Windswept: A Novel of WWI

Problematic Heroine; Good Narrator — Audiobook Review — It has been the year of the nurse in more ways than one. Not only have we been dealing with the current global crisis, but I've noticed more and more books starring nurses as either the hero or heroine. As I am an RN, I am apt to pick up any book where a nurse is the star. Indeed, when I read this book description at a book review site, I didn't look beyond the fact it featured a nurse during World War I. First, let me say what I liked. I listened to the audiobook version and had the book as well. I thought the narrator was fantastic, with a very posh English accent; she could do a variety of voice stylings so each character was distinct. All things considered, she even did a pretty decent job for the hero’s American friend. Aside from the narrator, though, I found myself disappointed in this book. The story takes place in the oft-forgotten eastern front of the Great War. The nurse works at a clearing station not far from Gaza. The heroine is the daughter of an Earl, but she has no airs about her as she does the scutwork all the new nurses do at this place. When trying to save a patient who may or may not be the enemy, she becomes embroiled in an insidious plot taking her far out of her depth. I thought the story perhaps went on over-long, adding complications that didn't need to be there. The heroine herself was problematic, as much of the drama stemmed from either her indecision or impetuousness. She and the hero had an oddly rocky romance, where they each seem to turn on the other in ways that didn't seem logical or believable. For a fair amount of the book, neither the reader nor the heroine know precisely who to believe or who is a good guy or a bad guy. One thing I wasn't wild about was that the biggest baddie was not brought to justice by the book's end. He is still on the loose. One thing that almost made me stop reading/listening to the book is that it depicted torture and mutilation of female body parts on more than one occasion. The book’s description did not warn about this, and it certainly should have. If I had known these were elements of the book, I would have chosen not to read it. Because of these issues, I do not feel like I can recommend this book. — WARNINGS: Torture and mutilation (of females), on-screen non-battle-scene violence — I received a free copy of this audiobook, but that did not affect my review.