Once again it was wonderful catching up the residents of Churchwood, they live in a small village in Hertfordshire and especially members of the busy bookshop. They use the church hall, here they have a cup of tea and a chat, exchange books, and mend and make over clothes.
The four main members of the bookshop are Naomi Harrington, Kate Fletcher, Alice Lovell and Bert Makepiece. All want to bring back to magic of Christmas and especially for the children and the men in the nearby convalescing home.
Naomi lives in the grandest house in the village, her husband Alexander Harrington has not only been unfaithful, he has a secret family and she feels like a complete fool. Naomi has to fight to keep her home Fox Field, she worried how much of the money in the trust fund remains, she needs to employ at solicitor to sort out the mess and she's never had financial problems before.
Alice is newly married to Daniel Irvine and she’s sure he’s been sent to North Africa. Alice still visits Stafford House, where she reads to the patients and writes letters for those who can’t. Alice thinks she might be expecting a honeymoon baby, she’s both over joyed and concerned about having a baby during a war.
Kate works and lives on Brimbles Farm, her father Ernie is still as mean and grumpy as ever. When her twin brothers Fred and Frank joined up, her father finally gave in an employed two land girls Pearl and Ruby. Her secret romance with fighter pilot Leo Kinsella is going well and they write long letters to each other. Kate tries to make time to visit the bookshop, then family hears that one of the twins has been severely wounded and he’s been sent to a hospital in London.
Bert is a market gardener, the big man has a huge heart, does what he can to help everyone in Churchwood and I think he has a bit of a crush on one of the mature ladies and she's oblivious. A new family has move into the village, despite everyone’s attempts, Evelyn Gregson keeps to herself and home-schools her two boys. Around the same time, things start going missing in Churchwood and from the surrounding farms, milk, vegetables and fruit, this makes members of the bookshop concerned that someone in the community is struggling, too ashamed to speak up and or is it due to another reason?
I received a copy of Christmas at the Wartime Bookshop by Lesley Eames from NetGalley and Random House UK in exchange for an honest review. The story and characters realistically portray life in a small English village during the Second World War, the challenges people faced and especially those with a wounded family member, how the person feels about being disabled, most young men would be really angry and lash out. It also highlights a topic that's still relevant, what can be done if someone's being bullied in the armed forces and hazing needs to stop.
Planning the Christmas play provides a distraction from the war, brings people together, boosts moral and they have to be very creative in making costumes and dealing with setbacks. I have read the two previous books in The Wartime Bookshop Series, The Wartime Bookshop and Land Girls at the Wartime Bookshop and I really enjoyed them. This time I cried and happy tears, I have really grown fond of the characters, I have a soft spot for them and I'm looking forward to the next book in the series and five big stars from me.