I've not read anything by the author but was intrigued by a WWII book set in Scotland.

Dot and her sister Con live on an island with a mystical reputation, isolated from the nearby village. One day an Italian POW camp is created on the island and their world changes. Dot decides to help at the infirmary and meets Ceasar, a talented artist. They fall for each other, complicating things and the sisters have to decide how to move forward in their life, and be safe.

I really loved the scenery of it all. The island felt very real, almost like its own character in the story. Dot and Con were very much real in a way too. They had their own separate personalities, but also had an unbinding love and care for one another.

I found it interesting to see how the village nearby shunned them over someone who was violent and obviously a shit ; everyone knew it.

Overall, this was a fairly interesting tale of WWII that had its own mark in the genre.

Thank you for the ARC.

The Metal Heart is a unique blend of war, art, history, action, and romance. Set in Scotland’s lesser-known Orkney Islands during World War II, the novel captivated me with its exploration of the Italian Chapel, a fascinating historical site. Among the POWs was Domenico Chiocchetti an artist who was tasked with transforming two Nissen huts into a chapel (you can learn more about the chapel at https://www.orkney.com/listings/the-italian-chapel).

While the book’s pacing was slow in parts because of excessive philosophizing, overall, it was an engaging read. Some UK reviewers claim the book is historically inaccurate, but in my case, ignorance is bliss. Overall, The Metal Heart is a poignant novel of love, jealousy, and conscience, and I enjoyed it. 3.5 stars rounded up to 4.

** Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for a complimentary review copy of the novel. The opinions are my own.

I found this book to be too far fetched just in the way the women are living in some leaky shack off the coast of some desolate island. The hypothermia alone! There might have been a reason but I can't even remember what it was as the characters just didn't interest me. It took way too long to get to the main event of the book and I couldn't finish it.

This lovely story takes place on a small island and centers on two sisters. The love they have for each other and dependence on each other guide their daily lives but lead to conflict and tragedy once Italian prisoners are brought to their island. The eldest sister has different priorities than the youngest, and seems to better understand the precariousness of their situation. Despite their best intentions, impulsive actions result in great tragedy. I read this book in a day and couldn't wait to see what happened.

I loved the raw feeling of this book. I cannot imagine what the sisters endured, but I know that Caroline Lea did an excellent job giving me an idea. I kept turning page after page until I met the end - well done!

Once again I have found a novel based in World War 2, and it is different! I have read many WW2 books but they all seem to be very similar, so when I find one that is different or told from a different point of view, I get excited!!

Con (Constance) and Dot (Dorothy) are twin sisters who live on a Scottish island. Con and Dot are still mourning the loss of their parents and Con is suffering from something deeper, which we don't find out about that until later on into the story. Both of these things affect the sisters deeply and make it hard for them to trust others.

The sisters are living alone on an island when after the allies won North Africa the Italian prisoners of war are brought to the island to help build barriers between the islands so they can keep Germany out. The prisoners not only build the barriers but are allowed to build a church from leftover scrap metal and concrete.

There are a lot of undercurrents in this book that aren't just in the water. Secrets between sisters that threaten to damage their relationship. But ultimately this story is about love and humanity and how we treat one another. I thoroughly enjoyed this book!! 3.5⭐

Thank you to Netgalley, Harper Perennial and Caroline Lea for my gifted copies in exchange for my honest review.

Based on historical fact--during WWII, Italian POWs were sent to Scotland, The Metal Heart depicts the story of a group of Italian soldiers sent to the Orkney Islands, and in particular, how the lives of two sisters who volunteer to look after and nurse the cold and sick soldiers, are irreparably changed.

I read a lot of WWII fiction and am always amazed to read about the results of the war in areas that I've never read about. This novel is based on the real events of a chapel being built on a remote Scottish Island by Italian prisoners of war.

Dorothy and Constance are twin sisters and live alone on a small island. They are dealing with their parents' deaths and have no desire to go back to the mainland and back into the small society there. After the Allies win back North Africa, there are many Italian soldiers taken captive. 500 of these prisoners were sent to a small island in Scotland to help build barriers to keep the German navy away from Great Britain. The town is divided by the plan - they've been worried about an invasion for over three years and are fearful of the prisoners and don't want them there. Dorothy and Constance don't see them as the enemy but see them as wounded soldiers who need nursing and they both decide to help. Dorothy finds herself falling in love with one of the men who was more of a painter and poet than a soldier. Constance isn't happy with the relationship because it threatens the bond between the two sisters plus she is worried about her sister's potential heartbreak when the war is over. What will be the fate of the sisters and Dorothy's love at the end of the war?

This book is so much more than a love story between two people. It's also a love story about the beautiful islands. The author's descriptions of the beauty of the island make me want to book a trip to Scotland. This is a story of love and war, the bond between sisters and finding happiness in the midst of war. This emotional and heartbreaking story is one I won't forget.

Thanks to the publisher for a copy of this book to read and review. All opinions are my own.

The Metal Heart by @carolineleawriter is a beautiful book set in the Orkney Islands in northern Scotland during World War II. Twin sisters Dot & Con decide to stay on their tiny island after their parents disappeared during a storm instead of the larger island. Scapa Flow was the base for a lot of the British fleet in WWII and when a ship was blown up by a German submarine they decide to better fortify the port. Italian POWs are brought to the Orkneys and their camp is in Dot & Con's island. How will their lives change? The story is told through their viewpoint as well as Cesare, one of the Italians.

I've wanted to visit the Orkney Islands for a few years now and one day I'll get to go see this beautiful church the Italian POWs made.Loved both of the historical notes, the one at the beginning letting you know this is based on real life but is fictional and the end one which goes into a lot more detail on what was fictionalized.

The mix of Scottish folktales and the Orkney descriptions are so well done and the location was such a big part of this book. This was a beautifully written book about love, sisters, war, and life.

Twins Dorothy and Constance have had their share of tragedy. They’ve grown up on the Orkney Islands surrounded by stories of mythic beasts and selkies. Their parents left in stormy weather by boat to seek medical care for their mother and never returned. After Constance experiences a sexual assault at the hands of a childhood friend, the twins sell their home and move to an abandoned falling down hut on one of the uninhabited islands that is haunted by legends. When the island is turned into a POW camp, they can no longer stay hidden away. As the twins begin to work in the hospital helping the prisoners, will Constance be able to trust men again? Will Dorothy stay true to Constance as she develops a relationship with Cesare ?

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the chance to read this arc in exchange for an honest review. This was an entertaining read about a part of the war that I knew nothing about.

This book was a solid historical romance and moved along nicely keeping me engaged, and used little known history to craft a setting and characters forged by that setting and the war to tell a story of two characters from opposite sides of the conflict. I found some aspects harder to believe such as the relative freedom of some of the Italian POWs but this was the time of my parents, not my own so it is possible that such trust did exist for these POWs. I also was challenged by the brutality of one of the central characters, yet our own times tell us such men do exist, and their cruelty is very real. All in all, this was a refreshing change of pace in this genre of books and I would recommend it to other women who enjoy tales from this time period.

I enjoyed this fresh take on the WWII era. The writing was like reading folklore, which sometimes had the plot and message getting lost to me, but others seemed to really enjoying this style. Although this is advertised as including prisoners in the storyline we didn’t get much of the actual prison experience. I wanted to read about the emotional impact being in this prison and finishing the chapel had! That would have really made this book soar for me. Overall, I think many will really enjoy this novel and fall in love with this Scottish Island and it’s inhabitants.

I found this book slow to start but interesting. The author has a specific style. I found the island and the history intriguing along with the sister relationships and the romance.

Set in the Orkney Islands, Carolina Lea’s latest historical fiction, The Metal Heart, tells the little known story of the Italian POWs sent there to build barriers among the islands to prevent Nazi attacks. Twins Dot and Con escape from Kirkland to hide from the devastating loss of their parents and an impending threat to life of one of the twins. Already a place of mystery because of the World War I scuttling of dozens of German ships, the residence of the twins causes even more rumors to swirl. Barely surviving, the twins are drawn into the lives of the POWs and their guards.

"Back home in Italy, churches may be collapsing, the land may be burning, but here, in this desolate corner of the earth, they have made something sacred."

THE METAL HEART tells the story of a group of Italian prisoners that are sent to Scotland during WWII to build a barrier between the Orkney Islands, preventing German U-boats from attacking the British fleet moored there. Choosing to forego their home on the larger island due to a trauma that Con endured, the prisoners' presence on Selkie Holm is met with differing emotions by the Reid twins, the sole inhabitants of the island prior to the Italians arrival. For Con, any illusion of safety she felt has been shattered, and for Dot, a promising romance blooms between her and one of the prisoners, Cesare. As tensions increase between the locals and the prisoners, an agreement is forged, allowing the Italians to build a chapel as an offer of goodwill. One night, a shocking event occurs, threatening to destroy the the tenuous peace the sisters have found.

From moment that I read the synopsis, I knew that I wanted to read Lea's upcoming novel, THE METAL HEART. Much of WWII fiction takes place in France, England, Poland, or Germany, and I was intrigued by the fresh take the book offered. Set in the remote Orkney Islands and steeped in folklore, the beautiful, poetic prose made it easy to feel as though I was there. At times, though, the descriptive nature felt heavy and cumbersome to wade through, but the style of writing became lighter as the novel progressed.

"I shake my head, brushing her hands away and stare at the flaming ship in the middle of the bay. Smoke plumes upwards and, in the orange glow, I can see bodies writhing. From this distance, they might be dancing."

In the author's note, Lea states that she intentionally fictionalized certain historical aspects of the novel, including timing itself. I can see how genre purists would find this as a detractor from the overall story. However, this did not impact my reading experience, and I loved the correlation drawn between then and now, and the way we are "transformed as a result of circumstances beyond [our] control".

I do wish that greater emphasis would have been placed upon the prisoner's experiences, particularly the emotional impact of the chapel upon its completion, rather than the alternative storyline with Angus. Also, I felt that there was minimal tension and build to Dot and Cesare's romance, and for that reason, I personally struggled to become invested in it. Furthermore, there were several events that felt like a stretch, and I had a hard time believing some of the outcomes.

Overall, I enjoyed THE METAL HEART and my reading progress never felt forced. Thank you, Harper Perennial, for the early copy in exchange for an honest review! All opinions are my own.

Thank you to NetGalley and Harper Collins publishing for the early advance copy of this book in return for an honest review. I had some mixed feelings about the book but looking back at the whole of the book, I appreciate it more. In the midst of the book it felt a little drawn out and tiresome with the constant retelling of the incident involving Con, but overall, I enjoyed the book. It took me to another time and place steeped in superstition and stories of the sea. It was a love story at its core but not just between two characters but the love of country and faith. These prisoners of war found solace and peace in building their chapel and the faith that life would continue and they would make it home again one day. It was a love story between two sisters, twins, who would do anything for the other even if it meant giving their life. It’s a story of struggle, pain, war, rebuilding, loss, and love. The story brings a wonderful perspective of how would you survive war and trauma. Would you dig deep and lean on those you care for, would you build something for everyone to inspire peace and grounding, or would you give your life for those you love. I appreciated the thought, research, and care the author put into the book. I enjoyed the author’s note at the end that explained more about the historical events the book was based on and have definitely added the chapel to my bucket list of places to visit someday.