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"Irresistibly romantic ...a highly-charged story of love, longing, betrayal and loss ... written with such conviction that you can't help but be swept along by its intensity." - The Mail on Sunday
"Melancholic, mysterious and heartbreakingly gorgeous." --The Times
"written with such conviction that you can't help but be swept along by its intensity." --The Daily Mail
"A sincere attempt to depict the reverberations of war - chronicling fractured relationships and the inability to love in the right way... Anna is a likeable and memorable heroine." --The Guardian
"...Through a series of subtle plot devices and a haunting contemplation of the different kinds of love that we meet in our lifetime, the story builds to a page-turning and tear-jerking climax." -- Lancashire Evening Post
"A hugely affecting novel" --The Yorkshire Post
"Without question one of the best debuts I've read in recent years." --John Boyne, author of The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas
"Melancholic, mysterious and heartbreakingly gorgeous." --The Times
"written with such conviction that you can't help but be swept along by its intensity." --The Daily Mail
"A sincere attempt to depict the reverberations of war - chronicling fractured relationships and the inability to love in the right way... Anna is a likeable and memorable heroine." --The Guardian
"...Through a series of subtle plot devices and a haunting contemplation of the different kinds of love that we meet in our lifetime, the story builds to a page-turning and tear-jerking climax." -- Lancashire Evening Post
"A hugely affecting novel" --The Yorkshire Post
"Without question one of the best debuts I've read in recent years." --John Boyne, author of The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas
Product Description
England, 31st August 1939: the world is on the brink of war. As Hitler prepares to invade Poland, thousands of children are evacuated from London to escape the impending Blitz. Torn from her mother, eight-year-old Anna Sands is relocated with other children to a large Yorkshire estate which has been opened up to evacuees by Thomas and Elizabeth Ashton, an enigmatic childless couple. Soon Anna gets drawn into their unravelling relationship, seeing things that are not meant for her eyes - and finding herself part-witness and part-accomplice to a love affair, with unforeseen consequences.
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
115 of 127 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
This is a coming-of-age novel, a story of war, love and loss, beautifully told, inspired by the author's visit to a country house and letters written by a cousin in 1939.
It is set in a country estate, Ashton Park in Yorkshire, the estate and its owners having been brought low by the First World War. Now, at the start of the Second World War in 1939, 8-year-old Anna Sands is evacuated here from London with 85 other children. Anna, intelligent and perceptive, is quickly drawn into the family by the Ashtons who have turned their estate into a school. Thomas and Elizabeth Ashton shape Anna's life.
The story is gripping from the start, with subtle observation and superb detailing, the writing highly visual. The author paints wonderful pictures of London and vividly communicates the feel of Ashton Park.
I count this among my favourite books and highly recommend it.
It is set in a country estate, Ashton Park in Yorkshire, the estate and its owners having been brought low by the First World War. Now, at the start of the Second World War in 1939, 8-year-old Anna Sands is evacuated here from London with 85 other children. Anna, intelligent and perceptive, is quickly drawn into the family by the Ashtons who have turned their estate into a school. Thomas and Elizabeth Ashton shape Anna's life.
The story is gripping from the start, with subtle observation and superb detailing, the writing highly visual. The author paints wonderful pictures of London and vividly communicates the feel of Ashton Park.
I count this among my favourite books and highly recommend it.
52 of 58 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
I found this book to be totally enthralling and thought provoking. A book that stays with you for some time after reading it.
It takes place during the Second World War and is essentially based around an evacuee who along with others is sent to a large house in the country. It follows her story as well as her Parents and the couple who take her in.
I thought that all the characters were well developed and believable, they were not simply good or bad but people who found themselves in situations that they were unable control or cope with.
The description of the little girl and her Mother shopping together before her departure was particularly heart rending but in a most unsentimental way.
This book also tackles the effects of polio, a disease that we have all but forgotten about but which had devastating effects on both its victims and their families.
All in all an absorbing read and one which I found difficult to put down.
It takes place during the Second World War and is essentially based around an evacuee who along with others is sent to a large house in the country. It follows her story as well as her Parents and the couple who take her in.
I thought that all the characters were well developed and believable, they were not simply good or bad but people who found themselves in situations that they were unable control or cope with.
The description of the little girl and her Mother shopping together before her departure was particularly heart rending but in a most unsentimental way.
This book also tackles the effects of polio, a disease that we have all but forgotten about but which had devastating effects on both its victims and their families.
All in all an absorbing read and one which I found difficult to put down.
16 of 18 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback|Amazon Vine™ Review
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I agree so much with a couple of the other reviewers who refer to the writing as flat, or lacklustre. While the prose is very well crafted in places, the book as a whole is rather unsatisfying. None of the characters really engage you. The narrative keeps jumping from one person to another, then suddenly speeds up towards the end, so characters age from one page to the next. As commented on by another reviewer, there are some incidente which are drawn out to the edges of tedium (the build-up to the love affair between Ruth and Thomas, for example) while other major events are dealt with in a single abrupt paragraph. In her author's notes at the end, Rosie Alison refers to a visit to a house in Cornwall as the starting point for this book. Why then, was it set in Yorkshire, and in a Yorkshire which we never got to see or experience in any way? I just found the book very oddly put together, and felt frustrated with the author, because some of the passages were very well done, it just didn't work as a whole. Also, I was unconvinced by the relationship between Anna and Thomas - what was that about, it seemed a tad creepy?
Not one to keep, I'm afraid, or even pass onto a friend.
Not one to keep, I'm afraid, or even pass onto a friend.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
A really good read
Without repeating what has already been written, all I would want to say is that this is a well written novel that I find kept me interested and engaged form beginning to end. Read more
Published 1 month ago by Graemey
Recommend
Highly recommend this book. I downloaded by mistake but thought I would read it anyway and thoroughly enjoyed it. Read more
Published 2 months ago by Robbierabbit
Beautiful and elequent
What a surprise .. what a beautiful, page turning, lovely book that made me weep into my pillow. Utterly utterly lovely - recommended to anyone that enjoys sensually written... Read more
Published 3 months ago by Sera
Very disappointing, I'm afraid
I'm afraid I was very disappointed with this book. I fully expected to like it, especially as it's set during wartime, which always interests me. Read more
Published 3 months ago by Nicola
Love and Loss in Wartime
A poignant story of three adults and one small girl brought together during World War II, and how the girl's later life is shaped by her experiences as an evacuee. Read more
Published 3 months ago by Kate Hopkins
Rather forgettable
I bought this book because it had good reviews and was shortlisted for a major prize. I'm always looking around for new authors to read, but I'm afraid I found this book rather... Read more
Published 4 months ago by MJKindleReader
A Yorkshire curate's egg
Like a fair few reviewers here I was disappointed overall with this book. The most effective parts of the story were the early scenes of Anna being evacuated to Yorkshire, but... Read more
Published 4 months ago by Steven Thompson
Loved this book
This was a lovely book. A sweet, sad, uplifting story which made me want to read more by the author. I look forward to her next book.
Published 4 months ago by J. Starling
A multitude of characters, couldn't put it down
As a young girl evacuated to an imposing country house, Anna Sands discovers lives and loves very different from her old home in London. Read more
Published 6 months ago by kymara
Impressive first novel
If you decide to read this be prepared for an emotional read in this impressive first novel which tackles in a very atmospheric way the coming of age story of a young girl... Read more
Published 7 months ago by LindyLouMac
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