The Lost English Girl

Starred review from January 2, 2023
In the enticing latest from Kelly (The Last Dance of the Debutante), the lives of two star-crossed lovers are upended during WWII. In 1930s Liverpool, 18-year-old Viv Byrne dreams of expanding her world beyond the restrictions of her Catholic parents and her job at the post office. Viv meets jazz musician Joshua Levinson at a dance hall and gets pregnant after one night with him. Though Joshua is Jewish, her parents reluctantly approve of their marriage. Then, they offer Joshua money to leave her and their unborn child, and he takes off for New York with his sax. Four years later, with Joshua’s career flailing and the war looming, he returns to England to enlist in the RAF. Meanwhile, Viv sends her daughter, Maggie, to the countryside to keep her safe, but the hosts’ house is bombed. Viv and Joshua reunite, trying find out what happened to Maggie and hoping that somehow she survived the blast. In chapters alternating from Viv’s, Joshua’s, and Maggie’s points of view, Kelly unearths her characters’ deepest secrets and emotions. Readers will fall in love with unassuming Viv in particular; when faced with heartbreaking events, she exhibits incredible courage. This will hook readers from the first page. Agent: Emily Sylvan Kim, Prospect.

February 1, 2023

Kelly's latest work of historical fiction (after The Last Dance of the Debutante) takes place during World War II in Liverpool, England. Vivian Byrne, a young lady who met and fell in love with a musician named Joshua, finds herself with child after their short time together. To avoid the shame of being an unwed mother, Vivian marries Joshua at the register's office. But on the day of their wedding, Vivian's mother offers Joshua a large sum of money to disappear, now that Vivian's child will be born in wedlock. Soon Germany is threatening another war, and Vivian is encouraged by her family and parish priest to evacuate her four-year-old daughter to the countryside, before the whole planet is thrown into chaos as a new world war starts. VERDICT A fascinating novel about a woman's struggle with an out-of-wedlock pregnancy, her parents' harsh treatment of both mother and child, and the separation from her child under the threat of an imminent war. For a different perspective of civilian life during the war, readers might try Maureen Lee's "Pearl Street" series, also set in Liverpool.--Victoria Kollar

Copyright 2023 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

February 17, 2023
From the first pages, Kelly's latest (after The Last Dance of the Debutante, 2022) grabs readers' attention with the character of courageous Viv Byrne as she strives to fight societal norms. Viv thought that marriage would get her out from under her very Catholic parents' thumbs in Liverpool in 1935. But when Joshua Levinson decides to try his luck at being a musician in the States, she's stuck, pregnant and alone. Five years later, Joshua is run down from trying to get a steady position as a sax player. When he learns that England will be joining the war, he returns home to fight for his homeland. Viv finds herself giving into pressure and allows their daughter, Maggie, to be taken to the country to avoid the ravages of war. Kelly reveals their story by alternating viewpoints between Viv, Joshua, and Maggie. When the home Maggie is staying at is bombed, Viv and Joshua try to find out what happened to their daughter. For readers of fast-paced historical fiction with a hint of suspense.

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