Jennifer Robson's After the War is Over is escapism fiction as its best. It is sappy and predictable, but I can't think when I've had more fun watching the story unfold as I predicted (hoped!) it would.
Following the end of the Great War, Charlotte Brown has left her job as a nurse in a neurasthenia hospital and returned to work as an assistant in the constituency office of Miss Rathbone, where she is able to work on behalf of the poorest and most vulnerable citizens, for whom she has a particular soft spot. She has also maintained her friendship with her dear friend and former charge Lilly, youngest daughter of Lord and Lady Cumberland, for whom Charlotte was governess.
When Lord Cumberland dies suddenly and Lilly's brother Edward must assume his father's position while grappling with physical and psychological reminders of the war, Charlotte is thrust squarely into their affairs - after all, she has extensive experience with neurasthenia. More difficult than managing Edward's medical needs is coming to terms with their complicated and unresolved history.
As I said, this book is both formulaic and fun. It's the sequel to Somewhere in France, although one needn't have read Somewhere in France to enjoy After the War is Over. I read the former almost five years ago, and recall little from it. Robson does a nice job of filling in the reader on the salient points in the latter book so that it's able to stand on its own.
Five stars.
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