Divided Loyalty

by Roberta Grieve

Celia has always wanted to work on the family farm but her father refuses to allow it, saying it is not woman’s work and she takes a job at the local printing works. When war comes and the farm hands join up, she hopes her father will relent. But it is too late as her boss has taken on sensitive work for the Ministry of Information and Celia has to stay on at her job having signed the Official Secrets Act.

Genres: Historical Fiction

268 pages, Paperback

First published March 1, 2014

About the author

On retirement from her library career, Roberta Grieve began writing in earnest and to date has had nineteen historical romances published. The latest, 'A Place to Call Home' is set on the Isle of Sheppey, Kent where she grew up.

Reviews

[Rosemary Morris · Rating 5 out of 5]

Talented author Ms Grieve swept me into the past to the years after the Batlte of Britain, which ended in October 1940, to life on a farm during the Second World War.
Celia’s father refuses to allow her to work on the farm, because he believes his wife died due to overwork on it, so he wants to protect his daughter, although she resents his decision. He is angry with Edgar, his son, who joins the RAF instead of working on the land in a reserve occupation, which would prevent him being called up to join one of the armed forces.
When Edgar is on leave, Celia meets his friend. Their attraction is mutual, but they are separated by the distance between the farm and the camp to which he and Edgar are sent They write to each other but whether their relationship will develop is uncertain, and affected by a spiteful trouble maker.
Celia faces difficulties at home and at the printing press where she works with quiet courage and dignity with the hope, in the words of the late Vera Lynn’s famous song We’ll meet again.
I really enjoyed Ms Grieve’s meticulously researched novel with believable characters, an excellent plot and many twists and turns in the tale.
If you enjoy novels set in this era you will enjoy Divided Loyalty.

[Shreedevi Gurumurty · Rating 5 out of 5]

Forbidden by her father to work alongside him on their Sussex farm,Celia Raines takes a job at the local printing works.When war comes,the farmhands join the forces and Celia hopes to achieve her ambition of being a farmer.But it's too late.Her boss has taken on sensitive work for the Ministry of Information and Celia is forced to stay at her job for the duration due to her signing the Official Secrets Act,and there are land girls to help out.Romance blossoms between Celia and Matthew Dangerfield,an RAF friend of her brother Edgar.Both men are engaged on bombing missions over Germany,but Edgar is beginning to have doubts about his role in the war.Celia and Matt quarrel when he confides his concerns about the effect Edgar's doubts are having on morale,but Celia loyally takes her brother's side.When Matt's plane is shot down while returning from a bombing mission,Celia knows they may never get the chance to resolve their differences and find happiness.The MOI was a central UK government department responsible for publicity and propaganda. The Women's Land Army was a British civilian organisation created during WWII so women could work in agriculture, and replacing men called up to the military.Women who worked for the WLA were commonly known as Land Girls.In effect the Land Army operated to place women with farms that needed workers,the farmers being their employers.The government wanted to increase the amount of food grown within Britain.Before the war, Britain had imported much of its food.When war broke out,it was necessary to grow more food at home and increase the amount of land in cultivation.With many male agricultural workers joining the armed forces,women were needed to provide a new rural workforce.Women volunteered and were conscripted,so that by 1944 it had over 80,000 members.The majority of Land Girls already lived in the countryside but more than 1/3 came from London and the industrial cities of the north of England.They did dairy work to hard manual labour such as ploughing,flax pulling and felling trees.They cared for animals like horses.They worked with German and Italian POWs. They fed livestock like pigs.

[Joan Havelange · Rating 5 out of 5]

I enjoyed this book, will look for more by this author.

[Christine]

Coul not get into it, so I didn't finish it.