Scan barcode
elbell99's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
hopeful
reflective
sad
slow-paced
5.0
rozereads's review against another edition
hopeful
informative
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.5
shereadstales's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
Thanks to NetGalley and MIRA/Harlequin for the digital galley of this book.
Ruth and Elise Duncan of the Baltimore Duncans long to escape their society lives. Ruth longs to be a doctor, but that’s not befitting a young woman, so she signs up to be a nurse in Europe during The Great War, and Elise wanting to do her part (and with a knack for tinkering with cars) joins up as an ambulance driver. Both women confront the horrors of war and the truths of their hearts during the backdrop of World War I.
I’m not always up for “Women’s Fiction” or “Historical Fiction,” not because I don’t think these books have a place, but they are largely about straight, white ladies and their struggles, romances, etc. But hey, make one of those characters queer, and that’s how you get me. Though I was a little disappointed that the growing romance between the two ladies didn’t get as much page time as Ruth and her beau, a doctor in the war effort, I’m not going to complain too much.
I really enjoyed the pacing, the back and forth between the sisters and their points of view from the transporting and treatment of so many soldiers. I didn’t mind the straight people romance. Ruth’s love is a positively decent man who wants to support her and actually trusts her to become a doctor, maybe the only man on earth who does.
It’s worth reading if you’re into historical fiction, even if you’re not 100% into the queer content, it’s too tame for my tastes, if that tells you anyway, and there’s some solid characterization. I really cared about these ladies and the people they cared about, and I wanted them to come through the war to find even a smidge of happiness.
cakt1991's review
emotional
4.0
I received an ARC from the publisher via NetGalley and am voluntarily posting a review. All opinions are my own.
Sisters of the Great War is a work of World War I-set historical fiction, and one I felt somewhat mixed about. There’s a lot it does well, but there were times where I wasn’t sure if I liked the book or not.
I liked the sense of the period, with the general spirit of sacrifice for the war effort on multiple fronts. And while it is fictionalized, the way the story honed in on women’s roles in the war specifically caught my interest, especially in terms of the obstacles they faced, like being kept out of certain professions. The plot is a bit slower moving, as it does cover the war years, but it was still pretty consistently engaging.
The characters definitely felt like the weakest point, beyond the surface level. I felt the most connected to Elise as she comes to terms with her sexuality and explores it. It’s somewhat refreshing (although not entirely unheard of) to see a queer character in World War I/II novel, given the plethora of similar stories that center heterosexual people and relationships.
I did like Ruth too, to an extent, as she’s the one dealing with sexism due to being barred from being a doctor due to her gender. However, her own romance with a man failed to charm me.
Despite my mixed experience, I still enjoyed parts of it and feel it has a lot to offer readers of the World War historical-fic subgenre.
Sisters of the Great War is a work of World War I-set historical fiction, and one I felt somewhat mixed about. There’s a lot it does well, but there were times where I wasn’t sure if I liked the book or not.
I liked the sense of the period, with the general spirit of sacrifice for the war effort on multiple fronts. And while it is fictionalized, the way the story honed in on women’s roles in the war specifically caught my interest, especially in terms of the obstacles they faced, like being kept out of certain professions. The plot is a bit slower moving, as it does cover the war years, but it was still pretty consistently engaging.
The characters definitely felt like the weakest point, beyond the surface level. I felt the most connected to Elise as she comes to terms with her sexuality and explores it. It’s somewhat refreshing (although not entirely unheard of) to see a queer character in World War I/II novel, given the plethora of similar stories that center heterosexual people and relationships.
I did like Ruth too, to an extent, as she’s the one dealing with sexism due to being barred from being a doctor due to her gender. However, her own romance with a man failed to charm me.
Despite my mixed experience, I still enjoyed parts of it and feel it has a lot to offer readers of the World War historical-fic subgenre.
ldixon's review against another edition
4.0
I was excited to read this book and the only drawback is that I don’t have the luxury of reading it again for the first time. I love a good historical fiction. This was a wonderful story about the bond between sisters as well as the bond between them and their lovers, but mostly it’s about the sisters Ruth and Elise. The two go over to Belgium less because they want to help but more because Ruth wants to get experience in her quest to become a doctor and Elise wants to support her sister. Elise joins a mobile ambulance unit once over there. They end up getting to see the horrors of war, and Feldman does not shy away from the details. She describes the smells and sounds of the hospitals in a way that makes you feel like you’re there in 1914. Feldman takes you through all four years of the war and shows the progression from the idealism that many had at the start to the cynicism by the end, and as a reader, I really connected with the characters. I understood why they went from feeling like they were there to help to feeling like everything they did was for nothing. Now, personally, I do feel like there was more dialogue than description and I’m just bit wild about that kind of structure. That said, I did get sucked into this novel after the first few chapters and finished it in a day (today actually!). Thank you to NetGalley for providing me with a copy.
More...