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melbsreads 's review for:
To Love a Sunburnt Country
by Jackie French
Trigger warnings: death, war, medical emergency, torture, shipwreck, racial slurs, gun violence,
I definitely didn't expect to love this series as much as I have. And this one is a spectacular addition. We get to see so many of the characters from previous books at various points through the story and we get to see how the community at Gibber's Creek handles the Second World War. But for all the extra perspectives we get, this is essentially the story of Nancy and Michael being in love and being separated by the war.
But what's different about this to a typical "couple are separated by WWII" story is that Nancy is the one experiencing the war and Michael is the one stuck at home wondering where she is and if she's okay. Nancy is the one who's a POW while Michael is sitting at school. Nancy is the one witnessing atrocities while Michael makes sandwiches. Don't get me wrong, Michael feels every second that he wants to get out there and make a difference, but that doesn't change the fact that this is a very different WWII narrative to the usual.
And Jackie French definitely doesn't gloss over the horrors of war. People are beaten, people are executed, women are forced into situations they don't want to be in. She makes sure to note at the end that it's fictional but heavily influenced by actual events. I cried like 10 times reading this book and I think it's probably tied as my favourite in the series so far. I can't wait to pick up the next book and find out what happens next for this community and these characters.
Spoiler
explosions, rape (off the page), animal death, death of a sibling, death of a child, death of a loved one, death of a friend, griefI definitely didn't expect to love this series as much as I have. And this one is a spectacular addition. We get to see so many of the characters from previous books at various points through the story and we get to see how the community at Gibber's Creek handles the Second World War. But for all the extra perspectives we get, this is essentially the story of Nancy and Michael being in love and being separated by the war.
But what's different about this to a typical "couple are separated by WWII" story is that Nancy is the one experiencing the war and Michael is the one stuck at home wondering where she is and if she's okay. Nancy is the one who's a POW while Michael is sitting at school. Nancy is the one witnessing atrocities while Michael makes sandwiches. Don't get me wrong, Michael feels every second that he wants to get out there and make a difference, but that doesn't change the fact that this is a very different WWII narrative to the usual.
And Jackie French definitely doesn't gloss over the horrors of war. People are beaten, people are executed, women are forced into situations they don't want to be in. She makes sure to note at the end that it's fictional but heavily influenced by actual events. I cried like 10 times reading this book and I think it's probably tied as my favourite in the series so far. I can't wait to pick up the next book and find out what happens next for this community and these characters.