The Many Seas to Guernsey

by Catherine Taylor

In the last golden years before Europe erupts into WWII, a young English writer and a German Roman Catholic priest-in-training meet by chance on the small British island of Guernsey – and are drawn into a forbidden, all-consuming love. Then history and duty intrude, forcing them to choose between complicity and courage in a fight for truth, freedom – and each other. A sweeping, morally complex love story that will stay with you long after the last page, from Catherine Taylor, author of Amazon no. 1 best seller Beyond The Moon, shortlisted for the Orion/eHarmony Love Story Prize.

In 1936 Kitty Garland-Fry moves to Guernsey with her bohemian, artist parents and unruly siblings. Marooned amid her family’s chaotic lifestyle, Kitty, a passionate writer of fairy tales, fears she’ll die of boredom and frustration if she cannot find a life of her own. In Nazi Berlin, meanwhile, Lukas von Harnitz, an idealistic and devout Roman Catholic seminarian, is reluctantly leaving for Guernsey, too, forced to interrupt his priestly studies for a year to take his newly widowed English-born mother back home to safety. Fiercely anti-Nazi, he can’t help feeling that he’s abandoning both his country and his calling at a moment of gathering darkness.

Two fish out of water together, Kitty and Lukas are drawn together in their shared loneliness. Bonding over poetry and books, their days unfold like a quiet, sunlit dream on white sand beaches beneath endless blue skies, sheltered from both the pull of responsibility and the gathering storm of war. But then friendship begins to deepen into something more, and Lukas is forced to make a devastating choice between God and the woman he loves, while fate also compels Kitty onto a path that will take her into the very heart of Nazi Germany.

Charting the road to war from both the British and German perspectives, The Many Seas to Guernsey is an emotional, character-driven epic grappling with themes of faith, conscience and the power of love in an age of extremes. Moving from the secluded turquoise coves of Guernsey to the towering Bavarian Alps, then the Gestapo cells of pre-war Berlin and finally the hellish beaches of the 1940 Dunkirk evacuation, The Many Seas to Guernsey is the first in a planned duology and will appeal to fans of novels like All the Light We Cannot See, The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society, The Nightingale, The Book Thief, The Bronze Horseman and Atonement.

Catherine Taylor is a former journalist, most recently for Dow Jones News and The Wall Street Journal Europe. She was born and brought up on Guernsey, then went on to study German history and language, giving rise to a lifelong passion for the history of the two world wars. She lives in West London with her husband, two children and five cats.

509 pages, Paperback

Published March 20, 2026

About the author

Follow me on Instagram at @catherine_taylor_author and Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/CatherineTay...

Nowadays I live in London with my husband, two children and five cats, but I was born and grew up on the small British island of Guernsey in the English Channel.

My mother was a professional landscape artist, who spent her life painting the beautiful beaches and countryside of Guernsey. And so, I grew up in an environment where it was a very normal thing to want to make a living from your art. Which is just as well, because I’m someone who always knew she wanted to be a writer, and if I’d had parents who’d harboured hopes of me becoming a tax accountant or a corporate lawyer, they’d have been sorely disappointed.

I’ve been obsessed with books and words since the day I first learned to read, and grew up on classic children’s authors like Enid Blyton and Edith Nesbit. As I got older I began to gravitate towards love stories with gripping plots, devouring novels like Jane Eyre, Rebecca, Katharine, Wuthering Heights and Pride and Prejudice, about clever, independent-minded women caught up in passionate affairs with complex, Byronic men. I’ve always been a hopeless romantic, and my favourite novels are beautiful, intelligent love stories that combine a gripping plot with gorgeous prose and wonderful historical detail to lose yourself in.

I was a keen writer myself from an early age, penning copious stories and poems – as well as plays to be performed in the field behind our house, with parts for me and my younger brother and sister, but always with myself in the starring role (of course!). My love of language developed into an interest in foreign languages, and I went on to study French and German at university, then to live and study in Germany for several years afterwards. Most recently I worked as a journalist, starting my career at the Guernsey Evening Press and ending up at Dow Jones News writing for the newswire and The Wall Street Journal Europe.

Throughout university, I studied 1900-1945 European history and culture – a period that continues to fascinate me. I always knew that when I eventually wrote my first novel it would be a novel of historical fiction set during WW1 involving a shell-shocked soldier, and that it would be first and foremost a love story, which is what my first novel, Beyond the Moon evolved into.

Growing up on Guernsey, the evidence of the German Occupation of the island in WW2 lay all around us, and, as kids, exploring the dank old bunkers and gun emplacements was one of the main entertainments. But they always intrigued me beyond this. Who were these men, and what brought them to Guernsey? And why did my own family have to hurriedly evacuate to England in summer 1940 because of them? As I grew older I discovered that WW2 involved far more than the just the invasion of Guernsey, and that the war was in fact the most seismic and destructive event in human history.

And from my fascination with WW2 – rooted in my childhood in Guernsey and deepened by time spent in Germany – The Many Seas to Guernsey slowly began to take shape. From the start I wanted it to be a novel exploring both British and German experiences of the war, and I hope it offers something of that perspective.

I’ve already begun the next book in the duology, which continues Kitty and Lukas’ story, and will cover the Occupation of Guernsey and the war years. I hope you enjoy my novels as much as I loved writing them. I love to hear from readers, so please do get in touch.

Reviews

[Linda Zagon · Rating 5 out of 5]

Catherine Taylor, the Author of "The Many Seas to Guernsey" has written a powerful, captivating and intriguing Historical Fiction Novel. In this well written novel, there is a wealth of information and research about the time period just before the war in Europe, and then the actual war. The author vividly describes the landscape, the scenery, the plot and the dramatic, complex, complicated and flawed characters. In 1936, the female protagonist Kitty Garland-Fry moves to an inherited house in Guernsey with her artistic and bohemian parents. Kitty is a writer and uses her imagination to write fairy tales, but feels bored. She meets Lukas von Harnitz, a handsome young man studying to be a priest. His family lives in Germany, but he is taking his widowed English mother to England. Both Kitty and Lukas bond over books, poetry and the beautiful scenery. Kitty realizes that Lukas will be a Priest, and unavailable to her as a suitor. Lukas is torn between his ambition as a Priest, and his feelings for Kitty.

As Hitler and Germany get more aggressive, life becomes more dangerous, challenging, and complicated. Both Kitty and Lukas are strongly against Hitler and Nazism. The author does compare the British and German feelings towards the war. Kitty meets Lukas' s cousin, a German soldier, and his family. Lukas is surprised by things he sees in the church, and the feelings as Germany takes over. He questions his decisions, and is trying to be guided by his moral compass. The author discusses the tragedies and heartbreak, and destruction in war. The author takes us on a journey throughout Europe as the war starts to take hold. The author discusses the importance of courage, family, neighbors, friends, faith, hope and love. There will be an anticipated second book, which I look forward to reading. I highly recommend this book to others.

[Annette · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is my first book by Catherine Taylor but it certainly won’t be my last- in fact if there were a sequel to “The Many Seas to Guernsey” I would be first in the line to read it!
This wonderful novel is a romance, a historical novel set in WorldWar 2 and also an adventure story as the main protagonists try and stay one step ahead of their enemies in 1930s Germany.
Kitty and her bohemian family move to an inherited house in Guernsey and Lukas, a trainee Catholic priest, half English and half German spends a year there with his mother’s family.
When he meets Kitty they begin to fall in love, but human love is forbidden if he is to carry on at the seminary and become ordained. Shades of a favourite book of mine “The Thornbirds” !
Eventually he returns to pre War Germany and his education, leaving Kitty bereft. When she ends up in Germany and they meet again in difficult circumstances, the reader hopes their love can be rekindled. However things have changed and Kitty makes a decision that will affect her future as does Lucas when their lives become more and more dark.
This is an amazingly well researched WW2 novel and will appeal to many sorts of readers. I was really rooting for Lukas and Kitty but the world seemed to throw so many obstacles in their way.
The descriptions of life in Germany at this time period were extremely believable and of course, incredibly chilling.
I did get the feeling on the last page that there was more of this story to be revealed…….. hopefully I will meet Kitty and Lukas again.
Thanks to NetGalley and the publishers for my advance copy.

[Kelsey Fredericks · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Many Seas to Guernsey is a sweeping historical romance following Kitty, a young writer and Lukas, a German seminarian in the years leading up to and after the start of WW2. Kitty is from a nontraditional English artisan family and Lukas comes from former German royalty. They meet after Kitty's family moves to Guernsey. There are so many obstacles that come to Kitty and Lukas- some due to external forces and some due to them learning and growing.

This is a wonderfully written story. I have read a LOT of WW2 historical fiction and I really felt like this book provided a fresh take(or far less taken viewpoint) of Germans who loved Germany but were not Nazis and how divided The Church was during this time. I also loved the way that Lucas' prayer and calling were discussed while he was a seminarian. Kitty and Lucas are definitely star crossed and this book is an odyssey! This is not a light read, but a WORTHWHILE one. It will make you so thankful for your freedoms and why freedom of speech is so important.

I loved ready Kitty and Lucas' story! I just wish they had an epilogue or a more final ending!

Thank you NetGalley and The Cameo Press LTD for the ARC!

[Heather~ Nature.books.and.coffee · Rating 4 out of 5]

What a well written story. This is my first book by this author and I definitely enjoyed it. In 1936, Kitty moves to Guernsey with her parents and siblings. In Nazi Berlin, Lukas, an idealistic and devout Roman Catholic seminarian, is reluctantly leaving for Guernsey, too, forced to interrupt his priestly studies for a year to take his newly widowed English-born mother back home to safety. Fiercely anti-Nazi, he can’t help feeling that he’s abandoning both his country and his calling at a moment of gathering darkness. Kitty and Lukas create a bond together, but as the war is progressing, things get more dangerous for them. The author did such a fantastic job of depicting the war and how scary those times were. I really enjoyed the descriptions of the island and reading their love story.such a gripping book. 


Thank you to the publisher, author, and Suzy approved book tours for the gifted copy. All opinions are my own.

[Dawn Lawrence Read_with_Lola · Rating 4 out of 5]

Just wow! There is a lot to unpack in this book as it’s dark throughout., it starts in the late 1930’s when Kitty and her unconventional family move to the island of Guernsey. Lukas a priest in training has moved from Nazi Germany to Guernsey with his sick mother. The story revolves around Kitty and Lukas and their blossoming relationship and then the move into WW2. This book won’t be for everyone as it contains polygamy, sexual abuse, war crimes etc. I found it hard hitting but I enjoyed it. It was sensitively and well written. This is my first book by Catherine Taylor and I would definitely look up more of her books.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for this ARC. Publication date 20 March 2026.

[Stephanie Fitzgerald · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5 stars
I’m having serious “book hangover” after finishing this; review forthcoming…

A young woman, set on becoming an author, finds her life before and during the 2nd World War to be a series of surprising twists, turns, and difficult decisions.
A young man, who plans to humble himself before God by becoming a priest, has his faith continually challenged by his yearnings of manhood, and also by the atrocities that he witnesses being committed by none other than some of the Church leaders themselves.

Sadly, many of the attitudes of anti-semitism and acts of violence that were detailed would also be relevant in a book set in modern times…
A must-read for historical fiction lovers.

*I received a digital copy from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are strictly my own.*

[Miss W Book Reviews · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Many Seas to Guernsey by Catherine Taylor is an excellent historical fiction novel set during WW2.

The novel begins in the later part of the 1930's.

Kitty and her family move to Guernsey, an island.

Lukas is training to be a priest and has left Nazi Germany to move to the island of Guernsey. He has brought his sick mother.

The story is about Kitty and Lukas and their relationship.
The story is pretty dark. There are a lot of very heavy topics covered.
I really enjoyed this book and reading about the journey Kitty and Lukas's lives took as WW2 began.

The story is excellent and thoughtful.

Highly recommend this novel for lovers of historical fiction.

[Bernadette · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is my first time reading a book by this author and I intend to read more of her books in the future. This was very well written and had such great atmospheric descriptions of the island of Guernsey. I would love to travel there and see it for myself. Kitty and Lukas had such great chemistry and I loved reading about their heartbreaking love story. I look forward to continuing the story in the second book. This is the type of story that will stay with you long after you have finished the last page. If you enjoy historical fiction then give this one a read.

Thank you Netgalley and The Cameo Press LTD for the digital arc in exchange for my honest review.

[Booksandcoffeemx · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love history and historical fiction, and while this story touches on some very hard subjects, when a book is well written it really pulls me in, and this one absolutely did.

Set in the years before WWII, the story follows Kitty and Lukas, whose unexpected connection slowly grows into something deeper.

This book explores love, conscience, and impossible choices during a very dark moment in history. Some parts are difficult to read because of the themes involved, but they’re handled in a thoughtful and powerful way.

This was my first book by Catherine Taylor, but it definitely won’t be my last.

[Lisa Albright · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is an amazing historical fiction novel that tells the story of Kitty and Lukas, and their friendship that blossomed into love amidst the beginning and during WWII. Their courage is admirable and their journey an incredible tribute to all those that suffered through the atrocities of that war. The settings range from the beautiful and idyllic Guernsey, to the heart of the war in Berlin, to many horror-tinged sites that defy imagination. Well-written and well-researched this is a book that brought on so many emotions and will stay with me for a long time.

I received a gifted copy in exchange for an honest review.