The face of the woman in the photograph was tilted upwards, as if enjoying the sunshine just for a moment, even as the wreckage of the bombed-out street lay behind her…1944, Cornwall: Blinded by love, Vivienne Hamilton eloped to Paris with a Nazi prisoner-of-war, never to be seen again. A disgrace to her family, her name would not be mentioned by any of her relatives for over 75 years.
Present day, London: When Sophie discovers a photograph of her great aunt Vivi from World War Two, it throws her into a world of confusion. Because, as she learns about this secret relative, she quickly realises that the photograph doesn’t fit with her family’s story. It shows Vivi leaving an address associated with a spy network in London – a place she had no reason to be – and it is dated right before she disappeared.
Meanwhile Sophie’s own life feels as blasted and bombed as the blitzed city in the photograph she’s looking at. Her beautiful daughter – as full of joy and wild energy as Vivi had apparently once been – is gone; and Sophie’s heart has been left broken into pieces.
Retreating to the family home in rural Cornwall to seek solace from her pain and the feelings of guilt that she could have done more to protect her daughter, Sophie finds herself becoming obsessed with Vivi’s life.
But nothing can prepare Sophie for what she is about to uncover – the story of a woman who risked everything for the person she loved the most; and a secret family history that could be the key to Sophie’s own future.
Many thanks to Bookouture via NetGalley for my copy of When We Were Brave to review and to Sharon for having my review on the blog.
Bookouture are certainly very much on top of their game lately when it comes to bringing us brilliant historical fiction. I've discovered two excellent new to me authors in this genre in the past few weeks, the first being Catherine Hokin, whose début book was fantastic and now here is another When We Were Brave by Suzanne Kelman which is her second offering. Unfortunately, I haven't read her first but I will certainly be rectifying that because if it is anything like this superb read I know I am in for a real treat. From beginning to end, I was completely hooked on the story unravelling piece by piece right before my eyes.
It's a real mystery that keeps you in suspense until the last moment until playing its final card and I found once I began it was hard to tear myself away from it. Despite not wanting to, I had to set this book aside for a few days as life didn't dictate me much reading time but during this time away from Sophie and Vivi's story I found myself thinking about the characters and longing to get back to them to see what was going to happen next. It was such an inconvenience that I couldn't sit down and read it all in one go because it really is that type of book that is so well written, so carefully plotted, so expertly researched and with characters you care for immensely and you ultimately hope that a positive outcome can be achieved for all.
When We Were Brave is told in a dual timeline format and navigates its way back and forth between the modern day and the years that World War Two raged on. Two strong women are at its centre although they do experience hardships and difficulties but there is a connection between the pair. As Sophie Hamilton attempts to uncover the exact truth behind her Great Aunt Vivienne's experiences of the war she hopes she can right a wrong or else see exactly if what the family have believed to be true for so many years is actual fact.
Sophie is taking six months off from her legal career following a very traumatic event in her life, the finer details of which only become clearer much further into the book but the reader can guess the overall picture. Her state of mind is all over the place and she doesn't know what the next steps should be. Guilt and loss eat away at her. She is now working for a small charity which specialises in archiving historical materials and she has found this to be interesting and in some small way it takes her mind off bigger events which are permanently etched in her heart and mind.
A new exhibition curated by Sophie and her work colleague Jonathan leads to a startling discovery. A photo showing a bombed out street with only several buildings remaining shows a woman entering a building. One thing leads to another and Sophie discovers it is her Great Vivi who has the most villainous of reputations given she abandoned her family and fled their manor house in Cornwall with a Nazi and was never seen again. No one knows exactly what happened and the family have been stigmatised ever since. Sophie knows she can't let sleeping dogs lie and is determined to discover just what happened. Why did Vivi turn to the other side? What were her motivations? Or were there other more sinister forces at work?
Sophie is very driven and the chapters told from her perspective really drove the story forward as a whole. She is a person who always keeps an open mind and there is something niggling away at her deep down with regards to Vivi that she just can't let go. She won't rest easy until she has done her utmost to go down every avenue available to her and maybe right some wrongs if at all possible. I thought good for her. She really had nothing to to lose in starting this process and as her relationship with Matt had hit the rocks and there was time available for her to take from her job than really she was right to just to go for it. Maybe by embarking on this journey she would come to know Vivi and her situation better and find the evidence that will either clear her name or confirm she was a traitor to her country. At the same time Sophie needed to do this for herself. She needed to seek a better version of herself. One who is more brave and more together and a person who makes some small steps in finding acceptance at a time when she needs it the most.
I thought this quote summed up perfectly Sophie's stance in relation to why she felt so motivated to delve back into the past. 'She felt this odd pull into the past. As though finding out what really happened during the war would also help her find her own balance again. She needed everything in her life, including her history, to make sense. Or the future was just an impossible unknown'. It becomes so crucial and important for Sophie to piece the missing pieces of her life together and encourage her through her own personal trauma. The chapters told from Sophie's perspective worked so well alongside those of Vivi's as we were getting two takes on one big situation and I loved moving back and forth as the changes occurred at just the right time and provided us with more information to mull over and also opportunities to really get inside the characters heads in order to understand their thought processes and actions throughout the story.
Vivi was an exceptional character full of spirit, guts and determination but that's not to say that she was not without her faults. Of course she had many and the girl we initially get to know I really couldn't reconcile with the fact that she would betray her country in the manner in which she did. Vivi was a vivacious character who was known for being reckless and rushing head long into things but through reading the chapters told from her viewpoint and through Sophie's investigations we come to realise there is always more than one way to view a story. She has a brave and adventurous streak in her and this leads her down a path she would never have foreseen herself in in relation to the war. To say much more regarding the part she plays in the war would be to give too much away but suffice to say if people knew the exact things she got up to they would admire her rather than have her painted as a monster, traitor and a villain. She deserved admiration, love and respect but I suppose if you only hear one side of the story and that in turn grows legs and the person who it is focused on is not there to defend themselves than we do make an overall judgement based on what we hear.
Vivi has harrowing experiences during the war but at the same time there are plenty of exhilarating moments until it all comes crashing down and she returns to nurse in her home which has been converted into a hospital. She is consumed by guilt and I could see why but people blame her reckless and care free attitude. Vivi realises she needs to redeem herself for what has happened and it takes a courageous person to admit this. Yet at the same time one wonders is she too trusting and following her heart rather than practical matters of the mind? What really happened to make her life take such a dark and disastrous turn? Maybe the power of love can make somewhat rational people do crazy things. Vivi was a brilliantly drawn character and my opinion of her swayed back and forth several times over. The detail of her experiences and the job she does during the war were so vivid and informative.
My eyes were opened to a whole new aspect of the war that I had only briefly read about previously. It was evident that the author had engaged in extensive research and enjoyed doing it and then transferring this knowledge into a breathtaking story that will leave your heart in your mouth and having you questioning so many things. She certainly succeeded in allowing the heroics of the past to reach forward into her characters lives which she mentioned in the end notes as one thing she wanted to achieve with this book.
I can't recommended When We Brave enough. It's historical fiction at its very best and certainly in my book cements Suzanne Kelman as author to watch. I really wish there could have been more as I didn't actually want to discover the truth as I was so caught up in the story and all the various characters I was meeting and becoming accustomed too. You are transported back to a time when devotion and bravery was shown by the greatest generation and through Vivi's story we shall never forget. Congratulations Suzanne Kelman on writing such a stunning book.
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