Thanks to Rachel’s Random Resources and the publisher for my gifted book in exchange for my honest review.
Three girls seem to have the world at their feet in the summer of 1914. But World War I is coming and things will change forever – especially for women.
Debutante Lucinda McFarlane is engaged to be married to Major Sir David Melcome, but their society wedding has to be scaled right down when war is declared and David is recalled to his regiment.
Mabel Oakley, once a maid for the McFarlanes, has inherited Thomas Clarke’s printing works, but an unexpected turn of events leaves her at the mercy of her father’s old enemy, solicitor John Sheridan. What can she do?
Lady Diana Fosse-Bury is incredibly beautiful and reckless. When war is declared she immediately wants to be in the thick of it. Can her budding romance with Lucinda McFarlane’s brother Iain survive the Western front?
With war coming, the destinies of these three girls will soon be entwined forever, but only if they dare to love in the face of the dangers ahead of them.
A historical fiction saga by a brand new author to me. The Girls Who Dared To Love piqued my interest with the blurb. I really am a sucker for historical fiction!
Set in England at the outset of the First World War, we follow the fortunes of Mabel Oakley, a young woman who has found herself owning a printing firm. Lucinda McFarlane, a debutante who is engaged to Major Sir David Melcome and Lady Diana Fosse-Bury whose romance with Lucinda’s brother, Ian, is threatened by the war.
All three women are so well developed, and I could picture them in my mind. Mabel, I invested in so much. A working class girl who started as a maid and found herself in good fortune. She showed true grit throughout. A female running a business? In these times? I liked her fortitude and cleverness in running her printing business. She is a great example of the women in those days. The ones with the spines of steel and the determination to better themselves when everything worked against women. Mabel’s story is like a rollercoaster all the way. Her ups and downs made this a great read.
Lucinda is a member of the upper classes, and she has to fight too, in her own way for her own choices. Going against the societal norms wasn’t done in those days for the gentry. Lucinda has her Mamma to contend with, and that brings burdens on Lucinda if she does the wrong thing.
Lady Diana, well, she throws all the norms away and does everything her own way. She is gentry but she has made a name for herself as has her father! This woman is colourful and so intriguing. I can imagine the gossip amongst the gatherings!
Diney Costeloe has clearly a love for this period. Her research into the time has added so much depth to the book. The characters feel real, and their dilemmas are ones that are so perfect for the period. I always love historical fiction, and I say it’s like being entertained and educated at the same time.
I couldn’t get enough of these women. I took this book wherever I went. If I got 2 minutes, I was reading. It was like travelling back in time, I was that immersed. So uplifting to see how these women traversed society in their own ways. The emotions they went through when the men, one by one, go to war are so tangible. I felt for Lucinda the most. Her situation was one that every servicemen’s wife experienced. My heart was torn in two for her.
A flowing and easily readable historical fiction tale of the people who lived through the First World War. It may be fiction, but I felt it could be real!
Purchase Links
https://www.amazon.co.uk/Girls-Who-Dared-Love-captivating-ebook/dp/B0CVRX7WP5/
https://www.amazon.com/Girls-Who-Dared-Love-captivating-ebook/dp/B0CVRX7WP5/
Author Bio
Diney Costeloe is the author of twenty-four novels, including The Girls Who Dared to Dream, several short stories, and many articles and poems. She has three children and seven grandchildren, so when she isn’t writing, she’s busy with family.
Social Media Links
dineycosteloe.co.uk
@Dineycosteloe
sharonbeyondthebooks.uk 