Another one of the random books I pick up at the second hand book store, this one struck me because of it's unusual spine. Picturing a man with eyes scratched out, I picked this up wondering whether it was going to be interesting or actually superbly boring and terribly written...
Based in Switzerland after WWI, Elizabeth and her sister-in-law are based in a spa town with a view to recovering after the death of Elizabeth's brother.
Often bleak, this book draws you into a side not often portrayed in "war novels" - more of the aftermath, rather than views into trench warfare, and the horrors of war.
I was surprised I enjoyed it as much as I did, I normally hate the view point of a woman written by a man (prejudiced as hell, but it's always grated!) but each character had a richness that I wasn't expecting, and I found this book extremely difficult to put down.
The injustices of war, and the terrible decisions that people make are a main theme of this novel, and it's difficult to come away without wondering how much of the subject content actually happened but was never really seen or believed, and so sad at the loss of so many lives needlessly.
While in stark contrast to a lot of the other styles I read, I really enjoyed this book, and will chuck it into the "would read again" pile.
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