Thursday, October 22, 2020

The Last Correspondent Book Review

memorialThe Last Correspondent is a work of historical fiction written by Soraya M Lane.  It takes place during World War II just prior, during and after the invasion of Normandy.  The scenes are set in London and France during the war.  

This story is about three woman who fight to use their careers to tell their story in a man's world.  They show a tremendous amount of courage, grit and determination in order to get the story told.  This then is the story of a war correspondent, a photographer and a model.

I found this book to be a real page turner.  In fact after I was about half way through the book, I couldn't put it down till I read the whole book.  It is one of those books where the author does such a good job of making the characters believable that I couldn't wait to see what happened next.

The Three Women

  • Danni-  Danni is a seasoned photographer, who has photographed the war on several different fronts.  As the days close in on the Normandy invasion she finds herself in London.   Only the  men are allowed to get passes to cover the war during the invasion, but Danni is determined to find a way to get to the action.  She has teamed up with a correspondent, Andy, who has been with her during her last several assignments.  They have become good friends and cover each others backs.  Danni enlists Andy to help her sneak aboard a medical ship that is sailing toward Normandy.
  • Ella-  Ella is a reporter who has written stories  under a man's pen name in order to get her works published.  When she is found out, her publisher fires her.  She finds a job with a magazine reporting on the war from a women's point of view.  She interviews women working on the war effort and the magazine is so pleased with her work that they send her to London to report on the war.  Like Danni, Ella also finds she is limited in her access because she is a woman.  Ella goes by herself to try to find a way to the action and find herself on the same medical ship as Dani and Andy.  After a rough night hiding on board they decide to team up as they make their way to shore.
  • Chloe-  Chloe is Andy's sister who was a Vogue model prior to the war.  When she was in Paris on a modeling job she met Gabriel, an editor, whom she fell in love.  At the beginning of the story Chloe is at her home in England, longing to find a way to be with Gabriel in Paris.  She says she is a showgirl in order to make her way into Nazi occupied Paris.


The Men in Their Lives

  • Cameron- Cameron is a Lieutenant that Danni first meets and has a conflict with when she is covering the war in Sicily.  She meets up with him again in a bar in London and then in Normandy.  They have a real love/hate relationship.
  • Andy- Andy is a war correspondent and best friend to Danni.  They have been together on several war zones and he always has her back when she is pushing the envelope.
  • Gabriel-  Gabriel is Chloe's lover and she sneaks in to Paris to be with him, only to find out the it is very pre-occupied working for the resistance.  
  • Michael - Michael is also a war correspondent and Ella first meets him at the bar at the Savoy in London.  This is a meeting place for many of the correspondents and photographers.  She next meets up with him in Normandy.

Recommendation

If you are a lover of historical fiction this is a wonderful  read.  It is full of history, women's fight to be treated as equals, and just a bit of romance.  A great read all around.  I highly recommend it.




Note: The author may receive a commission from purchases made using links found in this article. “As an Amazon Associate, Ebay (EPN) and/or Esty (Awin) Affiliate, I (we) earn from qualifying purchases.”


5 comments:

  1. This book sounds terrific, Mary Beth. I have always been fascinated by World War II history and stories surrounding it. So this book, having a WWII background and featuring women who struggle to achieve success in a male-oriented society makes it climb to the top of my To-Read list. Thanks for your review.

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  2. I almost chose to read this book a few weeks ago since I do love historical fiction so much. Your review is much more compelling than the recap provided on Amazon. The idea of sneaking aboard a ship sounds quite adventurous and something I would enjoy reading. Telling us that you couldn't put the book down because you had to keep reading to the end, is one of the greatest compliments a reader can give a book. Thank you for the excellent review. I am off to get this book now!

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  3. Mary Beth, this sounds like an amazing piece of historical fiction, and I wouldn’t be at all surprised if these characters and their stories were amalgamations of real-life experiences of women and men involved in the war during that time. I definitely plan to add this to my must-read list. Thanks for the excellent review and recommendation!

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  4. Oh this sounds like a book I would enjoy. I seem to have honed in on that period of history and read many novels about the lives and times during the war. This is one I have not read yet. Putting it on my list of must reads! Thanks Mary Beth.

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  5. Another intriguing book review! The reviews on this site can keep me consumed with reading for a year, lol. This sounds excellent, and yes, I love historical fiction as well. I was recently reading that it's one of the most popular genres.

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