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3.77 AVERAGE
3.77 AVERAGE
adventurous
emotional
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
Official rating: 3.5/5 stars
In Times of Rain and War is a historical fiction novel chronicling the experiences of an American soldier attached to the bomb disposal unit. During his time in England, he encounters a young lady hiding a deep secret. Audrey Stocking is secretly a German, and has hid her identity to prevent her and her aunt's arrest. Throughout their time together, they cultivate a friendship that soon becomes more.
I greatly enjoyed the portions on bomb disarmament and disposal, but I found the parts which were in Audrey's point of view less compelling. Her character seemed less developed in comparison.
The multiple skips in between the short chapters towards the end were also jarring and I felt myself frequently thrown out of reverie by the chopping storytelling. All in all, I still enjoyed the book, though I felt some things could be improved.
I received a copy from the publisher via NetGalley and this is an honest review.
In Times of Rain and War is a historical fiction novel chronicling the experiences of an American soldier attached to the bomb disposal unit. During his time in England, he encounters a young lady hiding a deep secret. Audrey Stocking is secretly a German, and has hid her identity to prevent her and her aunt's arrest. Throughout their time together, they cultivate a friendship that soon becomes more.
I greatly enjoyed the portions on bomb disarmament and disposal, but I found the parts which were in Audrey's point of view less compelling. Her character seemed less developed in comparison.
The multiple skips in between the short chapters towards the end were also jarring and I felt myself frequently thrown out of reverie by the chopping storytelling. All in all, I still enjoyed the book, though I felt some things could be improved.
I received a copy from the publisher via NetGalley and this is an honest review.
challenging
emotional
informative
reflective
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
I’m one of those readers who has never met a work of historical fiction—particularly WWI and WWII—that I didn’t like or find something of interest from. If you can tie the story in some way to real events, letters, journals or little known facts as a base for the book and I am hooked. In this case, the “real events” that inspired this author to write to write this book was learning of the program that trained young men to defuse unexploded bombs and the stories of people of German and Jewish ancestry and the Blitz.
LT. Wesley Bowers, an American, arrived in Britain to be trained as a member of a bomb disposal unit. He knows that bomb team members have a life expectancy of 10 weeks. On one of his first call outs, he runs into a young girl who is trying to get back into a bombed out building. He promises to help retrieve important items if she agrees to stay out of the building.
Audrey Stocking is 17 years old with Jewish and German ancestry. She and her companion came to the UK on forged passports and papers which are not likely to stand up to more than casual scrutiny. They are hiding in plain sight. They enlist in the Women’s Volunteer Service and are assigned to escort children out of London and the bombings.
Audrey and Wesley, of course, fall in love. Wesley makes it past his 10 weeks and he is sent home to share what he has learned with the U.S. Military. No more spoilers from here.
The story has surprise twists such as the PTSD effects that Wesley and his generation learned to cope by handling their demons, losses and grief—usually alone. This is the real man who inspires this story. The impetus to tell a story based on Wesley’s experiences is his granddaughter, Rachel McCally who served as a Lead Vehicle Commander in her unit during Operation Iraqi Freedom.
Don’t miss the Author’s Note at the end of the book and the Note from Rachel McCally. Rachel has a compelling story of her own and a special connection to her grandfather. The author originally planned to put these two stories together
But there was too much material and he had to separate the two stories. Rachel‘s story is available free of charge on the Author’s website (see
Audrey’s Guide to Letter Writing:
- Take time to share a secret. This is a gift of trust in the recipient and in yourself as the writer.
- Write the type of letter the reader will want to read again.
- Don’’t rush the writing. Your fingers, the side of your hand, and the pen touch the paper and share a part of you.
- War gives permission to share things you wouldn’t normally even acknowledge. War fosters valor in things besides killing.
- A well written letter is a rare and cherished thing.
Audrey is also particularly grateful to Wesley for rescuing her black box. Audrey’s father was an engineer and he designed and built the puzzle box for her. The box only opened when the corners, panels, and carvings are in a specific position which activates the hidden mechanism. This chest is all she has of her father. It is also the place she keeps her father’s last letter to her and her letters addressed to him.
I had never read a book like it. The friendships were so sweet and the heart of these characters was really seen. They were selfless and cared so much about each other. I think that the main thing I see in historical fiction, war leaves its mark and the characters will carry that around forever. It’s what they choose to do with the pain that shows who they are. This book will break your heart and I had a few issues that are spoilers, but overall an interesting read.
A historical novel based on a real person and events of WW2.
Audrey is a Jewish German woman hiding in England and passing for English because she can speak well enough to hide her accent. She is living with her aunt in England where nightly bombings happen. When a bomb falls into her apartment but doesn't go off- she meets Wes Bowers (the one who was a real person)
Wes is an American who is on a bomb dismantling team of English men. They become friends and then a bit more. It was a sweet story and I cried a bit at the end.
Audrey is a Jewish German woman hiding in England and passing for English because she can speak well enough to hide her accent. She is living with her aunt in England where nightly bombings happen. When a bomb falls into her apartment but doesn't go off- she meets Wes Bowers (the one who was a real person)
Wes is an American who is on a bomb dismantling team of English men. They become friends and then a bit more. It was a sweet story and I cried a bit at the end.
I’m a huge historical fiction fan so I was excited to get my hands on this book! I thought the Woman’s Volunteer Service aspect was fascinating. The characters were interesting. Unfortunately, this one fell flat for me. The writing and plot were missing an emotional piece that allowed me to become invested in the story. Without it, the story felt disjointed and the writing dry. A fine read, but one I won’t carry with me. My thanks to the publisher for the gifted copy!
This emotional book begins in 1940 during The Blitz with Audrey Stocking waking up to a bomb in her apartment. Before the United States enters the war, they are sending over soldiers to learn how to disarm German bombs. Lieutenant Wesley Bowers meets Audrey and a beautiful, complicated relationship blossoms. Both have secrets and both are trying to make it out alive in war-ridden England. Despite being surrounded by the horrors of war, there is an underlying message of hope and love for all mankind.
This book is inspired by actual events of Lieutenant Wesley Bowers and there is a link to a bonus story from Lieutenant Bowers’ granddaughter who also served in the military.
Camron Wright does an amazing job in sharing such a poignant story. The beginning is a bit slow, introducing characters and setting the scene, but quickly picks up pace. By the end, I was an emotional wreck. It took me several days to process this book. This is a must read on any World War II list.
Thank you NetGalley and Shadow Mountain Publishing for an ARC. The thoughts and opinions in this review are my own.
This book is inspired by actual events of Lieutenant Wesley Bowers and there is a link to a bonus story from Lieutenant Bowers’ granddaughter who also served in the military.
Camron Wright does an amazing job in sharing such a poignant story. The beginning is a bit slow, introducing characters and setting the scene, but quickly picks up pace. By the end, I was an emotional wreck. It took me several days to process this book. This is a must read on any World War II list.
Thank you NetGalley and Shadow Mountain Publishing for an ARC. The thoughts and opinions in this review are my own.
Plot:
When the sirens sounded, Audrey knew she only had seconds. Already wearing a siren suit, a fashion item that she can wear to bed but can also be seen in public, Audrey had minutes to get her and her Aunt Claire out of their London flat and into a bunker underneath the city. As what will be known as World War Two, rages on around them, London was frequently getting bombed by Nazi Germany. To the allies, it was known to be just Germany as the enemy, but Audrey knew better. Being German herself, Audrey and her Aunt Claire fled from Germany when Hitler was gaining power, and through their fake Swedish passports, landed a residency in London for the war. They are there to survive, but Audrey could not sit still, which is why she joins the Women’s Voluntary Services and helps them move children out of the city into the country where they should be safe from the bombs. When a bomb finds itself stuck in the middle of her flat, Audrey escapes but forgets the prize possession of the list of children's names she needs to escort out of London. Asking military personnel from the bomb disposal team, it was Lieutenant Wesley Bowers who promised he would take a look for her list when they removed the bomb from her flat.
Wesley Bowers is the first American man sent to join the war, landing himself on the dangerous bomb disposal team. With a life span of ten weeks, Wes joins the crew and finds that his American ways and jokes are not amusing to his fully British team. Leaving his girl at home, Nathelle, Wes experiences the worst of humanity, as his team enters bombs in areas, and removes the bombs that did not go off to be properly disposed of. When Audrey asks him to find her list, he manages to rescue some more of her personal items like photographs and a letterbox. Finding himself drawn to this mysterious girl, Wes finds himself asking her to play chess with him, a game they both know how to play. Trying to gain the friendships of his team, Audrey, and facing what this war is doing to him as a person, Wes’s time on the bomb team, where he could die any minute as survival rates are low, is spent figuring out who he is as a person and preparing himself for his death.
Thoughts:
Camron Wright did not spare any expenses to humanity with this war theme novel. In the middle of World War Two, Nazi Germany was still winning, and with no signs of the United States joining the fight, the people of London were finding themselves running out of hope as their city seemed to have got bombed nightly. Part of this story is true, as Rachel Bowers told Cameron about her grandfather Wesley Bowers and his time within the bomb disposal team in London. Therefore, where parts of this book are functional like Audrey and the backstory to Landy Reading is also being fabricated. As stated in the author's notes, where this book may not be totally true, Wright did their best to have the story’s truth be real. One of the hundreds of books about the Blitz, Wright kept to the theme not of love, but of morality, which can be seen from all the characters, but especially Wes. The character of Wes was so vivid as Wright starts him off with thinking of his life span of ten weeks, to one of his first conversations with the colonel asking Wes if he was prepared for death. Audrey is also transfixed to her morality as she spends her time throughout the book saving others, despite Claire wanting her to save herself. Wright really grapes onto the emotional aspect of the war, showing what it does to soldiers and those around them. With a realistic ending, Wright includes this novel nicely but it is not necessarily happy, thus, the realistic edge to it. With clean clear writing, Wrights does the third person, and mainly sticks to following Audrey and Wes around, but does switch to members on Wes’s team, Claire, Leady Reading, and others. This truly is a heartbreaking novel, so if you want a good cry and to feel blessed for your own morality, this is the book for you, as Wright carefully crafts their book around the fragility of morality.
When the sirens sounded, Audrey knew she only had seconds. Already wearing a siren suit, a fashion item that she can wear to bed but can also be seen in public, Audrey had minutes to get her and her Aunt Claire out of their London flat and into a bunker underneath the city. As what will be known as World War Two, rages on around them, London was frequently getting bombed by Nazi Germany. To the allies, it was known to be just Germany as the enemy, but Audrey knew better. Being German herself, Audrey and her Aunt Claire fled from Germany when Hitler was gaining power, and through their fake Swedish passports, landed a residency in London for the war. They are there to survive, but Audrey could not sit still, which is why she joins the Women’s Voluntary Services and helps them move children out of the city into the country where they should be safe from the bombs. When a bomb finds itself stuck in the middle of her flat, Audrey escapes but forgets the prize possession of the list of children's names she needs to escort out of London. Asking military personnel from the bomb disposal team, it was Lieutenant Wesley Bowers who promised he would take a look for her list when they removed the bomb from her flat.
Wesley Bowers is the first American man sent to join the war, landing himself on the dangerous bomb disposal team. With a life span of ten weeks, Wes joins the crew and finds that his American ways and jokes are not amusing to his fully British team. Leaving his girl at home, Nathelle, Wes experiences the worst of humanity, as his team enters bombs in areas, and removes the bombs that did not go off to be properly disposed of. When Audrey asks him to find her list, he manages to rescue some more of her personal items like photographs and a letterbox. Finding himself drawn to this mysterious girl, Wes finds himself asking her to play chess with him, a game they both know how to play. Trying to gain the friendships of his team, Audrey, and facing what this war is doing to him as a person, Wes’s time on the bomb team, where he could die any minute as survival rates are low, is spent figuring out who he is as a person and preparing himself for his death.
Thoughts:
Camron Wright did not spare any expenses to humanity with this war theme novel. In the middle of World War Two, Nazi Germany was still winning, and with no signs of the United States joining the fight, the people of London were finding themselves running out of hope as their city seemed to have got bombed nightly. Part of this story is true, as Rachel Bowers told Cameron about her grandfather Wesley Bowers and his time within the bomb disposal team in London. Therefore, where parts of this book are functional like Audrey and the backstory to Landy Reading is also being fabricated. As stated in the author's notes, where this book may not be totally true, Wright did their best to have the story’s truth be real. One of the hundreds of books about the Blitz, Wright kept to the theme not of love, but of morality, which can be seen from all the characters, but especially Wes. The character of Wes was so vivid as Wright starts him off with thinking of his life span of ten weeks, to one of his first conversations with the colonel asking Wes if he was prepared for death. Audrey is also transfixed to her morality as she spends her time throughout the book saving others, despite Claire wanting her to save herself. Wright really grapes onto the emotional aspect of the war, showing what it does to soldiers and those around them. With a realistic ending, Wright includes this novel nicely but it is not necessarily happy, thus, the realistic edge to it. With clean clear writing, Wrights does the third person, and mainly sticks to following Audrey and Wes around, but does switch to members on Wes’s team, Claire, Leady Reading, and others. This truly is a heartbreaking novel, so if you want a good cry and to feel blessed for your own morality, this is the book for you, as Wright carefully crafts their book around the fragility of morality.
This was both heartbreaking and hopeful.
To be honest, this had been sitting on my NetGalley shelf for a few months and I wasn’t sure if I wanted to read it when it got closer to the publication date. Why? Because war is such a heavy topic. I normally love historical fiction, but I’ve found myself turning them down a lot this year and picking up lighter reads. Real life seems to be heavy enough without adding something also based on a true story from the past.
That being said, I’m glad I did. This made me feel all the things.
I thought it was well written, and the characters were multidimensional and really well done. I had a hard time putting it down. I was pulled in right from the prologue.
I’m really happy I decided to pick this up because as sad and tragic as this story is, the hope it brings to your heart by the final sentence is extraordinary.
Thank you NetGalley and Camron Wright for a copy of this book. All thoughts are my own.
To be honest, this had been sitting on my NetGalley shelf for a few months and I wasn’t sure if I wanted to read it when it got closer to the publication date. Why? Because war is such a heavy topic. I normally love historical fiction, but I’ve found myself turning them down a lot this year and picking up lighter reads. Real life seems to be heavy enough without adding something also based on a true story from the past.
That being said, I’m glad I did. This made me feel all the things.
I thought it was well written, and the characters were multidimensional and really well done. I had a hard time putting it down. I was pulled in right from the prologue.
I’m really happy I decided to pick this up because as sad and tragic as this story is, the hope it brings to your heart by the final sentence is extraordinary.
Thank you NetGalley and Camron Wright for a copy of this book. All thoughts are my own.
I enjoyed this book. It's not a conventional WWII book. The romance is subtle, the character growth is gentle, and the conflict isn't harsh. However, the prose is bold and remarkable, almost startling, and the alliteration is abundant.