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4.2 AVERAGE
4.2 AVERAGE
adventurous
challenging
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
This historical fiction is a story of war,
hope and survival. Lily was a wife, a mother and a school teacher but when war takes over the country she needs to find the strength within to do what she can to help save a boat full of children. I read a lot of historical fiction but this as one story I never read about before.
Huge thank you to @berkleypub @berittalksbooks @thephdivabooks @dg_reads and @netgalley for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.
Wow. What a heartbreaking story. The resilience and will to survive was so strong. War was so scary and even when you thought you were safe, you in fact weren’t. I love Hazel’s writing and you can tell she puts a lot of research and heart into her books.
emotional
sad
tense
medium-paced
Hazel Gaynor’s Berkley debut is a winner! Inspired by real events, The Last Lifeboat is a compelling, heart-wrenching story of disaster and survival on the sea as British children are being evacuated to Canada during World War II. Told from two points of view, we follow Alice King on her adventure turned survival journey as she does her best to care for the children, and Lily Nichols waiting at home for news of the son and daughter she sent away for safety.
This is by far one of the best, but also most distressing works of World War II homefront fiction I have read. The growth of these characters through the torment of these events, the sense of community that grows around them, the terror and the relief of any small ray of hope are so visceral and so skillfully done.
Highly recommended.
This review refers to a temporary digital galley that I voluntarily read through NetGalley, courtesy of the publisher. A positive review was not required and all opinions expressed are my own.
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
Beginning in 1938, the British government began to plan for the large scale evacuation of vulnerable individuals from areas anticipated to be at the highest probability of being bombed (London, Liverpool, Birmingham, etc.). Beginning in August 1939, Operation Pied Piper started the first evacuations with the highest priority being children, the elderly, the disabled, pregnant women and those left homeless from the bombing. As the war continues into 1943-44 and the threat of a V2 rocket program looms, the need for evacuation locations continued, In an effort to open new locations, the Children’s Overseas Reception Board was formed to manage evacuations to other countries such as Canada and the U.S.
This book focuses on two women connected by their care for two of those children. In Kent, Alice King signs on to chaperone a group of children to Canada. As a former teacher, she is considered an ideal escort. In London, Lily Nichols has reluctantly sent her two children-Georgi(ana) and Arthur—on the S.S. Carlisle bound for Canada. When the ship reached the outer limit of what was thought to be U-Boart hunting grounds, the British destroyer providing their escort turns back. Within a short time, the ship has been torpedoed and sunk taking 12 of her fully loaded life boats with her—leaving only one in which Alice and the Nichols’ children are sheltered. The alternating POVs of Alice and Lily follow the unseen bond between two extraordinary women. This is a melancholy story that left me smiling through tears. This is the first book by Hazel Gaynor I have read but it won’t be the last She has created an atmosphere of tense apprehension and fear—first of London in the Blitz and then the chill, menace of the Atlantic at night and in a small, precarious life boat. The characters are likable and well developed. The end is bittersweet and the emotions all on the surface. Recommend to readers who enjoy historical fiction, WWII, Adult, British fiction, and family drama.
hopeful
inspiring
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Based on true events, The Last Lifeboat uses the real life sinking of the SS City of Benares as inspiration. Focusing on a group of seavacues escaping WWII for Canada when the ship is torpedoed. Alice King finds herself as the only woman on the last lifeboat, but with the search called off, how can they possibly survive. Meanwhile, Lily, a mother desperately awaiting news may be their only hope.
Beautifully told, The Last Lifeboat explores a lesser known element of the war. Hard choices to be made in terrifying times, and as a mum I really felt the torment. As the repercussions are felt at home, the lifeboat scenes are scary. The sense of being trapped amid great expanse, completely helpless comes across so well.
I cannot wait to read Hazel’s back catalogue, for me this was practically perfect historical fiction.
Beautifully told, The Last Lifeboat explores a lesser known element of the war. Hard choices to be made in terrifying times, and as a mum I really felt the torment. As the repercussions are felt at home, the lifeboat scenes are scary. The sense of being trapped amid great expanse, completely helpless comes across so well.
I cannot wait to read Hazel’s back catalogue, for me this was practically perfect historical fiction.
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
informative
inspiring
reflective
sad
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:
Yes
adventurous
reflective
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:
Yes
I received an ARC from the publisher via NetGalley and am voluntarily posting a review. All opinions are my own.
The Last Lifeboat is another engaging read from Hazel Gaynor. And once again, she provides insight into a part of history that I didn’t know much about (although it is a topic that has become quite a hot commodity with authors as of late). While the evacuation of children in Britain to the countryside in Operation Pied Piper is much more well-known, I was fascinated to find out that there were efforts to send children overseas, with similar complications for the families involved, and even more complications for the people trying to orchestrate it, thanks to the greater potential for maritime disasters, especially during wartime.
Gaynor captures two perspectives of this situation beautifully. While the ship and characters are fictional, Gaynor draws on real events to depict what happened to the SS Carlisle, and you get a sense of the harrowing nature of the events they faced. Alice, one of the women accompanying the children on the voyage, is inspired by a real person, and I admire how she put herself in a situation outside her comfort zone a bit by taking on this position as the childrens’ teacher, and has to take on even more responsibility in taking care of them for days when the ship sinks and they’re forced to go off into a lifeboat for days.
Lily, meanwhile, is mother to one of the children sent overseas, and I love how her perspective captures the complicated choices wartime and other difficult situations prompt parents to have to make for the sake of their children. Parents like Lily put their trust in others, and don’t anticipate that their children will essentially be left to their own devices in the event of disaster.
Gaynor masterfully intertwines the two women’s narratives, displaying the connection between them even though they don’t interact. Both are dynamic characters who are easy to root for, and it’s one of those books where I felt the book was well balanced between them, and the arcs of Alice and the children fight for their survival and Lily’s concern over her children’s fate are equally engaging
I really enjoyed this, and I’d recommend it to fans of historical fiction about parts of history that aren’t as well-known/talked about/depicted in fiction and media.
emotional
hopeful
informative
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
emotional
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No