The WWII Historical Fiction of Jennifer Ryan

 

One of my favorite adult authors this past year has been Jennifer Ryan, so today you get four book reviews for the price of one! (The price being amount of effort from me, obviously you're not paying anything to read this, lol.) Although the market is over saturated by World War II historical fiction, Ryan's novels stand out. They are respectful of the seriousness of the historical events without being sad reads. On the contrary, they fit into the 'cozy' category. 

Ryan's works are not a series and can be read in any order.  Each book has a new cast of characters, yet they all play with similar themes of female community, setting social friction and reconciliation against the backdrop of 1940's England. If you like one, you'll want to dive into the others ASAP! 

"The Chilbury Ladies' Choir" was my first introduction to Ryan's work and I just fell head over heels for it. The small town evokes everything we love about vintage England, with vibes of an Agatha Christie village. Yet it's set against the reality of WWII, and the story of how a choir brings together the women struggling to survive mentally and socially. There's some tear-jerker moments, but, like all Ryan's works thus far, the end result is upbeat. 

"The Kitchen Front" was a completely new take on WWII historical fiction (for me, at least). Once again it involves a collection of women, this time competing against each other for a life-changing chance. WWII rations and recipes add a rich flavor to this story of adversary and community. 

"The Spies of Shilling Lane" is not actually a spy novel. Well, there's a spy in it, and kidnapping, and ruffians, and a cute romance, but it doesn't add up to quite what I was hoping for. I do wonder if I might enjoy this one more on a second read. I was expecting something entirely different than what I got, and I may not have appreciated what it actually was. I wouldn't say don't read it, but I'd suggest not letting it be your introduction to Ryan's work--start with one of the other three first.

"The Wedding Dress Sewing Circle" had a premise that I adored. This time, the story involves a cast of females coming together to refashion past wedding dresses into new pieces that can be loaned out to wartime brides. I did not realize how strict rationing was for clothing, and I was really fascinated by the fact that even things like the number of buttons and amount of fabric in a garment were regulated! 

If you love works like "Land Girls," "Downton Abbey," and the style and setting of Agatha Christie, you'll probably enjoy Ryan's work. They are adult novels, and there's some adult situations and themes (sometimes I wonder if you can even have a WWII novel without an out-of-wedlock pregnancy), but I don't think anything shocking.