"This is an epic first instalment that would be great for Historical fiction readers interested in the post war era but is also a great read for those looking for character focused stories of love, hope and community."
1949 is the first book in the Starlings of Peace trilogy by Catharine A Deever and sees a group of residents of a Gasthaus form a community and work to rebuild their lives after the war. As implied by the title, the book takes place throughout 1949 in a Berlin blockaded by the Soviet Union. Against this historic backdrop we find a character driven story of love and hope.
I liked the setting of the Gasthous which allowed a varied group of people to come together, developing their own storylines, whether that’s searching for their family after the war, finding love, or working to achieve their goals and build a better future for themselves. It is clear that a lot of research has gone into bringing to life Germany and the world at the time, and it provides an interesting backdrop to an otherwise very character-focused storyline. Each character brought their own wartime experiences to the storyline - an orphan surviving poverty and horrendous abuse, former pilots, resistance and prisoners of war, all perspectives that would have required yet more research in order to bring the characters to life the way the author has managed. This is an epic first instalment that would be great for Historical fiction readers interested in the post war era but is also a great read for those looking for character focused stories of love, hope and community.
Charlotte Walker, A LoveReading Ambassador
| Primary Genre | Historical Fiction |
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