Burma, 1945. Bea, Plum, Bubbles, Joy and Lucy: in search of adventure, attached to the Fourteenth Army, fighting a forgotten war in the jungle. Assigned to run a mobile canteen, navigating treacherous roads and dodging hostile gunfire, they become embroiled in life-threatening battles of their own.

Oxford, 1976. A woman slips into a museum and steals several rare Japanese netsuke, including the famed fox-girl. Despite the offer of a considerable reward, these tiny, exquisitely detailed carvings are never seen again.

London and Galway, 1999. On the eve of the new millennium, Olivia, assistant to an art dealer, meets Beatrix, an elderly widow who wishes to sell her late husband’s collection of Japanese art. Olivia travels with Beatrix to a New Year’s Eve party, deep in the Irish countryside, where friendships will be tested as secrets kept for more than fifty years are spilled.

Inspired by the heroic servicewomen who served in the ‘forgotten war’ in Burma, Kayte Nunn’s The Last Reunion alternates between dual timelines and centres around a valuable netsuke from WWII that is stolen from a museum. In 1999, it resurfaces, along with the story of how it came to be in that museum, and its origins.

Whilst the novel opens with the theft in 1976, we never return to that storyline. It merely sets up the mystery of the novel, and draws the reader in.

Written in third person, The Last Reunion switches between 1945 and 1999. In 1945, we mainly follow the determined Bea as she signs up as volunteer for a mobile canteen with a group of other women. In 1999, young art dealer Olivia tracks down an elderly Bea in an effort to find out what happened to the famous — but missing — fox-girl netsuke.

“Bea turned away, her hand to her face. Death was all around them — she wasn’t so naive as to think otherwise — but to see it up close, and one so pointless, was somehow more shocking than reading the lists of soldiers who died in battle every day.”

Alongside many other elements, The Last Reunion explores female friendship, family and sacrifice, and how in the toughest of times, we find ourselves drawn to those who may be very different from us.

The Last Reunion feels like a fresh addition to the historical fiction genre.I’ve read many novels set during WWII and this was an aspect to the battle that I hadn’t heard or read about. This new perspective will appeal to seasoned historical fiction readers like myself.

Another strength lies in Kayte’s detailed descriptions of setting, characters and objects – particularly the netsukes. Each character feels unique, their voice distinct. Additionally, you felt like you were experiencing the war alongside these women, particularly with such vivid descriptions of weather — the rain, the floods, the heat. The writing is so visceral, scenes lift from the page.

“Olivia hesitated; it seemed like such an odd request, to accompany an old woman to a reunion, but she would love to visit Ireland; it had always seemed to her to be such an appealing country; the accents alone were utterly beguiling.”

Admittedly, there were elements to the ending that felt a little rushed, as if the motivations or thoughts behind certain actions happened too suddenly to feel authentic. For example, when Plum comes to her senses about her husband, and also when a career opportunity conveniently lands in Olivia’s lap.

“Bea was familiar with the sight of her father’s service revolver, had watched him clean and oil it, but though he had explained its workings to Archie when he was still a boy, Bea had never been allowed anywhere near it. Guns, the unspoken message had been, were for men and boys, not the business of women and girls.”

A story of friendship and family, but also loss and betrayal, The Last Reunion is recommended for readers of historical fiction, war stories, and family sagas. Readership skews female.

Thank you to the publisher for mailing me a review copy in exchange for an honest review.

The Last Reunion
Kayte Nunn
April 2021
Hachette Book Publishers

A forgotten manuscript threatens to unravel the past …

Fresnes Prison, 1940: Margot Bisset, a former maid from the Riviera, finds herself in a prison cell with writer and French Resistance fighter, Josephine Murant. Together, they are transferred to a work camp in Germany, where the secrets they share will bind them for generations to come.

Present-day Paris: Evie Black lives above her botanical bookshop with her teenage son, Hugo. Nursing a broken heart, Evie receives an unexpected letter; she clutches at an opportunity to spend a magical summer with Hugo on the Cote d’Azur.

It’s here, on the Riviera, that the past envelops them and Evie attempts to unravel the official story of a famous novelist. If she succeeds, a murder from a lifetime ago may be solved.

Inspired by a true story of iconic French Resistance fighter, Agnes Humbert, whose secret journal shed light on a little-known aspect of World War II, The French Gift will captivate readers from beginning to unforgettable end.

Kirsty Manning’s The French Gift is a captivating, female-driven World War II story that switches between 1940s Europe and present-day Paris. The quest to discover a hidden manuscript by a world famous crime writer unravels a decades-long secret between the unlikeliest of friends.

Written in third person, The French Gift switches POV between three women. In present-day Paris, we meet Evie. Still grieving the sudden death of her husband, she is working to showcase an exhibition about her husband’s reclusive and recently deceased relative Josephine Murant. Over the course of the novel, we spend time in Josephine’s POV as she spends time in a French prison during the second World War. There, she meets fellow prisoner and cellmate Margot Bisset, a maid wrongfully imprisoned for murder.

“Laughter and the clink of crystal flowed through the open doors, and gauze curtains billowed in the breeze. Usually she would tie them back, but Madame had instructed her to stay in position. It wasn’t her place to disobey.”

Inspired by true events and meticulously researched, The French Gift has a cracking premise and opening chapter — Margot believes she’s participating in a murder ‘game’ at an elite 1940s party. But when the ‘victim’ actually does get shot, Margot is presumed guilty and immediately arrested.

The French Gift is about the perseverance and resilience of women, and their courage, strength and determination when faced with immense difficulties. Josephine and Margot form a strong friendship over the years that they’re imprisoned, and despite the horrible conditions of their imprisonment, their kinship is a very heartwarming aspect of the novel.

“Until today, Evie had seen this exhibition as a necessary task — like tax, probate, Foundation guidelines and pelvic floor exercises. She needed to seize this opportunity to honour Josephine, and Raph would have wanted her to — of that she was certain.”

Set against the backdrop of World War II, Josephine and Margot’s storyline is immediately captivating. Evie’s storyline is admittedly not as interesting, and I was pleased that the budding relationship in her life took a mostly backseat role in her storyline.

Truthfully, I think Evie was a bit lost in this story. Her storyline didn’t seem as engaging. Even the predictable twist at the end, which is signposted a bit too heavily throughout the novel (the facial scars and the head scarves, as well as the immense reclusively of Josephine kind of gave it away) wasn’t enough to increase my interest in her character.

“She didn’t know if she’d ever be able to right this wrong. The counselling was definitely helping, but he needed time to find his own path through the heavy fog that sometimes seeped in and threatened to smother his days.”

Tender and heartfelt, The French Gift is recommended for fans of historical fiction. Readership skews female, 30+

Thank you to the publisher for mailing me a review copy in exchange for an honest review.

The French Gift
Kirsty Manning
April 2021
Allen & Unwin Book Publishers

Georgeanne Woolsey isn’t meant for the world of lavish parties and demure attitudes. So when civil war ignites the nation, she follows her passion for nursing during a time when doctors considered women a bother on the battlefront. She and her sister Eliza venture from New York to Washington, D.C. to Gettysburg, and while involved in the war effort witness firsthand the unparalleled horrors of slavery.

In the South, Jemma is enslaved on the Peeler Plantation, while her sister, Patience, is enslaved on the property next door. Both live in fear of LeBaron, an abusive overseer who tracks their every move. When Jemma is sold by the cruel Anne-May just as the Union Army comes through, she sees a chance to escape – but only by abandoning those she loves.

Anne-May is forced to run the Peeler Plantation when her husband joins the Union Army and her brother enlists with the Confederates. Now in charge, she uses the opportunity to follow her own ambitions and is drawn into a secret Southern network of spies . . .

Based on true events, Martha Hall Kelly’s Sunflower Sisters is an evocative and engaging historical novel set during the American Civil War. At over 500 pages, Sunflower Sisters takes us from the plantation homes where slaves were treated inhumanely, all the way to war-torn New York City and the horrors of the battlefield front. Not afraid to shy away from the tough realities of war, Martha places a female lens on a historical time in American history.

Since reading this, I’ve realised it’s the third book in a series set in this time period (After Lilac Girls and Lost Roses). However, each book is standalone and you don’t need to read either of the others to follow this one.

Sunflower Sisters is written in third person POV and switches between three women affected by the Civil War — nurse Georgy, Peeler Plantation slave Jemma, and the horrid homeowner Anne-May. Martha writes with intimate and unique POV, giving us incredible insight into how these women felt during this short snapshot of their lives. The writing is seamless and draws the reader in immediately, with three very different voices and three women whose lives will heavily intersect by the end.

“As my sister drove on, I opened the little leather book, the virgin paper smooth and white, to find an ivory-coloured silk bookmark, a pretty little magnolia embroidered at the top. I ran one finger down the silk, so much like the lacy underthings he sold at the shop.”

Despite Anne-May’s flaws, all three women are determined, bold and refuse to give up when faced with hardship. During a time when there weren’t very high expectations placed upon women, all three of these characters rose beyond those around them. They’re headstrong and fierce, and young women will find themselves falling for Georgy and Jemma in particular.

I read a lot of historical fiction and it’s rare to have a ‘villain’ as one of the main characters, let alone with their own perspective we follow. It felt quite refreshing to have Anne-May in the story — I feel like she added something unique to the genre and I liked finding out how her story would progress, the good and the bad.

From the detailed notes at the end of the book, it’s clear how much research went into writing Sunflower Sisters. The extensive work that Martha put in prior to writing is evident in every page.

“I stood on the porch overlooking the tobacco fields that ran down to the river, Ma, Pa, Celeste, and Delly bent at the waist over the young tobacco plants. That scene from up there’d take your breath away, the wide river beyond, until LeBaron rode into view, up on his horse with his whip coiled at his thigh, and you remember it was all just a place to keep us chained for their own use.”

Admittedly, Georgy’s story does lag a little bit in the middle, and I felt unsure of her purpose in the book until her path crossed with Jemma.

Although I did really love the romance that budded between Georgy and Frank, Jemma’s love story felt a bit rushed and underdeveloped and I wasn’t sure if it was necessary in the novel. It felt like it was put in to please readers, and not because the story demanded it.

“To meet our ship, Eliza and I boarded the tugboat Wissahickon, whose captain agreed to deliver us…It all seemed peaceful enough below deck, neatly made beds, the sounds of a well-tended ward, sepulchral whispers and a few moans. But I could feel it coming. That peace would not last long.”

Raw, vivid, expertly written and filled to the brim with three-dimensional characters, Sunflower Sisters is highly recommended reading for fans of historical fiction. A sweeping saga indeed. Readership skews female.

Thank you to the publisher for mailing me a review copy in exchange for an honest review.

Sunflower Sisters
Martha Hall Kelly
April 2021
Penguin Random House Publishers