Complex, unspeakably sad at times, and gripping from the first page, The Last Night in London is both entertaining and informative. This dual timeline story is told via the exquisite clothes and accessories worn by model Precious Dubose in the lead-up to World War Two. The present-day thread features journalist Maddie Warner, who has been commissioned to write a piece for English Vogue magazine about the clothes. As Maddie digs into the provenance of the garments through interviews with Precious, who is now nearly one hundred and is very frail, she unravels a mystery surrounding Precious dating back to the early war years. A secondary romantic thread involves Colin Eliot, with whom Maddie shared a strong attraction at university.
The earlier thread centres around fellow model Ethel Maltby, who has reinvented herself as Eva Harlow, only child of a Devon doctor now deceased. Her ensuing life includes falling deeply in love with Graham St John, becoming embroiled in spying and intrigue and living in fear for family, friends and herself, while outwardly living the high life in a world of glitter and glamour.
The two threads are exquisitely interwoven. The characters are strong and compelling and completely believable. This story is an emotional roller coaster of a read. It left me bawling my eyes out at one point and smiling contentedly at another. It has been an absolute joy to read.

Book blurb…
A captivating story of friendship, love and betrayal – and finding hope in the darkness of war. For fans of The Paris Seamstress and The Pearl Thief.

London, 1939. Beautiful and ambitious Eva Harlow and her American best friend, Precious Dubose, are trying to make their way as fashion models. When Eva falls in love with Graham St. John, an aristocrat and Royal Air Force pilot, she can’t believe her luck – she’s getting everything she ever wanted. Then the Blitz devastates her world, and Eva finds herself slipping into a web of intrigue, spies and secrets. As Eva struggles to protect everything she holds dear, all it takes is one unwary moment to change their lives forever.

London, 2019. American journalist Maddie Warner travels to London to interview Precious about her life in pre-WWII London. Maddie, healing from past trauma and careful to close herself off to others, finds herself drawn to both Precious and to Colin, Precious’ enigmatic surrogate nephew. As Maddie gets closer to her, she begins to unravel Precious’ haunting past – and the secrets she swore she’d never reveal …

My thoughts…
Combine romance with wartime London, insert a mystery from decades earlier, structure the plot over two time periods (and do it well - both time threads equally compelling) and you have powerful storytelling and real crowd pleaser.

I did find myself drawn to the earlier story thread. Not because one time period was better than the other. I just find the ‘older ways’ combined with the hardship of war more intriguing.

Overall the duel timeline worked well. I found Colin a little tiresome and a weak character. I also felt Maddie’s backstory was not strong enough (convincing enough) to prevent the relationship from blossoming.

All that said, it was an enjoyable, light read.

The Last Night in London was a beautiful read! The story moved along nicely and kept me interested the whole way through. I've recommended to so many people.

I had such high hopes for this one after seeing all of the positive reviews but it just wasn't for me. I usually really enjoy novels that follow multiple timelines that are interconnected in some way but the plot just didn't really captivate me this time. I think that maybe I have read a few too many books that are very similar to this in terms of the setting and the war spies plot line that, while this one was different enough to read all the way through, I'm just a bit tired of them right now.

The writing itself was great and I liked most of the characters, especially Eva. Her POVs were really well written and her character was really easy to empathise with and enjoy. I really didn't like Maddison though, she seemed very one dimensional and boring.

3/5 stars. Thank you to NetGalley and the author for this copy to review.

I absolutely love historical fiction, and The Last Night in London did not disappoint. A dual timeline story, the book alternates between London in 1939, as World War II is making its mark, and London in 2019.

In 1939, we follow Eva and Precious, who earn their living as fashion models. During a job, Eva meets the lovely Graham St. John. However, war strikes London and everything changes. Eva finds herself caught up in a web of secrets and has to do what she can to protect those she loves.

In present day, American Maddie has travelled to London to write a story about Precious and her life during the war. As she gets to know Precious, she begins to uncover some secrets - and is also challenged about how she lives her life.

I loved this book, and think White navigated the dual timeline expertly. I was immersed in World War II life and what Eva and Precious had to do, and was attached to Maddie and her self development. A must read for all lovers of historical fiction, and those wanting to give the genre a go!

Thanks to @netgalley and @simonschusterau for the arc.

Right from the prologue, I was hooked. A beautiful woman, running through war torn streets of London, with a baby in bag! Here was a mystery to unravel.

The Last Night in London is story of friendship, love and ultimately betrayal. Betray before you are betrayed! 

A dual time line story, places us in 1939 and Eva and Precious are models for a fashion design business, House of Lushtak, in London. We follow their friendship, their loves and their disrupted lives - upended by the arrival of WW2 in London. 

Eva is the mistress of reinvention...from a poor upbringing, to a fashion model, then underworld patsy drawn into secrets and intrigue of Czech spies operating in London.  

Finally, the deepest reinvention of all, sending the ripples of repercussion down through generations to come, and providing us with the mystery of the book.

The present day timeline brings Madison, a journalist from the USA to write a story about the fashion of the pre WW2 era, crossing over to true life stories of Precious living in that time. Handbags, dresses, books, photos and Precious's memories .....which she is very protective of...slowly reveal the connections between herself, Eva and Graham and the modern day character/love interest Colin.

I loved the historical fiction and mystery themes of The Last Night in London. I found the end dragged on....I wasn't there for the modern day romance....I was there for the historical fiction element. 

Thanks to Netgalley, Simon & Schuster Australia and Karen White for providing an ARC to review. My opinions are my own.

Very much enjoyed this dual timeline story of two women from very different backgrounds who become friends when they both work as models in 1939. Their stories and the secrets and mysteries that surround them intrigue Maddy, a journalist who comes to London to interview one of them, now 99. Beautifully structured and rather different from Karen White's other novels, but written in her attractive and easy-to-enjoy style.

3.25☆

What starts out as an interview for a fashion article on clothing during the war, Maddie soon finds herself turned detective to uncover the truth behind family and friendship in WWII.

A charming, and slow-burn story about the past lives of two friends, one man, and a war that threatens their lives, loves, and their friendship. In the present and intertwined story of the two friends, Precious and Eva, Maddie throws herself into the mystery of the two close friends and their lives during and after the war.

“The Last Night In London” uses the familiar structure of two entwined story lines, one in the past and one in the present. I didn’t find it engrossing, instead rather average, but I can picture other readers finding it a stronger novel.

In the present (2019), Maddie is an American freelance journalist. Hailing from the American south, she went to university in England, and has since made her home in New York. Her university friend Arabella has invited her to write an article for Vogue, designed to accompany an exhibition. Arabella’s relative, Precious, is nearly 100 years old. A former model, she has an extensive collection of clothes. Arabella proposes to use some of these to explore women’s lives during World War II.

As Maddie begins to interview Precious to discover the stories behind specific outfits, she begins to hear about Precious’ friend Eva, never seen or heard of since the war. She determines to find Eva – or at least, find out what happened to her.

Beginning in the pre-war years, alternate chapters tell Eva’s story from her point of view. We learn of her passions and desires, and also the troubles she stumbles into.

In the end, I think it was an accumulation of small things that made this novel uninteresting to me. My primary problem was that Eva is really rather stupid, and I found it hard to maintain my sympathy for her. To be truly engaged with this novel, you need to care what happens to Eva. While I could see some of her initial problems arising from naivete, in the end she simply seemed stupid, venal, and not a particularly attractive character overall.

In another place, White uses a trope that I dislike (I can’t tell you what without planting a massive spoiler). The revelation towards the end of the novel is an idea that’s been used by many many authors before; it left me feeling that this was somewhat unoriginal. And although this novel is meticulously researched, this has led to the use of anecdotes that I’ve seen referenced in other works of fiction (such as the decapitated bandleader), making the novel feel familiar in an unfortunate way.

None of these things by themselves really crippled the novel. Indeed, some readers won’t share my feelings that too many elements are familiar from other novels. Many will see Eva’s stupidity as purely naivete, and will have more sympathy for her. But for me they all added up to a novel that simply failed to fully engage me.
In fact, a lot of readers will enjoy this. It’s well written, carefully structured, and the plot is well thought through. If you like Eva then you’re likely to enjoy the entire novel.

Apart from my dislike of Eva, the characters were an interesting and believable lot. Precious, old and her beauty fading, but still vain and with a commanding presence. Maddie, scarred by early losses and afraid to open herself to others. Arabella, curious and pushy but so well meaning. Colin, reserved but open hearted, pining for Maddie since their university days. Graham, lovable but bound by the conventions of his time. Alexander, always with an ulterior motive.

All of these people have a role to play in Eva’s story, both as it happens and as it’s unfolded decades later. Most are empathetic, and most readers will engage with one or more of them. Many readers will come to care as much about Maddie’s story as about Eva’s.

So, while this wasn’t a novel I enjoyed a great deal, that’s because of my dislike of Eva and a number of smaller issues. Many potential readers will disagree with my reaction to Eva, and many won’t be bothered by the smaller issues that niggled me. As a consequence, I can safely say that many readers of historical fiction will enjoy this.

Another wartime novel, historical fiction and something I always love reading. It is a history lesson but not as we know it from our childhood days at school.

London 1939, a story of friendship, love and betrayal, a story hope amongst the darkness and pain of war. London 2019, an American journalist uncovers past secrets but truly has her own demons to contend with as well.

This is a story which spans time, weaves people together over this span of time and brings a bit of mystery into play. It is a good story, a bit too long for me as it didn't all together hold my attention but I did enjoy it.

‘Being brave isn’t the same as not being frightened. Being brave is feeling frightened and still doing what needs to be done’

Historical fiction which flutters between two time periods in the case late 1930s to early 1940s and 2019 is my absolute favourite kind of fiction.

This book was very well written entwining the World War 2 stories of Ethel Maltby and Precious Dubose who were models pre war and the present day story of Maddie a freelance writer who visits London to write a story about Precious and the amazing fashion of the era.

The characters of the 1940s story were genuine and will stay with me long after the last page was read.

The story of Maddie and Colin, I didn’t find as strong. That said I will be looking into picking up the other books from the series .

I don't think I have ever read a Karen White book that I haven't adored, and The Last Night in London is no exception.

I’m not frightened.” Mr. Danek’s eyes darkened. “You should be. Being brave isn’t the same as not being frightened. Being brave is feeling frightened and still doing what needs to be done.”

I have to state it from the outset, this book was amazing! From the gripping prologue I simply could not put it down and lost myself in a complete other world. If historical fiction is your thing - particularly WWII - then stop right now and go get yourself a copy. Two equally compelling storylines, two friends in war-torn London whose secrets will impact upon those in years to come - this is a story that had it all!

‘She looked past me, and in her eyes, I imagined I saw the reflection of airplanes in a night sky, of flames bursting through windows.’

This would be one of the best dual time narratives I have read - whether I was dressing for a night out in London with bombs reigning down, or sifting through old photos in search for a clue - I was there breathing in the smoky room or smelling the nostalgia literally leaping off the old black and white photos. The delicate and clever links from one timeline to the next were subtle and intuitive. The mystery - whether it be in 1940 or 1919 was there and little ‘crumbs’ dropped along the way only encouraged you to not put the book down as the drama played out and I audibly would gasp as I felt my heart constrict knowing this was how things would possibly play out.

“That’s the point of photographs, isn’t it, Maddie? To choose which parts of our lives we want to remember?”

The characters (....pause....sigh....) well, I just felt so much for so many of them. Karen’s writing is so rich that I found myself either tearing up as tragedies unfolded or alternatively, smiling at the romantic banter and consequent tension between would-be lovers. There will be secrets, there will be betrayals, there will be love and there will be absolute heartache. The stories from either life in the South (Georgia USA) or during the blitz in London were informative and engaging - particularly the latter. The old fashion house of London and those that worked there were iconic on so many levels.

‘A life without rain is like the sun without shade.’

I consider myself a connoisseur of this time period having read so many books and this one is up there with the best of them. Karen brings to life so many places, people and problems that I was running to air raid shelters or sipping whiskey late at night in quiet contemplation. I simply could not get enough of these people and their story. You will have all the feels and I cannot recommend it highly enough.

“In case I forgot what?” He glanced down ... “Reinvention.” He lifted his head, met my gaze. “How life is all about reinvention. If you don’t like how your story’s being written, rewrite the ending.”





This review is based on a complimentary copy from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. The quoted material may have changed in the final release.

From 1939 to 2019... The Last Night in London is an enthralling dual time line story - set between Wartime London and the present day and featuring close friends, Precious Dubose and Eva Harlow, trying to live the best lives they can while surviving the Blitz and modelling fashion garments in a city which increasingly needs the distraction of night life and high glamor to keep the reality of nightly death at bay.
Precious is still alive, as imperious, mysterious and style conscious as ever, when a young American photojournalist Maddie Warner, arrives to research and mount a Museum show on Wartime fashion.
The secrets and vulnerabilities the two women share, though separated by many decades in age, soon create tensions that must end in personal revelations neither welcomes.
Karen White has made her name as a skilled and popular author of "grit lit" - Southern state mysteries like the Tradd Street series set in South Carolina. This is her first foray into World War II London but she creates an illuminating world where Londoners smile and dance the night away as the sky rains fire and betrayal in the night clubs is as common as street debris.
Maddie is a character from White's earlier stand alone novels set in Georgia - Falling Home and After The Rain. An adolescent in those stories, she has now matured but carries the emotional scars from childhood. Maddie's continuing story was a response to reader requests and its easy to understand why.
Karen White had a deft touch for scoping the passion and jealousies, the insecurities and longing of family intimacy and touching souls in ways we can all relate to.
I was drawn so much by The Last Night in London that I ventured back into the earlier books to fill out Maddie Warner's childhood story.
Sympathetic, colorful, tragic and touching by turns, The Last Night In London does what all great stories should - helps us understand ourselves and our loved ones a little better than before.

Told in a duel timeline this story is about Precious Dubose and her life in London during WW2. We are transported back during her interviews with Journalist Maddie Warner in 2019.

I really wanted to love this, Unfortunately Madison is not a very likeable character and it really made reading a bit hard.

The Last Night in London by Karen White tells a very poignant story of two women during World War 11 in London, as well as a 2019 link with one o the women. It is one of the best dual time lines that I have read, it goes together so seamlessly.

The story has mystery - what happened back in those early war times. What happened to some of the people who seem to have been wiped from the face of the earth. And in 2019 Cassie seems to be hiding something, there is an air of mystery to her as well. It wasn't until I had finished this book that I discovered Cassie had been a part of two previous books, and I had read the first one. I intend going back and reading that, then the second and then this one again! This one is a standalone book, but will be the richer for reading the three I do believe!

For readers who are fascinated by the fashion industry back just before the war and on into it. And if you love old houses and London that will help too. As the story develops, the clues emerge slowly. There are a couple of twists that make this so worth hanging in with.

The characters are well developed and I really felt for them. I felt saddened by some of the war events, and chuckled at some of the gentle humour at other times. There are secrets, some betrayal, love that endures and heartbreak. Well really this book has so much to offer.

Thank you for the opportunity to read an ARC of this enjoyable novel.

I enjoyed the dual timeline aspect of this novel. The story is set in the present day where Precious Dubose, aged 99, is recounting her life as a model in London in the late 1930s. Her extensive wardrobe of vintage dresses is being exhibited and Maddie is writing an article about her life for Vogue.

At the same time, we hear the story of Precious and her best friend Eva, from the first rumblings of war in 1939 through to the Blitz, which changed so many lives forever.

The story was engaging and believable, with little hints about the mystery that allow the reader to slowly piece things together. I found the historical timeline to be a bit dry, and at times the story really lagged and I found it difficult to keep interested. But the the present-day timeline was much more absorbing and as the story progressed the pace really picked up.

My one gripe about the writing is the use of authentic language. The historical timeline is told in the main part from the point of view of Eva Harlow, born and bred in the UK. Yet words such as "sidewalk" and "gasoline" (among others) were used when Eva would have used "pavement" and "petrol". Not all readers will be American and some of us really appreciate authenticity in the language used.

Overall, good writing, interesting characters, a plausible mystery, a decent amount of tension and a nice little romance make for a satisfying read.

I wanted to love this book, as the WWII era is one of my favs in books and films, but the style of this story wasn't for me. I enjoyed the sections of the book set in 1939 far more than the modern era, and I couldn't connect with most of the characters. I'm afraid the twist was easy for me to guess, too. Still, I'd read more of the authors' work in future if the plot grabbed me.

What a beautiful book! Karen White has just joined my list of favourite authors.

“The Last Night in London” captivates you from page 1. Encompassing 2 timelines, this book does the dual timeline style much better than many others I have read - you can’t wait to see the progression of the alternate storyline as it relates to the one you are currently reading.

“The Last Night in London” is full of heart - in both war-ravaged 1939 and in the present day, we are treated to a delightful mix of mystery, intrigue and enduring friendships, sprinkled of course with the pain and joy of a love story entwined through both storylines.

I so enjoyed this book, it was one I can truly say I was sad when I finished it - I am very much looking forward to reading more from Karen White’s library. Many thanks to Simon & Schuster/Netgalley for an advanced digital copy of this book.

At times a fascinating glimpse into the glamourous world of pre-war London, at times a deeply uninteresting story of a self-absorbed young woman, The Last Night in London is a mixed bag.
On paper, it sounds like a winner: glitz and glamour, English aristocracy, World War 2, espionage... The makings of a rip-roaring story are all there and the characters of Precious and Eva make for a fascinating start However, the narrative moves between Precious and Eva in wartime London and the insufferable Madison in the present day. T=It's these present-day sections that fall flat with un unlikeable main character and an unconvincing (and potentially incestuous?) love story that feels forced.
Ultimately, it's a good book - it's interesting, it's readable and there's enough going on to keep your attention throughout, but it could have been so much more.