Take a photo of a barcode or cover
purple_dahlia 's review for:
The Summer Before the War
by Helen Simonson
I eagerly picked up this book as a fan of [b:Major Pettigrew's Last Stand|6643090|Major Pettigrew's Last Stand|Helen Simonson|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1320539020l/6643090._SX50_.jpg|6837577]. Unfortunately this book doesn't live up to that standard, but nevertheless I found it an enjoyable read. My biggest critique is the length, which seems quite unnecessary. While there is quite a bit of good character development I definitely think this book would benefit greatly from being at least 100 pages shorter. My other major problem was the ending, not so much in the events that transpired but in the fact that the focus of the book shifts to being more of a warfront story and doesn't really return to the small town focus as it concludes, which I thought was most unfortunate. It is however a lovely story and I would still happily pick up any new books by this author.