Reviewed by Emma Crowley
London 1939. As war casts a dark shadow in his homeland Germany, journalist Sebastien wanders the grey fog-filled streets. His heart breaks as he remembers his hurried goodbye to his mother and sister. But even if everyone in London looks at him with suspicion in their eyes, he knows he made the right choice. It was the only way to keep his family safe from the Nazis hunting him…
When he sees a notice for a lodger in a pretty house on a cobbled street, he doesn’t allow hope to flare within him. He’s been rejected at every door he’s knocked on. But when Finley, with her warm brown eyes and sparkling smile, agrees to rent him the room, he allows himself to see a chink of light in the darkness. And as they grow closer over cups of cocoa in the cosy kitchen, love begins to develop.
Sebastien knows that he can’t stay hidden in Finley’s warmth forever though. He has to join the fight. It’s the only way to save his family and put a stop to the horrors in the country he once called home. When he leaves, they promise to keep their hope and love alive.
But Finley has something that she hasn’t been able to tell Sebastien; something that makes her life alone in the city all the more dangerous. And as the bombs rain down in London, and Sebastien risks his life in France, will she ever get the chance to share her secret with him?
Many thanks to Bookouture via NetGalley for my copy of The Only Light in London to review and to Sharon for having my review on the blog.
The Only light in London by Lily Graham is set in London and begins in March 1939 where there is a tentative atmosphere as to what lays ahead for many considering the rise to power of Hitler in Germany. The story follows a young woman named Finley who has many hopes and aspirations to become a theatre actress with a leading role in a West End production. She has had little to no success so far and her mother Isabelle would much rather she embark on a secretarial course which of course Finley is loathe to do.
Finley lives with her mother and younger brother Christopher and they still keenly feel the absence of their father who died in The Great War. Isabelle owns a haberdashery shop and Finley works as a costume assistant when she is between roles. Her father’s premature death had taught Finley that life is short and one must live it and to this end she will always peruse her dreams. But the political and social situations in the world and close to home are changing and there are uncertain waters ahead which Finley will have to gather all her fortitude for.
Finley decides to form an amateur dramatics society in the hopes of putting on a play and gaining some attention regarding her career which she names the Finley Players. A motley crews assembles. Sunella, a doctor from India, Archie, a widow, Anita and a young man named Sebastien. They aren’t the most talented bunch but they are drawn to each other and go on to be there for each other in times of peril and great need. Really, I would have loved to know more about each member of the group because apart from Sebastien I felt we barely knocked on the doors of the other characters and they were vastly under utilised apart from Archie who stepped in to help at a most crucial time. The whole concept of the group and being there for one another as they transcended the actual reason for the formation of the society was brilliant but it wasn’t developed as well as it could have been. I understand this goes on to be the story of Finley and Sebastien but given the book was short enough in overall length I felt there was much more scope for exploration of this strand of the story. It had such potential but wasn’t advanced to the point it could have been.
For me Sebastien, both as a character and with regard to his storyline, was by far the strongest aspect of the book. I know I should view Finley on the same level but I thought Sebastien’s story spoke to me and will do to other readers as well. I felt Finley had it easier in comparison to him and again a lot of the time I thought we only got to know her on a superficial level rather than a more deeper one until it was too late in the book for me to really engage with her. Yet, I admired the way she drew closer to Sebastien and her family opened their doors for him and others when required and they did so without thinking.
The later half of the book was better than the first and the relationship that develops between Sebastien and Finley felt real and vivid but again I wanted more of this as it came too late in the book and then the outbreak of war disrupted everything. But on reflection, this was the reality at the time, people only found each other and then they were wrenched away by the hardships of war. But this quote does sum up the character of Finley and what she tried to achieve even if at times I wanted just that little bit more. ‘Take comfort that even in the darkest hours of humanity, there are always those who provide light amid the shadows’.
It’s rare for me to say that the male character in a historical fiction novel was the one I engaged with the most. But this is the case here with Sebastien who escaped Germany due to Jewish persecution. He held British citizenship as his father was British but died soon after he was born and his mother moved to Germany where she married Gunther and they had a daughter named Katrin. Sebastien was a political journalist who wrote articles under a false name which were critical of the Nazi party but someone betrayed him and he had no choice but to leave his family behind and try and get to safety on British shores. Sebastien is now a man whom Finley can see is lost, lonely and in pain aching for his family and not knowing what will befall him as rumours of war gather pace. He works two jobs to earn money and hopes to get visas and sponsorships to bring his family to Britain but this is impossible unless he has somewhere to stay permanently and that requires money which really he wants to keep for the visas.
So he is in a vicious circle of helpless anger and rage against Hitler and the Nazi’s and the anguish he feels regarding the situation his family is in only intensifies the further the book progresses. He decides to audition for the Finley Players and from the first moment he sets eyes on Finley the reader could tell he was smitten and could easily fall quite deeply in love with her. But the thoughts of what his family are potentially going through in Germany as Jews are used as a scapegoat for the problems Germany are going through-poverty, unemployment and inflation occupy his every thought and word. He needs his family by his side and will do anything to make this a reality. I loved that Sebastien was consumed by anger and rage at what was unfolding because it only fuelled his desire to be reunited with his family. Finley becomes a stalwart by his side and by coincidence he ends up renting a room in Finley’s family home. A unique bond and a sense of camaraderie and even something more is developed as they unite with one goal to bring his family to safety but as war breaks out and Sebastien enlists as well as Christopher their whole lives are turned upside down.
The last quarter of the book and in particular the ending were far too rushed and things were wrapped up far too neatly in the epilogue which at times read like a school textbook and I hate saying that but that is how I felt when reading it. I knew given what percentage I had left to read and that it was only the beginning of 1941 when the book ends that things needed to be concluded but I felt the book needed much more and it was too neatly wrapped up and warranted a bit more pain and anguish. Overall, this is a good book despite the issues I found with it but it’s not my favourite read by this author. If you want a book more on the easier side detailing World War Two than this is the one for you.
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