Member Reviews
Plenty of twists in this story of Alice, Penny and Florence. It explores true friendship, comradeship, women pulling together at a time of war.
The characters are heartwarming with their grit and resilience. A really enjoyable read and looking forward to what’s next .
Thanks to the Publisher and Netgalley for an early review copy.
I’’ve thoroughly enjoyed reading this series. Although it can be read as a standalone, I recommend reading in order as you’ll get a better understanding of characters and events.
In this book, we a taken to a new setting, Buddy, as well as meet new characters. We’ve met Alice since the first book, but we’ve not read much about how her character has grown since then.
We see her character being taken into a new direction, one which sees her grow and was interesting. Penny, one of the land girls also heads to Bude with Alice, as she feels that maybe it’s time to do something different. She’s much happier, but her life also has its ups and downs.
The guest house where Alice and Penny stay is owned by Florence, who has a little boy named Billy. Along with them, there’s US soldiers. With so much to do and cope with, Florence’s sister arrives to stay with her too.
There’s wedding bells for some of the characters, and it was nice to read about happy times, as well as what was happening in the war.
I highly recommend this book.
Thank you for the chance to read this ARC in return for my honest opinion.
It was great to reacquaint with what feels like old friends and find out more about those we have met before. However it would be possible to read this as a standalone novel. It would perhaps have better context if one had read the rest of the series.
To provide a synopsis would give too many spoilers so I will resist the urge, this is a well researched book. But there is intrigue, a view into the lives of the US Rangers, love, betrayal and weddings.
It well describes how WW2 was for those in Cornwall - as I understand it they often felt they were a forgotten part of the UK - places like Scotland would have seemed so far away from Cornwall so I can well imagine that they felt that the US had entered the War to help 'England' win.
I did feel that in parts the 'Alice' side of the story was perhaps slightly unbelievable but I have no particular knowledge of that side of War to make a proper decision.
I know that this is book 5 in the series - I am unsure if there are more to follow but this one was left that this would be possible.
This well deserves its 5 stars - an enjoyable trip back to visit 'The Cornish Girls'
Love all the books in The Cornish Girl series. Never fails to disappoint. Great characters and lovely stories. Would recommend
What a charming and heartwarming story.
Set in Cornwall during WW2 we follow the lives of Alice, Penny and Florence who do what they have to do in terms of war work, but that doesn’t mean that they can’t have fun and find unexpected romance.
A comfy, cozy saga.
This book features three young women living on coastal England. American soldiers come to train before being shipped into battle. There is a lot of information included that one might not think about when it came to England in WWII as they stood firm against Hitler. There is also thinking in the present unsure of the future.
I'd only read one of the books in this series about women on the WWII Homefront but that didn't hamper my enjoyment of this one. Walker has created multiple characters you will care about- all of them in very real situations. She's able to capture so much in this novel. Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC, I really enjoyed this.
I love this series; thank you Betty! This title was filled with lots of drama, unexpected twists and turns, sadness and happiness. It has also opened the door to lots of interesting stories still to come. Betty writes in such a way that you can picture yourself down in the West Country with the characters. I find the stories easy to read and hard to put down!
I would highly recommend this series. Thank you to Netgalley for giving me chance to preview the title.
Having thoroughly enjoyed this series, I was keen to read this new book. Each book in this series has been enjoyable, with great characters and interesting storylines and development. Whilst I don’t think you do need to read each book in order to enjoy this book, I highly recommend doing so as you will be invested in a the characters so much more,
This time we are introduced to not only a few new characters, but a new location as we head to Bude. Alice is a character we have known from book one, we have seen her grow throughout books but have never really focused on her until now. This book has been her chance to flourish and I have enjoyed the direction her character is going in, I think it will prove interesting for future books. Penny is a land girl who decides it is time to spread her wings and goes to Bude alongside Alice. I think Penny is brilliant, her time in Bude has it’s ups and downs but she is definitely happier than she was on the farm.
We meet Florence and her little billy, owner of a guest house in Bude who suddenly gets overrun with US soldiers. She has a lot to do, many things to cope with and then the added excitement of her sister turning up.
Wedding bells are rife in this book and it’s nice to have happy times as well as the typical war time issues causing mayhem and heartbreak.
A great addition to the series.
Thank you to the author and publisher for this book on NetGalley in return for my honest thoughts and review.
This series is so easy to get lost in, I enjoyed it so much that I read it in a couple of sittings.It could be read as a stand alone but I like to read a series in order to see how the characters develop and to get to know new ones as they are introduced. A well earned 5*
This book is like pulling on your favourite jumper it’s warming, comforting and you don’t want to put it down!
I read this as a stand alone as I haven’t read any of the previous Cornish Girls books and had no issues picking up the story and following the characters.
A really good uplifting novel. Yes, it’s set in of the darkest periods of our history, but the love and warmth that radiates throughout this series of novels always makes me feel good.
An excellent story, well written and love the development of the characters that Betty has written
Eagerly awaiting the next one
Brilliant book I loved relaxing reading about the girls and how they have been getting on.The story and characters go so well together and they bring the book alive for the reader.5*
I adore this series. It’s perfect as the girls continue to grow and become women. If you were wanting more in this series, then your wish has been granted…and you won’t be disappointed.
Just started reading this with my Nan (who helps me write my reviews) and we're already on chapter 12. Liking it so far. My Nan is aged 82 and loves books (where I get it from). She has recently been in a bit of a reading slump, this book has gotten her out of it...
Updated review to come shortly.
this is the 5th book in the cornish saga and it does not disappoint. Full of warmth and the loyalty of friendship comes strongly through the pages.
This book should be edited to remove the inaccurate and offensive references to ‘England’ as the country fighting the war. It refers to ‘England and her allies’, ‘England’s chances of winning the war’, ‘How can you serve England best’, and a toast to ‘England winning the war’. England was one part of the United Kingdom waging war and these references are unacceptable. Beyond that, it is another story of what people got up to during the war which is a common theme. It is an easy read but without any excitement. There are many similar wartime stories. I would not recommend it.
I love how these books just pick up right from where they left off last. Pulling into the saga new storylines plus characters. An excellent read and already looking to see how the next one is connected
Each of the books in the series picks up from where the previous one leaves off, pulling a previously minor character into the spotlight and introducing new ones. This time it is Alice, younger sister of Lily, who is central to the story and we also meet Florence and Penny.
Alice is now 18 yrs old and working in a school. When she receives papers drafting her into war work, she is both excited to be moving away from sleepy Porthcurno to the more bustling Cornish town of Bude and also terrified as the work is top secret intelligence training.
Penny is a land girl looking for a change of role, whilst Florence owns the boarding house where the two girls are staying.
The book focusses on the daily life of a Cornish village during WW2, friendships and the arrival of the American troops into the close-knit community. There is a smattering of romance but actually far less “wedding talk” than I was expecting from the title!
The whole series is easy to read, heartwarming and defiitely benefits from reading in sequence as the character develop so well throughout the series. Whilst the storyline is quite gentle and didn’t feel quite as robust as some of the others, this book is still an excellent addition to the Cornish Girls Series and ended with a promise of more to come.
Knowing that Betty Walker draws on facts to frame her stories, I looked into the history of Bude and discovered that in 1943, American troops, particularly the 2nd Battalion Rangers, did indeed descend on Bude where they used the beach & cliffs to train for D-Day.
It was lovely to catch up with the Cornish girls. As Alice and Penny head for Bude for their respective new jobs it was really good following their journeys. A bit scary though when Alice was interrogated by the American Rangers. I loved reading about the budding romance between Florence and Miles. It was such a lovely story with a happy ending. A heartwarming story about love and the Cornish girls during wartime.