Until June

Until June was an enjoyable historical fiction book. It was a fast, fun read with enjoyable characters. I was engrossed in the story and what would happen with the characters. The only criticism I would have is that the end seemed to be wrapped up too quickly.

I really wanted to like this book more, but it just didn't hit the mark for me. There were a few redeeming moments but overall I had a hard time connecting with Jo's character. I liked the setting in Alaska and her writing the story with Geoff.

2.5 stars, rounded up

Kindly received an ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

A severely injured WWI veteran and a female caregiver face an Alaskan winter alone in a remote hunting lodge as they wait out an influenza outbreak. That’s the premise for this delicious historical romance.

It’s 1918 in Juneau, Alaska. Mr. Chambers, wealthy owner of the town mine, is desperate to find a caregiver for his son Geoff, a severely injured veteran of Bellau Wood. Seventeen year-old seamstress Josephine “Jo” Nimetz has nursing experience and is desperate to support her ailing, recently widowed mother.

Chambers hires Jo to accompany Geoff to an island hunting lodge for the winter to escape an outbreak of influenza. They’re stuck there till June. And they don’t exactly hit it off.

Geoff is initially angry, abrasive, and abrupt. Jo is timid and tentative. They get along like cats and dogs. Over time, however, “Jo” and Geoff develop a truce. When Jo enters a writing contest, their story becomes a story-within-a-story as a friendship begins to bloom. Will it turn into something more? And what of “the beast” outside the lodge? Will Jo’s writing bear fruit? What will happen if a recovered Geoff finds he doesn’t need her anymore?

A solid, well-structured plot is fortified by vibrant writing and descriptions like “his tone was like a warm cup of hot chocolate,” her voice “rose like an Easter hymn,” and their “lips melted together like creamed butter on fresh baked biscuits.”

The story ably captures the challenges of winter in Alaska. But it also transcends the usual boy-meets-girl, boy-loses-girl, boy-finds-girl-again formulaic approach to romance writing. The characters are dynamic and three-dimensional, digging deep to summon the courage and mettle needed to face conflict, criticism and multiple misunderstandings and mistakes. The story also touches on the mental, social, and physical difficulties and challenges faced by inured WWI veterans as they struggle to re-integrate into a post-war society.

A clean, refreshing read that will warm body and soul.

An interesting story. I had a hard time putting it down. There are so many twists in the story and have insight into the aftermath of war! It was well worth reading.

Rating (on a scale of 1 to 5, 5 being excellent)
Quality of writing: 3
Pace: 3
Plot development: 3
Characters: 3
Enjoyability: 4
Ease of Reading: 4

Overall rating: 3 out of 5

3.5 stars.
An enjoyable read with a very young and severely wounded hero, “Until June”, by Barbara M. Britton (Pelican Group Book), is a great depiction of physical and psychological trauma inflicted by war.
Geoff is an extraordinary hero, tortured and broken, but with a self-deprecating sense of humor and an amazing down-to-earth perspective about his condition.
Josephine is also a straightforward person, but her approach seems sometimes a bit rude and her actions and knowledge feel unexpected for such a young person.
I liked the dynamics of their relationship and how slowly Geoff reached his new normal. Some interesting secondary characters and a picturesque setting make this an entertaining story.

I don't know what it is about this book. I didn't find the writing particularly compelling but I found myself reading till the end. I think I enjoyed the sweet romance story line.

There were certain parts that I skipped because I lost interest. Also, the dialogue didn't seem to flow that well. I couldn't "hear" the characters talking to each other.

What was most irritating about the main female character was how accident prone she was! She was always falling and hurting herself. I would hate having her as a nurse, not to mention deathly afraid! Ha!

I did enjoy the bits of humor.

Thank you Netgalley and Pelican Book Group for the chance to read this title. This is my honest review.

This is a well written book that hooks you on the first page. This is the first book I’ve read by this author and it was wonderful. The author made the book come to life with her words. If you are looking for a wonderful historical fiction book, grab this book. I loved it! Thank you Pelican Book Group via NetGalley for the ARC copy of this book. All opinions expressed are my own.

What a beautiful story. I will definitely be reading more from this author. Thank you for the ARC, I enjoyed every word.

The idea of what life in SE Alaska was like at the end of WWI is the historical part of this fictional tale. Along with some inspiration about past inhabitants of a lodge outside Juneau.

I thoroughly enjoyed this tale. Gentle romance with no offputting sex scenes. And enough of a taste of Alaska to whet your appetite for more. I spent a decade in SC Alaska, but never got down to SE Alaska.

I would definitely put this on a list of beach reads or for a cool day spent snuggled under a blanket.

I was very interested in the ww1 veteran aspect of this story.
I don't think this book was for me because I couldn't get past the fact of how grumpy the hero was without getting his perspective.
The setting was interesting, it just wasn't my personal taste.

Geoff lost both legs in the war and is understandably struggling. His family don't know what to do with him, so they arrange to ship him off to their holiday home on an Alaskan island. When their plans for a nurse fall through on the very day that Josephine suffers concussion and ends up being nursed at their home, they ask her to take the nurse's place looking after Geoff until June. She has limited nursing experience and no training. Geoff isn't happy about it, and Josephine herself only agrees because her family desperately need the money. Will she be able to get him to accept the past and move into the future? And what of her own future?

I wanted to like it - but it really ended up just okay in my opinion. The writing was generally fine and the content was clean, though a few times I wondered where it might be going. However, I was bothered by things like the impropriety of sending a young, unmarried female nurse to live alone on an island with a young, albeit injured, unmarried man - and no one really seemed to think there was anything wrong with it, though a few did make assumptions that underline why I find it hard to believe it would ever have been considered okay back then. I also didn't really connect with, or even 'get', the characters, particularly Geoff. I didn't feel like he was really portrayed as suffering from his circumstances, merely as being thoroughly entitled and generally obnoxious. All in all, while others might like it, I wouldn't particularly recommend it and probably won't read anything more by the author - indeed, I'm not sure I would have finished this one except that I had agreed to review it.

Note that I received a complimentary copy of the book from NetGalley. I was not required to write a positive review and this is my considered opinion of the book.

Until June is a well written WWI historical romance. Good plot and character development. I recommend to fans of historical romance. Thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for the opportunity to read and review.

A classic story all around. Perfect addition to anyone's to-be read list. Once started, you'll have a hard time putting this one down. You'll find that it ended way too soon.

I really liked Until June, it was set during world war one after all. I liked the romance though I didn't like that they were alone the whole time. Since there were some inappropriate suggestions this is better for 16/18 up.

Until June by Barbara M. Britton is a charming romance set in the aftermath of WWI. The storyline revolves around 17-year old Josephine Nimetz, a poor seamstress in Juneau, AK, and 21-year old injured WWI veteran, Geoff Chambers who happens to own the mine where Jo's stepfather works. A series of events finds the two together in an isolated Alaskan hunting lodge, with Jo serving as Geoff's nurse and companion until the following June.

The author does a good job of characterization in this book: Jo is sweetly innocent, dutiful and teeters between wanting to held Geoff recover from his injuries, and wanting to just feed him to the local bears. Her reactions are authentic and her internal dialogues are insightful. Geoff, on the other hand, comes off a little more one-dimensional, as I felt the author didn't go far enough in making him real. Even then, his transformation is both satisfying and believable.

I've been reading a lot of deeply researched historical fiction and this was not of that order. It was set in WWI Alaska, but there was little of the local flavor or history that usually keeps me coming back to this genre. I found Until June to be more of a budding romance set against the vague backdrop of a location. There was little context.

The was a nice little book to curl up with on a rainy afternoon and enjoy. The writing was well done, the plotting was effective if a tad predictable, and the characters changed and grew, which I always look for in books like this.

This review is based on an advance copy read.

Great story about young Josephine who agrees ti take care of Geoff a WWI amputee in a remote Alaskan lodge. I like the dynamics of their relationship and how slowly Geoff reached his new normal. Very entertaining story.

An enjoyable book to read. The story is set in Alaska and tells of a young girl who is looking after a war veteran. She has to be strong to care for him and his injuries. There is enough of a story to keep me interested and it was nice to have a happy ending.

In a strange twist of events, 18-year-old Josephine finds herself the unexpected caregiver to Geoff Chambers, a WWI veteran who lost part of both legs in the war. Geoff is initially despondent and dependent on morphine, but with Josephine's care and persistence, he finds himself enjoying life again. Set in a remote lodge in Alaska, Josephine and Geoff learn to both depend on each other and find their individual strength in themselves.

I enjoyed the setting and idea of this story; I haven't read many stories set in Alaska, nor have I read much about injured war veterans. I enjoyed watching Josephine persevere through Geoff's stubbornness and defeatist attitude. However, there were a lot of characters to not like in this book, and for me, it didn't really balance out. Also, I wished for more of the scenery to really experience the setting of Alaska to set the book apart.

I give this book 3 stars. It was an engaging read, and I think it will appeal to many readers, it just wasn't one of my favorites this summer.

I received a digital copy of this book from the publishers, via NetGalley, in exchange for my honest review.

An interesting story with great characters and a storyline that kept me turning pages to find out how the story would end. I don’t remember reading any of this author’s books before, but I’ll be looking for more of them.

I received a copy of this book from the publisher. All opinions are my own.

Until June
by Barbara M. Britton


Pelican Book Group

Christian | Historical Fiction
Pub Date 11 Jun 2020


I am reviewing a copy of Until,June through Pelican Book Group and Netgalley:



Josephine Nimetz is a seventeen year old seamstress who agrees to take care of a World War 1 Amputee in a remote Alaskan lodge, with it becomes enough friction to melt the Mendenhall Glacier. She only has the position until June, but it pays well enough to manage a rustic Alaskan home and a shell shocked Veteran.





Geoff Chambers has made it more than clear that he doesn’t care much for the runt sent to care for his needs, nor does he care for the painful mistakes she makes.




Josephine finds herself dealing with a depressed Veteran who is addicted to Morphine, which pushes her to the point of wanting to lead, but her family needs the money her Salary brings.





Josephine the perfectionist is determined to get Geoff back on his feet, figuratively speaking, Despite the fact that sending the handsome Veteran back in society may cost Josephine the man she has come to love.



I give Until June five out of five stars!




Happy Reading!

I thoroughly enjoyed Barbara M. Britton's new book, Until June. A captivating story with colorful characters like Geoff and Jo that held my attention throughout its pages. Their relationship, challenges, and adventures of an Alaskan winter together proved to be engaging as the couple deals with conflicts and misunderstandings. One of the novel's themes explores veterans' post-war challenges of reentering society when returning with debilitating losses and injury.


Those who enjoy WW I stories about troubled and injured veterans will especially find this story appealing. I will be looking for more from this author. My thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an ARC for this honest review.