Smashbomb

Search

Search results

All (2321)

Content

Hazel (1853 KP) rated In Picardy's Fields in Books

Nov 27, 2020

In Picardy's Fields

Hannah Byron | 2020 | Fiction & Poetry, History & Politics, Romance

9.0

(1 Ratings)

Book Rating

Told from two perspectives, In Picardy's Fields is the story of two brave young women during the First World War. Set mostly in France, the two women put gender stereotypes to one side to help the allied soldiers. Baroness Agnès de Saint-Aubin, a young surgeon from Paris, follows her teacher, Dr Alan Bell, to the Château de Dragoncourt on the front lines in Picardy to help her friends, Jacques and Elle de Dragoncourt care for the injured soldiers. Meanwhile, the youngest Dragoncourt child, Madeleine, is determined to escape from her finishing school in Switzerland to play her part in the war effort.

The author, Hannah Byron, accurately describes the devastation and dangers the characters faced both in Paris and at the front. Flowing seamlessly from scene to scene, Byron paints a dark picture of life in wartorn France at the same time as weaving a captivating story. Agnès is a reticent but strong woman, a stark contrast from the stuck-up Madeleine, used to getting her way. Yet both characters develop, forced to face horrifying circumstances. While Agnès becomes more confident, Madeleine uses her head-strong determination to secretly help the allied soldiers, even if it means putting herself in danger.

Whilst the war is the main feature of the novel, the author weaves themes of friendship and romance into the narrative. Although only two people narrate the story, In Picardy's Fields shows the importance of working together and putting aside prejudices. The undercurrent of a developing romance brings a sense of hope that everything will end happily, yet the reader also knows nothing is safe during wartime. With each turn of the page, disaster could befall the characters, which makes for a gripping read.

Hannah Byron admits she is not a medic or war expert, yet she undertook extensive research to make In Picardy's Fields as accurate as possible. She also confesses it is unlikely a female doctor went to the front lines, yet as a work of fiction, this does not matter, especially as Agnès's profession is key to the story.

Authors have written novels about the World Wars ad nauseum to the point that writing an original story seems impossible, but Hannah Byron proves this assumption wrong. In Picardy's Fields feels almost modern in some respects, despite being set in the 1910s, which adds a freshness to the story. These women, these characters are just like you and me, living in a time we could not possibly understand.

In Picardy's Fields is a fantastic debut novel and Hannah Byron is a writer to keep an eye on.

Kudos

Imperial Struggle

(0 Ratings) Rate It

Tabletop Game

In 1697 the Sun King, Louis XIV, emerged from a decade of war with his Continental ambitions still...

Haley Mathiot (9 KP) rated Genocide of One: A Thriller in Books

Apr 27, 2018

Genocide of One completely blew my mind, multiple times. The plot twists just kept happening, new characters kept being introduced and then turning out to be totally different characters than I thought they’d be, and the adrenalin was pumping almost immediately. There were so many little things that became big later, so many details, so many connections, that I feel like if I read it again, it would be just as exciting, maybe more exciting the second time, because I might actually understand it on a deeper level. The ending was fulfilling but left opportunity and excitement. I definitely didn’t want it to end and I would read a sequel or another book by Takano in a heartbeat.

The book switches from one side of the world to the other every chapter. Initially I wasn’t sure how the two totally different stories were connected, but one connection at a time the two sides became one. There was a war thriller and a medical mystery happening at the same time and they were two different aspects of the same problem.

The hardest part of the book was the technical lingo and jargon in the medical chapters. I won’t say it was unnecessary because I’m not sure how else the author could have described the specifics of what went on, and being vague just wouldn’t have worked for this kind of story, but the jargon was a little hard to follow. I got won’t say I understand genetics now, but I do have a pretty good idea of what happened (medically speaking) in the story and I think it added to the book rather than taking away from it, so I’m okay with it.

The narration was excellent and not in any way distracting from the story. Joe Knezevich did an excellent job with all the different voices and accents, American and Japanese.

The bottom line is I loved this story and recommend it to anyone who likes thrillers or adventure stories. There was some violence during the war scenes, but it wasn’t gruesome or grotesque.

Kudos

Lyndsey Gollogly (2893 KP) rated Reclamation ( Shadowed Wings book 3) in Books

Sep 9, 2022

Contains spoilers, click to show

162 of 230
Kindle
Reclamation ( Shadowed Wings book 3)
By Ivy Ash
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
🌶🌶

The last place I ever wanted to be was in the middle of someone else’s war. Too bad fate doesn’t give a fuck.

When I first woke up in the land of the Gryphons, I had one goal...getting back home.

I was so focused on figuring out how to leave that I got myself exiled from the Hidden, captured by the Avowed, and managed to claim not one, but three mates. Although I had no idea about that last one until it was too late.

Oh right, and then I almost died.

I thought having my throat slit from ear to ear was going to be the worst of my problems. But my asshole mates make coming back from the brink of death look like a glide through the sky compared to dealing with them.

I’m ready to accept my fate and right the wrongs of the past. I just wish I had some idea how to keep the pricks I’m bound to from fighting long enough so we can find the help we need.

I’m supposed to awaken all that I am in order to finally free the Gryphons, but will I find the key to unlock all the answers in time?

War is breathing down our backs, and if we can’t figure out how to come together...we’re all going to die.

So I was left reeling after the last two chapters in book 2 so I was thinking all sorts going into book 3. I just loved this book I think Falon is just brilliant she just does not give a f**k. She finally stands up to the 3 meat heads she is mated too and that scene I was just laughing. She finally finds her place in the world and does it with such a filthy mouth, there’s no holding her back. She reminds me so much of a person in my life. Definitely a series I’d recommend I think I need to start the series before this one as the ending has me believing they are lin