This is one book that will take you on one big family ride. For sisters Etta, Jessie and Celie Fry, the Great War and the hardships of the years that followed have taken a heavy toll. This is an very emotional story and one I couldn't put down. It is thrilling, enthralling, captivating and so much more.

A well written book with wonderful characters. I felt like I was on this journey with them. This is a book that kept my interest from start to finish. I enjoyed it and would recommend it.

Thank you NetGalley and HarperCollins UK, One More Chapter for giving me the opportunity to read and review this book.

In the Shadow of War is the third installment in The Fry Sisters series, and it continues to deliver the rich, historical storytelling that has defined the previous books. Set against the backdrop of the 1930s, this novel intricately explores the lives of the Fry sisters—Celie, Etta, and Jessie—as they navigate the tumultuous events of the era.

The narrative weaves together the lives of the three sisters, each in different parts of the world: Celie struggles through the Great Depression on a farm in Alberta, Canada; Jessie is caught between the political unrest in Egypt and the Spanish Civil War; and Etta pursues a film career in Hollywood after a personal crisis. The novel's depiction of historical events, including the Spanish Civil War, the Great Depression, and the rise of Hollywood, adds depth and authenticity to the story.

The book excels in portraying its characters with vivid detail. The inclusion of real-life figures like Groucho Marx and F. Scott Fitzgerald enriches the historical context, while the personal struggles and growth of the Fry sisters offer a compelling emotional journey. Each sister’s story is distinct, providing a broad view of the era’s challenges and the different ways women faced them.

Celie’s resilience in the face of economic hardship, Jessie’s determination amidst political chaos, and Etta’s quest for stardom provide a multifaceted view of the era. The novel also delves into the next generation, focusing on the experiences of Shani and Lulu, which adds another layer to the narrative.

While the book can be read as a standalone, familiarity with the earlier novels in the series enhances the understanding of the characters' development. The ending leaves readers anticipating the next installment, with some threads left unresolved, hinting at further adventures for the Fry sisters.

Overall, In the Shadow of War is a captivating continuation of The Fry Sisters series. Adrienne Chinn’s meticulous research and engaging storytelling make this a must-read for fans of historical fiction and anyone interested in the personal impacts of major historical events.

Thank you to the author, Rachel at Random Resources, and One More Chapter for the opportunity to review this book.

This is the third book in The Three Fry Sisters series, and while there is enough recap included about the previous two for it to be read as standalone, I would equally recommend reading from beginning to really understand each sister well.

It is easy to imagine this being turned into a tv dramatisation , such is the vivacity of characters and storyline.

The chapters focus on individual characters and their locations across the world and it can take a while to keep up with even if you’ve read earlier books but you soon find yourself able to tell one sister and their personalities from another.

This book is rich in history, from the political situation in Egypt, the inclusion of small details, such as references to Lord Carnarvon and Tutankhamen’s tomb excavation, to the Great Depression in Canada and the Spanish Civil War.

Inclusion of relevant real-life characters, such as members of the Hollywood elite from the era like Groucho Marx or reference to F Scott Fitzgerald injects a sense of realism and adds another dimension to the narrative.

We learn more in this story about the next generation too, with more focus on the characters Shani and Lulu and their life experiences as a result of the actions of their respective mothers. I found Shani’s letters to her mum after arriving in England particularly poignant, especially in light of Jessie’s subsequent decision not to return home as originally planned.

I loved Hettie’s character. Her exchanges with Christina provide humour and realism and her use of dialect is a wonderful contrast with the very formal language used by her employer.

Deceit and deception prevail in all three books in the series and you’re always left wondering just how many more lies can be told or when things will begin to unravel.

The three sisters are markedly different in personality in many ways, although there are some distinct similarities between them.

I found Etta on the whole to be thoroughly dislikeable; her selfishness seems to know no bounds. Celie, on the other hand was probably the sister I warmed to the most, empathising completely with the situation in which she finds herself and yet admiring how resilient she remained and determined to see through what she had started. Jessie was something of a mixed bag. I initially loved the way she stands up to her mother in law and felt for her when tragedy struck but as the storyline progressed, I became increasingly disgruntled with her decision making.

While Christina is undeniably the most devious character, I could understand motives to some extent and did enjoy how cleverly she plays Monsieur DuRose at his own game.

This is another stunning read from Adrienne Chinn and I’m already eagerly anticipating the final book of the series.

With thanks to the author, Rachel at Random Resources and One More Chapter for the opportunity to participate in the tour.

Every single novel of this series is so outrageously good, that I forget what year I'm actually alive in. The tumultous feelings cross those oceans of the sisters right into your very own heart.

A captivating historical journey and an excellent addition to the series. Set against the backdrop of post WWI, it weaves together the lives of three resilient sisters. Each sister faces her own struggles, dreams, and heartaches, making this a poignant tale of resilience, love, and survival. I loved it.
Many thanks to HarperCollins UK and to Netgalley for providing me with a galley in exchange for my honest opinion.

Thank you to Netgalley, the publishing house and the author for the opportunity to read a complimentary copy of this book in return for a review based upon my honest opinion.

This is the third book in the Fry Sisters Saga, I have not read the others, but that did not hamper my enjoyment of the book. I will definitely be reading the first two books in the series, as I thoroughly enjoyed this story.

Jessie, Etta and Celie had made it through the Great war but putting their lives and the lives of their families back together is a daunting task. Sometimes it felt like there were a lot of characters to keep track of but I was instantly hooked by this story and read late into the night to finish it. The three sisters live such vastly different lives, from Cairo, to Alberta to Hollywood, but at heart they are connected. This was a wonderful story of hardhsip, loss and love.

In this complex historical fiction novel, readers follow sisters Etta, Celie, and Jessie as they travel around the world and live their lives as an actress in Hollywood, an amateur photographer in west Canada, and a doctor in Egypt and Spain. The novel follows their own stories and their strained relationships with their mother Christina and their daughters Adriana, Lulu, and Shani. As history occurs around them, readers witness the changing world and status of women in the twentieth century and the ways that women can empower themselves through work. War looms throughout the novel from the riots of Egypt and the Spanish Civil War to both World Wars, while the Great Depression also impacts the farming community that Celie and Lulu live in. The three sisters, along with their mother and three daughters, are all incredibly complex characters with distinct personalities and struggles; these seven women could not be more different from each other in this novel. Chinn’s contrasting characters and personalities are incredibly complex and detailed, and her world-building is off the charts. This is a fantastically written, detailed, and well-developed novel that fans of historical fiction, strong and complex female characters, and multiple perspective novels are sure to enjoy.

Likeable, well developed characters, situations and settings. This is a very enjoyable, heartfelt historical fiction story. Drew me in and I didn't want to put it down. You know a book is a good one when you dread the last page and the end!

Thank you for allowing me to review this book. This is the 3rd in the series about the Fry sisters whose lives have been told since we first met them I the early 20th century. The sisters are living across the world , each in very different circumstances. I enjoyed the previous two books and looked forward to this one. It didn't disappoint and was as interesting as I expected. Although it can probably be read as a standalone I would recommend reading the the previous books first.

This was an interesting story set in a period of great disruption in the World. As one war ends another begins . Interesting family dynamics and a varied cast of characters. Nice tidy conclusion.

Book 3 in the Fry Sisters series and this continued the stories of Etta, Celie and Jessie during the 1930s, each in different countries, all with their own issues.
Etta has left behind the art world in France and Italy and has moved to Hollywood in an effort to make her name in film - despite linking up with CJ Melton again.
Celie is in Alberta, Canada with her husband Frank and family trying to make a living in the famine and depression on the prairies while Frank continues his battles with the effects of WW1
Jessie starts in Egypt but as the political unrest rises she and her daughter escape back to London ... except Jessie sends Shani on to London while she stops in Spain ... and gets caught up nursing in Barcelona during the Civil War.
I have really enjoyed this series with great characters through the history of the inter-war years. The sisters are all strong women in their own way but with flaws and vulnerabilities too. I hope that the series might continue bringing in the stories of the sisters daughters as they too grow up in a changing world.

In the Shadow of War is the third book in The Fry Sisters Series, that follows the lives of sisters Cecelia (Celie), Etta and Jessie and their mother Christiana Fry. This is the first book I have read in this series and although was able to follow the storylines, I missed a lot of background. I will read the others. This book has all three of the sisters married or widowed and living all over the world. Celie, her husband Frank and daughter Lulu live in a small town in Alberta and are struggling. With a drought, locusts, hot dry weather and the depression, they are trying to survive and hang onto their farm. Jessie is married and living in Egypt with her husband Aziz and daughter Shani. She is going to medical school and helping her husband run their clinic. With political unrest in the Egypt, the family deals with several issues. Eventually, Jessie ends up working in a hospital in Barcelona during the Spanish Revolution and Shani is in England with her mother. Etta is a widow with her husband dying after falling or being pushed off a cliff in one of the previous books. She has a breakdown and ends up in a Sanitorium. When she is released she abandons her daughter in England with her mother and heads off to Hollywood to be a star. Wow, what an interesting and unlucky family they turn out to be.

I enjoyed this story, but didn't love it as much as I had hoped, perhaps because I didn't read the others? The characters were all well-developed and each had a very distinct personality. I really liked Celie. She was a devout catholic and even though her marriage was an unhappy one, she stayed and worked with Frank. She did everything she could to make money and help with the family finances. I understand Frank was dealing with a sense of failure, but I wasn't a fan. I thought he was weak, and not very kind to Celie. Etta was extremely hard to like. Yes, she had mental health issues, but she was very self-centered and selfish. The way she turned on her mother was terrible. Then there is Jessie. She is an independent woman who wants everyone to be treated equally. This is difficult when you are trying to break into a male dominated profession, as well as doing it in a country that is Muslim. Was what she did to help others worth alienating her daughter? Christina is a piece of work. She has secrets and she has to lie to keep them. It seems everything she does is for her family, but at times I was unsure. The book is set from early 1932 and ends in 1939 when England declares war on Germany. There was a lot going on in this story with 4 POVs, but Adrienne Chinn did a good job keeping them separate and for the most part, the transitions fit together. I was invested in all the storylines, except Etta's. She just really annoyed me. I found the book interesting and wanted to know what was going to happen to the family. I hope there will be one more tying up all the loose ends and letting us know how the three granddaughters/cousins fare.

I didn’t realise this was the third book about the Fry sisters but it didn’t ruin the story as in it’s self it is a stand alone book.
It is one of those brilliant sagas that envelops you from the very first page. It did not matter that you were unaware of what had gone before as there are flash backs as to what happened before and how the sisters have reached their stations in life so far.
My only disappointment was the ending because it was left so open. I just hope there is another book to follow .
Can’t recommend it enough and I am immediately off to read the first two books in the series

Three Sisters

This story takes place in the prewar years of the 1930's, the depression years leading up to World War II. It was a hard time for everyone. Each girl has a different set of challenges and heartbreak. Each handles their challenges in a different way.

Celie is on a farm in Alberta, Canada. She is in love with one man, but married to another. She works hard to make the marriage work and the farm even when she finds out her husband is hiding a secret that could tear them apart.

Jessie is a nurse in Egypt. Then she leaves for Britain when her husband is killed by a mob and she no longer feels safe. She stops of in Spain to spend a few days with her friend and is caught up in the fighting. All she wants is to return to Britain to be with her daughter, but when she finally returns it may be too late.

Etta heads to Hollywood after she recovers from a breakdown. She tries to start a new life, but sometimes things just don't work out the way we wish.

It is the story of love, hard work, heartache and the devastation caused by the depression then the heartaches caused by the war. It is a story of choices and living with the choices we make in life.
My favorite character was Celie. She just tried to hold everyone and everything together with no complaints and at the expense of her own happiness.

My least favorite character was Etta who was always looking out for herself and expecting everyone else to look after her as well. She just never was able to face life and it's challenges.

I thought the mother was very wrong in how she treated Celia. The secrets she withheld from her daughter should have been brought forth.

I hope there is another book so I can find out how everything turns out for the girls.

I enjoyed reading this book , it was a very interesting time in history and it was very well written.

Thanks to Adrienne Chinn for writing a great story, to Harper Collins Uk, One More chapter for publishing it and to NetGalley for providing me with a complimentary copy to read and review.

This was a struggle for me. It wasn’t what I thought it was going to be so it made it very difficult for me to get into the characters. Thank you so much for the opportunity

In the Shadow of War by Adrienne Chinn is an excellent family saga/historical novel, set in the 1930s. The third book in the series gives us a textured, authentic rendering of the social and policial events in London, Egypt, Canada, Italy and Spain. It has a solid plot, with a complex setting. An accomplished, compelling historical saga, a moving story of love and tragedy, family secrets and lies, betrayal and loyalty.

Well researched and written.

Full review is part of the blog tour with Rachel's Random Resources.

Oh these books have always been filled with so much emotion, so many familial connections, so many attempts to triumph over adversity, and so much hope for the future. Times haven't been easy for any of the sisters, or their mother for that matter, but there was always one thing they could count on...each other. Though they each had their own paths to walk, their own truths to tell, their own loves to find, and their own futures to build, and they were certainly strong enough to see the hard times through (even if it didn't seem so at the time), they always knew they could turn to one another for that extra boost. They always knew no matter how far away they were, or the circumstances in which they may find themselves, they were connected at heart. They already know the horrors that war can bring, and how fleeting life can be. To have to face the possibility of that all over again is beyond words, and yet to turn a blind eye is not an option.

The author takes us through life's paces with each sister, sharing the good, the bad, and the survivable... and by story's end, you won't want to let go. You'll be prepared to, but given everything we've seen, and experienced, it feels like saying goodbye to a member of your own family... good thing rereading is always an option. 😉 A great way to close out the trilogy, and a wonderful pick for Historical Fiction fans looking for a story they won't soon forget.

This is the third book in The Fry Sisters series. After WWI and the 20s, now they have reached the Depression years. Difficult come for the three girls that live completely different adventures: Celie in Canada experiences the full effects of the economic troubles; Jessie in Egypt is finalizing her doctor's degree but in a very conservative country, she has many obstacles to overcome; Etta is decided to pursue her dream of a Hollywood career. Also, their mother Christina is still facing the consequences of her previous actions.
The story continues, vivid and gripping, with many rich details giving the reader a pungent picture of life in the beginning of the 20th century. Loved it and can't wait for the conclusion!

The third book in the series runs through the 1930s and all the unrest in Egypt, Spain and Germany. Celie is still in Alberta trying to make the best of her life with Frank and raise her daughter, LuLu. After Etta's husband dies she moves to Hollywood to become an actress. Jessie is finally pursuing her dream to become a doctor in Egypt when she has to leave due tothe political climate and ends up sending her daughter to England while she uses her medical skills in Spain during the Civil War.

The characters didn't seem that well developed in this, just more of the same from book #2. It made me sad the way Etta treated her daughter but she had always been self-centered and I was really surprised at Jessie's attitude. I would have liked to see more growth in the daughters, Lulu, Shani and Adriana. There was a lot going on with Celie trying to survive the depression and bad weather on the farm in Alberta. Jessie was fighting against prejudice in medical school, her sister-in-law and husband fighting for Egypt but on two different paths and then she goes to Spain. Etta was just being Etta, selfish and delusional. Just as I would get comfortable in one story then it would switch to another. The ending is a cliffhanger and that always spoils the whole book for me. I would recommend the series but only when it is all written and no cliffhangers.

I would like to thank Netgalley and Harper Collins UK One More Chapter for providing me with a digital copy.

I have read the previous books in this series so was very pleased to be given access to this third book .The story follows the three Fry Sisters Jessica Etta and Celie and their overbearing Mother Christina .The story goes from London to Cairo and Canada to Hollywood and Spain during the Spanish Civil War and ends just as War has been declared the start of WW2.A fascinating story of how different it was for woman back in those times and how brave they were The characters were interesting some more so than others I felt the ending was very abrupt and a lot of lose ends left dangling. I do hope there will be a 4th book so we can find out what happens to the Fry Sisters .Thank you to NetGalley for my ARC.