I've been enjoying stories about nurses lately and this one fit right in!

Hazel travels to Spain to see her father for Christmas, but the civil war has other plans for her. A train accident results in many wounded, but she's unsure of her skills as a nurse trainee and fears the panic attacks she's prone to. When her companions are taken to the Red Cross hospital, she works alongside the team to help provide care.

Dr Jackson, at first hesitant, sees her value and ability to learn, while also growing to admire her character and perseverance. The civil war gets too close for comfort, which will test them and their growing relationship.

This is the third book in the Blue Orchid Society series, I haven't read the first two and didn't find that to be a problem. I really enjoyed this one, I think you will too!

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for the ARC and for the opportunity to post an honest review.

Set in 1873 Hazel Thornton leaves London to travel to Spain to visit her father for Christmas. Once in Spain her train is derailed as part of the ongoing civil war. Hazel has had some nurse training and immediately helps those in need. The Red Cross arrives and takes the injured back to their hospital. Her traveling companion is injured and so to stay with her she pitches in with her nursing skills in exchange for being able to stay. There she meets har working Dr. Jim Jackson, an American who gained his skills during the US Civil War.

For me the more interesting part was learning of about the Carlist Wars and the setting be a medical hospital. Much of the book is focused on the various patients and medical treatments available as they come for care. I like Hazel and her friend group that sent her off with gifts that she uses for others during her time there. The romance to me was proper and predictable. It was my second grumpy vs. sunshine troupe in two days. Jim and Hazel do get to know each other during their time together but there is no romancing. I will remember the new history I learned more than the romance.

This is a clean Victorian historical romance and appropriate for any age. Thank you to NetGalley and Covenant Communications for an eARC in exchange for an honest review. (3.5 stars)

A book blending dreams and war for a wonderful story
This book tells the story of a woman struggling with her inability to reach her dreams, of becoming a nurse, who suddenly finds herself thrown into the middle of a war in Spain. Hazel has always dreamed of being a nurse but panic attacks, a remnant of her past, keep her from being able to attend classes in smaller classrooms stopping her completion. On her way to meet her father for Christmas, the train she is on is attacked and derailed injuring many passengers. Being the only one with the training needed to help the injured, Hazel quickly sets about aiding everyone she could help. When the Red Cross arrives on the scene, Dr. Jim Jackson sees Hazel moving among the wounded dressed in her traveling clothes and assumes she is just a bored debutante and wants her out of his way. When he sees her work with the injured, he begins to understand that she does have some skills and the pressures of the war soon lead him to accept her as someone he could work with as he frantically works to save others. To him each of the injured is a chance to redeem himself from his past. Although this book covers heavy topics, it is done in such a way that it does not become morose or terribly dark. A good read. Thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for the copy. This is my review and all thoughts are my own.

In Victorian England, a quite divergent group of ladies has formed The Blue Orchid Society. This intelligent set of young women forge their individual paths, while supporting and encouraging one another.

The action of this mostly serious novel takes place primarily in Spain. Here, Jennifer Moore tackles a variety of weighty subjects, from civil war and the dedication of the International Red Cross to lovely heroine Hazel Thornton's eventual healing.

Rich in historical detail, "Healing Hazel" features well-drawn characters, including secondary ones. The effects of war, medical treatment, and the lingering effects of trauma are explored. Compassionate physician Jim Jackson is a wonderful hero, and Hazel a deserving heroine. As always, Moore's prose is evocative and clean with few grammatical errors. Aside from the prequel novella "Emmeline", this book is the third in a series. It does stand alone; however, I have read the previous two installments, and the initial, albeit unintentional meeting of five independent females is described in both. I look forward to the next book.

Thanks to NetGalley and Covenant Communications for an ARC of this enjoyable novel.

I found the writing to be somewhat simplistic, without giving much depth to the characters. Hazel is a young woman who has difficulty functioning in crowds which prevented her from completing her nursing degree. She and her chaperone are caught in a train wreck in Spain and she helps out at the hospital, using what medical knowledge she has as well as gaining the respect and regard of an irascible young doctor there. There's no real romance, just the mention of feelings that have developed between them. Most of the book is a description of all the injured passing through the hospital and Hazel's role in helping out. I found her character to be sweet to the point of saccharine and the story reads like a Victorian novel. Not my cup of tea.

A very enjoyable book from the pen of Ms Moore. This is my first read from this author and I thoroughly enjoyed it. Actually read it in a day! The story of Hazel who harbours a wish to be a nurse and Dr. Jim Jackson who is battling his inner demons by throwing himself into war torn Spain is both historically interesting and sweetly romantic. This book is an interesting take on similar romances of this period as it carries a message of women escaping the yoke of their menfolk and making their own choices. There is no suggestion of suffrage but it paints an illuminating picture of women asserting themselves. My grateful thanks to Netgalley, the publishers and Jennifer Moore for an ARC of this splendid read. Well done.

I've always been a fan of Jennifer Moore books. There's a nice bit of sweet romance mixed in with a good history lesson. My two favorite things in a story! This was one was no different. Hazel was gentle and brave. Jim was intelligent and hard-working. It was the perfect escape and I read it in under 24 hours. I loved that there was some added depth to the story. The well-portrayed historical events and the trials the characters faced definitely made it more profound than your typical romances.

I couldn't put this one down! I read it in one sitting! There was so much I enjoyed about this story! I loved all of the medical aspects of this story! Jennifer does a fantastic job weaving accurate historical facts into her sweet romance stories!

I received an ARC through Netgalley and all opinions are my own.

This book was great! Easy to read! Really good, easy to follow story line! Great characters! Definitely worth reading!.

#healinghazel #netgalley

This was a great story to read. I loved the storyline and the characters, definitely recommend this book!

I love love love these books, each one explores new areas that women had to break into and overcome obstacles to earn their place in. I love how these women support and help each other. Their individual personalities and gifts and talents are shown with their struggles and weaknesses that make them real. You want to cheer for them as you cry with them and hope with them and go on their journeys with them. This book was set in a medical setting and truly showed the struggles of the time period. It also touched on the struggles those in the military and their families deal with. Highly recommend this and all the books in this series and by this writer

Hazel sets out to spend Christmas with her father, but things go awry travelling through Spain, testing her as a person, forcing her to confront her anxieties and tossing her in the path of a handsome doctor. This book was pretty unexpected. Often with regency or victorian era historical romance, it's full of froth and frill, a bit of silliness. This book is not that. Circumstances throw Hazel in the midst of armed conflict, her nursing skills are needed, her self doubts and past traumas are relived. Yet, Jennifer Moore is an adept writer and it never feels like too much, there's still joy and light in this book, and it's refreshing to read something in this genre that is of a serious nature. I felt the romance and storyline were well balanced, and though this is dual pov, to me this is really Hazel's story. Eagerly looking forward to book #4! Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for an ARC for review, all opinions are my own.