FICTION

The Lost English Girl

by Julia Kelly
Gallery. Mar. 2023. 416p. ISBN 9781982171704. $28.99. F
COPY ISBN
Kelly’s latest work of historical fiction (after The Last Dance of the Debutante) takes place during World War II in Liverpool, England. Vivian Byrne, a young lady who met and fell in love with a musician named Joshua, finds herself with child after their short time together. To avoid the shame of being an unwed mother, Vivian marries Joshua at the register’s office. But on the day of their wedding, Vivian’s mother offers Joshua a large sum of money to disappear, now that Vivian’s child will be born in wedlock. Soon Germany is threatening another war, and Vivian is encouraged by her family and parish priest to evacuate her four-year-old daughter to the countryside, before the whole planet is thrown into chaos as a new world war starts.
VERDICT A fascinating novel about a woman’s struggle with an out-of-wedlock pregnancy, her parents’ harsh treatment of both mother and child, and the separation from her child under the threat of an imminent war. For a different perspective of civilian life during the war, readers might try Maureen Lee’s “Pearl Street” series, also set in Liverpool.
Reviewed by Victoria Kollar , Feb 01, 2023
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