My thoughts:

You can always rely on Nancy Revell to offer up a story that is full of hopes, struggles and valuable friendships. As the 9th book in the series, A Christmas Wish for the Shipyard Girls, doesn't fail to disappoint.

Hopefully you've been following the series so far - if not, do it now! - and are ready to find out what lies ahead for the Shipyard Girls. It is so wonderful to be back with the girls and to see how, not only their lives, but their characters are changing too. Revell's ability to create this depth to her characters makes them more believable and relatable to the reader.

Christmas time is always a very emotive time for people and with that brings a whole lot of emotion to this book. It's a real tear-jerker, especially as you've come to know the characters so well as you've been on their whole journey with them. So, if you're a crier, like me, get the tissues ready just in case! But don't worry, there's a lot of happiness to go around!

This book focuses on the courage of the Shipyard Girls during a turbulent time. I love how these woman are portrayed with so much strength and honest character, the good and the bad.

If you love historical fiction and love a drama filled with strong female characters and friendships, then this book is for you!


About the Author:

Nancy Revell is the pen name of writer and journalist Amanda Revell Walton, who has worked for the national press for the past 25 years, providing them with hard-hitting news stories and in-depth features. She has also worked for just about every woman’s magazine, writing amazing and inspirational true life stories.

Nancy Revell is spearheading a campaign to honour the real women of the Sunderland shipyards in her home town with a new public statue that will be displayed within the historic Sunderland Shipyards. Nancy has worked closely with the Sunderland City Council and the Sunderland Soroptimists, a worldwide volunteer service organization for women, and after putting out a call on her own social media channels, Nancy was approached by local artist Rosanne Robertson who has been commissioned to create the statue that will be unveiled later this year.

Sunderland boasted the largest shipyard in Europe during WWII, and produced a quarter of Britain's merchant shipping at the time. When the men went away to war, the courageous Shipyard Girls took up the back breaking work building ships for the British Navy. Due to its size, the Sunderland Shipyards were a key target of Hitler’s Blitzkreig, making the work not only backbreaking but incredibly dangerous. Historians have estimated that without the courageous women working in Sunderlands’ shipyards during the war, WWII could very likely have been lost due to lack of ability to transport troops, provisions and ammunition.