Secrets of a Charmed Life

By Susan Meissner

Book Overview

The author of A Bridge Across the Ocean and The Last Year of the War journeys from the present day to World War II England, as two sisters are separated by the chaos of wartime... Current day, Oxford, England. Young American scholar Kendra Van Zant, eager to pursue her vision of a perfect life, interviews Isabel McFarland just when the elderly woman is ready to give up secrets about the war that she has kept for decades...beginning with who she really is. What Kendra receives from Isabel is both a gift and a burden--one that will test her convictions and her heart. 1940s, England. As Hitler wages an unprecedented war against London's civilian population, hundreds of thousands of children are evacuated to foster homes in the rural countryside. But even as fifteen-year-old Emmy Downtree and her much younger sister Julia find refuge in a charming Cotswold cottage, Emmy's burning ambition to return to the city and apprentice with a fashion designer pits her against Julia's profound need for her sister's presence. Acting at cross purposes just as the Luftwaffe rains down its terrible destruction, the sisters are cruelly separated, and their lives are transformed...

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0451419928
• ISBN13: 9780451419927
• Release Date: February 2015
• Publisher: Berkley Books
• Length: 416 Pages
• Weight: 0.71 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.9" x 5.1" x 8.1"
• Age Range: 18 years and up
• Grade Range: Postsecondary and higher

Customer Reviews

Understanding the Blitz and Lives of English Children

As a Susan Meissner fan, even I was surprised at how touching this book is. The core is a story of two sisters who are separated during the Blitz in London. Both are young, but the elder feels tremendous guilt and looks for the little one her whole life. The story of the Blitz, all the fear, destruction, small acts of charity are amazing, and really make you understand what a horror that must have been. This book made me hungry for other books about survival in Britain during the war and recovering slowly afterward.

WWII and the twenty-first century collide in this intriguing novel

A terrible twist of fate and a rash decision changes young Emmaline's life forever. Only now, decades later, does she share her story. The truth of what happened on that awful day during WWII