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emmafinlayson80's review against another edition
5.0
I completely ADORED this book and the other three in the series! I am a huge fan of "Call the Midwife" and also a huge fan of novels that take place both in England and during the interwar period. The novels were emotional and real without feeling overly sentimental. I cannot wait for more books! I felt like I was saying goodbye to friends when I turned the last page.... DONNA DOUGLAS, write faster please!!!
hcbloomfield19's review against another edition
5.0
Great holiday read. Was suitably soppy and kept me reading from cover to cover, I like the vague historical element involved as well
novellenovels's review
emotional
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
kc1005us's review
4.0
Hopefully not the last in the series..I'd like to see what happens with the Nurses now that their training is finished!
samstillreading's review
5.0
The Nightingale series by Donna Douglas is one of my comfort reads. I know I can always rely on her to give me a great story with plenty of action in a historical setting that feels realistic and without unnecessary details that scream, ‘Hello! You need to learn about history while you’re reading!’. The Nightingale Nurses is such compulsive reading, that if my credit card hadn’t of been hacked, I would have bought the next book in the series straight away. (As it happens, none of my local bookstores or libraries have book 4, so I’m in Nightingale purgatory at the moment –what happens next?!).
This series is set in a London training hospital (The Nightingale) in the 1930s and follows three young women doing their nursing training. We’ve met them all in the previous two books, but there is a brief recap if you’re new to the books. Helen is six months away from sitting her final exams to become a qualified nurse. She’s not under her mother’s domineering thumb quite as much, thanks to the positive influence of her boyfriend Charlie (who has mother hates with a passion). Dora is still in love with Nick, who is now married to Ruby. Dora’s new boyfriend is rather possessive and won’t take no for an answer. Nick’s got his own problems, with new wife Ruby enthralled with hire-purchase and keeping a few other secrets from Nick. Millie is somewhat of a lesser character in this book – not a great deal happens except a fear that she will lose her fiancé as he reports on the war in Spain. In the midst of this, there are patients to be looked after and the biggest tear-jerker moment I’ve read so far in the series. It’s full of anguish and pain and wow, it took the author some guts to do this to one of her main characters! (I’m not going to spoil this one for you, just don’t start reading this book late in the day).
There’s also some history in this book (but it’s not being rammed down your throat). The Blackshirts make several appearances and are responsible for several of the subplots. There’s brief mention of war overseas, but what really interested me was how the emergency department of the hospital was run in the 1930s! There’s some semblance of triage (‘the sicker, the quicker’ – i.e. the sicker you are, the faster you’re seen) with a nurse lording over the waiting room but there are only two doctors working in the department! This would be unheard of in a capital city hospital these days, especially in one that appears to as big as the Nightingale. As this was pre-NHS, I wonder how payment (if any) would have seen sought…but I think that’s a topic for another book.
The story is character driven and fast paced, making The Nightingale Nurses a wonderful comfort read about overcoming adversity and having fun at the same time. Highly recommended to those who read the Sue Barton nurse books growing up and fans of Call the Midwife.
Thank you to Random House UK for the eARC. My review is honest and unbiased.
http://samstillreading.wordpress.com
This series is set in a London training hospital (The Nightingale) in the 1930s and follows three young women doing their nursing training. We’ve met them all in the previous two books, but there is a brief recap if you’re new to the books. Helen is six months away from sitting her final exams to become a qualified nurse. She’s not under her mother’s domineering thumb quite as much, thanks to the positive influence of her boyfriend Charlie (who has mother hates with a passion). Dora is still in love with Nick, who is now married to Ruby. Dora’s new boyfriend is rather possessive and won’t take no for an answer. Nick’s got his own problems, with new wife Ruby enthralled with hire-purchase and keeping a few other secrets from Nick. Millie is somewhat of a lesser character in this book – not a great deal happens except a fear that she will lose her fiancé as he reports on the war in Spain. In the midst of this, there are patients to be looked after and the biggest tear-jerker moment I’ve read so far in the series. It’s full of anguish and pain and wow, it took the author some guts to do this to one of her main characters! (I’m not going to spoil this one for you, just don’t start reading this book late in the day).
There’s also some history in this book (but it’s not being rammed down your throat). The Blackshirts make several appearances and are responsible for several of the subplots. There’s brief mention of war overseas, but what really interested me was how the emergency department of the hospital was run in the 1930s! There’s some semblance of triage (‘the sicker, the quicker’ – i.e. the sicker you are, the faster you’re seen) with a nurse lording over the waiting room but there are only two doctors working in the department! This would be unheard of in a capital city hospital these days, especially in one that appears to as big as the Nightingale. As this was pre-NHS, I wonder how payment (if any) would have seen sought…but I think that’s a topic for another book.
The story is character driven and fast paced, making The Nightingale Nurses a wonderful comfort read about overcoming adversity and having fun at the same time. Highly recommended to those who read the Sue Barton nurse books growing up and fans of Call the Midwife.
Thank you to Random House UK for the eARC. My review is honest and unbiased.
http://samstillreading.wordpress.com
kathrine_jeppesen's review against another edition
lighthearted
relaxing
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.5
leighannsherwin's review against another edition
5.0
I have loved this series from book one. Three books in and I can honestly say it gets better with each book. This was the most dramatic and had the most chapter ending cliff hangers. That coupled with fairly short chapters had me up reading late and left me groggy and exhausted the following morning. Book three opens with the third years preparing for the end of their training. Helen is included in this and is also happily in love with Charlie, much to the chagrin of her mother Constance. Dora watches her friend Ruby marry the man Dora is in love with, Nick. Little does anyone know that a secret could possibly blow their fragile marriage away. Millie doesn't feature a lot in this book, except with a short storyline involving a fortune teller and fiancé Seb putting himself in harm's way as a reporter. Throughout the book you are dragged into the lives of these characters. Their romances, heartbreaks, their conflicts with family, and those around them. Central to the story is Oswald Mosley and the Blackshirts and life in the East End during the pre war years. A very quick easy read, it had me in tears several times and also invoked rage in me at other times. I can't wait to see what's in store for the Nightingale Nurses in the next book.