A Wartime Friend

Mary Anne Randall #3

by Lizzie Lane

A heartwarming saga about a girl orphaned by war and the dog that saved her life.

Leah escapes from a train bound for a death camp – along with a surprising friend, a kind-natured German Shepherd dog. Discovered in France by an RAF pilot, the traumatised Leah wakes to find she’s forgotten everything. Fostered by the pilot and Meg, his wife, Leah becomes Lily, remembering nothing of her former life. However, war and tragedy shatter their lives. With their home in ruins and Lily’s adopted father missing in action, Lily and Meg are forced to flee to the country.
In the Somerset countryside, Lily is reunited with Rudy, the heroic German Shepherd, while Meg finds herself subject to the attentions of a local criminal – and the village policeman. Before long, it becomes clear that Rudy isn’t just watching over Lily – he’s protecting Meg too, and someone wants him out of the way. Lily and Rudy’s unlikely friendship could be the only thing that saves them…

Genres: Fiction, Historical Fiction, War, Audiobook

386 pages, Kindle Edition

Published November 23, 2021

Reviews

[Kellie · Rating 5 out of 5]

All I can say is that I really loved this book!!!! 💛

I don't have the words to describe how wonderful this one is! Lily, Meg and Rudy, a German Shepherd, are the main characters. Lily and Rudy were saved in France by RAF pilot, Ray, Meg's husband. She remembers nothing of her life before she was rescued. She's fostered by Meg and Ray and Rudy came back to live with Meg and Lily. Ray is MIA! Lily suffers horrible nightmares and Rudy helps her overcome them.

It was great to see the growth of each character throughout the book!

Highly recommend! Thank you, Stephan for your recommendation and Elisabeth for reading it with me!

Enjoy and Happy Reading 🐕‍🦺

[Bev Walkling · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was the kind of book that kept me reading till the very end. The two main characters are Meg Malin and her foster daughter "Lily" who was rescued from France along with her dog Rudy by Meg's husband Ray, an RAF pilot. It was fascinating to see Meg's character change throughout the novel. She went from being a rather unsympathetic character to being a woman one could really admire. Lily experienced the worst life could offer in a cattle car en route to a concentration camp before her father placed her among dead bodies and told her to lie still so she would have a chance to survive. Her story was a harrowing one filled with nightmares and flashbacks but also the love and care she received from Meg and from her dog Rudy. I would definitely recommend this book to others and will look for more from this author.

[Diana Brown · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this book a sweet topic and gripping recommended indeed feel like reading it again

[Carol Anne · Rating 3 out of 5]

Have read but must have been years ago 🙄
Star rating because I always enjoyed the stories by Lizzie Lane?

[Sandra · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book had many chapters that were hard reading. Through sadness came love and a brighter future.
The book was worth reading.

[Stephanie Fitzgerald · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars
A tear-jerker of a story!
Young Leah’s parents were once wealthy, well-respected Austrian citizens. When Hitler came to power, they were reduced to hiding because of their Jewish faith, but the family was still together…until a Gestapo roundup puts the Westerman family and hundreds of others on the path to a concentration camp. Due to the quick thinking of her father, Leah manages to escape the train taking them all to certain death. Ill and weak, Leah has all but given up on living, but her fate is changed forever when a dog deemed “too soft” to be a Jew killer befriends her and leads her to safety…

[Jillean Ansley · Rating 4 out of 5]

Loved most of it, had a few waffle moments which I skipped over, Meg and her dog attitude was frustratingly drawn out. Getting to the point of finally getting the dog meeting up with Lily again had its frustration. And then it was "hurry up and get the wire off the dog", but no everyone dithered and let the dog suffer. Catching Billy was rushed and a non event. Good story line, just padded in unnecessary places to the almost boring point and rushed through others which I found more interesting. On the whole I do love reading Lizzie Lane.

[Yvonne Walton · Rating 5 out of 5]

Dieselblackcat

This ifs the first book I have read from this Author. It stared out a bit slow for my liking but it only got better and better. Loved the characters and not a typical ending.

[Dakota Smith]

Not your typical World War II book. Focus is a lot on a dog and a little girl who gets fostered by this couple after her rescue . Some parts of it were a little bit hard to read, not a lot of spice . Meg grows on you, she overcomes a lot and there is a bit of a mystery/murder.

[Trudie · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this story about Lily and her dog Rudy, going through a range of emotions from feeling scared for her to happy etc. The ending was a bit of a surprise but it turned ok in the end

[Sandra · Rating 5 out of 5]

A Lovely enjoyable story of a young jewish girl and a dog who befriends her.The story and characters blend so well together and i can highly recomend it.5*

[Pauline Chamberlain · Rating 3 out of 5]

A good saga set in ww2 regarding a young Austrian girl befriended by a german guard dog and how she escapes the nazis

[Annette O'grady · Rating 5 out of 5]

a very informative story but a good happy ending to a certain extent a great read

[Tracey- Jo · Rating 3 out of 5]

A nice read

[Susan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Brilliant - I thought this book was very good and enjoyed reading it.

[Roy McDine · Rating 5 out of 5]

Absolutely brilliant , packed from the first page to last with action and drama.

[Kathleen McRae · Rating 4 out of 5]

A good read and one that described very well the impact of war and how the ripples spread.

[Joyce tuffs · Rating 4 out of 5]

A touching story.

A young girl escaping the war in France she meets a dog and together they flee to start a new life in England.

[Avard MacPhee · Rating 5 out of 5]

A fabulous story of an orphan and a runaway whos lives became intertwined during WW2. One of my best reads in 2024. 4.7 Stars

[Ruth Cooper · Rating 1 out of 5]

Very amateurish writing, more suited as a young adult style of writing. Main carachter Meg was not at all likeable. I do not recommend this book. 1.5 stars

[Kay Edwards · Rating 5 out of 5]

brilliant book

[Denise · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read the audio book. To begin with I wasn’t sure this was a book for me, but, it is a wonderful book. It kept me enraptured from beginning to end. It is gritty, sad, happy & joyful. I am looking forward to reading more from this author.

[Angela Dixon · Rating 4 out of 5]

Lovely read, unexpected twists which is always a must

[Tracy · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is sweet
A good depiction of wartime without dwelling on atrocities but still acknowledging them
Lovely characters who you see grow and change due to the war, their circumstances and the world around them
Relatively light hearted and a feel good story that finishes exactly how you want it to