January 1945, West London: Sylvia Simpson is flourishing in her role aboard the Marigold and has quickly become an invaluable member of the crew. But as the V-I and V-2 rockets draw closer, someone from her past is about to burst into their lives. Now Sylvia must choose between keeping the promises she has made, and remaining loyal to the people she loves the most.
Polly and Verity are still waiting for their sweethearts’ safe return, and soon find they have their own battles to fight on the home front. It will take all their resolve to keep their heads above water, but as long as they stick together there will always be hope.
Many thanks to Sarah Harwood from Arrow publishing for my copy of Hope on the Waterways to review and to Sharon for having my review on the blog.
Hope on the Waterways by Milly Adams is the third and final instalment in the Waterway Girls series. This series has followed the lives of a unique group of women who replaced the men on the cut as it known whilst they were away at war. The girls in question Polly, Verity and Sylvia have all grown up very quickly as they face the daily rigours of transporting goods up and down the waterways of England in what until now has very much been a male dominated occupation. Added to this, for many years 'the boaters' have ruled the waters and may not have taken too kindly to women invading their territory.
Thankfully this has not been the case for the trio who are strong, brave and always united in hope and unity as they navigate all the obstacles and life challenges the cut throws at them. Throughout the book, there was an overwhelming feeling that things were begin to wind down, that thoughts were turning to life after the war as an end seemed to be in sight. The British were advancing further into German territory with the Russians making headway on the other side but the girls know there is a lot of water to flow under the bridge before peace, happiness and love can once again reign in all their lives. But what keeps them going on the waterway is their sense of hope and togetherness, that they can keep ploughing on as an end may be within their grasp.
Knowing this was the final book in the trilogy meant that a lot of loose ends needed to be wrapped up as there had been various storylines meandering their way through all the books that certainly needed a firm conclusion. Everything did get tied up but throughout each chapter the author kept the reader on their toes, engaged and interested as to all the goings on and the numerous heartaches and also fears that were unfolding. In books one and two I had felt there was so much detail regarding the finer working of the boats and the canal system itself that at times the story became bogged down in this and it did lose its way at various points. As all these details had been previously dealt with I could see now there was more room to deal in-depth with character storylines and allow for development of people who we only had glimpses of or into their minds before.
Sylvia came to the forefront in book three as Polly and Verity has already had their chance to share what was troubling them and their various reasons for accepting a job on the canals. That's not to say they were glossed over or barely mentioned here, they still featured as they waited for news from the front of their fiancées Tom and Saul. This time it was Sylvia’s chance to step into the spotlight and the brusque, secretive girl who had first arrived on the cut had many life changing decisions to make. She feels duty bound by her upbringing in an orphanage run by nuns and a supposed promise to a fellow orphan that she should become a nun. Sylvia is very much torn in two. She has experienced a new life on the cut, one in which she has met people she would never have encountered before and she feels there may be more to life than being duty bound to God. She can still connect with him but should she devout her life to serving God. That is the question that dominates her thoughts throughout. I could feel every bit of her indecision and I admired the way she had bonded with Polly and Verity and their fellow boaters and friends in particular Bet. But still the promise from childhood still niggles away at her, the reader is left wondering until the very last few chapters whether she will make the decision that is right for her?
A shocking event that leads to tragedy and heartbreak within the first few chapters sets the tone for a good half of the novel. It also sets up new storylines that will unite the girls in solving a conundrum which has pervaded throughout each of the books. One main result of this incident is Sylvia meeting Tom a fireman working in London. Almost as soon as Tom and Sylvia set eyes on each other they were instantly deeply in love and this means Sylvia’s decision becomes even more important. Honestly, I know war made every aspect of people's lives different and difficult and people did marry and fall in love very quickly but even this first meeting I felt took things a bit too far in the rapidness of their deepening affections. Yes the way it was written did make it feel genuine and that their relationship could last but still the speed and intensity just seemed too unrealistic even for the uncertain times.
The second strand of the story resulting from the action in the beginning centred around young Joe, a relative of Saul's who had been taken under the wing of Polly and Verity's family. Readers familiar with the girls story up until this point will easily recollect all the connections and various sub-plots surrounding the safety of Joe. Once again here the tension is really racked up as everyone bonds together to keep danger and harm at bay. The long term future of Joe is paramount and I loved how all the characters joined as one to try and solve the threats that increased page by page. It demonstrated how the people of the cut and those that lived on land could all work side by side with one common goal. There were also so many twists, turns and revelations that helped ramp up the pace of the later half of the book and I found myself rapidly turning the pages to discover the outcome of something so serious and life altering.
The entire book was highly readable. It was one of those books where you pick it up and before you know it 100 or more pages have quickly flown by. I only have two minor faults with the story and it's more to do with my own personal preferences rather than anything else. There were subheadings under the chapter number and these detailed in a few words what said chapter would be about. I would have rather these were left out as I prefer to discover for myself what will unfold in each chapter. I always love the element of surprise and I don't think the book needed these brief descriptions.
Also with regard to the ending, given so much time was invested in the lives of these girls over the course of three books the very last chapter or two felt very rushed as if everything needed to be neatly tied up and that everyone's conclusion to their mini stories had to be mentioned. Even two more chapters would have suited the ending better instead of rushing through things. Those two points aside Hope on the Waterways was an enjoyable read providing fans with a satisfying conclusion to a story in which a group of girls have deeply touched this readers heart. The message of friendship, unity and to keep on keeping on shone through. Life is short and to grab happiness wherever possible was also another message which radiated from the pages as did the joy and happiness the remarkable trio brought each other.
Fans of wartime sagas should definitely give the Waterways a chance if they have not done so before and people who already love the girls and their adventures will enjoy Hope on the Waterways too. I'm already looking forward to who Milly Adams may introduce us to next.
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