She is a talented nurse, and according to the Matron of the hospital, " she has a rare combination of compassion, organisation and aptitude for the more challenging aspects of nursing". Despite her mother's objections, Jessie becomes an army nurse. The adventures she craved become a horrifying reality, when she is posted to Gallipoli and Egypt. It makes for a long book. However, that is the point of a trilogy. You fall in love with a character(s), enjoy the family drama and the time period. If this sounds appealing, then Love in a Time of War should definitely be on your reading list.

Christina Fry lives with her husband, Gerald. She is Italian and can be a bit snobby at times. He has a photography business. There are three daughters with Cecelia the oldest, and the twins Jessica and Etta. Cecelia is taking German lessons and has fallen in love with her professor. They agree to marry and when war breaks out Max has to return to Germany. Jessica and Etta couldn't be more different. Jessica is the sensible one who wants to be a nurse. She joins the Queen Alexandra nurses and is sent to Egypt to take care of wounded soldiers. Etta is studying art when she falls in love with a fellow artist, Carlos. Christina is not happy with any of this. She wants her girls to marry and lead respectable lives in England but Christina also has secrets. For the most part each chapter covers one of the girls and Christina and while that could be confusing I felt it worked because of the different settings of Capri, England and Egypt. I’ve come to love the One More Chapter series stories as they have been enlightening and worth the read. This was a heartfelt and warm story of family and how the war changed the lives of three sisters. Truly enjoyed this story. A highly recommended read. As the three sisters embark on journeys they never could have imagined, their mother Christina worries about the harsh new realities they face, and what their exposure to the wider world means for the secrets she’s been keeping… Jessie is an adventurer, and sees nursing as a platform towards being an independent woman. The war enables her to pursue it further and she enlists with the Queen Alexandra Imperial Military Nursing Service. Working in Egypt, she meets Dr Khalid who notices her exceptional skill as a surgical nurse and insists on working with her. Their relationship turns to romance, and Jessie has to decide whether to give up nursing and be a married woman (the two things are not compatible in those days). But what is she if not a nurse? Can she watch from the side-lines? I enjoyed being in different locales - England, Egypt, Italy - and how family secrets were to become exposed. So if this time period appeals to you and you enjoy epic family dramas and are prepared to invest in a trilogy, then Love in a Time of War should definitely be on your reading list.I hope there is a book two so I can follow the girls on the next section of their lives, especially Celia and Frank in Canada and Jesse and Aziz in Egypt. I also like the ending and hope that Christina once again finds happiness with Henry. Women are now taking on roles/positions traditionally held by men. Of course the men are called to be in the armed services so the women are left to fill all of these jobs. Women are allowed to travel without a chaperon and travel overseas. Of course there are romantic relationships for the sisters which makes for major problems given the world climate at the time. Cecelia loves Max but his soldier's uniform is German, not British, and suddenly the one man she loves is the one man she can't have. Love In A Time Of War’ is really well written. Adrienne has one of those writing styles that is easy to get used to and easy to get along with. Adrienne certainly knows how to draw readers into what proves to be one hell of a story. Adrienne has clearly done a lot of research into the time period of when the story is set and this shines through in the very vivid and realistic way in which she tells the tale. Adrienne cares about her characters and she describes them so clearly and realistically that they seem just as real as you and I. Whilst reading ‘Love In A Time Of War’ I did find that I ended up going through every emotion that the characters were going through. I love the way in which Adrienne made me feel as though I was part of the story and at the heart of the action. In 1913, Cecilia Fry, eldest of the three Fry sisters, is nineteen when this story starts. She has fallen in love with her young German teacher and must decide whether to spend the summer with Max in Germany or in London working for the suffragist movement. Eighteen-year old Jessie is studying at nursing school and has been offered an amazing opportunity of which her mother disapproves. Jessie’s twin Etta visits the Summer Exhibition at the Royal Academy of Arts where she meets an Italian artist. All three sisters have dreams for the future, but those dreams are to be thrown into disarray by the Great War.

Etta has always been the arty type, les restricted by formality and more prone to follow the path less travelled. Upon falling in love with Italian artist, Carlo, she follows her heart – and him – to Italy, but when Italy joins the war, she joins her aunt who helps her raise their daughter. The aunt was there where Etta’s mum, Christina, needed similar help, and she knows Christina’s secret. Is that secret in danger of coming out? Or does Etta have enough on her plate to keep her own secret from her family? Love In A Time Of War by Adrienne Chinn is the first in an up and coming trilogy which follows the lives of the three Fry sisters. Celie and fraternal twins, Jessie and Etta. The author has developed three unique personalities in these sisters. Celie,is the oldest. She is an early crusader for women’s suffrage. She is also extremely thoughtful. Etta is the bohemian of the sisters. She is an artist and very headstrong. Jessie is the most serious of the sisters. She has no desire to follow convention and get married and have children. She is interested in putting her nursing skills to use. Just stunning, a sublime tale of secrets, strong women and turbulent times. I absolutely adored it Clare Marchant, author of The Secrets of Saffron Hall I was invested the minute I knew this was set in Italy and Egypt as they are my two favourite places for an adventure. The family secrets held my interest as did the girls’ journey negotiating unique paths in a changing world. I eagerly await book 2 set in the 20s and 30s to be published in late Spring of 2022 and book 3 set in WW2 to the 70s to be published in Spring of 2023.Adrienne is a novelist, speaker, teacher, interior designer, as well as an avid traveller, photographer, flea market hunter, haiku poet and chocolate-eater. I’m so happy that this will be a series! I enjoyed these characters immensely. Looking forward to what happens in the next book.” 5* Anastasia A., NetGalley