I really enjoyed this historical fiction book that was inspired by real accounts of the blitz bombings in Coventry, England.


Rich and titled Charlotte and tenant farmer's son Amos are meant to be together and I was rooting for them all the way through the book.


I liked that the story is told through multiple POVs, because it kept the plot moving; there is much to keep track of and learn. I also liked the idea of having competing bookstores, it added some interest to the second chance romance plot. I was completely invested in Amos and Charlotte’s story.


This book will tug at your heartstrings – in a good way.

I thought this was a fascinating story, heartbreaking, hopeful and dramatic. A second chance at love for Charlotte and possibly first love for her daughter Eden, set amidst the bombing of Coventry, England during WWII. There are alternating chapters with flashbacks to WWI and earlier that provide the backstory for Charlotte and Amos. They have a lot of history. Amos has scars that are both visible and invisible. The battling bookstores made this story unique and what reader wouldn’t love all of the literary references? I also loved how everyone pulled together during this crisis and served those in need. I thought the whole book was creatively done and a compelling read.

I received an advanced copy from the publisher and NetGalley. A positive review was not required, all opinions are my own and voluntarily given.

This story, set in Covington, England during the 2nd World War, highlights the struggles of their stations in life, familial expectations, duty to their country and neighbors as well as the way a Great War silences childhood dreams between the two main characters. Amos and Charlotte’s unlikely friendship grabbed my attention for the start and held on to me tightly until the very last page.

While the characters and their stories are fiction, many components of this story are true, including the historical background of the Forgotten Blitz bombings on Coventry and the way the community rallied together in its wake. The incredible imagery used throughout the story transports you into the story itself. The story unraveled in a way that I could have never predicted.

Thank you @NetGalley & @ThomasNelson for this ARC. It’s available NOW so grab your copy! This is definitely one of my top 10 books this year!

“Everyone is something to someone. Remember that. The scars we bear should make us more worthy of understanding, not less.”

I absolutely loved this book. Kristy Cambron has written a new classic in historical fiction. This tale of war and love from both the Great War and World War II had me spellbound. Second chance romance, split time periods, mystery, wounded hero, and a strong heroine make this book a must-read. Add in a second romance with a satisfying ending, and it's a 5 star read for me.
*I was given a copy of this book by Thomas Nelson Publishers and this is my honest opinion.

The British Booksellers is the decades long story of Amos and Charlotte, who started as childhood friends from different classes and wound up as rival bookshop owners in WWII Coventry. As the threats of war draw ever nearer, will they be able to put the past behind them and collaborate when it matters most?
I love when a book takes me by surprise, and this one succeeded in doing just that. I don’t mean that there was some major twist at the end (though the ending was satisfying!), but moreso that the patience it took to get to the end paid off. I had trouble with the first half and found it a little slow, but I’m so glad I stuck with it. In the second half, the action picks up and the multiple storylines start to come together. This book really is a masterpiece and I’m so glad I read it. If you enjoy historical fiction and tales celebrating second chances, redemption, and sacrifice, don’t hesitate to pick this up.
An added bonus is that this book also covers a lesser known part of WWII, The Forgotten Blitz. Don’t miss the author’s note!
Many thanks to Netgalley and Thomas Nelson for the advanced review copy. All opinions are my own.

The British Booksellers by Kristy Cambron is a beautiful, heartfelt, captivating second-chance romance set Coventry, England during WWII.

This is a duel timeline novel told between WWI & WWII. I loved the stories in both timelines and the historical detail. I highly recommend if you love to read historical fiction.

I want to express my gratitude to NetGalley and Thomas Nelson Fiction for providing me with a complimentary copy of this ARC, all opinions in this review are entirely my own.

** “Benevolence, compassion, and love — bombs will never silence them when we put those virtues into action. Ordinary people like us become extraordinary fighters when we first seek to serve, and love others.” **

Kristy Cambron delivers an incredible dual-timeline novel of fortitude, sacrifice and redemption with “The British Booksellers.”

The story follows the lives of Lady Charlotte Terrington Holt and Amos Darby, a tenant farmer’s son, during both world wars — starting in 1913 and 1940. The tale of two friends who can barely even be friends due to their positions in life, Charlotte and Amos must overcome trials and hurts — personal and literal wars — to find healing, grace and forgiveness.

As Charlotte and her daughter Eden work in 1940 to protect their home on Holt Estate, as well as protecting their community in Coventry, they reconnect with Amos, as well as a strange American bringing a lawsuit to their door. As the German air raids come closer and closer, they must work together to protect their homes, each other and their lives.

Kristy Cambron does an incredible job of researching a very real and devastating event in England, all while spanning the bridge between two generations and creating great characters the reader can’t but help to root for. She brilliantly weaves together their stories and their connections over several decades.

She also offers a number of great themes, like books offer freedom and life (“Books are an escape that beckons the reader from the heavy burdens of this world. … They can challenge as well as comfort. Entertain and educate. Even save us in ways we’d never expect”); having a dream; forgiveness over retribution; the importance of caring for others; and to love through the good and the bad (“To love meant to accept all — the grit and grief alongside beauty. To endure the harshness of life not with despair, but hope”).

A huge theme of the book is dealing with scars — literal, physical, mental, emotional — and the impact they can have on us (“The scars we bear should make us more worthy of understanding, not less”).

Fans of historical fiction, stories centered around the two world wars, and authors like Rachel McMillan, Katherine Reay and Kate Morton will love “The British Booksellers.”

Five stars out of five.

Thomas Nelson provided this complimentary copy through NetGalley for my honest, unbiased review.

This was a definite miss for me. Drawn in by the book’s cover, I had hoped for an easy, relaxing read but found the text just did not flow. There was a mix of characters which in the early part of book seemed isolated in their own story and jumping between timelines was unsettling. I admit to struggling with this book as it did not hold my attention and gave up half way through. Sorry.

My thanks to NetGalley and the publishers Thomas Nelson for this APC

While this book took a bit to pull me in, once it did, I was completely immersed. The book is a dual timeline story, with most of the same major characters in each timeline. The earlier timeline occurs leading up to and during the First World War, the second during the Second World War. Young Charlotte longs for freedom from society's expectations, including the right to marry outside of one's class. The more mature Charlotte has raised a strong, independent daughter who has many more freedoms and choices available to her. Young Amos Darby, a tenant farmer may not agree with class restrictions, but has more readily accepted them. He is a man who loves books and a man of integrity. The more mature Amos is a man both physically and mentally damaged by the experience of war, a man who seeks to anonymously look out for those he loves while dismissing his own needs and desires.

Please take time to read the Author's Note at the end of the book. As always Cambron has thoroughly researched her setting and its history. It is interesting to see how well she has woven facts into her fictional story. I am grateful to have received a complimentary copy of The British Booksellers from Thomas Nelson via NetGalley without obligation. All opinions expressed here are my own.

I’ve never read a book where the split timeline was WWI and WWII, and while it took me a little bit to get used to it, remembering pertinent details from each era, it was a unique and effective way to tell this story.

I enjoyed following the stories of Charlotte and Amos and what each went through.

As their story was slowly revealed, it illustrated so well how one single decision can truly change so much about the future.

I enjoyed reading about the land girls and how everyone pulled together to help each other, even putting aside old grievances for a common goal.

Finding out that this was based on actual events made this story even more interesting.

I enjoy Kristy Cambron’s writing so much and love how she weaves life lessons into her stories that transcend whatever time period she is writing in.

Thank you to Thomas Nelson for the copy of this book. All views are my honest opinion.

In the new historical romance The British Booksellers, Kristy Cambron continues her recent exploration of World War II in The Italian Ballerina and The Paris Dressmaker. The events of this novel occur primarily in Coventry, England, during World War I and the “Forgotten Blitz” of Coventry by German bombers during World War II. Cambron returns also to the themes of grit and beauty, grief and love. Cambron, who won the Christy Award for The Painted Castle, has written numerous bestsellers, and this clean historical romance is not likely to disappoint her fans.
In The British Booksellers, childhood friends from contrasting social stations fall in love and face life-altering decisions about their future. In the later timeline, a surly, broken bookshop owner for the commoners and his rival, the beautiful Lady Charlotte with her bookshop’s peacock-blue reading room and Earl Grey elegance, must face their own decisions about how to stay in business during wartime restrictions and whether they can overcome their differences in order to meet the needs of their local community and the larger British war effort during the bombings and their aftermath.
The dual timeline of this novel permits a pair of will-they-won’t-they romantic possibilities, complete with a love triangle in one of them. This is not obviously a faith-based book, but it does positively portray the place of the local church and the vicar’s leadership in the community. One character seems to have a sincere Christian faith though that is not developed in depth. The author’s faith is most evident in the redemptive character arcs and the theme of unlikely reconciliation and mutual aid among enemies.
While I knew of the Coventry Blitz and that the work of Bletchley Park codebreakers revealed its probability to Churchill, I found personal encouragement in reading of brave men and women overcoming biases and past differences to serve and protect their community in crisis. This is the only novel I’ve read that opens a window into the local experience of that horrific time and the beautiful heroism of Coventry’s people during and after. Cambron also presents the economic and social challenges the nobility faced after World War I and during World War II and the awful pain of PTSD, then called shell shock, recognized in veterans since at least World War I. Vicariously experiencing grit, courage, and resilience in earlier generations has helped me persevere in my own challenges. That grit and intrigue also lends balance to the lighter aspects of the novel.
The background images in my quote graphics depict Coventry, including the ruins of the church and the rubble left by the bombings. Some of the people and places in the book are grounded in historical fact. For example, the John Piper painting of the ruined church immediately after its destruction is real and can be viewed online. The “Author’s Note” and “Further Reading” provide details on a wealth of resources for readers curious to learn more about the Forgotten Blitz.
All in all, The British Booksellers offers a lovely vacation or holiday read for fans of World War I or II fiction. It has elements of Jane Austen’s Persuasion and Pride and Prejudice as well as the television and film series Downton Abbey. I commend this book to fans of bookish film and fiction such as You’ve Got Mail, The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society (Mary Ann Shaffer), The Last Bookshop in London (Madeline Martin), Until Leaves Fall in Paris (Sarah Sundin), The Keeper of Hidden Books (Madeline Martin), and of course for fans of Kristy Cambron’s previous World War II novels. I enjoyed spending time with these characters and their world.
Thank you for reading. My pre-release copy of this book was provided by the publisher, Thomas Nelson, via NetGalley. The thoughts herein are my own.

Verdict: Loved Kristy’s writing style. Loved the dual timeline. It was a little bit of a slow start for me.

I was so grateful to be an ARC reader for this book. Thank you Kristy Cambron, Net Galley and Thomas Nelson Fiction. I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

The British Booksellers by @kristycambron
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

This book kept me up until 2am to finish it. I think it is Kristy's best novel to date. It is a beautiful marrying between the brightness of love and the darkness of war. It is history, prose, romance, and full of classic book references, sure to make your heart soar.

Fall into a time where young love is destroyed by Duty, selfishness and war. Lady Charlotte knows her own mind. She has dreams that she has every intention of fulfilling; no matter the cost. But when her family brokers an advantageous marriage for her, her plans must change. When she later finds herself widowed and a single mother, can her dreams for her life be rescued before they are threatened again by war?

You'll find:
📚 Dual timelines
📚 Dual POV
📚 Dueling bookshops
📚 Dueling suitors

I just can't get over the feast contained in this story. You might think so many intersecting stories might get too tangled, but here, Kristy forces you to willingly turn the pages to know how it all plays out. I wouldn't describe this story as a mystery, but she keeps the carrot dangled for 95% of the book until we get our satisfying ending.

This story was absolutely stunning and it will be a long time before I can get it out of my head and my heart. ❤️

Thank you to my friends at NetGalley for an advanced copy of this book.

I love anything by Kristy Cambron. Her books are an intriguing mix of complex characters and twists that add depth to the story before me. Her latest, The British Booksellers, was a perfect mix of history, romance, and mystery. And truly, Cambron delivered a plot that left me completely unprepared for the ending twist. I devoured the dual WWI and WWII timeline, the sense of intrigue, and the subtle romance. This book certainly held my attention!

Cambron never ceases to enthrall with her multi-faceted plot and complex characters. She is one author I never miss!

I received a complimentary copy of this book from Netgalley. I was not required to provide a positive review. All opinions expressed are mine alone.

I don’t often read books set during WWI or WWII, but some do still cut through and capture my interest. The British Booksellers is one such novel. Set in two timelines, 1914 and 1940, it depicts how an unlikely love was torn apart by war and how it would take another to potentially reunite them. It’s a long-overdue second chance at love, as well as an ode to appreciating literature and music.

Charlotte and Amos were never meant to be together back in the early 1910s. He was the son of a farmer, and she the daughter of an earl. She was meant to marry someone of her station, and Amos would never have been approved of by her family. Could they have made it work? They never got to find out then: Charlotte went on to marry an earl named Will, just as their families intended. But when Will and Amos went to the frontlines to fight in the Great War, only Amos would return home. And with Charlotte now a widow and mother, and with so much between them, she and Amos never rekindled what they once had.

Fast forward 25 years, and war is upon them again. Charlotte has raised her daughter Eden to be a strong young woman. They run their own bookshop, competing with the bookshop Amos runs. Indeed, he’s little more than a rival to them now, and Eden knows nothing of her mother’s background with him.

While Eden forms a tentative bond with an American solicitor who just arrived in town, Charlotte and Amos are thrown together for the first time in decades. There is so much to overcome, including secrets they’ve each kept about all that happened those many years ago.

One aspect I loved in The British Booksellers is the focus on literature. Both Amos and Charlotte are passionate readers with their own favorite authors and a desire to share books with those around them. I also enjoyed Charlotte’s love for music, specifically playing the cello. Her choice to play—or not play—is a significant theme in her relationships with both Will and Amos.

I also love how strong Charlotte and Eden are here. They are no shrinking wallflowers! They each speak their mind and make important decisions, often taking on leadership roles. The men here, conversely, get a bit more of their emotions on display. I especially appreciate how Amos’s PTSD, survivor’s guilt, and alcoholism are treated here.

Unlike in 1914, when the men made all the decisions and did all the fighting, in 1940, the women in England are shining for their vital contributions to the war effort. Charlotte and Eden do their part, and the men in their lives dutifully follow their lead and instructions. This flipped dynamic is part of how they overcome the regrets of their past.

The British Booksellers is a tender dual-timeline story with two romances, strong characters, and an emphasis on the real and forgotten parts of our recent history. If you want a book that offers a new perspective on the two World Wars, this is an excellent novel to pick up.

I've read some split-time, multiple-point-of-view books that are beautifully done, artfully weaving between time and perspective, giving you just enough information before you switch time-frames… But The British Booksellers just didn't seem to accomplish that for me.

I was constantly confused by lack of clarity, missing details, and what seemed very strange wording. That pivotal moment at Gretna Green left me scratching my head, despite reading it several times. Crucial details seemed to be missing between the Christmas Day Truce gift and the inheritance—I still have so many questions.

Furthermore, I found nothing to indicate an enemies to lovers story—instead we have a love triangle that includes a married woman, which is not an angle I like to find in fiction from a Christian publisher.

Even the bookish references fell flat, like they had been added as an afterthought sometimes rather than being integral to how the characters thought.

The author seems to have a wonderful handle on the history of the time. I felt like I learned more about both world wars, but particularly The Coventry Blitz and the Land Girls. For that, I'm giving the book two stars. But sadly, her storytelling wasn’t compelling or clear enough to make her characters memorable or even personable to me.

I first came across Kristy’s writing a couple of years ago with The Italian Ballerina and found it to be wonderful. Therefore I was quite excited to read her latest, The British Booksellers and I found this to be even more remarkable. Of course there were many things that readily ticked the box for me - historical fiction, two timelines, romance and it involved a bookstore! So imagine my delight when it was all of that and so much more!

‘I was willing to give up my entire world for you, Amos. I thought you were too. Weren’t we to make a new world together, you and I?’

Kristy’s books are special in that they are so detailed and intricate in their plotting (mind blowing if truth be told) but also provide twists and turns that kept me hooked until the last page. She keeps dropping little ‘crumbs’ that will have you following the trail to a fitting conclusion. Charlotte and Amos are in both WWI and WW2 timelines, so the narrative jumps back and forth for that. However, the greater part of the story is dedicated to the WW2 timeline and the focus being the ‘forgotten blitz’, the deadly Coventry bombings.

“Perhaps days like this are exactly why we have books in the world. To remember that not all is lost, even if we find ourselves in the unknown. I like to think we provide a haven for the wanderer. And help him remember he has a place to call home.”

This is the kind of narrative to just lose yourself in for it certainly has it all and I am now a firm fan of Kristy’s writing. It is deeply emotional and pulls at the heartstrings - two wars, two romances, two ways of living (before and during war) that make this book memorable. I think perhaps Kristy’s secret is the little things that are memorable like a book, or a cello, or a pocket watch.

‘… things she’d loved once. The cello, books, childhood dreams, and a farmer’s son who’d shared them.’

This book is not only rich in historical details but equally rich in storytelling with characters that will long be remembered. Kristy Cambron is a wonderful storyteller weaving this epic tale of family drama across the decades.

“War does not change everything; it cannot change secrets of the past.”








This review is based on a complimentary copy from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own. The quoted material may have changed in the final release.

The British Booksellers is a historical second-chance romance filled with sweet but challenging relationships, battling booksellers, and that famous British determination in the face of Nazi bombings. The dual timeline allows readers to follow the relationship between Charlotte (Terrington) Holt and Amos Darby from its beginning to the "present" as well as meet Charlotte's daughter, Eden, as she faces off against an American solicitor visiting the Holt estate for mysterious reasons. The secondary cast is fun and fleshed-out (I'd read a book following the Land Girls' lives after the war), the settings are detailed, the history is interesting and terrible, and the lessons on forgiveness, acceptance, and love are easy to understand and relate to. Cambron's latest novel is vivid, realistic, and entertaining and shows how hearts can change even as the world is falling down around you.

This book inspired me because it showcases the human capacity to love under any circumstance. Amidst war, betrayal, and hardship, we have the power to choose love or hate. The dual timeline is crucial as it defines the main characters and their journey. Amos, a farmer's son, believes he has no chance with an earl's daughter, Charlotte, whom he affectionately calls "Charlie." Despite their lifelong friendship, as they mature, the possibility of romance seems unlikely, especially when Charlotte is betrothed to another. Yet, as World War I looms, their lives are transformed, and the full impact of their choices doesn't become apparent until World War II unfolds. Although the story occasionally slows and the writing can be challenging, the characters and the historical backdrop captivated me. As a history enthusiast, I appreciate learning about lesser-known aspects of the World Wars!

The British Booksellers by Kristy Cambron was a beautifully crafted story.
This is such a wonderfully depicted story full of courage, unbreakable bonds, love, loss, hope, despair, and kept me engaged from beginning to end.
Cambron's vivid descriptions and rich historical detail bring the story to life. As a reader, I felt as if the characters were real people.
Cambron pays loving attention to character development and historical detail
She did a magnificent job of writing The British Booksellers.

Thank You NetGalley and Thomas Nelson for your generosity and gifting me a copy of this amazing eARC!