Tuesday 4 November 2014

Books Read: Donna Douglas - A Nightingale Christmas Wish

As Christmas 1938 approaches, the staff at the Nightingale Hospital have their own wishes for the festive season. 

Ward sister Frannie Wallace is hoping she won’t have to live through another war like the one that claimed her beloved fiance. But with bomb defences going up all around London, it seems as if her hopes are in vain. 

Staff Nurse Helen Dawson wants to find happiness again after the death of her husband Charlie. A handsome stranger seems to offer the chance she wants. But is she looking for love in the wrong place? 

Matron Kathleen Fox struggles to keep up morale amongst her nurses as the hospital faces the threat of evacuation. But while everyone else worries about the future of the Nightingale, it’s for her own future that Kathleen truly fears. 

As the country prepares itself for war, one thing is for sure – by the time next Christmas comes, nothing at the Nightingale Hospital will be the same again…

Amazon links: Kindle or Paperback

Earlier this year I was introduced to the Nightingale Nurses series so when I was asked whether I'd like to read the latest book, A Nightingale Christmas Wish, it seemed the perfect book to kick start my festive reading by being reacquainted with old friends.

It's now late 1938 and for the staff at The Nightingale Hospital life continues as normal as we see familiar faces having to face personal and professional issues amidst the backdrop of the threat of impending war in Europe and how this could affect their lives in London and at The Nightingale Hospital. 

I always look forward to reading the latest book in a series as really enjoy getting to know characters and following their lives from book to book to see how they develop over time and in A Nightingale Christmas Wish that is no different.  We see how Helen Dawson is coping following the tragic death of her husband, we learn more about the past of Sister Frannie Blake, we discover a secret that Matron Kathleen Fox is hiding as well as see how probationary nurse Effie O'Hara is getting on, will she ever be able to get out of her sisters shadows?  

As well as these four main characters we also get to meet a few other familiar faces, albeit briefly, to see what has happened in their lives since we last met them.  

First off I'll have to admit that this was not quite the festive read I was expecting as although Christmas is mentioned in the title it is only briefly featured.  The story begins in November 1938 and leads us up to the declaration of war in 1939 but putting that minor issue aside it was another enjoyable read from Donna Douglas.  

Although this is the fifth book in a series, don't worry if you've not read any of the previous four books in the series as I think it should be OK to read as a standalone as there are sufficient recaps to enable you to get to grips with the characters back stories to enable you to enjoy reading. Roll on next year for the next book in the series Nightingales at War which I'm already excited about reading.      

I'd like to thank Rachel at Arrow Publishing to sending me a copy of this book to review.

No comments:

Post a Comment