Christmas with the Bomb Girls: The perfect Christmas wartime story to cosy up with this year

Gladys is the central character in this story about the Bomb Girls, a group of women who work at the Phoenix munitions factory during WW2. Gladys has returned unexpectedly from Europe, where she had been posted with ENSA, the organization set up to entertain the troops abroad. All is clearly not well with Gladys as she rejoins her old friends (and some new ones) at the Phoenix. Obviously traumatised by something which happened while she was away, Gladys is a shadow of her former self and is unwilling to talk about it. However, she could not be in a better place and her friends rally round to support her. As Christmas approaches life becomes even busier than usual and they are determined to celebrate. Despite the fact that each of the girls has their own individual problems to deal with, they come together to plan the festivities. Against this background of camaraderie, Gladys begins to recover.

This is apparently the third in the “Bomb Girls” series, all set at the Phoenix munitions factory and featuring the same cast of characters. I had not read any of the previous books (in fact I had not come across Daisy Styles before) but this did not affect my enjoyment of the book at all. It works very well as a stand-alone read and I suspect it would also be enjoyed by Daisy Styles fans who have read the others in the series as it manages to introduce the characters without repeating history.

The characters are well developed, likeable and very believable. Despite having to deal constantly with the daily impact of war on their everyday lives, the girls remain largely cheerful, pulling together and helping each other out as and when necessary. This results in a book which manages to be heart-warming even in the face of adversity. It is perfect for the festive period when all that is required is a good book that doesn’t tax the brain too much. Although the picture that the book paints is realistic, the dark moments are tackled sympathetically and there is plenty of cheerfulness to compensate. The only problem for me was that it was very much a page-turner and, as such, difficult to put down – rather more reading took place than possibly should have.

If you are looking for a book that is deep and meaningful, challenges your intellect and makes you think, then this is not the one for you. It is however an easy-to-read, heart-warming story, very well told. I enjoyed it from start to finish and would be more than happy to read any other Daisy Styles novels which came my way.

Review from Hunstanworth Village Hall Book Group:
As the third book in a series we were a little worried that we'd find some of the storylines and characters' actions difficult to follow, but this proved not to be the case. The cover image is a good indication of the type of novel that this is...perfect for fans of 'Call the Midwife' etc. And although predictable in many ways: love/loss/friendship breakdown/misunderstanding/conciliation we all managed to finish reading this story and take something from it.
The friendship and camaraderie of the women working in the Lancashire bomb factory stands out, as does the timely inclusion of one character subjugated by an officer with power over others - this lead to a very interesting discussion, along with how the role of women (married or otherwise) changed during and after WWII.
An interesting aside is that the village hall we meet in (and after which our book group is named) was once a TB sanatorium. As Gladys, the central character, takes up a nursing career after a friend becomes a patient in a TB sanatorium, this made it a poignant reminder of the history of our own neighbourhood.
Rating: Although this was not a genre any of our group would normally read we recognised that of this type of novel the story was engaging, the characters likeable and the storyline interesting. Scores varied and were split fairly evenly - members who strongly dislike this genre still scored this novel 2.5 out of 5, whilst the rest gave it strong 4 or 4.5 marks.

This was a lovely, easy read, perfect for the holiday season. The characters were well rounded, making you feel a strong empathy for the situations they were in. The author gave you a great glimpse into the struggles during the war effort for people at home. This is a great book for a cosy night in.

Where were the bombs used in WW2 assembled and by whom? This book is set in the Phoenix Factory on the Lancashire moors. The women who toil day and night to support the war effort live a tough life but are doing what they can to support their menfolk and the country to win the war. But they too have terror and hardship to contend with. A seasonal tale where you hope that all will turn out well in the end. Read it to find out...