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After the War is Over: A Novel
After the War is Over: A Novel
After the War is Over: A Novel
Audiobook10 hours

After the War is Over: A Novel

Written by Jennifer Robson

Narrated by Lucy Rayner

Rating: 3.5 out of 5 stars

3.5/5

()

About this audiobook

The International bestselling author of Somewhere in France returns with her sweeping second novel—a tale of class, love, and freedom—in which a young woman must find her place in a world forever changed.

After four years as a military nurse, Charlotte Brown is ready to leave behind the devastation of the Great War. The daughter of a vicar, she has always been determined to dedicate her life to helping others. Moving to busy Liverpool, she throws herself into her work with those most in need, only tearing herself away for the lively dinners she enjoys with the women at her boarding house.

Just as Charlotte begins to settle into her new circumstances, two messages arrive that will change her life. One, from a radical young newspaper editor, offers her a chance to speak out for those who cannot. The other pulls her back to her past, and to a man she has tried, and failed, to forget.

Edward Neville-Ashford, her former employer and the brother of Charlotte’s dearest friend, is now the new Earl of Cumberland—and a shadow of the man he once was. Yet under his battle wounds and haunted eyes Charlotte sees glimpses of the charming boy who long ago claimed her foolish heart. She wants to help him, but dare she risk her future for a man who can never be hers?

As Britain seethes with unrest and post-war euphoria flattens into bitter disappointment, Charlotte must confront long-held insecurities to find her true voice . . . and the courage to decide if the life she has created is the one she truly wants.

LanguageEnglish
PublisherHarperAudio
Release dateJan 6, 2015
ISBN9780062371584
After the War is Over: A Novel
Author

Jennifer Robson

Jennifer Robson is the Globe & Mail and Toronto Star number-one bestselling author of six novels, among them The Gown and Somewhere in France. She holds a doctorate in British history from the University of Oxford and lives in Toronto, Canada, with her husband and children.

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Reviews for After the War is Over

Rating: 3.7279999744000003 out of 5 stars
3.5/5

125 ratings14 reviews

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  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    From Canadian author, Jennifer Robson, this is more of a romance story than what I would normally choose. However, details of post-war life accurately reflected the desperate conditions for many people: demobbed men left injured, burned, shell-shocked, without pensions, and few jobs; women widowed by the war put out of work to make jobs for men. Charlotte, the main character of the story, worked as a nurse during the war and now works for an agency to help the destitute, or almost destitute families, although her help is often unwelcome and instead seen as "charity". The depiction of the first "Peace Day" was poignant, when the populace threw street parties to celebrate the Armistice of November 11th, 1918, now known as Remembrance Day.
  • Rating: 3 out of 5 stars
    3/5
    This novel is a series of snapshots of the life of Charlotte Brown, an educated unmarried woman of thirty-three, in 1919 -- working for a Liverpool ward councillor, writing a newspaper column about the plights of the poor, and living in a boarding house. It also has flashbacks to her time at Oxford, to becoming a governess and to nursing during the war.All of this is quite interesting but I was aware of a definite tendency for things to be resolved neatly -- perhaps because with so much to cover there’s not much room to explore any of the possibilities for complexity. On-going narrative tension is instead found in Charlotte’s relationship with Edward Neville-Ashford, the Earl of Cumberland and the older brother of Charlotte’s former-pupil, Lilly. Edward is struggling to recover from injuries and trauma sustained during the war, and eventually enlists Charlotte’s help. I was disappointed that there weren’t more scenes of that part of the story -- I’d have happily read more angsty hurt/comfort, their conversations introduce much-needed disagreements and complications, and I suspect more scenes could have kept the ending from feeling rushed. Nevertheless, I enjoyed reading this.
  • Rating: 3 out of 5 stars
    3/5
    As delightful and interesting as the rest of Robson's books. I do wish that I had read all the books in order (some of the characters throughout the series are connected to each other, though you don't need to have read them in order).

    I like these books because they're honest about the era (ex: expectations for women), but Robson creates strong female characters who are pushing the boundaries (ex: being independent).
  • Rating: 3 out of 5 stars
    3/5
    Good for authenticity of place. Women rights beginning, PTSD understandings beginning, care for the poor beginning. Love story across classes, of course. Too much detail of daily life of main character and not excitingly written.
  • Rating: 3 out of 5 stars
    3/5
    A good read set in post-WWI England as Charlotte Brown struggles to reclaim the man she fell in love with during the war. I appreciated this book for the depiction of the struggles post-war Britain faced - the return of injured soldiers, the struggle of families to stay afloat as the economy rapidly changed, and social tensions between the classes. However, I also recently read a few other books set in this period, and frankly I enjoyed them a bit more, although this remains a solid novel in its own right.
  • Rating: 3 out of 5 stars
    3/5
    I might have had my hopes set to high, but I was expecting more from this novel than it delivered. Since I'm a fan of this genre and era, I might hoped it might have been more intriguing.
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    I read Jennifer Robson's first book, Somewhere in France, about a year ago. It was set during World War I and, as the title suggests, much of the action takes place at the front lines. Charlotte Brown served as a nurse during the war and she stayed in Britain nursing soldiers suffering from shell shock. Her friend, Lily, drove ambulances in France and Lily's brother, Edward, was a major. This book is set in 1919 and Charlotte is living in Liverpool where she is an aide to a female ward councillor in one of the poorest areas. Lily is engaged to be married to her Scottish surgeon, Robert Fraser, much to the chagrin of her mother, Lady Cumberland. Edward was injured and missing in the last days of the war and Robert was the one who found him. Edward is still having mental and emotional issues from the war but when his father dies unexpectedly he has to take on the duties of being the Earl of Cumberland. The estate is in a mess and there are large sums due for estate taxes. Charlotte realizes that Edward must have suffered a concussion at the same time as he had his leg blown off. He needs rest and good food and abstinence from alcohol and tobacco to get better. Although Charlotte is no longer a nurse she agrees to spend a month looking after Edward in a remote hunting lodge. Although the pair are extremely attracted to one another they both feel that after this month Edward will have to go on to find a wealthy American girl so the estate can be held together. Such a quandary! I felt this book crossed the border into romance territory more than Robson's first book. There was some interesting stuff about woman's suffrage and the plight of the poor and shell shock but that seemed more like stuffing until we could get back to the Charlotte/Edward romance. I'm sure that will appeal to lots of folks but it just wasn't enough for me. And I was puzzled by how little was mentioned about the Great Influenza virus. Surely that would have been a factor in the nation's recovery from the war. So I cannot give this book a whole-hearted endorsement but for those of us suffering from Downton Abbey withdrawal it might suffice.
  • Rating: 3 out of 5 stars
    3/5
    I was really disappointed in this book. I was expecting something more like "The Nightingale" but got a prim harlequin romance. The best parts dealt with the experiences of soldiers returning to England after WWI and women's suffrage.
  • Rating: 1 out of 5 stars
    1/5
    I picked up this book because I was looking for a light cozy read. It's lack of depth was so bad that it became silly. The detail is trite, the characters are flat and the plot boring.
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    A quick moving romance set in post-WWI England. Forward thinking Charlotte Brown has the benefit of a supportive curate father, Oxford education, and a fulfilling position as a constituency assistant in Liverpool helping needy veterans and families. Her experience as a nurse helps her in assisting a friend who has returned with the loss of a leg, concussion and she'll shock. That he is handsome, titled and her former employer only complicates things. This was a fast moving read. I had not read the predecessor to this book, Somewhere in France, which involves many of the same characters. I did not find it difficult to start in on this book without having read the first one. An interesting look at the role of women in the workplace and academia in the early 20th century, as well as the plight of returning soldiers. A good perspective particularly as many of the same issues continue to plague our returning vets even today.The publisher failed to forward a copy under the LT ER program, but I was able to obtain copy through my local library.
  • Rating: 3 out of 5 stars
    3/5
    I had read Ms. Robsin's first book about the Great War and enjoyed it so was looking forward to reading this one. Unfortunately I didn't enjoy it as much. I liked Charlotte Brown. She is an emancipated woman who received a university degree just before the start of the Great War. She then served four years as an army nurse during WWI. Once the war is over, she comes back to Liverpool and works in an agency that helps demobilized veterans and their families. Charlotte loves her job even though it's hard for her to hear the terribly sad stories of the destitute families she sees on a daily basis. We meet Charlotte's friends and family and we meet the man she has loved in secret since just after she met him. We see the courage that Charlotte displays while trying to manage her job and her feelings for this man whom she knows is an unsuitable match for her because of their very different social positions. It all sounds like a great idea for a plot, but I just didn't find the story totally believable. It felt like I was looking through rosy-coloured glasses at a very sad and heart-rending scenario. It just didn't grab me like I thought it should. Maybe it was because I felt the story placed the emphasis on the romantic aspect more than it did on what I know was the reality in post WWI England.
  • Rating: 3 out of 5 stars
    3/5
    Robson’s reminiscent description of post-War England is well done along character development.Charlotte is an admirable liberal woman – university educated (Oxford graduate) only child of a vicar, nurse, intelligent and fiercely independent, a woman most would emulate. She’s also a people pleaser, a woman wanting to make a greater impact in the world and those around her and this is where Charlotte hits a crossroads of sorts as she discovers the woman she is and her authentic desires. As you learn of Charlotte you discover she is a woman clearly ahead of her time with endless potential.Robson reveals Charlotte’s layers slowly and the more you learn of this intriguing woman the more you appreciate her quiet cerebral manner. Ambitious – she takes on women’s rights, contributes a weekly column addressing the injustices individuals and families face during wartime. When she reunited with Edward she begins to question herself and her hearts desires. A coming of age story of a thirty something woman finally discovering and admitting her wants and needs in a time where the world is on the cusp of great change.Robson masterfully address the fragile subject matter of ‘shell shock’ and its lingering presence. The perfect amount of romance combined with Charlotte’s back story creates a charming narrative of an incredibly gifted woman in a difficult period of time.A satisfying story with accurate depictions of WWI, suffrage, police strikes and the plights of family, affecting account of wartime in general.
  • Rating: 2 out of 5 stars
    2/5
    Another book that I was looking forward to reading. Despite having not read Somewhere in France. Which there were some hints of that book in this one but nothing really of importance that you can not read this book as a stand alone novel. While this book started out fine I found myself really having to stick with it. It was only after I got about half way and part of this was due to me skimming the book that I finally threw in the white flag and surrendered. I did not feel the chemistry with any of the characters or the romance that I was hoping and wanting between Charlotte and Edward.
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    A great followup to Somewhere in France but can also be read as a stand alone novel.