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abbyarm's review
emotional
reflective
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.25
Content Warnings
Graphic: War, Slavery, Violence, Racism, Torture, and Physical abuse
Moderate: Sexual violence, Murder, Sexual assault, and Medical content
Minor: Gore and Sexism
This book is about nursing during the American Civil War. It is split into three perspectives. One of a northern nurse, one of a slave in Maryland and one of a plantation owner in Maryland. The author does not do much to sugar coat what those people would have been through or done to other people. It is a good book. I would just recommend being ready for that aspect of the story.emileereadsbooks's review
adventurous
emotional
inspiring
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? Yes
5.0
Thank you PRH Audio for the complimentary audiobook! And Netgalley and Random House Ballantine Books for a digital copy.
I have long awaited this book. In 2019 I got to see Martha Hall Kelly at a book talk/signing for Lost Roses at Interabang Books (Dallas, TX). At that book signing, Kelly talked about the next book she was working on and I was THRILLED it was a Civil War novel continuing the story of the Woolsey women. I am a lover of Civil War stories, but don't always find them to handle all aspects of that time period well. I read many books from this time period growing up that romanticized slavery and plantation life and want to make sure I am reading books now that show a better picture of what life was really like for those enslaved.
This book ticks every box of what I wanted it to be in more. Told through the stories of 3 women, Georgeanna Woolsey, a wealthy socialite who becomes a Union nurse; Jemma, a young enslaved girl who gets pulled into a new life, and Anne-May Wilson, a spoiled Southern plantation mistress who is out for her own interests. Each character is nuanced and layered and you are rooting for them to make good choices. This book has war, family drama, romance, women bettering themselves, and new layers constantly being unfolded.
Even if you haven't read Lilac Girls or Lost Roses (which I do recommend them both!), you can still read and fully enjoy this book. Plus I do recommend the audiobook version. These narrators are some of my favorite narrators period and they do a phenomenal job bringing these characters off the page.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Hate crime, Racism, and Death
Moderate: Violence and Medical content
thebakerbookworm's review against another edition
emotional
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.0
Having read both Lilac Girls and Lost Roses, and having had the chance to visit the Ferriday-Bellamy House in Connecticut, I was excited to read the next installment in this family’s history. However, though I did like this story overall, it’s my least favorite of the three. It took me almost a month to read this book because I found the beginning chapters boring and the story didn’t really pick up for me until over halfway through the book. There were too many time jumps and a lot of characters—I had trouble remembering who was who. The book is told from three perspectives, and for most of it, it felt like we were just getting snippets of those characters’ lives rather than the full story.
I enjoyed Jemma’s chapters the most. Georgy was hard to connect to and I didn’t understand her relationship with Frank at all—she would hate him in one chapter and love him in the next and I found it just annoying. Anne-May was a terrible person but I found a lot of her actions to be nonsensical. Even in the pursuit of her own selfish goals, they just didn’t make sense to me.
I will say you can tell this book was heavily researched and I appreciated the little touches of setting and historical events that impacted our characters’ lives. I enjoyed reading the author’s note at the end—it definitely adds more to the story.
I am sad to have the Ferriday family story come to a slightly disappointing end to me. I think I still liked this book and will probably buy it to complete my Lilac Girls series. But I can’t wholeheartedly recommend it.
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for my eARC.
I enjoyed Jemma’s chapters the most. Georgy was hard to connect to and I didn’t understand her relationship with Frank at all—she would hate him in one chapter and love him in the next and I found it just annoying. Anne-May was a terrible person but I found a lot of her actions to be nonsensical. Even in the pursuit of her own selfish goals, they just didn’t make sense to me.
I will say you can tell this book was heavily researched and I appreciated the little touches of setting and historical events that impacted our characters’ lives. I enjoyed reading the author’s note at the end—it definitely adds more to the story.
I am sad to have the Ferriday family story come to a slightly disappointing end to me. I think I still liked this book and will probably buy it to complete my Lilac Girls series. But I can’t wholeheartedly recommend it.
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for my eARC.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Death of parent, Hate crime, Medical content, Murder, Physical abuse, Racism, Slavery, and Violence
Moderate: Child death, Drug use, and Sexism
teacupsandfirereads's review
challenging
hopeful
informative
slow-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? It's complicated
3.5
This book is publishing in just under two months and it already has so many wonderful reviews and so many people are looking forward to reading it. I knew that this book was related to Lilac Girls and Lost Roses, but I didn't know it was considered part of the series when I started.
Maybe that helped me enjoy it a bit more. I enjoyed the other two, but I think I liked this one more. It definitely can stand on its own. Something about this story just settled in with me more than the previous. Kelly's writing and research truly show through in this one. The writing is rich and tangible and full of lovely detail. Though fictional liberties were taken, I believe it still stuck to the real facts. The characters were well developed and lovely to get to know.
This story did take me a bit to get into, but once I was in, there was no looking back. I felt like there were a lot of characters and felt lost at times trying to place them as it switched back and forth between POVs. It felt a bit diluted, as though there were many story lines where the central one sometimes got lost.
It was really great to see in depth thoughts and perspectives of the on goings of the Civil War from distinctly different sides. Each main character truly had a story to tell and belonged within the pages. I enjoy that in this one, character lines come together sooner rather than later, because it felt as though you are reading one complete story over fragments of story that loosely intertwine.
Any historical fiction lover will enjoy this one, but especially those who loved Lilac Girls and Lost Roses.
Thank you to the publisher through NetGalley for an eARC in exchange for an honest review.
Maybe that helped me enjoy it a bit more. I enjoyed the other two, but I think I liked this one more. It definitely can stand on its own. Something about this story just settled in with me more than the previous. Kelly's writing and research truly show through in this one. The writing is rich and tangible and full of lovely detail. Though fictional liberties were taken, I believe it still stuck to the real facts. The characters were well developed and lovely to get to know.
This story did take me a bit to get into, but once I was in, there was no looking back. I felt like there were a lot of characters and felt lost at times trying to place them as it switched back and forth between POVs. It felt a bit diluted, as though there were many story lines where the central one sometimes got lost.
It was really great to see in depth thoughts and perspectives of the on goings of the Civil War from distinctly different sides. Each main character truly had a story to tell and belonged within the pages. I enjoy that in this one, character lines come together sooner rather than later, because it felt as though you are reading one complete story over fragments of story that loosely intertwine.
Any historical fiction lover will enjoy this one, but especially those who loved Lilac Girls and Lost Roses.
Thank you to the publisher through NetGalley for an eARC in exchange for an honest review.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Death, Medical content, and Slavery
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