4.58 AVERAGE

daniellereads12's review

4.75
adventurous emotional hopeful lighthearted reflective medium-paced
thepagelady's profile picture

thepagelady's review

5.0

Book Review…Sands of Sirocco by Annabelle McCormack

I loved the first book in this series and I was so excited when it came up for a book tour! It's a book full of adventure, secrets, love, mystery and spies!

Ginger Whitman thought she escaped the intrigue that devastated her family and threatened her life. But when she’s drafted into an investigation for the Cairo Intelligence Department, she uncovers forces at work to destroy the man she loves, Noah Benson.

Ginger and Noah are pulled into a minefield of lies, greed, and political deception. With an enemy that knows their secrets, no one is safe. But nothing is what it seems and a far more nefarious foe may be toying with them both.

First I love the cover, it's beautiful! This is the second book in the Windswept WWI series and it continues Noah and Ginger’s story. Annabelle McCormack does a wonderful job bringing that time and place to life! Noah and Ginger are the type of characters you get excited to read more about, smile when they have a sweet moment and get anxious when they find themselves in a tight spot. I couldn't put this book down! I really couldn't help myself! I can't wait for the next book! Thank you Historical Fiction Virtual Book Tours and Annabelle McCormack for sharing this fantastic story with me!

“If this war has taught me anything, it’s that any semblance of control I have is just an illusion.”

This book was everything I was hoping it would be and more!

Have you ever anticipated a book release so excitedly only to discover that it didn’t measure up to your expectations? This one was MORE than I anticipated. Worthy of MORE than 5 stars. Author Annabelle McCormack took my love of Egypt, my unquenchable desire for historical fiction, my need to learn as I read, and my excitement of following a mystery and the pulsating thrill of a chase, mixed it all together with a dollop of romance and produced one of my best reads of the summer!

Set against the backdrop of the Middle Eastern front of WW1, McCormack gently pulls back the curtain to reveal one of the ulterior motives driving the Great War ~ energy security. As the Great Powers competed for possession of this lifeblood of their armies, an oil monopoly was created and its politics continue to shape our history today. McCormack reveals how big a factor oil domination really was during the First World War.

McCormack also highlights the dawn of the Modern Era and reveals the urge many of the privileged women possessed to fight against societal constraints. Her protagonist strikes out on her own and takes her future into her own hands. It wasn’t easy for Ginger Whitman, nor were the results what she’d planned. Attaining her dreams hadn’t been without sacrifice, yet she chose to disregard what was expected of her and what was an easier option. I loved reading about Ginger’s adventure!

Egypt is my favourite place to vacation and McCormack brought it alive for me. She dazzled me with all my cherished memories: the aroma of the exotic spices, the call of the muezzin, the rustling of the galabeyas, the slow glide of the feluccas in the Nile, the adamant pleas to remember ‘backsheesh’, the feel of my toes in the sands of the Sahara, and the wonder of experiencing all my favourite tourist destinations. Her book had me revisiting Cairo, Aswan, Saqqara, the Khan-el-Khalili and Tahrir Square, museums, pyramids, temples, and the Serapeum. I was giddy with excitement.

Author Annabelle McCormack gives voice to the often overlooked nurses who volunteered for active service on the Middle Eastern front of World War One and to the many frustrated women who decided to break free from societal norms and take a chance on experiencing what made them come alive! For those who love romance, wartime fiction and learning as they read, this one’s for you.

I loved Noah Benson and Ginger Whitman and can’t wait to see what McCormack has in store for them in book 3!

As-salaam alykum!

I was generously gifted this advance copy by the author and was under no obligation to provide a review.
aprilslibrary's profile picture

aprilslibrary's review

5.0

Sands of Sirocco is stunning WW1 fiction like I’ve never read before. If you love books filled with mystery, intrigue, and romance you need to pick this one up! I usually read books set during WW2 so this was a great learning opportunity!

First, the setting. This story is set in Egypt. I’ve never read a WW1 novel set in Egypt and I learned so much! There are fantastic historical facts woven into the storyline. It was eye opening to read about the unrest happening in the Middle East.

Second, the characters! So, this is a sequel, and I have not read the first book, but I still was able to follow the relationships in the story. I was thrown right into Ginger and Noah’s relationship and even though I never got to see it start I was able to feel the love they had for each other. I loved them both. Ginger is fiery and smart. Noah is passionate and loyal.

This story is full of twists and turns and I never knew what was going to happen next! I definitely recommend it!

*I received a gifted copy of this book and my opinions are all my own.

cjsamuel's review

3.25
adventurous mysterious tense fast-paced

Expand filter menu Content Warnings

I was so excited when I was offered to be part of the authors book tour again, I loved the first book Windswept so I couldn’t wait to start reading the second book! This book continues the story of Noah and Ginger’s journey in the Middle East during WWI.
The book begins a few months after where the first book left off. Ginger is working as a nurse in Alexandria and Noah is working his missions and he’s trying to uncover clues about oil concessions. When Ginger is drafted into an investigation for the Cairo Intelligence Department, she uncovers a plan to destroy the man she loves. To their shock their enemy Stephen Fisher whose a German spy, he escaped in the first book is back, when he willingly surrenders to the authorities immediately Noah is suspicious of his motives, and appears he has a right to be, this is where the book takes off and I was at the edge of my seat! I’m sad I have to wait for the next book!
sarahsbookstack's profile picture

sarahsbookstack's review

5.0
adventurous emotional medium-paced

I highly recommend this for historical fiction lovers. There's also mystery and spies, lush detail of Egypt, romance, fight to claim oil rights and more!

This book was such an adventure again for our MCs Noah and Ginger! It starts right into the action with Ginger needing to perform an amputation of a soldier's leg. There are other scenes that were a little hard to stomach so beware.

You never know who to trust in this story except for our MCs and I really was loving that. I felt like I was side by side with them throughout. The details are just amazing that they put you right there. I can't wait for the conclusion which is sure to be epic!
chelz286's profile picture

chelz286's review

4.5
adventurous challenging informative mysterious tense fast-paced

This second novel takes Ginger and Noah to Egypt, both fighting for their lives, each other and a race against time to decipher a code that may save Ginger's family. Continuing with her nursing, her skills are called into question when she has to make a hasty decision to save one man over another and goes against an order of a lieutenant. She fears for her career when she is given an opportunity that sounds too good to be true, but she knows she cannot pass it up. She is enlisted to help search for information on some of her fathers business dealings meanwhile she will be training under a prominent female doctor and potentially being able to then take her nursing education further. But she must complete the assignment, and stay away from Noah at all costs even though someone from her past continues to threaten everything she has worked for. Things come to a head, and Ginger calls into question Noah's true intentions, the truth of what really happened to her father and brother and the potential to fail at her assignment putting her mother and sister at risk and worry about how they will live. Thank you to the author for sending me a free copy of the novel. I love this series!
lisaboylewrites's profile picture

lisaboylewrites's review

5.0
adventurous informative mysterious tense fast-paced