This novel centers around three female pilots who join the Air Transport Auxiliary, ferrying planes back and forth between Allied bases during World War II. Evie Chase is a headstrong young debutante who enjoys her life of privilege but wants to "do her bit" for the war effort -- and escape from her odious stepmother. Stella Grainger is struggling with being separated from her baby boy, whom she's sent to her husband's parents in Ireland. And Megan Jones, a 17-year-old Welsh girl, wants nothing more than to keep her family's farm running and to marry her sweetheart, Bill. These three young women couldn't be more different, but when they join the ATA and become roommates, they form an extremely close bond. Together they deal with the challenges of flying different aircraft, the discrimination they face for being women in a man's world, and the joys and sorrows of wartime love affairs. But despite their strength and determination, they can never quite escape the brutal realities of war.

This is a book I really wanted to love. The story has so much going for it -- WWII, female pilots, romance, and even a little espionage! -- but unfortunately, I was disappointed. The biggest problem for me was the clunky writing style; for example, on one occasion, the author drops a character name into the story before introducing that character. I had to flip backward to make sure I hadn't somehow missed his entrance, but in fact, it was just a confusing way to introduce the new character. There's also a lot of head-hopping in the book; not only does the point of view shift between the three girls (which would be understandable), but there are random paragraphs from the perspectives of their suitors and various other minor characters. Finally, while I liked the main characters in theory, they never really rose above clichés. For example, Evie is a typical HF heroine: incredibly beautiful, naturally talented as a flyer, and implausibly far ahead of her time. Overall, while the book certainly wasn't a slog, I can't say I'd recommend it either.

I’d put off reading this book for ages, I’d heard it was a beautiful and emotional read and I needed to be in the right frame of mind (and have a good supply of tissues) and it never felt like the right time. I’m really glad I waited, a book like this deserves some proper indulgent reading time. It’s a truly wonderful read, I’m not sure I have the superlatives for it. Steeped in history, filled with the wonderful women of the ATA this book has it all – hard work, friendship, laughter, tears and love. An absolute must read. ( )

I’d put off reading this book for ages, I’d heard it was a beautiful and emotional read and I needed to be in the right frame of mind (and have a good supply of tissues) and it never felt like the right time. I’m really glad I waited, a book like this deserves some proper indulgent reading time. It’s a truly wonderful read, I’m not sure I have the superlatives for it. Steeped in history, filled with the wonderful women of the ATA this book has it all – hard work, friendship, laughter, tears and love. An absolute must read. ( )

When I saw the cover of this book, I just couldn’t resist. I love to read books about women in World War II and this book dealt with a topic I knew very little about – the Air Transport Auxiliary, who had women pilots to ferry aeroplanes around the English airbases. (The fact that I was at one of my favourite bookshops – Reader’s Feast in Melbourne, may also have helped to loosen my purse strings). It’s quite a thick book and started off rather slowly, but certainly finished with a bang!

There are three female characters, all pilots who share a house but come from very different backgrounds. Evie is rich but defiant – she increasingly takes a larger role as the book continues. Stella is a married woman with a secret as to why she’s in English and Megan is the young teenager. Megan takes more of a back seat to the other two, not too sure why as she’s just as likeable but much less detailed in her characterisation. Evie continually steals the spotlight as the most headstrong, outgoing and risky character but she’s very likeable under it all. Stella is a bit of a cold fish and I couldn’t really warm to her, as she seemed alternately icy and an emotional wreck. Megan is cute, but she’s a bit immature and fades into the background as the story continues.

The plot is the trials, tribulations, joy and sorrow that the girls share from their training to the height of the war. There are scary aeroplane problems, raucous times in nightclubs and the harsh realities of fuel and food rationing. One of the most of lovely things about this book is how it shows how women of all ages and classes joined together during hardship. It also covered a range of love affairs (from pedestrian to flaming hot) but that’s not the focus. It’s about what these women did to serve their country at any cost.

Although the action heats up considerably towards the end – the book almost changing genres – it’s at the cost of the other characters. It’s predominantly about Evie and another pilot. That’s not a bad thing (especially if you like Evie, as I did) but I was surprised that the action became so heated, given the gentler tone earlier on in the book.

This is definitely an original take on World War II’s women in action and Lord Brown should be commended for making learning history entertaining through the eyes of her characters. I’d definitely read her next book. ( )

In 1940, with the war in Europe intensifying, British women were called upon to undertake tasks that had traditionally been carried out by men. Evie, the aristocratic daughter of an RAF commander; Stella, the war widow recently returned from Singapore; Megan, the girl from rural Wales who has never been away from home before. These are the three central characters who sign up with the ATA and ferry various military aircraft to bases all over the UK, and this book focuses on their lives, loves and wartime work.

In its defence, this book is well-written and I felt involved with the characters' lives. Kate Lord Brown has clearly tried to create a heart-wrenching, beautiful story about a generation whose youth was blighted by war. Sadly, this book falls far, far short of that. As you may have guessed from the previous paragraph, the characters were incredible - incredibly stereotyped, that is. The impossibly rich, impossibly beautiful girl, the mysterious girl who has returned from overseas, and the country yokel who may as well have turned up on a tractor. The male characters weren't much better - variously handsome, wealthy, aristocratic... and of course, the token American GI.

The storyline started out well, but quickly became tired and predictable. I made a game out of guessing what was going to happen next - I was mostly right. I was hoping that there would be a dramatic twist to redeem the book towards the end, but sadly not. The characters seemed to have remarkably short memories, and generally operated under the delusion that any problem, be it a marital crisis or the death of a loved one, can be fixed with a nice glass of champagne and the attentions of a beautiful and/or wealthy member of the opposite sex. And they all lived happily ever after... ( )