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Band of Angels
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(3 Votes)From Publishers Weekly
Gregson (East of the Sun) takes the reader deep into the horrors of the Crimean War in this novel originally published and praised in the U.K. as The Water Horse. Catherine Carreg is permitted extraordinary freedom as a child in Wales in 1844, including friendship with a local drover boy, Deio, until local gossip forces the end of their relationship. Catherine's mother dies in childbirth, and loathing the shallow life she's forced to live at home, Catherine concocts a plan with Deio's help to disguise herself as a boy and run away to London. Once there, Catherine lands a job in Florence Nightingale's home for sick governesses, then volunteers as a nurse in the Crimea while Deio, who owns her heart, joins the war effort as a soldier. Their separation and frightening reunion changes their lives and challenges their love. Gregson's journalistic eye for detail supports the power and connection between the couple as Catherine matures into a strong, driven yet compassionate woman. The stench of war is not softened, and the scenes of the battlefield are not for the fainthearted. (May)
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From
Gregson adeptly fashions the story of an intrepid young heroine who leaps directly into the pages of history when she runs away to London and joins Florence Nightingale’s “band of angels.” Trading in her tradition-bound Welsh roots for the elusive promise of independence and adventure, Catherine Carreg overcomes the odds by becoming a nurse and traveling to war-torn Crimea with her spirit and her illusions still intact. Unprepared for both the brutal reality of war and the primitive hospital conditions, she must call upon all her physical, emotional, and psychological reserves in order to conquer her fears and revulsion. A requisite romance is added to the mix when Catherine’s childhood sweetheart travels to Crimea to reclaim her heart. Adventure, action, passion: this vividly rendered historical saga has all the ingredients necessary to appeal to devoted fans of the genre. --Margaret Flanagan
01/05/2011
I'm not quite sure if I liked this book or not. That might sound strange to you but it isn't if you take into consideration that according to my opinion this book doesn't really have a clear orientation. I mean that this book surely doesn't qualify as a history book. Neither does it as a historical romance. In any case it isn't an adventure book. It was a mix of all this without that one of the previous categories really managed to prevail. Hence, the different strings developed at each other's expense. What a pity!
The love story between Catherine and Deio was really disappointing. Not once were the words "I love you" involved! (Yes, I belong to the readers who enjoy reading the notorious three words!) The author described a nebulous atmosphere between the two of them without really getting to the point. Of course Catherine and Deio finally discovered their feelings for each other but it wasn't really done in an intriguing way. Again - What a pity!
Finally, I was more than once surprised by the negative way the author depicted Florence Nightingale. I had the impression that Nightingale was some kind of hero, who succeeded in reforming or sanitizing the health system. Was she really so unlikeable? In any case, this aspect created for me personally an open issue and at some time I would have to read more about the lady.
13/06/2010
, so if you own that one you don't need to own this one as well.
20/05/2010
As a child living what is it good for?
Harriet Klausner
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