Helpful Score: 1
I really liked this WWII set love story that includes intrigue and kept me guessing as to which direction it would take.
Highly recommend and has set me on course to look for more Sarah Jio books!
Highly recommend and has set me on course to look for more Sarah Jio books!
Helpful Score: 1
As other reviewers have mentioned, this book does have many flaws, but despite that, I found myself caught up in the story and ended up reading it in one sitting. Overlook the flaws in the plot and just let yourself be carried along by the story. Quick, enjoyable read.
Helpful Score: 1
Trite and mediocre, with too many coincidences neatly tying things together.
Helpful Score: 1
Another excellent book by Ms Jio. Well written. Story flows well and is quite interesting. You won't want to put the book down. Good historical background with WWII South Pacific. I liked the characters too.
Helpful Score: 1
I absolutely loved this book! It was a heart wrenching, but very touching love story. I'm not a romance reader, but this one worked fine for me. The setting is Bora Bora, so right away I was interested. Add to that, the story of best friends joining the war effort in the Pacific as nurses, a murder, and all the life changing events they experience, and I was hooked.
The writing flowed easily and at a timely pace which is always a plus. There's enough intrigue to keep you wondering, but the murder itself wasn't much of a mystery. I felt there were a couple of weak spots and not quite believeable coincidences, but overall it certainly didn't stop it from being an exceptional read. It's one of those books that evokes a range of different emotions, with an ending that leaves an impression and makes you want to sit and absorb it all for a little while. This book definitely turned out to be as good as the ratings and everyone claimed it to be!
The writing flowed easily and at a timely pace which is always a plus. There's enough intrigue to keep you wondering, but the murder itself wasn't much of a mystery. I felt there were a couple of weak spots and not quite believeable coincidences, but overall it certainly didn't stop it from being an exceptional read. It's one of those books that evokes a range of different emotions, with an ending that leaves an impression and makes you want to sit and absorb it all for a little while. This book definitely turned out to be as good as the ratings and everyone claimed it to be!
Quick read, couldn't put the book down! Will be looking at other books by this author.
Love this author! Interesting love story between a young nurse & soldier during WWII. They have meetings in a bungalow that is supposedly cursed. Enjoyed the ending.
I enjoyed this book. Loved the time period -- 1942 and the South Pacific, what a great setting. Ms. Jio made me feel as if I were there...the white sandy beaches, the beautiful blue-green sea and the magic of love and the tragedy of war. Though I found the storyline to be a little predictable it was still a very pleasant read. I definitely recommend this book to others and I will be reading more Sarah Jio books.
What a great book and love story! Recommend this to anyone who likes a romantic WWII love story.
I had high hopes for this book after reading a lot of the rave reviews, but from the opening pages you can tell this story will be mind-numbingly predictable. It feels like a trite storyline most well read people have read a thousand times before. Nothing new here.
The characters: Anne, her best friend Kitty, her parents and their housekeeper, the love interests, the stranger who brings back old, haunting memories - they're all cookie-cooker, and ditto for the plot. You can see an affair coming a mile away. Jealousy and bitterness, estrangement, etc., everything's too obvious to be very interesting.
I'm sure I would've enjoyed this as a teen. It reads like a lot of the Danielle Steel or Nora Roberts I used to read as a teenager in the 90s, but over time you just outgrow the more elementary writing styles.
The characters: Anne, her best friend Kitty, her parents and their housekeeper, the love interests, the stranger who brings back old, haunting memories - they're all cookie-cooker, and ditto for the plot. You can see an affair coming a mile away. Jealousy and bitterness, estrangement, etc., everything's too obvious to be very interesting.
I'm sure I would've enjoyed this as a teen. It reads like a lot of the Danielle Steel or Nora Roberts I used to read as a teenager in the 90s, but over time you just outgrow the more elementary writing styles.
I had high hopes for this book after reading a lot of the rave reviews, but from the opening pages you can tell this story will be mind-numbingly predictable. It feels like a trite storyline most well read people have read a thousand times before. Nothing new here.
The characters: Anne, her best friend Kitty, her parents and their housekeeper, the love interests, the stranger who brings back old, haunting memories - they're all cookie-cooker, and ditto for the plot. You can see an affair coming a mile away. Jealousy and bitterness, estrangement, etc., everything's too obvious to be very interesting.
I'm sure I would've enjoyed this as a teen. It reads like a lot of the Danielle Steel or Nora Roberts I used to read as a teenager in the 90s, but over time you just outgrow the more elementary writing styles.
The characters: Anne, her best friend Kitty, her parents and their housekeeper, the love interests, the stranger who brings back old, haunting memories - they're all cookie-cooker, and ditto for the plot. You can see an affair coming a mile away. Jealousy and bitterness, estrangement, etc., everything's too obvious to be very interesting.
I'm sure I would've enjoyed this as a teen. It reads like a lot of the Danielle Steel or Nora Roberts I used to read as a teenager in the 90s, but over time you just outgrow the more elementary writing styles.
Book Description:
In the summer of 1942, newly engaged Anne Calloway sets off to serve in the Army Nurse Corps on the Pacific island of Bora-Bora. More exhilarated by the adventure of a lifetime than she ever was by her predictable fiance, she is drawn to a mysterious soldier named Westry, and their friendship soon blossoms into hues as deep as the hibiscus flowers native to the island. Under the thatched roof of an abandoned beach bungalow, the two share a private world-until they witness a gruesome crime, Westry is suddenly redeployed, and the idyll vanishes into the winds of war.
A timeless story of enduring passion, The Bungalow chronicles Anne's determination to discover the truth about the twin losses--of life, and of love--that have haunted her for seventy years.
My Review:
This is the 3rd book that I have read by this author. It is definitely my favorite so far. It is a quick, easy read from the WWII era on the tiny island of Bora-Bora. It is an interesting read about romance and friendship with a touch of mystery. The characters were unique and well developed. The story has twists and turns that held my interest to the end. I look forward to read more of Sarah Jio's books. I would highly recommend this book to those who love romantic "feel good" stories.
In the summer of 1942, newly engaged Anne Calloway sets off to serve in the Army Nurse Corps on the Pacific island of Bora-Bora. More exhilarated by the adventure of a lifetime than she ever was by her predictable fiance, she is drawn to a mysterious soldier named Westry, and their friendship soon blossoms into hues as deep as the hibiscus flowers native to the island. Under the thatched roof of an abandoned beach bungalow, the two share a private world-until they witness a gruesome crime, Westry is suddenly redeployed, and the idyll vanishes into the winds of war.
A timeless story of enduring passion, The Bungalow chronicles Anne's determination to discover the truth about the twin losses--of life, and of love--that have haunted her for seventy years.
My Review:
This is the 3rd book that I have read by this author. It is definitely my favorite so far. It is a quick, easy read from the WWII era on the tiny island of Bora-Bora. It is an interesting read about romance and friendship with a touch of mystery. The characters were unique and well developed. The story has twists and turns that held my interest to the end. I look forward to read more of Sarah Jio's books. I would highly recommend this book to those who love romantic "feel good" stories.
Normally, I would shy away from romantic novels because I always thought most of them were too cheesy BUT NOT THIS ONE!
I found this book abandoned in a hostel in Mexico and decided to read it...it took me two sittings to finish it. I loved how the author, Sarah Jio, combined rich history of the French Polynesian Islands during the WWII era in the novel and how she introduced main characters in unexpected circumstances which then led to unexpected happenstance and hardships that followed.
GREAT READ!
I found this book abandoned in a hostel in Mexico and decided to read it...it took me two sittings to finish it. I loved how the author, Sarah Jio, combined rich history of the French Polynesian Islands during the WWII era in the novel and how she introduced main characters in unexpected circumstances which then led to unexpected happenstance and hardships that followed.
GREAT READ!
