Angels of War

by Lana Kortchik

Don't miss USA Today bestseller Lana Kortchik's upcoming WWII historical novel. Pre-order now!The Philippines, 1941. Rose Williams arrives in Manila on her first assignment as a US Army nurse, enthralled by the new environment and its promise of adventure. Although worlds away from the land she grew up in, Rose feels connected to her father, who worked in the Philippines before he died.

War seems like a distant possibility as Rose takes midnight dips in a warm sea with the other nurses, explores secret corners of the island, and falls in love with a locally stationed US Army officer.

But when Japan bombs Manila, the nurses’ lives change. Torn away from the man she loves, Rose faces constant threat, not only to her life, but from those around her she thought she could trust…

Will Rose and those close to her survive in the turmoil of war?

Readers love Lana ‘Absolutely wonderful! I recommend all Lana’s books, but I believe this one is my favourite and her best yet! TEN STARS!’ ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

‘This book packs a powerful punch… [it] makes your heart soar with every flight, pound in every battle, and break with every loss.’ ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

‘A story I won’t be forgetting any time soon… I highly recommend this book.’⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

‘Beautiful novel. Loved the way it is written. The characters and the era are well portrayed, wrapped in the history of WWII.’⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

‘Lana Kortchik has a great writing style and the historical elements were everything that I was hoping for.’ ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Genres: Historical Fiction, Historical

333 pages, Kindle Edition

Published June 5, 2025

About the author

Lana Kortchik grew up in two opposite corners of the Soviet Union – the snow-white Siberian town of Tomsk and the golden-domed Ukrainian capital, Kyiv. At the age of sixteen, she moved to Australia with her mother. Lana and her family live on the Central Coast of NSW, where it never snows and is always summer-warm.

Lana studied IT at university and, as a student, wrote poetry in Russian that she hid from everyone. For over a decade after graduating, she worked as a computer programmer. When she returned to university to complete her history degree, her favourite lecturer encouraged her to write fiction. She hasn’t looked back, and never goes anywhere without her favourite pen because you never know when the inspiration might strike.

Lana’s short stories appeared in many magazines and anthologies, and she was the winner of the Historical Novel Society Autumn 2012 Short Fiction competition. She is the author of USA Today bestsellers Sisters of War and Daughters of the Resistance, published by HQ Stories, an imprint of Harper Collins UK.

Lana also writes psychological thrillers under the pen name of Lana Newton.

To find out more, please visit http://www.lanakortchik.com.

Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/lanakortchik
Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/lanakortchik

Reviews

[Karren Sandercock · Rating 5 out of 5]

Rose Williams is from Brownsville, Maine and when she arrives in Manila for her first assignment as a US Army nurse, she's excited and views it as an adventure. Following in her late father’s footsteps, he was a doctor and died here when she was a toddler.

With her fellow nurses Kate, Anne, Tess and Ida begin working at the Sternberg General Hospital, in between shifts, they enjoy the warm weather and go swimming. Rose meets First Lieutenant David Taylor, he shows her the hidden places on the island, like the amazing waterfalls and soon both are crazy about each other.

However, Rose did notice when they arrived, the officer’s wives and children were being sent back to the US, everyone assures her she’s safe, General Douglas McArthur has everything under control and then two things happen, the Japanese bomb Pearl Harbour and the day after Manila is in their sights.

The US and Filipino soldiers are prepared to fight, but are out gunned and numbered and the medical teams are told to retreat to the Bataan Peninsula and later Corregidor Island.

The fast pace narrative set between 1941 and 1945 follows Rose and her colleagues as they deal with unknown, surly the Japanese will show mercy towards the field hospitals and wounded and she discovers this is not the case.

Angles of War by Lana Kortchik is a story about the first Us Army nurses in combat, despite having limited medical supplies and food, facing hardship and oppression, starvation and diseases they continued to treat the wounded and were courageous and inspirational women.

This book is a testament to the brave men and women who found themselves stranded in the Philippines during the fight for the Pacific and five stars from me and I highly recommend.

[Ella · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5 ⭐️ I really enjoyed this book. I've recently been very interested in nurses during WWII but not in particular the pacific theatre but this book has really opened my eyes. I feel like the nurses in the pacific are overlooked and not much talked about versus the nurses who served in Europe. I learned so much of the horror these nurses and the people of the Philippines went through that I never knew about or learned in any of my history classes that I took. These women have been through so much and my heart goes out to all the nurses who served in the pacific during WWII and thank them for their service and bravery.

[Cindy Spear · Rating 5 out of 5]

This novel is from my personal purchase pile and I am so happy I bought and read it. I love Lana's novels and this one took me to another place and showed me another side of the war. It is the most moving WW2 story I have ever read and that says a lot as I have read many exceptional ones.

Lana has an incredible gift of pulling you into the scene and making you feel part of it-- and she sets off every emotion through her incredible characters. It broke my heart many times at what these people (including the medical staff) endured. This soul shattering account is so detailed and involving I felt every experience deep in my core. There are many twists and turns of sadness and joy. Yes, there is so much death and destruction but new life, too.

I loved this novel dearly and will never forget the brave and caring cast of characters. Rose Williams is an amazing nurse who endures and loses so much but also gains some well deserved happiness at the end.

Lana is an amazing writer of HF. I love her novels. The inspiration behind this novel is incredibly moving and she did such an amazing job to help us know and remember these wonderful women and men who served during such a tough WW2 era under the Japanese bombings and control.

This is a story about courage, love, restoration, reunions, friendships and truth. This is a MUST READ WW2 story. I cannot praise it enough or express how special this story truly is. 5 Stars ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

[Christine · Rating 4 out of 5]

3,5* rounded up to 4*. I found the historical background set in the Philippines during the Second World War really interesting and gripping as I don't know much about it. The medical team did an incredible work everyone should be aware about. However, there were quite a few coincidences around the romantic part that rendered the storyline rather unrealistic. The romance fell flat to me, plain and utterly predictable. I wanted to read till though because I absolutely wanted to know what would happen to the nurses and doctors. Maybe not the best novel by the author, but still well worth reading!
I received a digital copy of this novel from HarperCollins through NetGalley and I have voluntarily written an honest review.

[em · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5 stars
Moving and full of surprises, this is everything a good historical fiction should be. I was immediately impressed with Rose, her resilience and determination to look after her patients and keep everyone safe. I adored her relationship with David and found myself heartbroken at the turn of events. I was rooting for her every step of the way, from the first evacuation to the tunnels and finally the camp. This book teetered perfectly between emotional and believable, it was clear that so much research went into this. A remarkable book, with strong characters and even stronger emotions. Highly recommend!

Thank you to NetGalley and the publishers for kindly providing an ARC in exchange for an honest review. #AngelsOfWar #NetGalley. All opinions are my own.

[Shreedevi Gurumurty · Rating 5 out of 5]

American Nurses: The Angels of Bataan
- *Initial Deployment*: US Army nurses were stationed in the Philippines, preparing for potential war.
- *Retreat to Bataan and Corregidor*: Nurses retreated to Bataan and Corregidor Island, establishing jungle hospitals and treating wounded soldiers.
- *Captivity and Imprisonment*: Nurses were captured and imprisoned in Santo Tomas Internment Camp, where they continued to provide medical care despite harsh conditions.

American Soldiers: Bravery and Sacrifice
- *Battle of Bataan and Corregidor*: US and Filipino forces defended the Philippines against Japanese invasion, but were vastly outnumbered and outgunned.
- *Captivity and Imprisonment*: Soldiers were imprisoned in camps like O'Donnell, Cabanatuan, and Bilibid, where they suffered from malnutrition, disease, and physical abuse.
- *Liberation*: In 1945, US forces liberated soldiers from camps, and the islands were eventually secured.

Fort William McKinley and Nichols Field
- *Strategic Roles*: Fort William McKinley and Nichols Field played important roles in US military operations in the Philippines during WWII.
- *Nurse Deployment*: Some US Army nurses were stationed at Fort McKinley before the war, and later retreated to Bataan and Corregidor Island.

Legacy and Impact
- *Shared Sacrifice*: The experiences of American soldiers and nurses in the Philippines during WWII created a lasting bond between the two nations.
- *Recognition and Legacy*: The bravery and sacrifice of US and Filipino soldiers are still remembered and honoured today.

"Angels at War" is a powerful tribute to the courage and resilience of American nurses and soldiers who served in the Philippines during WWII. Their stories are a testament to the enduring spirit of sacrifice and bravery in the face of adversity.

[Lily · Rating 5 out of 5]

In this brilliant new World War II historical fiction novel, Lana Kortchik brings the Pacific Theater to life in complex and brutal detail. Following nurse Rose Williams upon her arrival to Manila in 1941, readers follow her as she comes face to face with the horrors of war and the brutalities of battlefield medicine in a world totally different from her life in New England. Despite the learning curve and the arrival of Japanese bombs in Manila, Rose has never felt so close to her father, who worked in the Philippines before he died, and she makes friends with the other nurses and even falls in love with a soldier, seizing happiness where she can because life is so uncertain. Packed with powerful and occasionally visceral detail, readers will love this powerful and fascinating new World War II historical fiction novel from Kortchik, who brings her story to life with incredible atmospheric and historical details and brilliant characters. Rose is a fantastic and fascinating protagonist, whose character growth attracts readers, and her character development is absolutely fantastic because her backstory is so detailed. The other major and minor characters are also incredibly detailed and have brilliant backstories, and readers will love this powerful new book.

Thanks to NetGalley, HQ, and HQ Digital for the advance copy.

[Kelly · Rating 4 out of 5]

For fans of Kristin Hannah's Nightingale and The Women, this was an incredibly touching, insightful and enlightening book that shone light on the real life nurses who were stationed in the Philippines in WWII. As an avid reader of this era of history, this really opened my eyes to the untold stories or horrors of what these women survived during that time as nurses and POW.

There were wonderful twists and turns I did not see coming and Lana's writing style was easily digestible even for those who don't traditionally love historical fiction.

There were some subtle plot holes when it came to Anne's reputation and her role dividing David and Rose that I would've loved a greater conclusion to but overall a read that literally kept me up at night and gave me well-earned peace in its riveting ending.

Thank you to NetGalley, the author and publisher for a free ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review. Thank you!

[Katie Awdas · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another outstanding book from Lana Kortchik. This is the second book I have read recently about nurses in the Philippines and the hardship that both the Islanders and forces suffered under the Japanese. It is horrific to read about the way that human beings were treated and anyone who survived must have been both physically and mentally strong. The horrors must have lived with them for the rest of their lives.

The book is well written with characters that are easy to relate to. The storyline remains strong throughout the book and keeps the reader wanting to know more (several nights I read later than I normally would as I was engrossed). I did feel it was rather rushed at the end and would have liked to have had more about how everyone managed when they got back to the US and how their families reacted.

Highly recommended to anyone with an interest in historical fiction.

[R Evans · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was an excellent read even though the degree of hardship described tore at the heartstrings, making it difficult to read at times. The book tells the story of nurses in the American forces stationed in the Philippines during WW2. Of course, nursing 8n wartime was always going to test your resources to the limit, but then the country was taken over by the imperial Japanese army. The nurses find themselves in a PoW camp and many starve to death. While there are some harrowing moments, the story is lifted by extraordinary acts of kindness and self sacrifice that lead to the survival of the lead characters. For them it is a happy ending, although as rightly pointed out, for many this was not the case. A powerful, dramatic read..

[Ronald · Rating 5 out of 5]

A difficult but important story to read

Angels of War is a story of nurses in World War II, in the Philippines. It is very descriptive of the horrors of war, the carnage, the pain and suffering. It is filled with the day to day attempts to ease the injuries and diseases of those afflicted, as well as the tragedies of loss of those who didn't survive. In spite of all this, hope continues, love arises, and loss is always just around the corner. This is an important story to read, to get an understanding of just what war brings to people, even in a paradise like the Philippines.

[Timothy Outerbridge · Rating 5 out of 5]

A fantastic story of a part of WWII history that I have never come across before . A group of US Army nureses are sent to the Philliponines in 1941, and after a few months enjoying the beauty of the tropics, they find themselves in a war zone as Japan invades the islands. They spend a few months in a jungle hospital in the middle of the war, before being taken to an internment camp where they spend the next three years until the American Army finally co es back and rescues them. There are stories of love and loss and recovery and more loss, privation, starvation , cruelty, etc, etc

[Carey Mundy · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read a lot of WWII historic fiction, most taking place in the European theatre of war. This story, based on 79
American nurses held as POWs in the Philippines, was entirely different. These courageous nurses overcame so many hardships as they continued to try and save their patients, but never gave up. The story highlights American Rose, and tells her story from Manila, to Bataan to Corregidor, and finally to the Santo Tomas camp. Heartbreaking but uplifting, I enjoyed it.

[Teresa · Rating 5 out of 5]

I thoroughly enjoy reading historical fiction books and especially those that take place during WWII. The focus on nurses who served in the Philippines was different than those I have typically read. The author does an excellent job in making you care about the characters and their lives. What a horrendous time in our history and to absorb the atrocities that the nurses and servicemen experienced will break your heart. I continue to be amazed at the many acts of bravery and sacrifice made by the individuals who endured such difficult treatment by the Japanese military. There was a delightful surprise in the book that brought a smile to my face. This is definitely a book to add to your to-be-read list if you appreciate books in this genre. I will definitely read more books by this author.

Thank you to NetGalley and HQ Digital for my advanced review copy. All opinions and thoughts are my own.

For more reviews, please visit my blog at: https://www.msladybugsbookreviews.com/. Over 1000 reviews posted!

[Tina Towers · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love this genre'
definitely makes you feel very blessed and lucky to live the life we do .
falling in Love then getting separated then finding your love then again getting separated never giving up hope even with starvation death sickness and bombs and guns survive when so many don't and then you find yourself just about to give up and there's your love again when you thought they probably were dead ..

[Andrea A · Rating 5 out of 5]

My thanks to Net Galley, HQ Digital, and the personal invitation I received to review this arc.

What an excellent read! I loved reading about Rose Wilson s maturity growth as an excited new young nurse going to the Phillipines and facing love, death, and the horrors of war. I also found it interesting learning about the aspects of war in Manila. Highly recommend!

[Valerie McGurk · Rating 4 out of 5]

Set in the Philippines in 1941 this is a moving story about a group of nurses. Rose is on her first assignment with the US Army, she is looking forward to having an adventure. War which was a distant possibility comes too soon and Rose faces daily threats against her life and that of her comrades. Will she survive the turmoil of war?

[Cathy Allen · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent Book

This is first book by this author I have read. I've read other books about nurses in WW 2 and this one is one of the best. I found it difficult to put down! The author describes life of nurses and others in POW camps in Philippines very well. I've seen documentaries about those nurses who served so bravely. You won't regret reading this excellent book.

[John D De Jong · Rating 5 out of 5]

Although this is historical fiction, the people, times,times and places feel very real.

Such a sad book, but it brings the experiences of WWIi to the reality of what it was. As the daughter if a WWIi army veteran who never spoke of his experiences in the war, it was a look at the time and experiences of that war, especially for the nurses and soldiers in that area of the war.

[Jayne Greig · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fantastic read, loved every minute. Fabulously researched and had you hanging on. Emotional, realistic you felt like you were in the camps, heartwarming and challenging. Makes you think how people survived. Not to be missed.

[Theresa Grigory · Rating 4 out of 5]

A Captivating Story!

We have sadly forgotten the history of these remarkable women from the Greatest Generation. Thank you, Lana, for bringing their story to life in this novel.

[Kathleen Anderson · Rating 4 out of 5]

I have read a few accounts of WWII in the Philippines, but this one is from the perspective of a nurse. What an ordeal the nurses lived through! I enjoyed this one because I’ve been to some of the places in the book, particularly Corregidor.

[Rebecca Gaddy · Rating 5 out of 5]

compelling & enlightening

This is the first WWII book I’ve read based in the Philippines. I’m glad I read it and astounded at the horror forced on non-Japanese people. The cruelty is astounding. I’ll leave it at that. An excellent and enlightening read though!

[Shauna Duty · Rating 3 out of 5]

Gripping tale of hope, fortitude, and endurance.

I'd never heard the story of American nurses in the Phillipines becoming POWs. This tale unravels through the dog days of war, revealing the strength and courage of these amazing women. A great read, to be sure.

[Dr Honora · Rating 5 out of 5]

Read like a movie

It was a book read from start to finish like a movie. There are several WWII movies about Japan and Manila and this delved into one nurse's struggles, losses, friendships, loves and suffering over far too many years as a WWII nurse. Blessing to them all.

[Claudette · Rating 5 out of 5]

Lana Kortchik thank you for reminding us how brave the Women were in the Philippines.
People tend to forget that there were female nurses in the second World War.
Your book « Angels of War » is definitely a must read and a definite eating of 5 out of 5

[Sam Wilson · Rating 3 out of 5]

I felt this book was bits of stories from other books I'd read before. was ok story but boring in places

[Josephine · Rating 1 out of 5]

Longer review to come. As a filipino woman with two generations of nurses (and is a nurse myself), I highly doubt that I’ve ever disliked a book this much in years.

[Del Gaudry · Rating 3 out of 5]

I thought the war history was very accurate, unfortunately the love story was a bit OTT.

[Patricia · Rating 5 out of 5]

Nurse Angels

Love loss betrayal..war..makes great friends and bitter enemies..These tough nurses..dont know how tough until they are face to face with it