For Better For Worse by June Francis
Publisher & Release: Canelo Saga, November 26,2020
Time and setting: Pre-WWII, England
Genre: Historical Fiction
Length: 282 Pages
Heat Level: 1 Sweetheart
Rating: 4 Gold Crowns
Book Description:
With war on the horizon, can she find peace?
Grace and Dougie have been courting for years, so when Dougie decides to emigrate to Australia he expects Grace to follow once she turns twenty-one. Grace used to be besotted with the handsome man, but she is increasingly worried by his bullying behaviour and gambling. On her way home from seeing Dougie off at the docks, Grace is nearly run down by a truck driven by widower Ben, who is on his way to the hospital to see his young son.
Soon, Grace has agreed to look after Ben’s child while he recovers from his accident. As they spend time together Ben struggles to ignore his growing feelings for Grace. But Dougie is determined not to let Grace go and when war breaks out he returns to England. With her old flame to contend with, never mind the relentless German bombers, will ever Grace find peace and love?
From Liverpool’s much-loved saga novelist comes a tale of love and heartache in wartime, which fans of Kitty Neale and Katie Flynn will love.
Buy Links:
Amazon: https://smile.amazon.com/Better-Worse-Second-World-heartache-ebook/dp/B08L4M73WY
Barnes & Noble: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/for-better-for-worse-june-francis
KOBO: https://www.kobo.com/us/en/ebook/for-better-for-worse-35
Google Play: https://play.google.com/store/books/details/June_Francis_For_Better_For_Worse?id=Oq4EEAAAQBAJ
Add to Goodreads & BookBub:
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/55906421-for-better-for-worse
Vikki’s Musings
Thanks go to the publisher and Net-Galley for the complimentary copy of For Better For Worse by June Francis for the purpose of reading and reviewing prior to publication. My opinions are my own, and no one has influenced them.
For Better For Worse is an intriguing historical fiction novel with complex characters and an involved plot. The pacing kept me engaged from the beginning until the end. Ms. Francis must do extensive research because the detail and authentic feel to the setting is amazing.
Grace’s character has a great many facets. She is under twenty in the beginning and a mature woman by the end. During this saga, she experiences life in pre-WWII and in the midst of WWII, all the way to the aftermath. There are complex family relationships, starting with her cousin, Dougie. Then later ones with his oblivious mother, one contentious sister and another one who attempts to bridge the rift between them. I liked Grace’s character and enjoyed following her character growth and great love for her children.
This was not the easiest review to write without including spoilers. The book description does not give the reader a true picture of this novel’s depth. The story is complicated at times, but it intrigued me, and I enjoyed it a great deal.
If you enjoy novels depicting life before, during, and after WWII, then you will love the historical details in For Better For Worse by Ms. Francis, since it includes an excellent example of life during this turbulent period of history. Happy reading!
Author Bio:
Due to the Luftwaffe having bombed the local maternity hospital in Liverpool, I was born in a boarding house in Blackpool in 1941. I was the first daughter after two sons, Ronald and Donald, and in no time at all I was whisked back to Liverpool to join them. My sister Irene was born eighteen months later in our front parlour.
It was not until my dad, Stanley Nelson was demobbed in the spring of 1946 and sat me on his knee and told me stories. Books were a luxury that my parents could not afford and that was why visiting the local library was a twice weekly event for me. One of my biggest regrets is that Dad died before my first book was published.
I passed the eleven + and attended Liverpool Girls’ College. I left at sixteen with 2 O levels in English Lit and History. I was later to gain English Language and Geography as an adult. I believed it an impossible dream for a working class girl like me to be a writer, so I became a cash clerk for Littlewoods and it was there I learnt to type.
I met my husband John in the local picture house when I was sixteen. We married six years later in a double ceremony with my sister and her fiancé when I was twenty-two. We moved to the outskirts of Liverpool and I became a stay-at-home Mum with three sons. During which time I started a playgroup in my local church hall which I ran for ten years. It was not until the boys were at school that I decided to have a go at fulfilling my dream of being a writer. Due to a vicar’s wife who did some writing, I became the editor of the church magazine and just as importantly she introduced me to Crosby Writers’ Group. I had my own typewriter, an old Underwood, circa 1930s and a supply of scrap paper, provided by my printer husband I set about the tough task of learning to write for publication.
I never looked back, although it took me a year or so to have my first article accepted by MY WEEKLY magazine. Despite having numerous articles published and some short stories on Radio Merseyside, my heart was in the novel. Due to a published writer friend, I was encouraged to finish a medieval historical romance which after two years of rewriting was accepted by Mills & Boon.
But I wanted to write a story set in my own city of Liverpool. It took me two years and a lot of research. During that time I gained an agent, a word processor and eventually another publisher.
I have had twenty-two sagas published, as well as thirteen historical romances. Apart from writing, I enjoy swimming, reading, doing jigsaws, films, walking, chattering with friends and family and tracing my ancestry. I still live on Merseyside.
Social Media:
Website: http://www.junefrancis.com/
Blogspot: http://junenello6.blogspot.com/
BookBub: https://www.bookbub.com/authors/june-francis
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/18381.June_Francis
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