Wartime intrigue spans the lives of three women—past and present—in this emotional novel from the acclaimed author of The Last Year of the War. February, 1946. World War Two is over, but the recovery from the most intimate of its horrors has only just begun for Annaliese Lange, a German ballerina desperate to escape her past, and Simone Deveraux, the wronged daughter of a French Résistance spy. … wronged daughter of a French Résistance spy.
Now the two women are joining hundreds of other European war brides aboard the renowned RMS Queen Mary to cross the Atlantic and be reunited with their American husbands. Their new lives in the United States brightly beckon until their tightly-held secrets are laid bare in their shared stateroom. When the voyage ends at New York Harbor, only one of them will disembark…
Present day. Facing a crossroads in her own life, Brette Caslake visits the famously haunted Queen Mary at the request of an old friend. What she finds will set her on a course to solve a seventy-year-old tragedy that will draw her into the heartaches and triumphs of the courageous war brides—and will ultimately lead her to reconsider what she has to sacrifice to achieve her own deepest longings.
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The RMS Queen Mary! What a fascinating backdrop for this novel. Susan Meissner has taken me on a voyage that I’ll remember for a long time. It’s a story that travels between times…the present day California back to the 1940’s war torn countries of France, Belgium and England. The RMS Queen Mary is the ghostly connection between the two times.
The characters in the story are compelling and as I traveled through the book with them, I was part of their lives. This story is beautifully written around two WWII brides, Annaliese and Simone and a modern woman, Brette, who has inherited the ability to communicate with what she calls “Drifters” or haunted spirits. What draws these characters together is the mytique of the book.
Ms. Meissner has woven actual stories from the history of the RMS Queen Mary into this novel. For example, the ghost spirit of a little girl named Jackie who allegedly drown in the ships pool. What part does she have in the mystery of this story? I was so intrigued about these stories that I went and did a little “exploring” into the history of the RMS Queen Mary. It was so interesting to learn about the commissions of this ship….the various precious cargo she carried. Traveling passengers, soldiers, and war brides. I love this line Ms. Meissner wrote in the book about the ship, “She sees them as anxious travelers who want safe passage to the next place but are afraid to let go. Letting them come aboard and stay as long as they want is exactly what a loving mother would do.”
I love historical fiction and this book fits that genre so well. I loved taking this voyage and reaching the destination at the end.
This passage in the book dropped into my when I read it, “Life will send us across a bridge we did not want to cross, but when we finally open our eyes on the other side, we see that there had been nothing to fear after all.”
Thank you Susan Meissner for a journey that took me places I truly will keep memories of for a long time.
I enjoyed it very much – an original story
Another heart warming view of the loves of the men of WW2.
This is difficult to get past the beginning because it is confusing, there are three characters’ lives to be introduced then woven together. Fabulous book.
Liked it and would recommend
Interesting story
excellent
I enjoyed this book very much. The writer gives us interesting characters and weaves three different time periods together showing how lives can be connected. The premise of someone communicating with ghosts may not be for everyone but I found the story intriguing.
it interested me very much.
I liked this book because the author told a story in an usual way–the main character can see ghosts and talk to them. Interesting how the author weaves history into a romantic, fantasy type book.
Didn’t keep my interest
I enjoyed this book. It was out of the ordinary considering my choices normally. I have been one the Queen Mary several times and even stayed in the hotel. No ghosts were sighted.
This was a total waste of my time. I wouldn’t recommend it to anyone for any reason.
Sometimes hard to keep track of who each chapter is about.
This novel weaves the stories of three War II Brides who rode the Queen Mary from Great Britain to New York to meet their American soldier grooms. One of the Brides never arrived in New York. This is the story of these Brides then, the lives of the two surviving Brides now, and the modern woman who sees ghosts, solves the mystery of the missing bride, and learns to accept and her gift and corresponding responsibilities.responsibility.
Loved it!
Excellent read….well written, good use of English and entertaining, what more could one ask for?
I am not particularly interested in novels about the paranormal, but this one kept my interest, especially because of the mystery element among the non-ghostly characters. The ending was unpredictable; I was entertained all the way through despite my initially negative reaction.
I couldn’t put the book down. At first I was a bit confused about what was going on, but once I figured it out I was so intrigued I just kept reading to find out what would happen. I had some ideas of how it would end, but still got surprises.
I was kept totally interested and it was a different pace. I like to read a different variety of books and this one filled the bill. Good Read!