by Sebastian Faulks
A poignant love story played out in front of the
harrowing back drop of World War II.
Reviewed by: Helen Harvey
About Helen Harvey
When, in 1942, beautiful, young Scot, Charlotte Gray,
moves to London, in order to 'do her bit' for the war
effort, she can have no idea of the pain and sorrow
that the years ahead will hold.
Predictably enough, she falls for a handsome RAF
pilot, Peter Gregory, a weary veteran of the Battle of
Britain, who, undertaking one fateful mission too
many, is reported missing in action over France.
With gritty determination Charlotte vows to find him,
and, because of French language skills, has the
opportunity to go to France, undertaking covert work
for British Intelligence, as a courier assisting the
Vichy Resistance in occupied territory.
When there, the dual tasks of her intelligence
mission, and her own mission to find Peter hold a
dangerous, terrifying, and tragic portent, as with
each turn of the page you live with her in the shadow
of the Nazis, adopting the endearing cast of
characters as your own.
The fact that we know stories such as this to be a
very real and painful truth of World War II, conspires
with Faulk's beautifully crafted words, to send a
chill down your spine, as you hold your breath,
mentally willing the events not to play out, as you
know they will.
This is a deeply affecting, journey through recent
history, which makes for not only enthralling and
suspenseful reading, but for an abiding wish for the
world never to have to witness such atrocity again.
Faulks is, unarguably, a masterful craftsmen in
recounting the horrors of war with poignancy,
intrigue, and drama. His acclaimed World War I novel,
Birdsong, is another book that simply must be read.
Click here to buy this book, or read more about it at Amazon.com: Charlotte Gray
Copyright © by Helen Harvey, 2002
Reviewed by Helen Harvey:
-- Running With Scissors - by Augusten Burroughs
-- A Thousand Days in Venice: An Unexpected Romance
- by Marlena de Blasi
-- Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire
- by J.K. Rowling
-- The Naked Chef
- by Jamie Olive
-- Good In Bed
- by Jennifer Weiner
-- Getting the Love You Want: A Guide For Couples
- by Harville Hendrix Ph.D
-- Guess How Much I Love You
- by Sam McBratney
-- Skipping Christmas
- by John Grisham
-- Savage Beauty
- by Nancy Milford
-- Snow Falling On Cedars
- by David Guterson
-- Charlotte Gray
- by Sebastian Faulks
-- Perfume: The Story of a Murderer
- by Patrick Suskind
-- Milly-Molly-Mandy
- by Joyce Lankester Brisley
-- Love is Where it Falls
- by Simon Callow
-- The Dive from Clausen's Pier
- by Ann Packer
-- Balzac and the Little Chinese Seamstress
- by Dai Sijie
-- Sarah’s Window
- by Janice Graham
-- Life of Pi
- by Yann Martel
-- Fury
- by Salman Rushdie
-- A Problem From Hell: America and the Age of Genocide
- Samantha Power
-- White Teeth
- by Zadie Smith
Home
-------
All the Reviews