REVIEW: A Winter Wedding at Bletchley Park by Molly Green

A Winter Wedding at Bletchley Park (The Bletchley Park Girls #2) by Molly Green

Genre: Historical fiction, Wartime fiction, WW2, Sagas, Romance

Read: 29th January 2023

Goodreads

Amazon

Published: 24th November 2022

★★★★ 4 stars

DESCRIPTION:

The second inspiring novel in the heartwarming and hopeful Bletchley Park Girls series from historical fiction queen, Molly Green...

When Rosie Frost was jilted on her wedding day, she didn't think life could get any worse. But six years later in the throes of the Second World War, she is unceremoniously dismissed from her job after they discover her illegitimate child.

Thankfully, top secret war office Bletchley Park recognises Rosie's talent and recruits her to decipher their Italian naval signals. Proud to be doing her bit for the war effort, Rosie settles into her new life.

But when she spots a familiar face at the Park, Rosie's world threatens to come crashing down once more. Can she put the past behind her in order to excel at the job she was born to do? And will her hard work help safeguard her nation's future...?

The second in an inspiring wartime series set at Bletchley Park, perfect for fans of The Rose Code and The Girl from Bletchley Park.

MY THOUGHTS:

As with her previous series The Victory Sisters, this series is focusing on a different character with each book. The first followed Dale's story and this time round is her friend Rosie.

Stood up on her wedding day when she was 17, Rosemary Frost (Rosie) longs to join the WRENS however fate would have it, after a friend of hers has word in the right ears, that her war efforts would see her working alongside Dale at Bletchley Park. It seems Rosie is fluent in Italian and is a dab hand at maths - both of which work in her favour with her newfound position.

As luck would have it, just as she is getting used to her new normal and getting comfortable, the new Lieutenant Commander is introduced - Hugo Garfield, aface from Rosie's past. Fighting her feelings for this man she thought she would never see again, Rosie sets to focusing on the job at hand but her skills are questioned and so she tries to move past that by moving to another hut and making new friends. 

But the past has a way of catching up with you...Can Rosie put it behind her without it ruining her job?

A WINTER WEDDING AT BLETCHLEY PARK is naturally predictable but an enjoyable read all the same. I love Molly Green's easy reading style, making the story come alive and immersing the reader into another time and place. She brings fact into fiction without bogging us down with history. I love the steady pace and the heartwarming story that kept me reading until the very last page.

Overall, an enjoyable heartwarming read and I look forward to the next in the series.

I would like to thank #MollyGreen, #Netgalley and #AvonBooksUK for an ARC of #AWinterWeddingAtBletchleyPark in exchange for an honest review.

MEET THE AUTHOR:

Molly Green is the pseudonym for Denise Barnes.

Denise has travelled the world, unpacking her suitcase in a score of countries and working at more jobs than she cares to remember. Mentionable events include selling lipstick in a Denver department store to top English model of the day, Jean Shrimpton; typing on a French keyboard for the UN Narcotics Director in Geneva; chauffeuring a lonely Swiss multi-millionaire lawyer in Zurich; being the first fashion model in Atlanta to dance to pop music; working as a PA to a film producer and delivering a film script to Richard Harris in Rome and not recognising him (he was not amused); and cooking in a vegetarian sanatorium in Bavaria, which gave rise to her first hilarious memoir.

Back home in England, Denise reluctantly trained as an estate agent - and loved it! Juggling the running of her chain of eight offices in Kent with taking an Honours Degree with Open University, Denise had difficulty finding the time to pursue her life-long passion for writing. 

To give herself the freedom to write she sold her business after 17 years, but unfortunately to the wrong buyers, namely a couple of tricksters, which resulted in a second, more serious, memoir. Buying back the business and after six years selling it once again, she is now able to resume her love of fiction writing, under the pen-names of Fenella Forster and Molly Green.

Having completed two books under her own name, Denise wanted to use a pen name for her historical fiction. She chose Fenella as she felt it was a more romantic name, and Forster after her true, but unknown, maternal grandfather.  When signing with Avon Books, Denise chose the pen name of Molly Green where she has now written at least half a dozen books under the pseudonym, proving to be very successful with two of them reaching #1 on the Amazon Kindle chart.

Denise now lives in Tunbridge Wells in Kent with her husband Edward.

Social Media links:

Website | Twitter | Goodreads

  

REVIEW: Summer Secrets at Bletchley Park by Molly Green

Summer Secrets at Bletchley Park (The Bletchley Park Girls #1) by Molly Green

Genre: Historical fiction, Wartime fiction, Sagas

Read: 29th January 2023

Goodreads

Amazon

Published: 28th April 2022

★★★★ 4 stars

DESCRIPTION:

Her code breaking will save lives.

But will it save the man she loves…?

September 1939. London is in blackout, war has been declared, but Dulcie Treadwell can think only of her heartbreak over American broadcaster, Glenn Reeves, who didn’t say goodbye before leaving for Berlin.

Posted to Bletchley Park, Dulcie must concentrate on helping the war effort by cracking the German Enigma codes. The hours are long and the conditions tough, with little recognition from above. Until she breaks her first code…

Dulcie finally settles into something she was born to do. But just as she’s proving her worth, a shocking betrayal leads to Dulcie’s brutal dismissal. Is it too late for Dulcie to prove her innocence and keep helping to save innocent lives?

The new sweeping WW2 historical series from Molly Green, set at top secret Bletchley Park…

MY THOUGHTS:

Having read Molly Green's previous serious of the Victory Sisters, I was excited to dive into The Bletchley Park Girls. However, I went to read the second book before realising I hadn't yet read the first one so I quickly sought out this one to enjoy. And enjoy I did. Though I have tired of many wartime reads, there are still the odd few that I enjoy, particularly those that are more sagas involving stories within with the war as a backdrop. And SUMMER SECRETS AT BLETCHLEY PARK is something of a heartwarming romance amidst wartime.

We meet Dulcie (Dale) Treadwell, a junior reporter on a local newspaper, as she meets American broadcaster Glen Reeves at Westminster Bridge the day war is declared and London is plunged into darkness as blackout begins. It's love at first sight and the couple plan to meet the following day. But Glenn is then posted overseas to Berlin without a word of goodbye and is unable to let her know and so Dale thinks he was a just a chancer and is left heartbroken.

After entering a crossword competition, her unique skills see her recruited to Bletchley Park where she signs the Offical Secrets Act and begins work on the enigma machines. She finds the work exciting and soon hopes to gain a promotion as a cryptographer. But no amount of work stops the nagging questions of why Glenn stood her up. Will they ever be reunited?

There's a lot more I could say about the story but I won't. Let's just say it's an enjoyable and entertaining read, though the market is similarly flooded with similar tales. But Molly Green's style is easy to read making it an enjoyable read. The story did move along at a steady pace and I was pleasantly surprised to find its focus was more on Dale and her romance rather than the wartime regime which many a book has been written so this made a pleasant change and an easy read. Too much factual accounts tend to bog readers down in history rather than a light read.

The ending was a little abrupt but I look forward to catching up the characters in the next book which I intend to read next.

I would like to thank #MollyGreen, #Netgalley and #AvonBooksUK for an ARC of #SummerSecretsAtBletchleyPark in exchange for an honest review.

MEET THE AUTHOR:

Molly Green is the pseudonym for Denise Barnes.

Denise has travelled the world, unpacking her suitcase in a score of countries and working at more jobs than she cares to remember. Mentionable events include selling lipstick in a Denver department store to top English model of the day, Jean Shrimpton; typing on a French keyboard for the UN Narcotics Director in Geneva; chauffeuring a lonely Swiss multi-millionaire lawyer in Zurich; being the first fashion model in Atlanta to dance to pop music; working as a PA to a film producer and delivering a film script to Richard Harris in Rome and not recognising him (he was not amused); and cooking in a vegetarian sanatorium in Bavaria, which gave rise to her first hilarious memoir.

Back home in England, Denise reluctantly trained as an estate agent - and loved it! Juggling the running of her chain of eight offices in Kent with taking an Honours Degree with Open University, Denise had difficulty finding the time to pursue her life-long passion for writing. 

To give herself the freedom to write she sold her business after 17 years, but unfortunately to the wrong buyers, namely a couple of tricksters, which resulted in a second, more serious, memoir. Buying back the business and after six years selling it once again, she is now able to resume her love of fiction writing, under the pen-names of Fenella Forster and Molly Green.

Having completed two books under her own name, Denise wanted to use a pen name for her historical fiction. She chose Fenella as she felt it was a more romantic name, and Forster after her true, but unknown, maternal grandfather.  When signing with Avon Books, Denise chose the pen name of Molly Green where she has now written at least half a dozen books under the pseudonym, proving to be very successful with two of them reaching #1 on the Amazon Kindle chart.

Denise now lives in Tunbridge Wells in Kent with her husband Edward.

Social Media links:

Website | Twitter | Goodreads

 

REVIEW: A Sister's Song by Molly Green

A Sister's Song (Victory Sisters #2) by Molly Green

Genre: Historical fiction, Sagas, WW2

Read: 10th April 2021

Goodreads

Amazon

Published: 25th June 2020

★★★★ 4 stars

DESCRIPTION:

Her duty is to keep smiling through…

When World War II breaks out, Suzanne’s dream of attending the Royal Academy of Music crumbles.

Determined to do her bit, she joins a swing band that entertains troops in some of the worst-hit cities of Europe.

Through singing, Suzanne finds a confidence she never knew she had, and she soon wins the admiration of Britain’s brave servicemen.

But her heart already belongs to a Navy officer who is serving out at sea. The question is… will they meet again?

A gripping tale of love, courage and camaraderie, perfect for fans of Nancy Revell, Donna Douglas and Vera Lynn.

MY REVIEW:

We were first introduced to the Linfoot sisters with Raine's story in "A Sister's Courage" as she learnt to fly and took to the skies as a pilot for the ATA. Now the second in the Victory Sisters series by Molly Green, A SISTER'S SONG is middle sister's Suzanne's story as she fights against their staunch mother's resistance to her daughters opening themselves up to danger. It is also alluded to that Suzanne is their mother's favourite as she lives what appears to be her musical dreams through her daughter.

While older sister Raine found her niche, Suzanne believes she has found hers in music. With her talent on both the piano and the violin, Suzanne dreams to study at the Royal Academy of Music in London and someday start an all-woman orchestra. Her mother, Simone, wants this for her also and even when they lost their money she paid for a private tuition so that Suzanne's dreams had the chance to become realised.

When war broke out, Suzanne was still studying at school but now that she is 18, playing the violin in the village hall during an air raid somehow doesn't seem as important anymore. So when her friend in their local village's orchestra announces that she is joining ENSA - the Entertainment National Service Association - to entertain troops far and wide with music, comedy and song, she invites Suzanne along to see what it's all about. But in the early hours of the morning they were to go to London for Wendy's interview, a housefire claims the life of her dear friend. Realising that the people at ENSA would have no idea, Suzanne decides to travel to London to break the news to them herself...and ends up with an audition and job offer to travel and perform with ENSA herself! Suzanne, or Suzy as they have opted to call her, is delighted and feels that in this way she could really be helping bring cheer to the troops amidst the battle. There is just one problem - her maman (mother). Suzanne knows that there is no way her mother will allow her to give up her dreams of studying music professionally for a career.

But what Suzanne didn't realise was a gift that came in the form of a letter that not only shattered her world, but gave her the strength to stand up to her mother. The women battle it out with Simone digging her heels in and resorting to emotional blackmail. And then suddenly, in a surprising turn of events, she changes her mind and signs the forms allowing Suzanne to join and travel abroad with ENSA.

During the course of events leading up to this, Suzanne had met a charming young man who was standing in as an ARP warden for the usual warden who was ill. Introducing himself as James Mortimer, she later learns that he is a Lieutenant in the Royal Navy and is currently on leave. By chance she meets his mother, Beatrice, who is just simply delightful and the two women form an unlikely friendship...much to the annoyance of Simone who believes that Suzanne already has one mother and she does not need another. Personally, I would much prefer Beatrice to have been Suzy's mother as Simone is just horrible. I found her to be controlling, overbearing, selfish and manipulative.

But even when Simone has reduced Suzanne to tears, the secret her mother makes her promise not to reveal to her sisters or anyone else but having already disclosed it to James, it was he who appealed to her to try and not be so hard on her mother as she doesn't know the circumstances which lead to such a shameful secret. Still Suzanne finds forgiving her mother to be difficult and leaves to travel with ENSA with barely a word goodbye.

Travel destinations with ENSA are kept top secret and the troupe do not know where they are going to until they get there. The find themselves travelling by coach, train, ship and finally plane to their final destination. Suzy meets Betty and the two become firm friends, though Suzy still thinks of Wendy often and how this had been her dream originally. During the sea voyage  on a naval ship, Betty takes ill and spends most of the eighteen days in her bunk while Suzy embraces the beauty from the deck. When finally they reach their destination, Suzy is singled out to sing at the Governor's residence alongside famous jazz singer Adelaide Hall. But when their pianist falls ill suddenly, a stranger steps in to play for Suzy's performance. With his blonde hair and strange lilt to his accent, Suzy is shocked to hear him use the German diminutive "Ja" when she asked him if he knew a certain piece of music. But why would a German be here? Amongst the British?

When Suzy takes to the stage to perform she discovers a love for it in a way she never thought possible. While she would dearly love to perform the jazzy numbers, her forte has become to crooning melodies of ballads and focusing on the crowd before her, she likes to imagine that James is somewhere there hearing her sing for him. Although she hasn't seen him since he shipped out just prior to her leaving with ENSA, the two have corresponded frequently though mail can sometimes take months to get through, depending where they are or where he may be also.

Although Suzy is thoroughly enjoying herself performing for the troops, she continues to struggle to keep the secret her mother bargained her joining ENSA with. She hates keeping secrets from her sisters but she promised her mother, although she remains at odds with her over it.

Then when the ENSA troupe find themselves under attack, a decision is made to move on. However, Suzy has been given a lot to think about during her time in the Mediterranean and this last air raid attack made it that much clearer to her. She decides she needs to make her peace with her mother and to find James. But will she get the chance before it's too late? And will she ever see James again?

I enjoyed A SISTER'S SONG and learning more about Suzanne in the face of such adversity that is her mother. That despite the prospects and aspirations taken from her she finds other hopes and dreams to take their place. And the unexpected love she finds in James who I simply adored along with his delightful mother.

A SISTER'S SONG is more than just a story of wartime and entertainment of the troops through ENSA...it is about people. It's about love, secrets and family. And it is about the inseparable bond between sisters and their unwavering support of each other...no matter what.

I look forward to reading the third book "A Sister's War" which undoubtedly follows the youngest of the Linfoot sisters, Ronnie.

I would like to thank #MollyGreen, #NetGalley and #AvonBooks for an ARC of #ASistersSong in exchange for an honest review.

MEET THE AUTHOR:

Molly Green is the pseudonym for Denise Barnes.

Denise has travelled the world, unpacking her suitcase in a score of countries and working at more jobs than she cares to remember. Mentionable events include selling lipstick in a Denver department store to top English model of the day, Jean Shrimpton; typing on a French keyboard for the UN Narcotics Director in Geneva; chauffeuring a lonely Swiss multi-millionaire lawyer in Zurich; being the first fashion model in Atlanta to dance to pop music; working as a PA to a film producer and delivering a film script to Richard Harris in Rome and not recognising him (he was not amused); and cooking in a vegetarian sanatorium in Bavaria, which gave rise to her first hilarious memoir.

Back home in England, Denise reluctantly trained as an estate agent - and loved it! Juggling the running of her chain of eight offices in Kent with taking an Honours Degree with Open University, Denise had difficulty finding the time to pursue her life-long passion for writing. 

To give herself the freedom to write she sold her business after 17 years, but unfortunately to the wrong buyers, namely a couple of tricksters, which resulted in a second, more serious, memoir. Buying back the business and after six years selling it once again, she is now able to resume her love of fiction writing, under the pen-names of Fenella Forster and Molly Green.

Having completed two books under her own name, Denise wanted to use a pen name for her historical fiction. She chose Fenella as she felt it was a more romantic name, and Forster after her true, but unknown, maternal grandfather.  When signing with Avon Books, Denise chose the pen name of Molly Green where she has now written at least half a dozen books under the pseudonym, proving to be very successful with two of them reaching #1 on the Amazon Kindle chart.

Denise now lives in Tunbridge Wells in Kent with her husband Edward.

Social Media links:

Website | Twitter | Goodreads

REVIEW: A Sister's Courage by Molly Green (ARC)

A Sister's Courage (The Victory Sisters #1) by Molly Green

Genre: Historical fiction, WW2

Read: 12th Janury 2020

Goodreads

Purchase: Amazon

(publication date: 28th November 2019)

★★★★★ 5 stars

It's 1939 and the threat of war hangs over Britain. And all Lorraine "Raine" Linfoot wanted to do since her father took her to the flying circus when she was 14 was to be a pilot. But it's a man's world and the general consensus is that women can't fly planes...a view shared by her highly strung French mother.

In the first of what promises to be a heartwarming, feel-good series, A SISTER'S COURAGE is Raine's story...her journey from a young idealistic 14 year old to the woman who defies the odds to follow her dream.

From the moment her father took her to see the Flying Circus in 1936, Raine knew she wanted to be a pilot. To feel the freedom up in the skies, the wind beneath her wings. When at 17, she ventures to Biggins Hill airfield to watch the planes, it's there she meets Doug White and she persuades him to teach her to fly whilst arranging a job for her at the airfield to pay for her lessons. She knew her mother would never agree to her flying and therefore would never pay for the lessons.

When Raine has her first solo flight she can hardly contain the thrill of her emotions. Upon her return home she excitedly shares her news with her family who are all thrilled for her...except her mother. She is mortified and angered that Raine would choose to defy her regardless of her thoughts on the matter.

It isn't long before Raine takes her final test flight and and becomes a fully fledged pilot. However, before she can get her hours up, war is declared and the airfield is closed to civilian use. Biggins Hill now comes under the RAF and her mentor Doug is sent to Fighter Command in the war against Germany.

But before he leaves, he recommends she join the newly formed Air Transport Auxilliary (ATA) who deliver planes throughout the country for the RAF. And they are taking women pilots. But in the meantime, she must bide her time at the airfield as a typist and clerk where she now falls under the command of Flight Lieutenant Fox, a despicable man who sees women as objects for his own amusement. From the start, he rubbed Raine up the wrong way and she refused to let him bully her. So when he calls her into his office citing a letter from the ATA asking for pilots, Raine is thrilled to see her chance to fly. But she is quickly brought back to earth with a resounding thump when Fox tells her that they are looking for "experienced" pilots with an excess of 250 hours. Raine only had 20...and with a war on, no chance to increase her hours in any way.

But Fox had other plans for Raine...and when she refuses his advances and swiftly puts him in his place, he terminates her employment. Fearing the new girl Linda's chances with the sleazy Fox, the two women hatch a plan...which sees Linda obtaining the address for the ATA from the letter asking for pilots.

Raine writes to Pauline Gower who is in charge of the ATA pilots at Hatfield, citing her flying hours and her desire to do her bit for the war effort as a pilot. She hears back with the news that she is not immediately successful as the positions have all been filled, but it isn't long before she receives the news she has been waiting for. After an interview with Ms Gower and a flight test that proved to be somewhat hair-raising, Raine at last obtains her dream job as a pilot for the ATA. And not for want of trying either...for it seems the required minimum of 250 hours for the position was the cruel work of Flight Lieutenant Fox. There had been no minimum flying hours. The ATA were desperate for pilots.

Meanwhile back home, Raine's mother is as furious as expected. To think that her daughter was flying dangerous machines in the air during a war. Her sisters, Suzanne and Ronnie, were thrilled for her as was her father Robert. Even Doug was elated in their exchange of letters. Everyone was happy for her, except her mother. On a visit home, she went to a dance with her sister Suzanne, where she met the most infuriating cocky fly-boy with the greenest eyes she had ever seen. He introduced himself as Alec Marshall. She had seen him once before when she started at Biggins Hill before the war and while he was attractive, he was even more infuriating. Even moreso when he laughed at her.

Back in Hatfield, Raine was living her dream as a pilot ferrying fighter planes to the men on the front line. And although she had only ever flown a Tiger Moth, she was soon flying other planes such as Hurricanes, Spitfires and Typhoons. It was the general consensus amongst the female pilots that the Spitfire was a "woman's plane". It was light and comfortable and truly a dream to fly. And when Raine got her chance to fly her first Spit, she understood exactly what the other women meant. It WAS a woman's plane.

Then Raine receives the devastating news that Doug's plane had been shot down in France and, unless he bailed out before it crashed, he was missing presumed dead. It wasn't long after that she received her last letter from Doug which appeared to be unfinished, and in it he stated his true feelings for her and hoped they could marry upon his return. But suddenly Raine wasn't sure. This man who had seemed so much older than her, more experienced, she'd always looked on as an older brother. She didn't think she loved him in that way.

But when she laid eyes on Alec Marshall again, she knew where her heart lay. But being the stubborn woman that she was, Raine never admitted her true feelings to anyone...for fear of her heart being broken. This war was a cruel war and it was taking so many lives. She didn't know if she could give her heart to another...only to lose it should he be killed.

A SISTER'S COURAGE is a heartwarming story that sees Raine breaking with convention learning to fly and then going on to do a man's job during the toughest of conditions. Wartime was not an easy time. Women were left at home to keep the home fires burning, but many were also given roles they had never had before...in place of the men who were out there fighting. They had to deal with prejudice, convention, family and relationships.

I love historical fiction, with WW2 fiction often a favourite. A SISTER'S COURAGE is no different. It is well written and well portrayed with characters that are relatable and well developed as far as this part of the story goes. As we know, this is the first installment in "The Victory Sisters" series and is Raine's story. The second book I note will be focusing on Raine's sister Suzanne in the appropriately titled "A Sister's Song".

This is my first book my Molly Green and it won't be my last. I thoroughly enjoyed A SISTER'S COURAGE and look forward to "A Sister's Song".

I would like to thank #MollyGreen, #NetGalley and #AvonUK for an ARC of #ASistersCourage in exchange for an honest review.