Third book in the Belle trilogy. 1938: Belle and Etienne's 17-year-old daughter Mariette is a handful. Selfish and bored she soon gets herself into trouble in small town Russell, New Zealand. Sent to visit her Uncle Noah in London, she meets another selfish character during the journey in Morgan, a handsome steward. Once in London Mari is caught up in high living and independence and, but for the declaration of World War II, would have carried on in this self-indulgent way. Experiencing the death of those she loves, the London Blitz, work for the Government and her own pain and suffering, her character matures into one of compassion and responsibility. Then she meets up with Morgan again, whose face is now badly scarred from burns and who has also changed for the better as he works towards his qualifications as a male nurse. Both physically and mentally scarred, can they face their new reality and find a safe place to call home? A great end to the series and an engaging read. ( )

I was left with an overwhelming feeling of disappointment with this book. The first two in the Belle series were a little bit gritty and realistic and not at all what I expected from Lesley Pearse. This, unfortunately, did not follow suit.
From the beginning, I could not get on with the main character Mariette as she was very 'whiney' and unlikeable. This did not change for quite a lot of the book but, just as I was starting to like her, the whole narrative got very repetitive - the amount of times that she spoke of herself as being self centred when she was young was ridiculous and it seemed as though Lesley Pearse was trying to drag the book out by re-introducing various suitors for her in improbable scenarios.
The ending is sickly sweet and a little too perfect for my liking...whole thing left me in sugar shock and overall has discoloured the whole trilogy. ( )

Survivor is the third in a trilogy of books featuring Belle, although it mainly focuses on her daughter, Mariette, who is as strong-willed and feisty as her mother. In danger of going off the rails in the sleepy New Zealand town where she lives, Mariette is sent to England to live with family friends. She finds herself trapped there when the Second World War breaks out but her experiences turn out to be the making of her.

I have loved all of Lesley Pearse's books and this is no exception. I absolutely love every minute I spend reading them and know she can be relied on to write a thumping good tale. Survivor contains many twists and turns in Mariette's life and I never knew where the story would take me next. Fantastic and eagerly awaiting this author's next book. ( )