Wedding Bells for Land Girls

Land Girls #2

by Jenny Holmes

**Don't miss Jenny Holmes's latest wartime series, The Air Raid Girls. Part 3 - The Air Raid Girls: Wartime Brides - is available now!**

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Summer 1942.

Britain is in the depths of war and the Women's Land Army is hard at work looking after the farms while the men are away fighting. While patriotism, duty and a wonderful spirit of camaraderie sustain the Land Girls through tough times, it's no surprise that love is also often on their minds.

For Yorkshire Land Girls and firm friends Grace, Brenda and Una, romance in wartime comes with a host of challenges. There's a wedding to plan, but married bliss is threatened when the time comes for the groom to enlist. With lovers parted, anxious women have no idea whether they'll see their men again. And while single girls dance and flirt, will they be able to find true love among the men who've stayed behind?

With the uncertainty of the times hanging over them and danger ever closer to home, can love stand the test of war?

A heart-warming, romantic story of friendship, camaraderie and triumph over adversity that fans of Donna Douglas, Daisy Styles and Call the Midwife will adore.

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Readers love Jenny Holmes:

'There wasn't anything I didn't like about this book' 5 star review
'I couldn't put this book down' 5 star review
'Loved the whole story' 5 star review
'This is a totally absorbing book' 5 star review
'An excellent read put together in fine style' 5 star review

Genres: Fiction, Historical

448 pages, Paperback

Published September 25, 2018

About the author

Jenny Holmes lives in a beautiful part of Yorkshire and sets her sagas in the industrial heartland nearby. She enjoys horse riding, gardening and walking her dog in the dales. She also writes children's books as Jenny Oldfield.

Reviews

[Sandra]

Another brilliant story of the land girls and their lives,Grace,Brenda,Una are joined by two new girls and so the war continues as they work hard on various farms.An unwelcome visitor arrives at the hostel and Ma Craven gets a shock.I won't spoil it for others so if you want to know what happens read the book.worth 5* can't wait for the next book.

[Nicki Southwell]

Full review to follow

[Sandy McKenna]

An enjoyable read.

Unfortunately, I read Land Girls 3 first, but have now caught up with all of the girls and their lives. This book contains some seedy characters, and a few suspenseful moments; however, everything ends well. I would like to see more in this series.

[Pat Langhelt]

Enjoyed reading of the land girls adventures and love lives. Need to read the next one

[Anne Callender]

Great story

This is the sort of story that gets you hooked I couldn't out it down all the joy and sadness plenty of romance and intrigue

[Julie]

Melodrama, varied characters, rural life and a wartime setting all make this book a great immersive read. While being presented as a book featuring a group of girls, there are some satisfying aspects of a book that is truly page turning for many readers. Land girls all working in farms and for widely differing landowners have different experiences, but all are subject to the romance and drama of living away from home, often for the first time. Exactly how much difference the setting of war in 1942 makes to emotions is as frequently with such novels, and indeed real life, made more intense. Younger men are on leave from various military forces; the urge to join up or be conscripted affects many lives. Holmes handles the frustrations, fears and drama of lives lived on the edge well, and while there are certain points at which credulity may be stretched a little, it is all controlled well and the essential characteristics of each character is consistent.
This was the first book I have read in this series, so I was grateful that there is a list of characters at the beginning of this book. It opens with a wedding, which is a useful device for introducing many of the characters and their relationships to each other. We also see them behaving in the ways which will emerge through the novel, with slightly unsure Grace marring her long term love, Bill. Brenda is a down to earth and strong character who roars around on a motorbike even when en route to a wedding, where new comer Doreen is seen as a big character always attracting attention. Joyce is shown as a concerned figure in looking after the newer girls, while being attracted to the troubled Edgar. There is some black marketing by a wholly bad character, and it is this element of the novel which seems a little too extreme in what is otherwise a well balanced narrative. The older people in the village are a little easily dismissed; I got a little confused between some of the older women as to who was acting as manager of the Land Girl’s Hostel. I did think that the relationship between Grace and her new mother in law was well described. The actual work undertaken by the Girls sounds accurately established, and there are good sketches of the large horse who undertook a lot of work when there were fewer tractors. The somewhat fierce sister was convincing, and many of the situations are at least resolved by the rather fast ending.
Overall I enjoyed this book, as it had plenty of interest and was truly difficult to put down. While one or two elements tipped over into the unlikely, the overall emotionally charged situation is well handled. The impending departure of some of the men into various military organisations and the urge to make the most of time remaining was very well realised. There is no wailing about individual plights, and I found the action kept moving really well. This is an engaging read, full of action and excellent characters, and I will be searching out the next instalment soon.

[Shreedevi Gurumurty]

Summer 1942. Britain is in the depths of war and the Women’s Land Army is hard at work looking after the farms while the men are away fighting. While patriotism, duty and a wonderful spirit of camaraderie sustain the Land Girls through tough times, it’s no surprise that love is also often on their minds.For Yorkshire Land Girls and firm friends Grace, Brenda and Una, romance in wartime comes with a host of challenges. There’s a wedding to plan, but married bliss is threatened when the time comes for the groom to enlist. With lovers parted, anxious women have no idea whether they’ll see their men again. And while single girls dance and flirt, will they be able to find true love among the men who’ve stayed behind?With the uncertainty of the times hanging over them and danger ever closer to home – can love stand the test of war?"The land army fights in the fields. It is in the fields of Britain that the most critical battle of the present war may well be fought and won."-Lady Denman, the Director of the WLA.On December 29th 1941,minimum wages increased to 38 shillings for 48 hour week (or 18 shillings with free bed and board).On April 20th, 1942, Miss Clemence Dane, in a BBC radio broadcast, refers to the Women’s Land Army as the ‘Cinderella Service’, in the notion that it is taken for granted and its importance being overlooked.The lifestyle of a Land Girl varied according to where her accommodation was and how many other girls were billeted at a particular place.If, for example, they were lucky enough to have an RAF base near them, or indeed an American/Canadian base, then the social life was going to be livelier when compared with a single Land Girl billeted with an elderly couple. If big military camps were in the area, then Land Girls were frequently invited to dances.However, not all of the social life of a Land Girl involved men. A somewhat ‘normal’ war-time social life was kept back at their place of lodging.However,due to the demanding nature of farmwork,the girls had very little time off.The WLA was the least regimented of the other forms of women’s war work.

[Ria]

It's summer in 1942 and the land girls are still hard at work while also trying to cultivate lives and love lives too.
It's gruelling and there are many unexpected twists and turns as Bill and Grace get married but find its not plain sailing as Bill enlists for the army just after their wedding.
Then there is the evil Alfie Craven turning back up again to cause chaos and with trouble hot on his heels in the form of two men whom he has stolen a lot of money from.
Hiding out and stealing around the hostel where the girls live puts them all in danger.
There is never a dull moment where the land girls are concerned and it's great to catch up with old, familiar faces and even some new ones too.
A really good sequel.

[Elaine Watson]

This book offers another feel good factor during a time of uncertainty and hard work. There is a cast of characters at the beginning which is a really good touch.
The Land Girls certainly had their work cut out and this book is the story of their ups and downs and camaraderie. Life, not always as planned, goes on and the diverse characters ultimately want to get themselves, family and friends through the war as painless as possible but are not afraid to face the challenges that face them together and, hopefully, have fun along the way.

[Toni Field]

Very easy read plenty going on.

Loved it characters are good leaves you wanting to know what happens next !Hope we find out soon will it all end well or will they have more heartache ?

[Moon]

I started with this book and quickly realized that it might be in a series due to there being too many characters introduced that were not explained. Didn't care much about any of them but Claire and Billy

[Helen campbell]

The land girls

Another great story from jenny hope there is more to come have taken brenda and grace to new challenges long may the story continue

[Claire Hooker]

Brillant book.

[Natalie Kelly]

*3.5

[Sheila Whittkaer]

great read

Really enjoyed the book, can not wait to read book 3 and find out what is happening to the girls

[Tracey- Jo]

A slow read. The characters didn't stand out for me !