The place that the women played in WW2 may have been overlooked. This novel makes clear how important they were in contributing to winning the war. The characters are well described and the plot is very well written. Any reader interested in this time will have a difficult time putting this novel down.

The second book in the shipyard series set in the north east. A great read good strong characters who really come to life in this book.

With thanks to Netgalley and Nancy Revell

Shipward girls at work is a enjoyable book set in the 'Shipyard girls' saga I think most people who enjoy Saga type books will enjoy this book.

Second in a series but fine as a standalone. This is for fans of historical fiction - especially those who like tales of women on the Homefront during WWII. Good characters and a. bit of drama.

Another fabulous read in this wonderful saga series. This series is one which I absolutely love and would recommend for all saga fans.

This one didn't grab me. I gave it a good go and whilst I liked the wartime theme, the storyline got confusing and it didn't hold my attention. Maybe I just didn't war to this style of book, it was a little different from what I often read. It wasn't badly written, just not for me.

Enjoyed this more than the previous one of the series. A very good read for those interested in the time period.

Review: This is a lovely story set in the era of the second world war. I really enjoy stories that are based around the war and I was not disappointed. Nancy has written an exciting novel about women standing strong and keeping the home front going while the men are at war.


I had not read the first book, however that didn't matter, this can be read as a standalone book but I will defiantly be reading the first.


It is well written. Nancy creates strong characters that come alive as you read. I loved finding out about their individual journeys. Nancy writes about some serious issues but she writes it in such away that it is also filled with hope that things will get better.

If you love reading about strong women, love and family in time of war this is a book for you. I will defiantly be keeping an eye out for more from Nancy.

I was given the opportunity to read this ebook by NetGalley, the author Nancy Revell and the publisher Random House.
This is the 2nd book, but I haven't read the first previously and managed to understand who was who quite easily.
I read a lot of this genre and I particularly enjoyed this book due to the setting of the north east of England.
The main characters are really likeable and very down to earth. Their lives are touched by war and have suffered losses.
This is mainly a romantic historical fiction book, with a few facts in it.
Quite a light read, I laughed in places and had a couple of lumps in my throat in others.
I would recommend it to others.

Rosie is still in charge of the woman welders in the shipyard. Their novelty has yet to wear off but slowly over time others are starting to notice the part these women are playing in the Second World War. Rosie though has secrets outside of the shipyard and with these to protect, falling in love with a policeman is not going to help her circumstances or her heart one bit.

Hannah is one of the weaker members of Rosie's team and she joined the war effort because she wanted to do something that was going to punish Hitler for what he had done to her homeland. Whilst she may not have the strength for the welding, she has other unknown skills and whilst the others have been covering for her for so long, something now has to change, before she loses her job.

Polly is using her work in the shipyard to escape the fact that her brother has died fighting. The return of her other brother wounded and no longer fit for service is making for a very tense atmosphere at an already crowded home. Coupled with this is the worry that her man, Tommy has now left the shipyard to do his bit in the Navy.

Bel, Polly's sister-in-law and childhood friend is struggling to cope with the death of her husband Teddy, trying to bring up a small child and the reappearance of Teddy's twin brother Joe does nothing to calm her. As time goes on, can she cope with a constant reminder of her past, especially when her mother Pearl turns up out of the blue.

Gloria is hiding a secret, not just the fact that she is pregnant and the owners of the shipyard have yet to make that discovery but also that her husband Vinnie, has reappeared and thinks he can start again and that of course this time he will be different. Gloria finds some strength, and she is going to need it when the baby decides it is going to be born where and when it wants to be.

Dorothy and Angie are girls who just want some fun and a good man on their arm, they work hard but they play hard to and despite coming from different backgrounds to the others they fit into the team nicely. Martha is mysterious, she is the strongest and biggest of the team and hardly speaks, although her sense of humour is just starting to come through just when they all need it.

Whilst not all of these characters feature prominently in the storyline of this second novel in the series, they are still fully rounded characters. The story follows on from the first novel in the series, it is 1941 and the war is making itself very well-known in the town of Sunderland where the shipyard is based. Of course the war is the background to the story but it is what is happening with these women which kept me hooked and reading voraciously.

When I picked this book up to read I did not realise that I was picking up the second (don't you just hate it when that happens!) and whilst I started reading it, I felt like I was missing out on something. So I stopped reading and went to buy the first one, which I flew through and then quite happily picked this one back up with all those missing feelings now gone.

Don't think you will have to read the first, it does give you enough background to enjoy the story straight away without simply regurgitating the first book. However I felt I was not quite in touch with the characters enough and I certainly did not care about them or what happened to them with the story that had gone on before which is the reason I chose to go back a book.

If you are a fan of sagas then this is the book and series for you. From the ending there will be definitely be a book three, as there is so much more to learn about these characters, about the shipyard and about how the Second World War affects the choices they make.

A great wartime story that delves into all of the emotions, struggles and triumphs that women, new to the workforce must have endured during the war. Loved this historical book!

A great informative read. Until I read this book, I didn't think about the role woman played during the war. I enjoyed reading about the contribution woman made to the war effort and am glad that woman are being shown in this light. I also enjoyed the story line, reading about the personal loss how they each family member coped in those times made this book difficult for me to put down. My nana lived in Liverpool during this time so it was lovely to feel connected to her and what life would have looked like for her though the pages of this book. I can't to read the next book in the series.

The lives of the women working in a shipyard in early World War II are complex and Nancy Revell has interwoven those lives skillfully. Each woman is handling the war and its deprivations in much different ways, but the support and love they give to each other is the key to their strength. Well written and sensitive, this was an enjoyable read. I am looking for the 1st book, and look forward to the next installments.

This is a wonderful series set in the war years where a group of women are tackling the tough life of the shipyards. The women are working as welders. We feel the true horrors of war and the relationships between the characters. Secrets are beng kept and heartbreak is just around the corner at all times. The characters are really well drawn and you get pulled in to the tense life they lead.
I love books set around the war years and have enjoyed Nancy’s books. I can’t wait to read the next in the series and find out what is in the future for these characters.

The Shipyard Girls at War by Nancy Revell is the second book in The Shipyard Girls series. It is December 27, 1940 when Isabelle “Bel” Elliot receives a telegram notifying her that her husband, Teddy was killed in action. Bel is devastated and does not know how she will carry on without her husband. Bel and Teddy have a little girl, Lucille (two and a half years old). Thankfully, they live with Teddy’s family. Bel grew up with the Elliot children: Teddy, Joe (his twin brother) and Polly. Polly works as a welder at the Sunderland shipyard along with Angie, Gloria, Dorothy, Martha, Hannah, and Rosie. Soon after Teddy passes away, his twin brother, Joe comes home. He suffered a leg injury and can no longer serve in the war. Because Teddy and Joe are twins, Bel has trouble with his presence in the household. To make matters worse, Pearl, Bel’s estranged and unwanted mother, shows up unexpectedly. Bel’s grief turns to anger and she lashes out at everyone in the house. Polly is glad for the overtime in the shipyard. It gets her out of the house and away from the tense atmosphere. The ladies at work are more than coworkers, they are close friends (a type of family in a way). When Helen, the boss’s daughter and interim manager, sets out to get rid of the group, they band together. Rosie has a secret that she cannot share with the group and would ruin her life if it became common knowledge. But she cannot help but dream of a different future when she starts going to tea with DS Peter Miller. Gloria worries about her expanding waistline exposing her secret. She also lives in fear that her husband, Vinnie will appear at home and start in on her with his fists again. Hannah wants to help the war effort, but her strength makes it difficult for her to do her share as a welder. Each person has their trials, but together they will make it through the war.

Shipyard Girls at War is an engrossing novel. It has likeable (real life) characters, and I appreciated the angle of females working in a shipyard. It is not something I have seen in the numerous books that have been published over the last two years set during World War II. Shipyard Girls at War is the second book in the series and you really do need to read The Shipyard Girls (first book in this series). Otherwise, you will be a little lost in the beginning. The author does an amazing job at capturing the time period and locale. Her descriptive writing makes me feel like I am in England during the war. I cannot imagine being a welder on a ship. It sounds like a hard and difficult job. Plus, the ladies had to endure the males with their catcalls, groping, pranks and insults. We are introduced to two new characters in this book—Pearl and Joe. It was interesting to find out more about Bel’s past and how she came to be involved with the Elliott family. I give Shipyard Girls at War 4.5 out of 5 stars. There are a couple of slow sections, but they are few. They are mostly the “thinking” areas as I call them. It is when a character is contemplating a subject for a long period of time (or feels like it). The story had a great ending, but readers are left with some unanswered questions. Will DS Miller keep pursuing Rosie? Did Jack survive the downing of his ship? Can Pearl change her ways? Will Tommy make it through the war and home to Polly? Unfortunately, we must wait until Secrets of the Shipyard Girls comes out in September.

Shipyard Girls at War by Nancy Revell is the second in a series following the trials and tribulations of a group of women working in one of Sunderland's shipyards during the early years of World War Two. I had only read The Shipyard Girls a few weeks previous to reading this follow up book and I was glad I hadn't had such a long wait between books as the story and characters were still very much fresh in my mind. In that sense it really did feel like this story was a cohesive follow on to what had happened in book one. In fact the story picks up more or less a few months after the concluding events of The Shipyard Girls.

Normally I would say coming in at a later point in a series is perfectly fine as the back story is slipped in for readers to pick up the pieces or to read between the lines as to earlier events but with this book I feel slightly different. Yes all the setting up, some key events and filling in back stories from the first book were evident here in order to bring new readers up to date but I felt to get a real sense of the inner workings of the characters and to enhance your overall enjoyment of the series one would do best to read the first book in the series to get the most of the really interesting, engaging story between the pages. That's not to take away from this book at all it's just stepping back and looking at it with fresh eyes if you didn't know what had happened previously you mightn't feel the same emotions I felt for the characters throughout or empathise with them regarding certain situations. Having being deeply invested in them previously this time around I was even more caught up in the story and flew through the book in two sittings.

Full credit to the author for focusing attention on an aspect of the war that I have not read about before, that of the women who worked as welders in the ship building yards in many towns across England. Nancy Revell provided a fascinating insight into the lives of these women who came up against so many obstacles even though they were only trying to do their bit for their country and the war effort. All at the same time keeping their home and family lives going whilst working twelve hour shifts in all extremes of weather. As most of the characters and their story-lines had been introduced and somewhat dealt with in book one I felt the author really didn't mess around and got straight down to business and it was like there had just been a brief absence from this set of characters who had become like friends and now we were catching up with them as if no time had passed at all.

The prologue although very brief was dramatic and hard hitting and set the tone for a large part of the book and Bel who I felt hadn't had such a major plot previously got her chance to step into the forefront of the story even if the way she was feeling and the circumstances she was battling through weren't the most pleasant. Throughout the story we certainly saw a very different side to her but I suppose it was all the raw emotion, anger and hurt that was coming through that she simply couldn't forget or manage to bottle away in the blink of an eye. Her storyline was strong, realistic and incredibly well written and powerful because at the time so many women across the country and even the world would have been experiencing the same feelings.

The group of women featured are for the most part strong and determined and one would have to be considering the demanding work of welding in the shipyards. The author never holds back in her descriptions of their daily routine at work and how they are forced to work in all kinds of weather. I thought they all came across as so brave taking on a man's job but at the centre of it all was their willing to help their country to defeat Hitler. The story could have become quite repetitive if it continued to outline the daily grind at work and what sets it apart is that the outside lives of the girls also had their own focus. Throughout I felt there was a nice balance achieved between work and home life with plenty of ups and downs and emotions thrown in for all concerned. At the shipyard Helen, daughter of the manager, is determined to reek her revenge and will do this at any cost although she doesn't want Daddy to know what she is up to and tries in some ways to keep her antics all above board and in others she is pure sly and manipulative. I thought she was even worse than in the first book, she saw some of the women's weaknesses and preyed on them. She saw too the strong bond forged between the group of women and she didn't like it one bit as she herself had nothing like it in her own small life.

The war of the title relates to the internal war ongoing in the yard but also the world war whose affects are felt in all aspects of the women's lives. They seemed to live in fear of bombs raining down upon them and I have to say the scene towards the end in the yard was written to perfection full of tension and emotion. The overriding feeling in this story was one of hope and of women who believed in each other, helped each other and who were forging bonds and friendships that went way deeper than just your average friendship. Perhaps the two strongest women were Rosie and Polly. Rosie is head welder and I felt now we were seeing a more softer side to her than we had glimpsed before. She was opening herself up to love somewhat although there is something hidden in her past that will impose a firm obstacle in her path. This wasn't resolved in this book and I hope it will be explored in more depth in the future books to come. Rosie was ambitious and always loyal to her friends and family and I loved how she could see what Helen was up to and was determined to find some sort of resolution that would work for her small little group. Polly seems to have taken to welding like a duck to water and although she hadn't had as much of a prominent storyline as before (seeing as her fiancée is away fighting) I'm glad we continued to have a focus into her home life. Her brother Joe has returned from fighting and is not the same man he was. The reader could see the myriad of emotions he was experiencing and how he was torn in two. Does he listen to his head or his heart? I wondered while reading this aspect of the storyline would such a thing have happened in reality but maybe it did and circumstances were so different at the time that people had to grab every opportunity that came their way.

I really enjoyed reading Shipyard Girls at War. It brought the overall storyline along very nicely while at the same time leaving lots of unanswered questions and new story lines bubbling away in the background ready to come forward in book three. Gloria's, the oldest of the bunch, storyline although it progressed quite well certainly feels very unresolved and I am more than interested to see how it all plays out in the future. There is a complex cast of characters and storylines woven throughout this book which make for a tense read at times but the powerful emotions coming through counteract this. I'm impressed with Nancy Revell's writing and have found myself deeply invested in a steely group of women who are struggling to get through the war years in one piece.

September sees the publication of book three Secrets of the Shipyard Girls and I can't wait to see what happens next. I think there are some characters who haven’t come into the spotlight yet and who have been waiting patiently in the background to let their story be told. Others who have had a story line in book one and didn't feature much in this book are waiting in the wings to re-emerge and have their story told once more. I do hope this series will continue for many more books to come as we are still only in mid 1941 and I feel there is lots more to learn about this incredible group of women. If you love war time saga books I wouldn't hesitate to recommend The Shipyard Girls series.

Thanks Netgalley. I liked this book and would recommend to other readers who enjoy this sort book. It did not blow me away but made me realise what a wonderful job our ladies did during the war

Brilliant book. Excellent main characters and plot. I would recommend this book.

Fantastic installment of the shipyard girls.
Read in one sitting totally captivated by the integrate lives of these courageous women in ww11. Nancy manages to involve the readers as you are reading and already plotting the scenario I n your head.
Excited for the next chapter in the lives of all the characters which you find yourself championing throughout both books.
Highly recommended read.