I rarely accept books for review from authors. This one appealed to me because of the setting and time period, England during World War I.

Victoria Avery is the main character, one that I came to like very much. She is married to a successful poet (actually making a living at it) named Gerald and they live a lovely life in a cottage surrounded by flower gardens near a village. Then Gerald enlists as World War I begins. For a time he writes frequently, then suddenly the letters stop. Victoria has promised to wait for him in their cottage and although she cannot afford to actually live there, she leaves a letter for him in the cottage and remains in the area.

Her best friend before marriage is a suffragette follower of Emmaline Pankhurst who leads illegal protests and assaults to keep the issue in the papers. Beryl will constantly be in trouble with the police, but Victoria isn't interested in getting the vote for women. She doesn't think that will ever happen. She spends a short time in London trying to learn where Gerald is, but decides to return to the village since she isn't getting anywhere.

During the war Victoria must support herself and yet stay near the village. She works as a farm laborer where she grows close to her three roommates. It's fascinating how they learn from each other and become family for each other. I loved these characters.

The story is a simple one told simply, yet imparts great truths about people faced with a war they know almost nothing about and separation from loved ones that tests their strength of character and their love. I won't reveal what happens after she starts working at the farm but that was the most engrossing part of the story for me.

The book is available from Amazon.com.

Recommended
Source: Author ( )

The main character, Victoria,is a well educated woman for her time, she is friends with a suffragette and has an overbearing mother. She meets Gerald Avery and falls madly in love and the love is reciprocated. They marry in 1914 and the story takes off from there. Gerald volunteers in the war but goes missing. Victoria believes with all her heart that Gerald is still alive, even though time passes without a word from him. After awhile she finds that she is running out of money and is having difficulty finding anything in the small town that she lives in. She finds work at a farm where there are mostly women working, as all the men are off fighting in the war. The work is backbreaking but Victoria perseveres and eventually meets and make friends with her coworkers, even though the work is hard she finds that after awhile she comes to enjoy the hard work. Through the years she spends on the farm, she still believes that Gerald is alive and will return to her.

Dance the Moon Down is a romantic story but it also it is also about the atrocities of war, the lives it takes and the broken lives it leaves behind. A story full of great characters, raw emotions and the premise that love does conquer all and all you need to do is listen to your heart. I thoroughly enjoyed the book, a great debut book by a talented author. A book definitely worth reading. ( )

Fantastic! ( )