Reviewed by Emma Crowley
1941, Pearl Harbor: On the morning of December 7th, Ginny is flying her little yellow plane above the sparkling seas when she spots an unknown aircraft closing in on her. She recognises the red symbol of the Japanese fighter planes almost too late. Somehow, she manages to land unscathed but the choices she is forced to make in the terrible hours that follow have tragic consequences…
2019, Pearl Harbor: Heartbroken Robyn Harris is reeling from the death of the strong, determined grandmother who raised her. Her only comfort is a letter written in Ginny’s distinctive hand which details a treasure hunt, just like the ones she used to set for her as a little girl. Except this time, the clues are scattered across the beautiful island of Hawaii. Despite her grief, Robyn finds herself intrigued as she follows the trail of letters, revealing the truth about Ginny’s service during the Second World War.
But Robyn’s whole world is turned upside down when she’s faced with a shocking secret which has the power to change the course of her own life…
Many thanks to Bookouture via NetGalley for my copy of A Letter from Pearl Harbour to review and to Sharon for having my review on the blog.
A Letter from Pearl Harbor is the third book I have read this year from Anna Stuart and it was once again another very enjoyable and eye-opening read. As suggested by the title the events of that December in 1941 that brought the Americans into World War Two form the basis for this book and it was such a complete change and so refreshing to have a book set in America during the war years. The bombing of Pearl Harbor was such a significant event yet in books in this genre it tends to be merely mentioned in a line or two as the event that caused the Americans to really get involved and in turn the tide of the war slowly began to change. There are never any specific details mentioned as to what happened, the lead up to it and what occurred in detail that fateful morning. But Anna Stuart has changed all that and given her readers a fascinating insight in to how that dreadful event shaped the life of our main character Ginny.
I loved how this was a different setting to what I have become accustomed to as I have read so many war books set in Europe. I felt transported to the other side of the world both in the past and the present as the story is told in the format of a dual timeline. It was a very good read overall with lots of ebbs and flows and a deep hidden secret at its heart that needs to be brought into the light. In the modern day, Robyn Harris has lived in Honolulu for the last two years working as an aeronautical engineer but she has returned home to England as her beloved Granny Ginny is dying. Ginny was the one who more or less brought herself and her sister Ashleigh up as her parents were always away working as humanitarian engineers. So to lose Ginny even though she has reached the grand old age of 98 is traumatic for both of the sisters. But Ginny has left a legacy, one last treasure hunt for the pair for which she is infamous as these hunts created many a happy childhood memory.
Ginny had always been so vibrant and full of adventure which comes across so well in the chapters set in the past but there is one thing about her time spent in Hawaii which she should have confessed about long before now. Clearly this has always eaten away at her and you wonder why she didn’t just come out and say it to the sisters on her deathbed but if she had I guess there would have been no story to tell nor book to read. The girls both travel back to Hawaii and so begins a treasure hunt where they must solve the clues at various locations and receive a treasure chest containing a letter detailing Ginny’s story. I thought this brought a real fun element to the story despite the seriousness of the themes and issues being explored. It helped bring the setting of the Pacific island to life and I loved learning all about the various locations the girls visited. Ginny was wise beyond her years as she knew her granddaughters were like chalk and cheese and she wanted this quest to being them closer together rather than having her death draw them even further apart.
Ashleigh was such a complicated character and one very hard to like but you couldn’t blame her given the accident which left her dreams shattered and the remainder of her life irrevocably altered. She was bristly and full of anger and resentment and both herself and Robyn really rubbed each other up the wrong way. I enjoyed seeing the journey they went on together and how elements of Ginny’s story in the past were mirroring the two girls in the present. There were so many similarities and all three females shared many characteristics which came to light the more the story developed. I really loved how disability was explored throughout the book. Let’s be honest it’s rarely, if ever, mentioned in books so it was great to see a main character dealing with her disability and how she was battling to come to terms with it. I thought this strand of the story was extremely well executed and the later chapters focusing on Robyn and Ashleigh really brought things full circle and tied in well with Ginny’s story too.
As for the chapters set in the past, well they really brought Ginny to life and the reader is given a fascinating insight into women at the time. Yes, I’ve read about women during the war who lived in Britain or France etc. but never America and it was interesting to see how the powers that be in the American army treated women who wanted to get out and do their bit for their country. Ginny was an ambitious woman who thanks to her parents had the money to learn to fly. She really was made for the skies. She has fire in her blood, is impetuous, daring, competitive, courageous but at times reckless. Will this later quality be her downfall? She arrives in Hawaii with her brother Jack who is in the army and flies planes. Ginny herself soon gets a job training other pilots and she feels her life is made on this paradise island. She soon makes friends with a local Lili and a firm friendship is forged. The descriptions of those carefree nights at dances with officers and drinking Mai Tai’s seemed like another world so far away from the battles raging on European soil. But soon their happiness would be shattered when the Japanese arrive.
The actual bombing of Pearl Harbor was superbly written, I could visualise it all so clearly in my head, how so many people were caught unawares and it showed the trauma, the terror, the horror and the sheer disbelief that this could have happened. The events then shape and mould Ginny and I found her character went on a very different path thereafter and we learn much more about this as Robyn and Ashleigh navigate their way through the clues. At times you lose respect for Ginny and when the pivotal secret is revealed to be honest I just thought oh how could you have done that and yes really you were right to feel the way you did. I don’t know would I have been as forgiving as several other characters were. But through revealing her story Ginny was trying to help and teach her granddaughters. There was lots of details about Ginny’s life during the war and where she travelled to and what drove her on and made her so reckless and I found it all to be really interesting but to say much more would give too much away.
Overall, I found A Letter from Pearl Harbor to be a great read bringing as I have said an event mentioned in a brief sentence to life in a much bigger way and having a mystery at the centre of the book really drove the story on. The detailed historical notes at the end by the author were very welcome and really helped me to learn even more about events leading up to that memorable day in Pearl Harbor and also which characters were real that featured and how they were important and needed to be included. I loved the blend of historical fact with fiction and how the story highlighted bravery, sacrifices and love but also how here was a woman different from the norm willing to put herself out there but then having to deal with the consequences. Anna Stuart has been a really good discovery for me this year and I look forward to reading much more from her in the future.
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