Wartime for the District Nurses

The District Nurse #2

by Annie Groves

The compelling new bestseller from the author of The Mersey Daughter and Winter on the Mersey. Alice Lake and her friend Edith have had everything thrown at them in their first year as district nurses in London’s East End. From babies born out of wedlock to battered wives, they’ve had plenty to keep them occupied. As rationing takes hold and Hitler’s bombers train their sights on London, there is no escaping the reality of being at war. Edith is trying to battle on bravely while bearing her own heartache but there’s no escaping the new terror of the bombing raids. The girls find themselves caught up in the terrible aftermath, their nursing skills desperately needed by the shaken locals on their rounds. With the men away fighting for King and country, it’s up to the nurses to keep up the Spirit of the Blitz, and everyone is counting on them…

Genres: Historical Fiction, Fiction, Audiobook, World War II

416 pages, Paperback

Published July 30, 2019

About the author

Penelope Jones Halsall aka: Caroline Courtney, Penny Jordan, Lydia Hitchcock, Melinda Wright

Penelope "Penny" Jones was born on November 24, 1946 in a Preston, Lancashire, England.
She had been a keen reader from the childhood. She was a storyteller long before she began to write romantic fiction.

She has earned a living as a writer since the 1970s when, as a shorthand typist, she entered a competition run by the Romantic Novelists' Association. Although she didn't win, she found an agent. She published four regency novels as Caroline Courtney, before changing her name to Melinda Wright and then she wrote two thrillers as Lydia Hitchcock. Soon after that, Mills and Boon accepted her first novel for them, Falcon's Prey as Penny Jordan. However, for her present historical romance novels, she has adopted her mother's maiden-name to become Annie Groves. Almost 70m of her 167 Mills and Boon novels have been sold worldwide.
Now Penny Halsall lived in a house in Nantwich, Cheshire. She worked from home.

Penny died on 31 December 2011.

Reviews

[Jean · Rating 3 out of 5]

I enjoyed book one of this series. In book two World War Two has started and the district nurses, Alice, Edith along with Mary and Belinda, are hard at work with all the problems of the neighborhood from book one. Our group of nurses are joined by two new nurses from Ireland, Bridget and Ellen.

The book is well written and the plot weaves about the various characters seamlessly. I was most interested in the work of the nurses during the bombing of London by the Nazis. The book is primarily about human interest, but the author tossed in enough historical information to keep me interested. The author died so this is the last book of the series.

I read this as an audiobook downloaded from Audible. The book is eleven hours. Alex Tregear does a good job narrating the book. Tregear is a British actress.

[Boosmummy · Rating 3 out of 5]

An enjoyable story but the only downside was the amount of time it took me to get into the story and trying to get all the characters sorted out.

[Laura · Rating 3 out of 5]

Unfortunately, I was disappointed with this read. The title is misleading, the nursing side of the war only make up a small portion of the book. The book would have been less misleading if it were about a group of friends and their lives in the wartime. However that been said, there are a lot of characters in this book, most who are irrelevant and turn up throughout various chapters. As there are a lot of characters, there are a lot of side stories, which again, are irrelevant and misleading and not true to the title nor original story line. Furthermore, because of these factors, there is no real storyline; making this 404 pages of mere words and stories overlapping each other, and the book ending very rapidly.

The side stories could have been very strong contenders if the book was purposefully focused on one of them and paid attention to a specific characters life in the war; Kathleen and her relationship with her brutal husband could have been an interesting read.

[Rosemary · Rating 4 out of 5]

A gentle read which nevertheless brings the difficulties and fears of working as a District Nurse during wartime in Britain to life. The characters are believable as they face their own problems and share those of their patients. For readers not alive during that period of war, deprivation, rationing and shortages it gives an insight into a time in history which isn't so very long ago.

[Layla · Rating 2 out of 5]

Bother good book in the series. Didn’t enjoy this as much as the first one though.

[Sandra · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have loved catching up with the District Nurses of Victory Walk and their friends,family etc.The girls band together to support their friends that have learnt of lost loved ones,Billy still has love for his lady if only she could be his.I won't spoil it for readers by giving the plot away just buy it and read as it is another fabulous book of the Annie Groves name.5*

[mois reads · Rating 5 out of 5]

District nurses

Loving the district nurses this was as good as the 1st book. Reading about Alice. Edith .Mary .Belinda .and new Irish nurses Bridget .and Ellen ..and the families in jeeves street and jeeves place Flo .stan.Mattie .Kathleen .and of course Billy it's like old friends turning up looking forward to book three this is worth 5 STARS.

[Leigh · Rating 5 out of 5]

I will admit that it took me a couple of chapters to fully remember the characters and events from book one. But slowly it came back to me. More than a story about District Nurses it is also a story about those in the neighbourhood. The nurses Edith, Alice and Mary are joined by Belinda and two Irish girls Bridget and Ellen. Then there's the Banhams Flo and Stan, their heavily pregnant daughter Mattie, her toddler Gillian and Joe who's in the navy. And finally friends Billy and Kathleen and her son Brian and Peggy who's stuck living with her insufferable mother in law. Book two picks up where the first one left off just after Dunkirk and weeks before the blitz happened. Everyone is reeling from those events. Edith and the Banhams are mourning the loss of younger son Harry, Peggy her husband and the baby she miscarried and Kathleen is feeling relieved that her bully of a husband has been killed. The Battle of Britain has begun and is slowly bringing the war closer to home. When a friend of the group's brother is shot down a visit to the hospital will turn the world upside down for one family, meanwhile the arrival of a mysterious woman and someone thought to be dead will shake up another family. The war begins to heat up and soon everyone is caught up in the blitz. Another exciting entry in the series brings much drama, babies, people returning from the dead, betrayal but at the heart of it is the love of friends and family. I'm excited to see what's next for this cast of characters.

[Pam Watmore · Rating 5 out of 5]

It is lovely to catch up with the characters and learn how life was in wartime, the rationing, the bombing raids and how they managed to keep cheerful despite the horrors around them. The district Nurses have to deal with going out on their bicycles to help people during bombing raids despite their own fears and carrying on while the men were away fighting the war.

I found that Alice and Edith as first year District Nurses have courage with dealing with everything from delivering babies during a raid to dealing with wounds from the bombing alongside their normal duties of being a District Nurse and living in Nurses accommodation away from their families and the friendship and loyalty shown when families get injured and Edith's husband goes missing in action. The worry as to whether he will be found alive and discovery of men avoiding serving in the war. I enjoyed this book and learnt a lot about war time life.

[Nicola Michelle · Rating 5 out of 5]

I’m rapidly falling in love with this series and I can’t wait to make my way through them all. I loved the first one and can truly say I am absolutely hooked and am currently hanging on every word. I’m definitely invested in these stories and I’m growing so attached to all the characters. It was great to catch up with them in this book!

We rejoin Alice, the lovable Liverpudlian, Edith who is dealing with the fallout from the last book, as well as the introduction of a few new characters. As wartime intensifies, the need for nurses increases. How will they deal with the pressures of war?

I can’t believe how quickly these books flies by. I’ve been listening to the audiobooks and they’ve been so entertaining. The narration is brilliant, the story is brilliant and the wartime vibes from this book are spot on. What’s not to love!

[Becki Basley · Rating 4 out of 5]

Wartime for The District Nurses (The District Nurse # 2) by Annie Groves. (Audiobook read on Everand app)
An interesting continuation of the Series. The bombs have started and nurses are put in some pretty interesting situations including. Helping one of their friends give birth during a bombing.. and it being their first oppurnity to attend a birth without a supervisor present.

Also a chance encounter at a hospital while a Friend visits his injured brother brings great news for Edith and her boyfriend’s family. And more interesting adventures follow for their friends. Really enjoyed this second book onto the third.

I Think this book is definitely best enjoyed Reading the Series in a row. I Think it would be a little too confusing to sort it out otherwise.

[Astrid Johanne · Rating 5 out of 5]

I lovede the District Nurses of Victoria Walk, so the expectations was really high and they were met. This is really good and I really like the different character's stories and thoughts, and how they all are part of a bigger story. I thought that there were bigger jumps between the characters this time, also when I just wanted the characters story continue, but it is also what makes the story fun to read.

[Catherine · Rating 3 out of 5]

Wartime for the District Nurses is the second book in a series set in England during WWII.

Overall, a good read, focusing on the lives of several nurses and their friends and how the war is impacting their personal lives.

This book took me a bit longer to get in to when compared to the first book, but it picked up as I went along. There are a lot of characters, so I think the books are best read in order and without much time passing between books.

[Linda Leedham · Rating 3 out of 5]

I found this book very hard to get into . There were too many changes in characters every other paragraph first you were reading about one character then the next chapter it started on somebody else. I had to think hard all the way through the book where this person fit in to the story .
It had some good indicators of what the war was like to work through it all. and the dangers they faced , and the friendships they made.

[Lisbeth Zabihi · Rating 5 out of 5]

Oplæser: Alex Tregear. Super god oplæsning. Hende vil jeg gerne høre igen.

Jeg er helt indfanget af atmosfæren i denne bog. Smukke beskrivelser af smukke mennesker under meget vanskelige forhold, blandet med beskrivelser af mennesker på den forkerte side af loven og så dem hvor livet bare gør ondt. Har nydt del 2 ligeså meget som del 1. Mon ikke der også kommer en del 3!

[Mary · Rating 5 out of 5]

A well written book, lots of twists and turns in it and a lot of surprises too, I can't wait to read the other books in this series

Beautiful story and a whole lot of surprises for the readers, I would recommend this book and series to anyone of any age to read, I can't wait to read the other books in the series

[Katherine Jensen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Wartime for the District Nurses is an engaging read full of twists and turns. It zooms in on what the war would have been like for ordinary families in the East End and the people trying to serve them such as the nurses. It continues to deliver all of the feels as the book follows the relationships within the community and the ties that bind.

[Dafydd · Rating 5 out of 5]

A bit of disadvantage is that the book is like a TV show: a lot of story lines and just when you are into one, it finishes and another one starts. Also, sometimes I would've loved to read how some news were brought but those parts were skipped. However, I loved the book and it was hard to put it down. Everyday life during war, developed characters and drama made the book very enjoyable.

[Voirrey · Rating 5 out of 5]

Life on the district goes on - but war is taking its toll and lives, as well as buildings, are being shattered.

Again everything feels 'right' to me and I enjoyed this as much as the first book. I have the third on pre-order!

[ღ❀ ℭaroline ❀ღ · Rating 3 out of 5]

Wouldn’t go overboard about it, it was far too predictable. Every scenario I’d worked out immediately. The district nursing aspect definitely plays second fiddle to the Banham family. The authentic East End didn’t come through for me.

[Lucy Whiting · Rating 4 out of 5]

A lovely storyline with characters I fell in love with! The history of the blitz and an easy going story combines to make a pleasurable read overall. I didnt realise it was book #2 so im eager to start from the beginning and continue to follow the characters!

[Emma Young · Rating 4 out of 5]

Like all of Annie Groves books i enjoyed this one for sure. It is a continuation of the District Nurses of Victory Walk and set in the early years of the second world war. It has community spirit, warmth and strength.

[Malcolm Quirie · Rating 5 out of 5]

District nursing during the war

Most enjoyable book covering everyday life in the east end of London and the difficulties that happened on a daily basis. Warmly written about the various characters the nurses cared for.

[MRS J P WELSH · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great mixture of storylines in war time

Really enjoyed the storylines. Lots of colourful characters all contributing to the ups and downs of life during WW2. So pleased how the story ended

[Samii Longton · Rating 5 out of 5]

Enjoyed! 😙

[Fi · Rating 4 out of 5]

Not too difficult to guess what's going to happen next, but a thoroughly enjoyable read nonetheless

[Tricia Toney · Rating 3 out of 5]

The war progresses and the nurses soldier on. People who were thought to be dead are alive and not all of them are pleasant surprises. Can't wait for the next book.

[Barbara Thomas · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thought this would be more about nursing but there wasn't anything about this.

[Stacey Ewins · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another excellent book. I couldn't put this book down.

[Lauren Wilson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great Sequel

Loved it. Good follow up to the first book, can't wait to read the next instalment by this wonderful author