Once More unto the Breach

With a taut plotline and lyrical prose, Meghan Holloway weaves history and suspense into a searing and visceral tale of unyielding love and epic valor against one of the darkest moments of human history. Once More Unto The Breach is impactful and impressive!

BLURB

For readers of The Nightingale and Beneath a Scarlet Sky comes a gripping historical thriller set against a fully-realized WWII backdrop about the love a father has for his son and the lengths he is willing to go to find him, from a talented new voice in suspense.

Rhys Gravenor, Great War veteran and Welsh sheep farmer, arrives in Paris in the midst of the city’s liberation with a worn letter in his pocket that may have arrived years too late. As he follows the footsteps of his missing son across an unfamiliar, war-torn country, he struggles to come to terms with the incident that drove a wedge between the two of them.

Joined by Charlotte Dubois, an American ambulance driver with secrets of her own, Rhys discovers that even as liberation sweeps across France, the war is far from over. And his personal war has only begun as he is haunted by memories of previous battles and hampered at every turn by danger and betrayal. In a race against time and the war, Rhys follows his son’s trail from Paris to the perilous streets of Vichy to the starving mobs in Lyon to the treacherous Alps. But Rhys is not the only one searching for his son. In a race of his own, a relentless enemy stalks him across the country and will stop at nothing to find the young man first.

The country is in tatters, no one is trustworthy, and Rhys must unravel the mystery of his son’s wartime actions in the desperate hope of finding him before it’s too late. Too late to mend the frayed bond between them. Too late to beg his forgiveness. Too late to bring him home alive.

REVIEW

“Grief and I had long been acquaintances, but now it met me in an unfamiliar guise. When I lost Aelwyd and the twins, and later my father, I had been gorged to excess on pain and anger. Grief had been a wolf pacing within the confines of my chest, gnashing at my heart, howling and feral and bitter.”

Let me say at the outset, this book is one of the best I’ve read, and I read a lot of excellent books. The above quote is a prime example of the author’s descriptive talent. Dialogue and narrative are so beautifully rendered, to the point where the reader’s mind has to work very little to conjure up the images described or the emotional depth the characters feel. Right from page one, I was hooked. The chaotic atmosphere created by the German retreat from Paris jump starts an incredible adventure. An intense drama, as Rhys and Charlotte follow the trail of his lost son, unfolds into a stunning tale of survival in a landscape filled with enemies and memories. The use of flashbacks to Rhys’ past, along with the letters from Owain that begin each chapter, are an integral part of the narrative, adding context as they reach into the very hearts and minds of father and son. Another important aspect of this book is the detailed look at a time and place filled with unspeakable horrors, and the heroic efforts by those who chose to defy the invaders. The research done by the author is very evident throughout the tale, and that coupled with an imaginative/creative writing style had this reader on the edge of his seat, pausing occasionally to take a breath. The author also found a way to include my new favorite fictional canine, a poodle named Otto. This, my peeps and fellow travelers, is a book to savor. 5 Stars

As I haven’t read many books set around WWII, I cannot compare this book with others. But I just got hooked on the story and plot from the first page to the end.
A great writing style, not overwhelming but on the perfect amount of characters descriptions, surroundings and everything that happens which is one of things that made me read the book in one sitting as well.
My heart broke for Rhys and his son, for what transpired between them and how life turned around on their face but I wanted to know and keep reading to see how this is going to end. No humans can be free of their past , especially those who went through hard situations and all the remorse and flashbacks will always hunt them.
Suspenseful, engaging and eyes opening, this story will be with me for a long time and everyone should read it.

Thanks for the opportunity to read NetGalley.

I was really looking forward to reading this book. I am a huge fan of books focused on WWII. Plius the book was touted as being for fans of The Nightingale. But, alas, I was not that impressed. One of the positive aspects of the book, though, is that it covered the time period after the war. So the information provided was interesting. However, the graphic violence was a little too much to handle. The flashbacks were a little distracting and kept the book from flowing well.

Thank you to NetGalley and Polis Books for my advanced review copy. All opinions and thoughts are my own.