Review: Brilliant!
Rating: 5 out of 5
Date: 11 28, 2013
As Jonesy woke from yet another nightmare, Nurse Nance was quickly at his side. Recovering from wounds received on the battlefields of Ypres, his mental anguish was absolute. For Jonesy had no memory of who he was, no memory of the very battlefield which injured him so – only fleeting glimpses of dreams and memories which wouldn’t stay, no matter how hard he tried. Jones was the nickname he’d been given in the hospital – there was a Brown, a Smith and a Green, all with the dreadful “shellshock” which left them not knowing who they were.Eden Valentine was a lovely young girl, a seamstress who worked with her father, Abe Valentine, a fine Jewish tailor. Abe had lost his wife Nina some years before, but only recently his beloved son Daniel had been killed in the war; devastated and lost Abe and Eden kept themselves busy with their work.When Eden came into Jonesy’s life, she was delivering a suit to a member of the hospital staff. He was stunned by her beauty, her impeccable taste and style – but he had no idea she would feature prominently in his future. But Eden had been promised to Benjamin Levi from the time she had been in her mother’s womb. The two families were fast friends, and their desire to combine the families went back decades.As Jonesy became involved in Eden and Abe’s lives, he chose the name “Tom” for his own. He had no real reason for choosing that name, only that it seemed to mean something to him. So Tom he was – but still his great desire was to find out who he really was. With tragedy and sadness threatening the lives of them all, happiness was fleeting, but real. What would happen to Eden and Tom? Would he discover who he was in his past, or his future? Would the tailor’s girl’s dreams come to fruition?What an absolutely phenomenal story! This has just landed in my favourite books list for 2013 – London in the early part of the twentieth century was the setting of The Tailor’s Girl; the description of post-war London was painted with passion making the pictures in my mind crystal clear, and the plot flowed beautifully. Heartbreak and tragedy, happiness and joy, they all combined to create a story which is gripping, emotional and totally wonderful. A book which I would very highly recommend from an Aussie author with amazing talent!With thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for my copy to read and review.