Not into football? Try one of these books.

If you aren’t into football try one of these great books. I’m reading books on the early 1900s and WWI right now as background for my next book.

Somewhere in France: A Novel of the Great War by Jennifer Robson
Wow – what a wonderful novel. The characters are believable and relatable. I don’t really like upper class Edwardian characters, but Lilly is a woman willing to leave the confines of her privileged upbringing to seek a life that makes a difference. She succeeds in doing her duty as an ambulance driver in WWI. My next book is set during WWI, so I have done some historical digging myself and Ms. Robson is right on the mark in her descriptions of the time. I appreciated that she didn’t glorify the war or look away from the terrible human cost of the conflict. I am a nurse and found that Ms. Robson’s descriptions of the injuries and treatments of the time were accurate and compelling. In addition to the story of the great war is a love story. This book is not a romance, but the love story gives it hope. The love scene is the sweetest most caring love scene I have ever read. I highly recommend Somewhere in France: A Novel of the Great War and will definitely be reading the next book in this series soon. Highly recommended.

Check out Jennifer Robson on her Facebook site.

The Gilded Hour by Sara Donati.

I enjoyed ‘The Gilded Hour’ by Sara Donati. The main characters are physicians Anna and Sophie Savard. Female physicians in the 1890s were rare and Donati does a good job of developing the characters into realistic, believable people. They had strengths and weaknesses that meshed well with the plot development. I did struggle with keeping Anna and Sophie straight as they were very similar characters. It didn’t seem that the book needed two plot lines of two main characters. However, as this book is the first in a new series, the series may depend on a large cast.

The story was a compelling mix of the professional and personal lives of the characters. They deliver care to women (the only patients they are allowed to treat) and run up against the powerful Postmaster General Comstock who has a personal vendetta against women’s healthcare, especially birth control and abortion. When someone starts killing women the story is even more absorbing. The professional story mixes easily with the personal plot lines that include a realistic love story.

The Gilded Hour is set in the 1890s New York City. Sara Donati did a fabulous job of researching the setting and writing in a way that made me feel that I was in NY of 1890s. Her descriptions of the place and the use of language and social norms of the time immersed me in the setting.

I recommend The Gilded Hour and I look forward to the next book in the series.

Sara Donati is the pen name of Rosina Lippi. Check out the Gilded Hour and her other works on her website at  http://rosinalippi.com/weblog/