and find themselves living together in London. It does unfortunately not even attempt to detail their war time activities and very much frames their lives around the men they become involved with but perhaps that would be consistent with the time period. There is some mention of the UN and socialism but these are the opinions more of the men who feature briefly, rather than the women themselves. It does transport the reader to war time Britain with its vivid writing and makes you feel all of the emotions and longings of these women living in such harrowing and difficult times. There are some lesbian characters who feature briefly in the background as it details the love affairs of all the women in the story, which accounts for it being deemed sensational at the time of publication. It is not a deliberate attempt at erotica, it only serves to illustrate the different characters of the women and the personal struggles faced by those living in this time period. A sensitive and lively book with striking imagery which was a joy to read.

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