This book came out a couple months ago, and it’s getting RAVING reviews. It’s one of the highest rated books I’ve seen on goodreads and I love the overall premise, so I ordered it and it finally came yesterday. Except I’m maybe 40ish pages in (out of 500+) and I’m a little underwhelmed? I won’t give any spoilers except the small example I list below, (doesn’t give away any plot but avoid if you don’t want to know anything) but the basic plot is about the heroic actions of women in the Vietnam war. The protagonist is a woman who goes to Vietnam as a nurse, but somehow it feels like the setting of a literal war has been really elementary. Example that stood out to me was on the protagonist’s very first night in her new place, she’s going from a sheltered privileged upbringing to the middle of a terrifying war, and the author has already laid out the groundwork for potential romance interests, talking about some guy’s “sexy breath” on her neck as she’s experiencing her first literal bombing. She’s terrified, but luckily she’s comforted by a man! That she just met, and in a book that’s supposed to be about the heroic actions of women that go unnoticed.
I’m still going to keep reading it because I think it will get better, but the beginning has really thrown me off. Has anyone else read it yet that can share their two cents?
by qwertycats-
1 Comment
This was our book club pick. I personally enjoyed it and would rate it about a 4 out of 5. I don’t want to give anything away, so I’ve stayed high level. I do think it gets better as you see her growth through the book. I also learned more about how the women who went to Vietnam were basically treated as if they weren’t there once they can’t back.