Synopsis
As World War II takes its toll on Liverpool, only friendship and community can keep the women of Weaver Street smiling.
The neighbours on Liverpool’s Weaver Street have always looked after each other, but when the Second World War takes many of the husbands, brothers and sons away to fight, the women’s friendships are more important than ever.
Matriarch Kitty Conlon is missing her son Patrick, proud but fearful of the fate of his Spitfire, while spinster Mavis welcomes a new lodger, WAAF Anna Carswell who is delighted by the Weaver Street welcome after a loveless childhood. At number nine, Maggie Stubbs worries nightly as her daughter Lily patrols the streets to protect the neighbours during air raids in her role as ARP Warden, and when an unexploded bomb is discovered at the allotment, danger comes terrifyingly close to Weaver Street.
With war raging and Liverpool bearing the brunt of seemingly non-stop bombing, the friends must share the burden of rationing, blackout and news from the front, while helping one another capture all the moments of joy they can. All the time wishing and hoping that soon news of peace will come and finally their lives can start again.
My Review
I am a huge fan of Chrissie and her work and have been for quite a while too. By no means have I read everything that she has written but that is something that I hope to rectify in the not too distant future. I must admit that I am particularly enjoying the series set on ‘Weaver Street’. I read and loved the first two books in the series and have been impatiently waiting for the third book in the series to be released. Well ladies and gents the wait is over because the third book in the series is called ‘Weaver Street At War’ and it was released on 15th May 2024. It’s another superb addition to a superb series. I absolutely loved reading ‘Weaver Street At War’ but more about that in a bit.
The fact that I saw ‘Weaver Street’ and Chrissie’s name on the cover of a book that I knew I hadn’t read yet was enough to grab my attention and draw me in. As soon as I started reading the story itself that was it for me. I started reading and didn’t stop for a good two hours or so. From then on, it’s safe to say that reading ‘Weaver Street At War’ became seriously addictive. My copy of the book wasn’t exactly glued to my hand but it might as well have been because it travelled everywhere with me. I couldn’t bear to miss a single second of the story. I had taken so well to the characters that I had to keep reading to see how the story was going to pan out and how it affected the characters who seemed more like friends than characters in a book. The more of the book that I read, the more I wanted to read and the quicker the pages seemed to turn. I was so wrapped up in the story that I didn’t realise just how quickly the time was passing and how quickly I was getting through the book. All too quickly I reached the end of ‘Weaver Street At War’. I found ‘Weaver Street At War’ to be a gripping and emotional story which certainly kept me guessing and kept me on the edge of my seat throughout.
‘Weaver Street At War’ is superbly written but then I have come to expect nothing less from Chrissie Walsh. Chrissie has an easy going writing style that is easy to get used to and easy to get along with. In fact reading one of Chrissie’s books often feels more like a chat between friends rather than reading a book. I hope that makes sense. Chrissie certainly knows how to grab the reader’s attention and draw them into what proves to be one hell of a story and then some. Chrissie clearly cares about her characters and this shines through in the very vivid and realistic way in which she describes them. She makes her characters seem just as real as you and I. Chrissie has obviously done a lot of research into the time period during which the story takes place and this makes the story seem that bit more authentic. I love the way in which Chrissie makes the reader feel as though they are part of the story and at the heart of the action.
In short, I thoroughly enjoyed reading ‘Weaver Street At War’ and I would recommend this book to other readers. ‘Weaver Street At War’ is historical fiction at its best. I will certainly be reading more of Chrissie’s work in the future. The score on the Ginger Book Geek board is a very well deserved 5* out of 5*.
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