Kristin Hannah returns with the tour de force that is The Women. The novel opens as twenty-year old Frankie McGrath makes the decision to follow her beloved brother to Vietnam. We follow Frankie through her journey and her time spent in-country. Hannah's sense of place and attention to detail in her stories are unrivaled. Frankie's heartbreaking journey home and recovery from the tragedies of war is a story that needs to be told more often. Prior to reading The Women, I had only a basic knowledge of the Vietnam War, and never really thought about the women who served there. These unsung heroes really deserved to be talked about, and Hannah is taking us to task. The Women is a saga that will sweep you in, and refuse to release you. Cheers to Kristin Hannah for another masterpiece. I look forward to the movie.

Ok, now this is. more like what I love about Kristin Hannah. The four winds left me wanting more, and thank you for delivering Kristin. Frankie and the other women in this book will forever be in my heart.

I knew this book would be emotional but I didn’t KNOW. Every possible horrible thing that can happen, happened. This story is complete emotional destruction and many aspects broke my heart.

Each historical fiction by Kristin Hannah that I read, provides so much insight into the era explored and makes me feel like I was there.

Many parts of this story made me ashamed of our country and how things were handled. It reminded me of how, even today, we treat people terribly and forget their humanity when we don’t agree on something.

I recommend this book IF you’re looking for a completely raw and transparent account of life as a combat nurse during war and returning home, AND are prepared to bawl your eyes out. It is very traumatic and has a significant list of trigger warnings.

I read this through a combination of physical and audio formats. Julia Whelan was PHENOMENAL in this performance and I cannot imagine how it could’ve been read better. Highly, highly recommend the audio.

Perfect for you if you like:
Raw retelling of war
Historical fiction that FEELS REAL
Complete and utter emotional destruction
Facing terrible parts of our country’s history

I absolutely loved this novel. The Vietnam war is not one that I've ever read a historical fiction book about. I found the whole thing very interesting and sad.

If you're old enough to remember China Beach on TV in the late 80's, this book will feel very familiar. Some of the plot points are even the same. It is the story of American nurses who served during the Viet Nam war and what it was like for one of them, Frankie, to come home.

The first half of the book mostly took place in Viet Nam and that part was good (I liked China Beach, too), and gory and harrowing. Frankie enlists with the Army because all of the other military branches wouldn't take on such an inexperienced nurse. She learns the ropes literally under fire. She forms friendships with some of the other nurses. There was romance. And there was a lot of tears.

The second half is Frankie's return to civilian life and the struggles there. I was irritated by her privilege, and the love story was meh.

I really enjoy this author's recent work and hope she can write another winner (for me...I see LOTS of 5-star reviews, so someone's happy!).

My thanks to NetGalley and St. Martins Press for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Frankie loved looking at her fathers Wall of Heroes. Pictures of the men in her family who served their Country, soon Frankie's brothers picture will be up there as well.
As Frankie's family prepares for her brothers deployment a single sentence said to Frankie will change the course of her life.
"Women can be Heroes"
With this in mind Frankie enlists, joining the Army Nurse Corp, determined to make it onto her Fathers Wall of Heroes.

I have been trying to write this review for almost a month now.
I love Kristin Hannah, she is probably my favourite female author, a definite auto buy author, I recommend her books like I'm getting paid for it. Yet somehow this book caught me off guard.
It burrowed under my skin and has been living there for the past three weeks. 
I loved this book, I am already predicting that this will be my favourite read of 2024.

This was my very first Kristin Hannah book
But it will not be the last. I am fascinated by the Vietnam War era and I thought telling the story from the perspective of the women was brilliant. The story was heartbreaking and felt very true to an important time in our history. This is a must read.

I laughed. I cried. I felt every emotion. Every Kristen Hannah book I read- I say "this is my favorite". I think this one will be hard to beat. It is an eye opening novel about Vietnam war, and the war the soldiers- specifically the NCA nurses- endured when coming home. Even the battle they went through in day to day life in country.

This one is quick paced. You won't be able to put it down once you start.

Heartbreaking, raw and beautiful. Hannah delivers a poignant narrative that explores the forgotten women and soldiers of the Vietnam War, skillfully weaving a tale that is both beautiful and heartbreaking. This raw account takes readers on a journey to uncomfortable yet necessary places, delving deep into the scars left by war and the challenging path to healing.

Through her storytelling, Hannah sheds light on the harsh realities of war and the struggles of those who return to a world that often fails to recognize or understand their sacrifices. The narrative is a powerful reminder of the resilience of the human spirit and the enduring impact of war on individuals and societies.

One of the most compelling aspects of the book is Hannah's ability to portray the complexities of reconciliation. She skillfully navigates the nuances of returning to a life that has moved on, showing the often-painful process of trying to find one's place in a world that has changed.

My new favorite Kristin Hannah novel, and that's saying something considering how much I adored THE GREAT ALONE! Kristin just has this way of drawing you in. This book was so unique to me, I've never read from this perspective before of a woman in Vietnam - especially since history tells us there were NO women in Vietnam. It also speaks to how we treat veterans, women, and nurses in particular, when it comes to PTSD, and the lack of value in their health. I truly loved this book!

When 20 year old Frances "Frankie" McGrath hears someone say "Women can be heroes," it was a like a lightbulb went on inside. In hopes of joining the wall of hero photos in her dad's study, she decides to take her nursing skills to Vietnam as part of the Army Nurse Corps. What she endures while she is there, combined with forging lifelong friendships as well as some love interests, forever changes the course of her life. The Women delves deep into the battlefields of Vietnam while also chronicling Frankie's return home and the years of adjustment that followed.

Truly immersive and so well written, The Women is an outstanding book of historical fiction. It sheds light on a unique time in our history and also the amazing service of those who served in the Vietnam War, nurses and soldiers alike. This story will stay with me for some time and I am thankful to have read it.

I received this book courtesy of the publisher through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Twenty-year-old Frances (Frankie) McGrath is a nursing student in Southern California in 1965 when her bother is sent to serve in Vietnam. Feeling that she needs to do something for the war effort and also because she wants to support her brother, Frankie joins the Army Nurse Corps.

After her training she is sent to Vietnam. Following her arrival, Frankie is overwhelmed everyday by the life and death situations into which she has been sent. The daily living conditions are barely tolerable and as she serves beside the soldiers she nurses, she is in constant danger of being injured or of being killed by enemy fire.

In spite of the undesirable circumstances, heartaches, constant everyday struggles, she heals soldiers, forms friendships, and experiences a love affair during her time in Vietnam. When
Frankie returns to the United States at the end of her tour she finds a world filled with angry protestors and much opposition to the war.

Additionally, because she is a woman, she is not given credit for having served time in the war even to the extent that she is dismissed by her family. Frankie eventually finds a way to salvage her life, ease the pain of the bad war memories, and find a place for herself and other women, who like her, are war veterans.

Hannah’s research gives validity to the story of how women served in Vietnam. The combat zone chapters are especially vivid and emotionally charged. Hannah captures so very well all of the women’s experiences of being in the midst of combat including the horrible living conditions, the emotional stress and exhaustion, and the daily efforts to save lives while also having the need to focus on staying alive. In spite of this, the women who serve are very under appreciated for all of their efforts.

This is a story that needs to be told and thankfully, Kristin Hannah, chose to write about it. The men and women who were deployed to Vietnam have never been given the proper respect for their service to our country. This book brings to the forefront how PTSD affected so many of those who survived, women as well as men. Hannah realistically portrays all of the emotions, pain, embarrassment, and disrespect suffered by them on their return to the United States as she focuses especially on the women who were doubly slighted because they were not even considered to have served in a combat zone.

The Women is both a story that merits telling and a book worth reading. It gives a voice to the many women who have served and are serving our country.

This review is written courtesy of the ARC from the publisher and NetGalley.

Fantastic historical fiction. I loved learning about the women in the viatnam war and the characters story was so compelling.

Kristin Hannah masterfully weaves a tale of courage, sacrifice, and friendship against the backdrop of the Vietnam War. The story follows Frankie McGrath, a young nursing student who joins the Army Nurse Corps to follow in her brother’s footsteps. As she faces the chaos and destruction of war, she forms deep bonds with fellow nurses and soldiers. But the real battle lies in coming home to a changed America, where the sacrifices of women like Frankie are often forgotten. A poignant and powerful novel that sheds light on an overlooked chapter of history.

She wrecks me every single time!!!!!

Always such a fantastic author!!!! Gripping, and I couldn’t put it down!!

Thank you, NetGalley for the advanced copy.

Kristin Hannah has done it again. The Women is a masterpiece. It deserves all the stars. I am still recovering from the impact of this book. The Women will be one of my standout books of 2024, and one of my top Kristin Hannah books.

There is no author like Kristin Hannah for bringing a time period/historical event to life in a deep, meaningful, sometimes tragic way. I was too young to really "get" what was going on in Vietnam but I've observed the aftermath. This book is both a wonderful history lesson and, like so many of Hannah's books, a testament to the power and strength women have and give to each other. Cannot recommend this too much!

The horrors of war are graphically detailed in Kristin Hannah’s ambitious new novel, The Women. Vietnam - the war that America would prefer to forget. While many Americans quickly moved on past Vietnam, the servicemen and women who were in the trenches can’t forget what they went through there.

The Women shines a light on the experiences of a nurse - Frankie - who grew up in a privileged seaside California community and later enlisted as an Army nurse during Vietnam. The novel follows Frankie to Vietnam, detailing the vast tragedy and turmoil she experienced as she tended to an array of life-altering (all-too-often, life-ending) injuries, from men blown to bits in combat to villagers caught up in the napalm crossfire and burned beyond recognition.

The things Frankie saw overseas in Vietnam changed the course of her life, and the latter part of the book delves into her struggle as she attempts to adjust to civilian life while battling “shell shock” and mourning those she lost in the war.

With her trademark flair for the dramatic and tragic, Kristin Hannah has written a well-researched saga of the Vietnam War. This grave, eye-opening novel is a testament to the men and women who lost life and limb in the war, and to those who stood and served bravely for their country. Hannah captures the absolute horror that was Vietnam and brings to life the servicemen and women who saw the terror firsthand. She also pays justice to the struggles that many military personnel experience after coming home and attempting to go back to regular life.

Of course, it wouldn’t be a Kristin Hannah novel without some serious melodrama, and there’s plenty of that here as well. While much of The Women is focused on the war, Hannah also dives into Frankie’s relationships, as a young 20-something year old woman. The events surrounding these relationships are highly dramatized, and many of the twists and turns feel as if they were written in solely for shock value. The romances certainly change the tone of the book when they are present, and may be a turn-off for those who prefer their reading to be a bit more hardscrabble. However, anyone familiar with Kristin Hannah knows her style and shouldn’t be surprised by these soapy segments.

Kristin Hannah remembers the gallant men and women of the Vietnam War in this heartbreaking tribute to those who gave all in the name of service. Recommended to those who love historical fiction that is raw and dense, while at the same time also being dramatic and twisty.

Make sure you have a box of tissues while reading this one, because it is, at turns, heart wrenching. What else do you expect from a KH book?

I love how this book focuses on the Vietnam War, rather than WW2, which so many historical fiction books do( I still love those books, but this was refreshing to read!). Admittedly, I don’t know much about the Vietnam War, so I actually learned a lot!

Frances, is by far, the strongest, bravest, and most resilient female MC I have read about recently. I’m not going to say too much, as I don’t want to spoil anything, but everything she went through, both while in Vietnam for two years and when she cams back home to Coronado Island, California, is insurmountable. Women were treated very differently still during this time as compared to men, and I was outraged at their response to Frances telling people she went to Vietnam. How she was unable to get the help she asked for (twice!) to help deal with the after effects of comings back ti civilian life. The struggles she endured because of it. Her heartbreak. Like I said, you will need tissues while reading this book.

I really loved the friendship Frances formed with Barb and Ethel, and how they were there for each other, despite (ir because of) everything they had gone through together while in Vietnam. Having these girls as her closest friends, helped Frances immensely, and I doubt she would have survived without them.

While I wasn’t a fan of Frances parents for how they treated her after she came home, I feel it was also tied to their own grief. But after watching Frances struggle for years afterwards, they came to realize just how wrong they were, and how important it was for their daughter ti get the help she deserved, and needed. That was granted without question to the men who had served in the war.

There are lots of trigger warnings for this book, including war violence, PTSD, gender inequality, drug and alcohol abuse, miscarriage…. take care of yourself first ❤️

Many thanks to @stmartinspress and @netgalley for my review copy

This was just a fantastic book. I couldn’t put it down. It was emotional, thought provoking, and just overall amazing. I enjoyed learning more about a piece of history I realize I really didn’t know much about.