Fallen Skies by Philippa Gregory (MOBI)

Description

Terrific novel set in the Roaring Twenties, reissued to accompany Philippa Gregory’s bestselling novel, The Other Boleyn Girl

Lily Valance wants to forget the war. She’s determined to enjoy the world of the 1920s, with its music, singing, laughter and pleasure. When she meets Captain Stephen Winters, a decorated hero back from the Front, she’s drawn to his wealth and status. In Lily he sees his salvation – from the past, from the nightmare, from the guilt at surviving the Flanders plains where so many were lost.

But it’s a dream that cannot last. Lily has no intention of leaving her singing career. The hidden tensions of the respectable facade of the Winters household come to a head. Stephen’s nightmares merge ever closer with reality and the truth of what took place in the mud and darkness brings him and all who loves him to a terrible reckoning…

User’s Reviews

From AudioFile Philippa Gregory won the 1990 Romantic Novelist of The Year Award, but this post WWI novel is not a romantic novel. The dark, suspenseful story concerns the clearly doomed marriage of a former infantry officer and the aspiring singer who catches his attention. Marie McCarthy narrates with a cool, cultured, perfectly modulated voice, which suits a story set amid the British upper class. The essential message is that those who fell on Flanders fields were better off than some who came home, emotionally and morally damaged beyond redemption. While the characters are memorable and the action at the end compelling, the book is overly long and emotionally draining. This production is recommended for those who have time, enjoy a solid portrayal of a past era, like psychological studies, or enjoy listening to a good reader. D.L.G. © AudioFile 2004, Portland, Maine– Copyright © AudioFile, Portland, Maine –This text refers to an alternate kindle_edition edition. From the Publisher From the bestselling author of Wideacre, this passionate novel explores the aftermath of World War I through the lives of one British officer and the woman who becomes his wife. –This text refers to an alternate kindle_edition edition. From the Back Cover Singer Lily Valance wants to forget the war. She vows to live for the present and enjoy the music and glitter of the frantic 1920s. Captain Stephen Winters joins in on the post-war frenzy, and falls in love with the vivacious performer. But, privately, the aristocratic hero is tortured by the war’s painful memories. –This text refers to an alternate kindle_edition edition.

Reviews from Amazon users, collected at the time the book is getting published on UniedVRG. It can be related to shiping or paper quality instead of the book content:

⭐ Spoiler alert This story raises the question of how far a family will go to ignore mental problems of one of their own. In this case they allowed the marriage of their rich war hero son to a would-be singer. They knew, they saw, they ignored. In the end, it took an outsider to remedy a situation that was out of control. I enjoy reading this author. The story was interesting in the beginning, but a quarter way through the book, I had identified the antagonist, but 60% I figured out the ending. This was not what I was expecting. There were several situations that didn’t ring true. I would have expected the patriarch to have done something since he was in control of the people in the house. How did the heroine find the hideout when she had never been there. But the biggest problem for me was guessing the end. Still worth a read. I tend to get a little picky.

⭐ I confess, the beginning of this novel was a bit of a slog. The main characters were not particularly likeable and seemed quite shallow. Then, the pace picked up. One of the main characters became more likeable, while the other began showing by his true colors, becoming a tad more interesting in the process. The story takes in 1920s England, with World War I still fresh in everyone’s mind. Those who survived are trying to forget it and forge on with their lives.Lily Valance is in her late teens and just starting a music hall career as a singer, when she meets Captain Stephen Winters, a hero of that war. He is a wealthy gentleman with standing in the community, while she is a shopkeeper’s daughter. She is initially drawn to him, as he takes her to lovely places. He is drawn to her by her innocence and complete disinterest in the war. He feels that she can make him whole again. Stephen, you see, is troubled and has war related issues. He may not be the hero everyone thinks.When her mother dies, Lily is bereft. Under the circumstances, she accepts Stephen’s proposal of marriage in a weak moment, only to ultimately find that things are not as they seem. Still, she tries to make the most of it, and when she has her baby, she loves that baby more than she thought possible. Stephen, on the other hand does not feel quite the same. Therein lies the rub.The last half of this book is much better than the first half. In fact, some of it is quite gripping. I could not stop turning the pages. Though the astute reader might surmise where it is all going, it is the journey there that counts. Fans of the author should find it enjoyable, despite some of its shortcomings. I know I did.

⭐ Great read. I have read most of Philippa Gregory’s English period pieces and love the way she thinks and attends to small se tail. I thought I would try something else here. It reads as a wonderful who dunnit mystery after a long period of following the characters and the difficulties they face. The drama comes suddenly toward the end. It was unexpected and with a somewhat narrow cast of characters to choose from, I thought I knew who the culprit was. Of course I was dead wrong. But her writing style brings everything to life. The end us fast paced and riveting. I loved the end. Philippa seems to handle any genre. Good writing does that.Walter

⭐ I always enjoy Philippa Gregory’s novels. I am astonished by the amount of historical detail that she includes in every one of her books. This tale was much more recent history, and of interest to me. We Americans were taught very little about WWI, so much about the battles and death toll is a surprise to us. I found this tale to be very sad and somewhat depressing as Stephen unravels over the course of his marriage. There is some graphic violence, but it is part of his history and dreams, not an in your face kind of thing.I feel that the sexual content was not excessive, not graphic, and appropriate to the story.

⭐ I looked up Philippa Gregory because she had written the foreword to the re-issued version of Katherine, by Anya Seton. I ordered Fallen Skies because the era in which it is set is of particular interest to me. I was extremely disappointed.While the story itself is not poorly rendered, the characters leave a great deal to be desired. The heroine is shallow, self-centered and unsympathetic. The character the reader initially believes to be the hero is physically and emotionally abusive, mentally unstable and as needy as the heroine. Nor is the hero-by-default someone whom the heroine can ever have a happy relationship. There seems no real goal or point to the story, other than the depiction of a relationship without which all parties would have been better off — including the reader.I continued reading simply because I kept hoping the unredeemable characters would somehow be redeemed, or at least become somewhat likeable. This never occurred, and the ending was unsatisfying and inconclusive. Fortunately, I read quickly, and I had bought the book, so I finished it, although I was sorely tempted to skip the last quarter of the book and just read the end.Given Gregory’s comments about historical fiction versus historical romance in the foreword of Katherine and the disdain in which she appears to hold the latter category of fiction, I expected Fallen Skies would be straight historical fiction without any romance conventions. Even with those expectations, Fallen Skies simply did not fulfil the hopes I had for it.Read this only as an antidote for a Pollyanna case of good humor and optimism.

⭐ I’ve always enjoyed this author’s work and have learnt a lot about history along the way, but I found this book disappointing. Around the half way mark I started wondering if someone else had taken over writing it as the style seemed to change and the characters lost depth and it became quite tedious. At some point I felt like I was reading a Mills and Boon novel but was determined to finish it even though I wanted to give up.I haven’t lost faith in Philippa Gregory though as this is the first that I haven’t been totally engrossed in.

⭐ One of the best books I’ve read in a long time. The characters were so rich and it felt as if I was in the same room, smelling the same smells and seeing the same faces and scenery. This writer is incredible … Bravo!!

⭐ Philippa Gregory is one of my favorite authors and she hit it out of the park again with Fallen Skies. It was such a compelling story — a complete page-turner — that gave a poignant view of the aftermath of war. The damage it does on the inside can be more significant that what you can see in pictures or on gravestones. The triumph of the human spirit, good over evil, and classic enduring love are all included.

⭐ I loved this book and the way it flowed and after I started reading,I could hardly stop reading, I think one of the best novels I have read in a lon g time, I will recommend to my friends. The author is one of my favorites,

⭐ This was fascinating. A great story of imperfect “love” but most of all, the reality of the damage that war does to those who fight. I’ve read lots of non-fiction about war – Unbroken and Ghost Soldiers being two of my favorites. But Fallen Skies was different. It dealt with the subtler issues of the damage and its long lasting effects..

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