Erin Davis review pretty much sums up my feelings for this book. But I guess that I have put down some thoughts I have on the book and not just refer to her splendid review. This is not a book that I liked so it's a pretty negative review...

Seven Days in May by Kim Izzo appealed to me as I'm interested in reading about WW1 and the suffragette movement. I was looking forward to seeing how the author would combine the storyline on the ship and that of the codebreaker Isabel in London. I'm sad to say that the book didn't really manage to satisfy me. I wanted intensity, but what I got was a bombast story with shallow characters and extremely predictable storyline.

The storyline with Isabel was marginally better than the one with the sisters on the ship. Still, the fallen women storyline has been done so many times before and better. Although I did enjoy the part when Mildred, Isabel's nemesis got what she deserved. I always like it when a despicable person gets what she/he deserves. What really troubled me was that Isabel getting an important job and the first thing she does is reading a letter from Churchill, because the envelope wasn't sealed ... seriously? And, when I think about it, shouldn't they have done a better background check on her, now that she has such an important job?

Then we have Sydney and Brooke Sinclair. Sydney is a suffragette fighting for women's rights, at least she is supposed to be it, but it never rings true and mostly she is portrayed as a poor rich girl that pretends to be a suffragette, but I lost all respect for her when she in spite decided to change from first class to third on the ship because she was arguing with her sister. Like a child with a tantrum. Brooke isn't much better, she is rich, but she wants a title and the best way is to find a poor aristocrat and marry him.

Then we have the romance story, oh this one was so easy to see that it's almost laughable. I won't give it away, but you can see right from the start how it all will end.

So, this was not a story to my liking, I persevered until the end, but It's not a book I can recommend.

I want to thank the publisher for providing me with a free copy through NetGalley for an honest review! ( )

Cliched characters and a plot that is suspiciously similar to the movie Titanic... after several chapters the characters and plot finally began to take on a life of their own. If you are interested in the story of the Lusitania, I recommend "Dead Wake" which tells the tale of passengers based on letters and journal entries of actual passengers. ( )

This novel follows the lives of three individuals during WWI. Isabel works in London, decoding hidden German messages. Edward, a poor English lord travels to the U.S. to escort his bride, Brooke, home for their wedding. Sydney, Brooke's sister, is tired of the proper life expected of women of her station and wealth. When Isabel starts seeing messages tracking the progress of the Lusitania, she immediately begins to worry about its safety. Edward, Sydney and Brooke are traveling on the Lusitania.

I have mixed feelings about this book. The writing style wasn't bad and the character development was solid. However, the love triangle between Edward, Sydney, and Brooke was trite and predictable. It made Edward and Sydney very unlikeable. Isabel's back story seemed unnecessary, it took away from the strength of her character. The build-up and aftermath of the sinking seemed to take forever. With some editing, the book could have been really good. As is, it's a bust. ( )

The last voyage of the Lusitania is brought vividly to life in this novel that traces the intertwining lives of a few passengers and a British spy monitoring U-boats. I loved the character of Sydney Sinclair, a wealthy New York socialite and suffragette, who finds herself sailing on the grand ship with her older sister and her sister's British fiance. Sydney's rebelliousness propels much of the plot, especially as she spares with her more conforming sister and starts to harbor romantic feelings for her sister's fiance. Good reading for those who enjoy this era. ( )

Oh this is such a wonderful book. I couldn't have imagined how much I would end up enjoying it. It has that mix of fact and fiction that I love but it can hinder an author sometimes as they can end up sacrificing elements of a good story by trying to stick to facts. Not so here. Oh there's no doubt that Kim Izzo has researched the story of the Lusitania meticulously but she has also weaved the most fantastic storyline around it.

That storyline is one of three incredibly strong women. Sydney and Brooke Sinclair are sisters. They're New Yorkers and very wealthy young women. It's their voyage on the Lusitania that is the central part of the story. And there is also Isabel Nelson, a young woman working in Room 40 which was a pre-cursor to Bletchley Park. In the midst of WWI she is busy helping to decode messages sent by the Germans and in particular those relating to the passage of ships in the exclusion zone where they were liable to be attacked.

Both elements were equally strong. When we swapped from one to the other I was never disappointed, just keen to find out what was happening with these wonderfully drawn characters. I loved Sydney. The author has drawn aspects of social history into her story as she's a suffragette and is very much involved in trying to promote contraception. But more than anything else I loved her because she said and did what she wanted in a time when women did as they were told.

But let's not forget about the Lusitania herself. I really could have put myself there, it was so beautifully described. I've never been on an ocean liner but it was so easy to imagine the opulence of first class as opposed to the basic set up in third class. Although I had heard of the ship I didn't know much else and I deliberately avoided reading about it online until I had finished the book. It gave a greater impact to what I was reading and at one point a shiver went down my spine.

This is such an evocative, emotional, beautifully written book. I just loved it. ( )