The thrilling new book from Sheila Riley in her Liverpool Saga series
1916 LIVERPOOL
Following the death of her father, Ruby Swift, and husband Archie finally move back into Ashland Hall.
As the Great War rages, fathers and sons take the King's Shilling and head off to fight the unknown enemy, not knowing what horrors lie ahead.
With Ned Kincaid in the Navy, Archie signs up to the volunteer constabulary and nurses Anna Cassidy and Ellie Harrington enlist to do their bit for King and Country.
Soon the true casualties of war are being brought home in droves, Ruby converts Ashland Hall into an auxiliary hospital for wounded servicemen.
It’s not long before the true cost of war is brought closer to home and Anna and Ellie enlist in the British Military Nursing Corp and soon find themselves in the battlefields of France in search of the truth.
But they soon discover more than they bargained for...
The Mersey Angels by Sheila Riley
takes readers back to 1916 in England where our characters are dealing with
injured soldiers from the war. Ruby
Swift decides to turn Ashland Hall into an auxiliary hospital. Ruby, Archie, Anna, and Ellie move into the
hunting lodge as a drill sergeant of a doctor takes over the hospital. Each person is worried about a loved one
while they work to help the injured soldiers.
The Mersey Angels can be read as a standalone in case you have not had
the opportunity to read The Mersey Mistress.
I thought The Mersey Angels was easy to read with developed, realistic
characters. The author did her research
for this series. She captured the time period,
so the reader felt like they were back in 1916.
I liked most of the characters with my favorite being the formidable
Ruby Swift. She was a clever, shrewd
woman. Ruby did not let any grass grow
under her feet. If she had an idea, she
was off to make it happen. The Mersey
Angels is an emotional novel. There is
heartache, hope, deep sorrow, disgust, joy, love, and hope. We get to follow Anna, Ruby, Ellie, Lottie, and
Izzy as they go about their everyday lives with the additional workload of
helping the war effort. Each person “wants
to do their bit.” They experience
losses, but they continue to have hope.
With loved ones away fighting in the war, they worry they could receive a
dreaded telegram. A telegram in 1916
told you if your loved one was missing in action, dead, or injured. There were, on occasion, telegrams that would
bring joyful news. Letters would be exchanged between those at home and those
away. Women at home worried when they
did not receive consistent communication.
The war wreaked havoc with mail delivery. While most of the characters are those that
readers will love, there are some that you will love to hate. Jerky Woods is one of those. I just wanted to shake Lottie who was naïve and
refused to see the man’s true nature. The
Mersey Angels is an appealing novel that will delight fans of historical
fiction. The ending will leave you smiling. The Mersey Angels is a compelling tale with a
dedicated doctor, an awe-inspiring woman, an absent brother, a despicable son, courageous
soldiers, and a waging war.
Kris
The Avid Reader
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