Monday, 25 March 2019

Blog Tour Review: Hetty's Secret War by Rosie Clarke


Hetty's Secret War by Rosie Clarke
Published: 19th March 2019
Publisher: Aria
Pages: 336
Available on Kindle
Rating: 5/5


Blurb
In 1939, with the world on the brink of war, one women faces a future more uncertain than she had ever imagined...

Living in Paris, with the threat of war becoming all the more imminent, Hetty knows if she wants to stay safe, she must make her way home immediately. So she makes her way to the ports, hoping to secure one of the last places on the boats headed for England. But on her way she finds newly orphaned little girl who needs her help, and care.

And so Hetty, with little Kristina, finds herself sheltering at Chateau de Faubourg, where they are both welcomed by Countess de Faubourg and her dashing son Pierre... But the gilded walls of the Chateau hide secret war work of the most dangerous kind - but Hetty knows she owes it to the gami Beth - orphaned as a child, Beth is coming of age and determined to do her bit for the war effort.

Caught up in a whirlwind romance, she marries only to become a war widow....and one expecting a baby who will never know his brave father. Can she find happiness again? Hetty - desperately trying to make her way back from Paris to her beloved family in England, a fateful and tragic encounter brings Hetty to Chateau de Faubourg where she joins the resistance and risks both her heart and her life fighting for charismatic resistance leader Stefan Lefarge...

However dark the times, courage, determination and the power of friendship can overcome the hardships of war.

Review
I’m a huge Rosie Clarke fan so was delighted to be asked to review Hetty’s War after I love the previous book in this series The Runaway Wife. Despite being the third book in the series it can eaily be read as a standalone as Rosie Clarke has given enough details at the beginning to come up to date with the story.

In this book the focus has moved on from Annabelle to her younger sister Hetty. In the previous book Hetty ran away to Paris to be with her artist lover, which is where we find her at the beginning of this book. No longer with her lover Hetty’s found herself working in a fashion house and loving her life in Paris, so much so that when news of war breaks out, she refuses to go home to England. Remaining in Paris despite good advice from her friends shows that Hetty’s still young and naïve like she came across in the previous book. Eventually Hetty’s makes her way out of Paris and finds herself at the Chateau de Fauberg where she becomes part of the French Resistance with the gorgeous Stefan, a man Hetty seems drawn despite all the warning signs that it will all end in tear.

Although Hetty’s story is the most prominent in this book she is not the only woman who we read about. Georgie has recently lost her husband Arthur and is struggling with the guilt that maybe if she’s loved him more, he’d still be alive. The story follows Georgie on an emotional rollercoaster as she once again meets up with the love of her life and experiences true happiness if only for a short time.

The third woman’s story is Beth’s, a young girl who was taken in by Annabelle in the previous book when her mother dies. Feeling indebted to Annabelle Beth feels she must stay and help in her hotel, but she longs to go out into the world and experience new things.  A chance meeting with a young solider provides Beth with a new job and the possibility of romance.
I loved all three of these stories, each of these women experience a lot of heartache throughout this book and its wonderful to watch them grow and become stronger because of it. Hetty was a real revelation as initially she comes across as just a spoilt child, but she really shows a strength of character and kindness when she’s pushed to her limits.

I really enjoyed reading Hetty’s Secret War, having known very little about the French Resistance it was fascinating to read about the secret missions and hideaways. Rosie Clarke really seems to have captured the uneasy and dangerous atmosphere surrounding the missions. I think this has been balanced out perfectly with romance throughout the book and made Hetty’s Secret War a book which was very difficult to put down.

Thank you so much to the publishers for sending a copy for me to review via Netgalley and inviting me to be part of the blog tour.

About the Author


Rosie is happily married and lives in a quiet village in East Anglia. Writing books is a passion for Rosie, she also likes to read, watch good films and enjoys holidays in the sunshine. She loves shoes and adores animals, especially squirrels and dogs.

Follow Rosie:   
Twitter: @AnneHerries
Facebook: @RosieClarke

Buy Links:
Google Play: http://bit.ly/2RbTjcI


Follow Aria
Twitter: @aria_fiction
Facebook: @ariafiction
Instagram: @ariafiction


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