Wake

by Anna Hope

"Compelling, emotionally charged". (Rachel Joyce, author of The Unlikrly Pilgrimage of Harold Fry). Remembrance Day 1920: A wartime secret connects three women's lives: Hettie, whose brother won't speak; Evelyn, who still grieves for her lost lover; Ada, who has never received an official letter about her sons' death, and still believes he will come home. As the mystery that binds them begins to unravel, far away, in the fields of Northern France, the Unknown Soldier embarks on his journey home. The mood of the nation is turning towards the future - but can these three women ever let go of the past?

• ISBN10: 0857521942
• ISBN13: 9780857521941
• Publish Date: 16 January 2014 (first published 1 January 2014)
• Publish Status: Out of Print
• Out of Print: 6 January 2015
• Publish Country: GB
• Publisher: Transworld Publishers Ltd
• Imprint: Doubleday
• Format: Hardcover
• Pages: 336
• Language: English

Reviews

[Whitney @ First Impressions Reviews]

Wake has a restrained power over the reader. Anna Hope's writing gives such love to the characters and holds the reader's breath with its elegance and tackles a difficult subject with tenderness and unbridled strength.

All three characters were unique and could have been a novel on its own. Although, Evelyn, and Ada were the standouts. Their stories interested me more and had a more defined purpose to the plot.

Each time Ada came across the stage my heart broke for her loss. She was a strong character with a moving demeanor and looked forward to her parts in the novel. Her son lost at war was also an interesting (if not sad) addition, and read with reluctant veracity to learn of the actions that led to his unknown death.

Evelyn had a great resolve about her, a refined person trying unsuccessfully to make sense of it all. I felt that under the right circumstances, she could have risen to the occasion but could never quite reach that cloud and for that reason, I was a little disappointed in her.

Hettie, I really could have done without, she seemed unnecessary to the plotline and sighed when she came back on screen. Hettie felt underdeveloped and not as clear as Ada and Evelyn. Just ho hum.

The writing was beautifully lyrical but I felt the narrative was a bit erratic, jumping from one woman to the next without warning and had to take the time to adjust.

I did think including the unknown soldier was brilliant. He brought an intensity to the novel that a marked soldier never could and those scenes were vividly told creating a bright picture of what Anna Hope was conveying, to the tears of the surviving loved ones, and the helmet they all wore, it was a very emotionally draining time and added a large depth to Wake.

Anna Hope's Wake is not a novel you close the cover and say wow. It is only upon the next day, having time to reflect that you realize what a heart-wrenching impact the novel has left on you.