Oh my....I don’t know how Martha Hall Kelly keeps coming up with these masterful stories, but they take my breath away every time. Set during the civil war, sisters Eliza and Georgey want to help with the war effort. Intermingled with the sisters are Jemma, Patience- slaves in the south. I won’t give too much away, but this story was beautifully told.

Sunflower Sisters is the third and final book in Martha Hall Kelly’s historical fiction series, The Lilac Girls. For those unfamiliar with the series, the first two books introduce us first to Caroline Ferriday, an American philanthropist who does all she can to help young girls released from concentration camps during WWII, and then to Caroline’s mother, Eliza Woolsey, who, a generation earlier, helped displaced Russian families who made their way to America during the Russian Revolution and WWI.

The final book in the series, Sunflower Sisters, takes us back yet another generation to the Civil War to meet another Woolsey ancestor, Georgeanna (Georgy) Woolsey. Raised by an abolitionist mother, Georgy is determined to do her part to bring slavery to an end and so she trains to be an Army nurse. From New York City to Washington D.C. to the battlefield at Gettysburg, Sunflower Sisters follows Georgy everywhere her passion for nursing takes her.

One of my favorite things about all three books in the series is the way Martha Hall Kelly crafts her stories so that the events unfold from the perspectives of three very different characters, gradually pulling the threads of their stories together until their lives intersect. In Sunflower Sisters, we follow not only Georgy, but also a slave girl name Jemma who is sold off and then somehow ends up conscripted into the Union Army, and we follow a woman named Anne-May Wilson, a plantation owner in Maryland who also happens to be Jemma’s owner.

The story itself started off a little slow for me as each of these characters were introduced, but I quickly became invested in both Georgy and Jemma and just wanted to see Anne-May, as a cruel slave owner among other things, get what was coming to her. I loved Georgy’s determination and tenacity, especially as she was constantly being told by men that women should not be helping on the battlefront. She never let their blatant sexism deter her. As much as I loved getting to know Georgy, Jemma was the character who ultimately stole my heart. Jemma’s strength and determination in the face of endless cruelty from Anne-May and her nasty overseer was incredible to witness and I was wishing with every fiber of my being for her to find a way to safely escape to freedom. Where I loved Georgy and Jemma, Anne-May, on the other hand, was a character I loved to hate. She is a desperate, evil, manipulative woman and I was wishing for her to fail just as hard as I was wishing for Georgy and Jemma to thrive. The story became quite riveting as I was waiting for the lives of these three women to come together in what was shaping up to be an epic clash between slave, abolitionist, and slave owner. I don’t want to give anything away, but the clash does not disappoint!

Sunflower Sisters was a bittersweet read for me, just because I’m sad this wonderful series is ending, but the Ferriday/Woolsey family is filled with extraordinary women and I’m grateful to this series for introducing me to them.

I enjoyed reading Lilac Girls and Lost Roses by Martha Hall Kelly. But this one fell very flat for me. I was excited to read about the Civil War, but frankly this book was boring. It has three points of view, and I did like reading Jemma's and Anne-May's stories, especially because of the juxtaposition of hero and villain (slave and master, respectively). But Georgie's point of view was soooo boring and could have been cut completely from the story with little to no consequences (except Georgie is the link that ties together Lilac Girls and Lost Roses, unfortunately). I have to admit that I lightly skimmed Georgie's chapters and sped-read the rest, and I didn't feel like I missed anything important.

Am I being too harsh with only 2 stars? Maybe. But to be honest, I wanted to get this book over with as fast as I could. This book also didn't challenge me to look at the Civil War and slavery in a new way (I found Kelly's other books quite thought provoking). It was just 500+ pages of mediocrity. :(

Sunflower Sisters (Lilac Girls #3) by Martha Hall Kelly

Despite this book being listed as number three in the Lilac Girls series, the books do not have to be read in order and you do not need to read the other books to get the full enjoyment of each book. Sunflower Sisters takes place during the Civil War and covers the lives of the real life Woolsey women, from the viewpoint of Georgeanne Woolsey, as they try to bring relief to all who suffer, no matter their color and no matter their army affiliation. We also follow sixteen year old Jemma, who is enslaved with her family, on the Peeler Plantation in Maryland.

Anne-May is now the owner of the Peeler plantation and the slaves that live on the plantation. Anne-May is a vain, uneducated, greedy, selfish woman and her slaves suffer for all her shortcomings. Jemma has fond memories of her the former late mistress of the plantation because it was due to her former mistress that Jemma can read, write, and speak in an educated manner despite the fact that her former mistress could also be cruel. Anne-May forbids Jemma to read and write except when Anne-May wants Jemma to record Union secrets into a book that Anne-May passes on to men spying for the Confederates. 

Georgeanne is determined to learn nursing and help on the battlefield and in hospitals despite the fierce opposition from doctors and male nurses who think that a woman isn't smart enough to be able to do the job of nursing. She, her sisters, and her mother work tirelessly to give their time, money, and possessions to help those in need. The author notes of the book are as interesting as the story, as the author relates all that the family continued to do after the war, to further the health, education, and lives of others. 

This is a long story and it seems slow in the first half of the book as we get to know the characters and the times. Eventually  Georgeanne and Jemma come together as Jemma comes to know she can trust Georgeanne and her family and the story feels like it is moving forward. Jemma, by the time she meets Georgeanna, is a runaway slave, having been conscripted by the Union army as their drummer "boy", until she is injured in battle. She is desperate to get back to the plantation to save her mother and sister but being caught is at the risk of her freedom and life. 

Georgeanna, her mother, and sisters are determined to help solders on both sides of the war, despite all the blockades that are put in their way. The fragility of humans is ever present, people left to die because so many others need to be treated and medical help (thanks to the prejudice against how woman can help treat the sick), food, beds, and supplies are in short supply. It's not only the war that takes lives but disease runs rampant through the masses of people living in unsanitary conditions due to poverty and/or war. 

I am very interested in the historical aspects of the book although the flood of information seemed to slow down the story at times. The story is wrenching on so many levels, the unspeakable brutality of people kept as slaves, and the horror of families, neighbors, and countrymen fighting each other to gruesome deaths. The fight of some women to change our times, so that women could be allowed to train and work as nurses, shows the many obstacles in the way of women being allowed to do more than just cook, clean, wash, birth babies, and stand by while people die. 

Thank you to Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine and NetGalley for this ARC.

Martha Hall Kelly has written another great historical novel, this one set during the U.S. Civil War. It’s told through 3 alternating perspectives: Georgy, a progressive young woman from New York City who becomes a nurse to help with the war; Jemma, an enslaved teenage girl on a plantation in Maryland, and Anne-May, who owns the plantation where Jemma is enslaved. Georgy and Jemma are both tremendously appealing characters, and it is such an interesting and well-researched book - the kind of historical fiction where you can really learn something by reading it. It definitely is a little on the long side, but I’m not sure what I would have cut - maybe a little of the Anne-May stuff because she is so (intentionally) horrid. Note that while Goodreads lists this as “Lilac Girls #3,” it is not in any way a sequel but totally standalone - the previous books were set during World War II and World War I respectively - it’s simply that George’s family, the Woolsey’s, were further generations back of characters from those books. And the fact that they were actually real people, and such a fascinating family, is another cool and interesting part about this book.

I was excited for this follow on to the Lilac Girl books. I enjoy historical fiction and post-Civil War historical fiction is my favorite. Sunflower Sisters is a good addition to the genre. There are multiple points of view, which I felt was used more for archetypes so it was sometimes difficult to connect with the characters as actual people. Otherwise, it was a bit on the long side but worth the read!
3.5 stars

Review date: March 5, 2021
Expected Publication Date: March 30, 2021
*ARC provided for review by the author, Ballantine Books, and NetGalley

Sunflower Sisters is a historical fiction novel, centered around the US Civil War, and told from the differing viewpoints of three women. In this novel we meet Georgy, a woman from a well-to-do family from New York, who becomes one of the first female nurses during the war. We also meet Anne-May, a woman from Louisiana who inherits her aunt's plantation, and Jemma, one of the slaves on Anne-May's plantation. This story was very well done. For how different each of the narrators were, they all had their own distinct voice, which made the story easy to follow. Also, this novel really brought light to many issues that were facing the people and cities of the US during the Civil War. I feel like a lot of people get the impression that everybody in the North was against slavery, and everyone in the South was for it, but this novel really showed the divisions, not just in the country and cities, but also within the same family. The stories of these three women intertwined in a myriad of ways and I felt that it really added depth and feeling to the novel. Definitely a good historical fiction read, and I really enjoyed that it was inspired by true events. This one releases at the end of March! Thank you to the author, publisher, and NetGalley for an advanced copy of this novel.

How hard it is to see the truth when we are caught in the eye of the storm

An engaging and historical tale of the civil war, the women nurses and the battle of Gettysburg. A tale of the courage of many, the strength of a few, and the cruelty of slavery.

This is about the Woolsey family, abolitionists fighting for the causes of the North during the civil war. It is also about a slave owner Anne May Watson and the slaves Jemma and her family owned by AnneMay Watson. It is written from these three points of view: Georgeanna Woolsey called Georgy, Anne May Watson, and Jemma.

Georgy and her mother are in Charleston visiting a church when they happen onto a slave auction. Mrs. Woolsey gives one of the slaves her card with her New York Address on it and a coin and tells her if she is ever in New York to look to her for help. This card will later tie into the story of Jemma the slave at the Peeler Plantation in Maryland and the slave owner Anne May Watson.

It is a story of the battlefields of the civil war, the struggle of the women to be nurses and that of the doctors and male nurses that though women weren't smart enough to be nurses and should be home with families. The brave woman Georgy Woolsey and how she changed that attitude and inspired to open her own nursing school for women.

It is a story of the plantation, the cruelty of the slave owner Anne May, the even crueler overseer LeBaron and the lecherous spy for the confederacy Jubal Smalls. Of the courage of Jemma and her family. The conditions of their lives before, during and after the civil war. Their struggles to survive and to be free.

I love the descriptions of the clothing worn during this time period, the hairstyles, the activities, and the surroundings. They were very descriptive and gave me a sense of being there. The breeze blowing in your hair riding in the carriage, the sounds of the city, the smell of the swamps. The gowns of the rich and the plain clothing of the poor. It all gave an overall picture of both the northern and the southern parts of the story.

Although the story is one of fiction, it is based on true people and true events. It is well researched as I could tell from the information given at the end of the book which was very informative.
I enjoyed this book as much as I did The Lilac Girls written by the author. I would recommend the book.

Thanks to Martha Hall Kelly, Random House Publishing group-Ballantine Books, and NetGalley for giving me the opportunity to read an advance copy for an honest review.

Martha Hall Kelly writes about the strong and determined women in the Ferriday-Woolsey family in the trilogy consisting of [book:Lilac Girls|25893693], [book:Lost Roses|40988979] and now in this third book taking place during the civil war. It’s historical fiction, but is based on this true life family and the contributions they made over the generations. It’s impeccably researched and the author makes it clear in her “Notes on Sources” what is real, what is fictional and that the bulk of the story is based on the letters of the Woolsey family and that makes it so meaningful.

The story is told from the point of view of three women in first person narrative. Georgy Woolsey, great aunt of Caroline Ferriday, whose story is told in the first book of this trilogy, is from an affluent, abolitionist family in New York. She trains as a nurse with the famed Dr. Elizabeth Blackwell and with one of her sisters serves as a nurse attending the wounded . With a desire to stake a foothold for women in the nursing profession while up against the male dominated medical profession. Jemma is the young slave girl who could read and write, lives on a plantation in Maryland where the abuse is horrific, yet holds the hope of freedom. There are lashings, so much abuse, fear of rape, and for some young women slaves , the fear of having your child taken from you at birth so the baby could be sold. Anne-May, Jemma’s vile mistress at her plantation , is vile not just to the slaves , but even her own family and she gets more abhorrent with each chapter.

The novel is reflective of the time, the war, slavery, taking us from Maryland to Washington to New York City to Gettysburg, from plantation to society dinners to the shacks where the slaves lived, to the battlefields and hospitals. A depiction of the our country and what it might have been like to live during this time. My only reservation is that at times it felt a little slow and drawn out, especially in the earlier part of the novel. It’s a lengthy book and could have used some editing to move the story forward. Overall, I enjoyed it, but my favorite of the three is [book:Lilac Girls|25893693].

I received an advanced copy of this book from Ballantine through NetGalley.

ARC was provided by Ballantine Books via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

“We are not your average ladies, but come to you as doers, with clean aprons and kind hearts.” Georgeanna Woolsey, 1861

The third and final installment in the Lilac Girls Trilogy (a reverse-ordered timeline series) does not disappoint as Ms. Kelly unveils the story of the beginnings of the philanthropic endeavors of the Woolsey-Ferriday women. This holds up as a stand alone and I’m sure will provide the gateway for new reader’s discovery of Lost Roses and Lilac Girls. Layered upon the backdrop of the Civil War, the voices of 3 well-researched characters, come to life, taking the reader from the brownstones of Lower Manhattan to the battlefields of Gettysburg, with richly detailed scene-stealers in between. A union nurse from a well-heeled NYC family, an enslaved young girl, and a hardened female plantation owner are at the heart of the story which details accounts of a nation going to war and the tragedies and opportunities left in its wake. The concluding Author’s Note is itself fascinating reading, and one can picture Ms. Kelly mulling over actual letters, poems, and books left behind. What ties together these accounts is the expertly crafted and highly engaging plot. I thoroughly enjoyed Sunflower Sisters and am sad to see the trilogy conclude.

Especially for readers who appreciate My Name is Mary Sutter by Robin Oliveira, The Underground Railroad by Colson Whitehead and The Invention of Wings by Sue Monk Kidd.

4 bright stars for the third and final book in the trilogy about Caroline Ferriday's family. I have read and enjoyed the 2 previous books in the series, Lilac Girls and Lost Roses This book, like the other 2 is based on real people and what they did in the US Civil War. These books can be read as stand alones. Lilac Girls takes place from WWII to the 50s. Lost Roses is set during WWI.
This book is told from the point of view of 3 characters:
Georgy, 1 of the Woolsey sisters
Jemma, a slave on a Maryland plantation
Anne-May Watson, owner of the Maryland plantation. She is a self centered cruel woman who delights in whipping her slaves, especially Jemma.
Much of this book is based upon actual letters written by the Woolsey family or to the Woolsey family.
They detail the volunteer work by several of the Woolsey sisters during the Civil War. This book is rather long, 528 pages, but it held my interest and I became invested in the characters. It took me 10 days to read it.
Two quotes:
Anne-May: "Unless it's your own, a wedding is a terrible bore. Especially a colored wedding, where they tie the bonds without even a minister present. Since they're not married in the eyes of God, they sin each time they lie together, putting their souls well on the way to hell."
(Slaves were not allowed to have ministers/judges perform weddings in the South).
Anne-May on her mother: "How flawless her skin was, even well past forty years old, from years of sleeping at night with thin cut slices of rare beef on her face."
Thank You Random House/Ballantine Books for sending me this eARC through NetGalley.
#SunflowerSisters #NetGalley
Here is my review of Lilac Girls if you want to know more about the trilogy.
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

This book brings an end to the Ferriday/Woolsley saga. It takes place mostly in Maryland, and follows Georgy, an abolitionist and nurse; Jemma, a slave girl; and Anne-May, a despicable plantation owner who you immediately despise. The horrors of this time in our history are graphically on display throughout this book. In addition to the horrors of slavery, you learn more about the lack of support for women wanting to go into the nursing profession.

The story will pull you in immediately but it’s not just another war story. This book is totally from the female perspective. As with Ms. Kelly’s previous books, Lost Roses and Lilac Girls, there is always a perspective from the other side. The flawed thinking of the plantation owners who thinks the color of a persons skin determines their worth. Or, the men, who think women are not capable of anything other than giving birth or running a household.

I’ll miss this trilogy of stories and the women we’ve met along the way. As always, please make sure you read the Author’s Note at the end!

Thanks to Ms. Hall Kelly, Random House/Ballantine Books and NetGalley for this ARC. Opinion is mine alone.

Having read both Lilac Girls and Lost Roses, and having had the chance to visit the Ferriday-Bellamy House in Connecticut, I was excited to read the next installment in this family’s history. However, though I did like this story overall, it’s my least favorite of the three. It took me almost a month to read this book because I found the beginning chapters boring and the story didn’t really pick up for me until over halfway through the book. There were too many time jumps and a lot of characters—I had trouble remembering who was who. The book is told from three perspectives, and for most of it, it felt like we were just getting snippets of those characters’ lives rather than the full story.

I enjoyed Jemma’s chapters the most. Georgy was hard to connect to and I didn’t understand her relationship with Frank at all—she would hate him in one chapter and love him in the next and I found it just annoying. Anne-May was a terrible person but I found a lot of her actions to be nonsensical. Even in the pursuit of her own selfish goals, they just didn’t make sense to me.

I will say you can tell this book was heavily researched and I appreciated the little touches of setting and historical events that impacted our characters’ lives. I enjoyed reading the author’s note at the end—it definitely adds more to the story.

I am sad to have the Ferriday family story come to a slightly disappointing end to me. I think I still liked this book and will probably buy it to complete my Lilac Girls series. But I can’t wholeheartedly recommend it.

I have had the privilege to read all three of Kelly’s books from NetGalley. In fact, one of the very first books I reviewed for NetGalley was The Lilac Girls. The Sunflower Sisters, unfortunately is the last one in this trilogy. I liked Georgy, although I did want to,shake her about Frank. I found Gemma’s story to be the most compelling. Anne-May was truly repugnant and repulsive and I disliked reading her chapters. I really enjoyed reading the author’s expansive historical note which included pictures of the Woolsey family. I have thoroughly enjoyed reading this series and am sad to see it end.

A beautifully depicted historically-based novel merging equally absorbing storylines. A real gem of a standalone book and great addition to the Lilac Girls series. The author’s vivid sense of period and place, well-written dialogue and colorful characters captivated me. I easily visualized this book as a film.

I enjoyed this third book in the lilac girls series- the characters were fascinating and the book was so well researched. My only critique is that it seemed a bit longer than it had to be.

4.5/5

When I began to read this story, I must confess my feelings were not completely favorable. I’ve read and studied the American Civil War for quite some years and was looking for something I haven’t read before. As the story unfolded, I became less frustrated and was intrigued with the author’s portrays the character’s life. Needless to say, she doesn’t hold back.

Kelly marvelously shows us multi-dimensional people of the time. Which is important to have a better sense of mindsets and not told just in the perspective of the people who oppose them. Yes, it can be a slippery slope in today’s social norms but it is extremely counterproductive when people’s voices-all around-are silenced.
I was quite impressed with the realistic imagery of the Civil War background and the author’s portrayal of the evils of slavery.

Just about every household during the Civil War lost someone they loved. Death became commonplace and with Sunflower Sisters, you experience that fact, vividly.

The Civil War still holds to this day, powerful and emotional attitudes. There was a particular scene in the story where I felt the author was bringing up a subject that many don’t speak of openly. Powerful business men in the north of that time profited from slavery. Yes, they surely did as the sun rises. Still applies today, really. Slavery is the oldest institution in the world. The author also portrays quite a few prejudices by people in the north had towards people of color.

There was a couple themes in the story that reminded me of what C.S. Harris wrote in an interview I had with her a few years back. To turn the Civil War into a morality play in which one side equals good and the other evil serves only to distort history and perpetuate the dangerous divisions that still exist in our country over 150 years later.

Bravo, Martha Hall Kelly! You have written a story that provokes discussion and clarity on this sensitive subject. Memorable characters and an unforgettable story that needed to be told.

Stephanie Hopkins

4.5 stars. Sunflower sisters is a fascinating, well researched Civil war historical novel. It seamlessly blends fact with fiction.
The novel is told from the point of view of three strong women: Georgeanna, union nurse, Jemma,an enslaved girl and Anne-may, a Maryland plantation and slave owner.
As I read, the characters and the plot came to life, like a movie in my mind’s eye. It addresses many of the conflicting issues of the day in an emotional but precise way.
A must read for historical fiction lovers. I would also recommend “The Lilac Girls “ also by Martha Hall Kelly.
Thank you NetGalley and Random House for the opportunity to read this ARC.

The third installment of the Lilac Girls series introduces us to Caroline Ferriday's ancestors during the civil war.
The story is told from three points of view: Georgy, from a wealthy New York City family who isn't interested in parties and wants to become a nurse and open a nursing school for women. Jemma, a slave living on a tobacco plantation who accidentally becomes conscripted by the US Army. Anne-May, owner of the tobacco plantation that Jemma lives on who is sharing union secrets with the confederate army in order to win the love of the town's wealthy store owner, even though her husband is currently fighting for the union army. Their lives intersect and these women will never be the same once the war has ended.

First I would like to thank the publishers and netgalley for the opportunity to read Sunflower Sisters in exchange for my honest review! I truly loved this book! I love how Kelly introduces me to women and parts of history I want to know more about! She does such a good job at developing her characters with and pulls at my heart strings. This has been one of my favorites this year and I can't wait to see what she will do next!