Review: Letters From Home by Kristina McMorris

Title: Letters From Home
Author: Kristina McMorris
Genre: Historical fiction, romance, adult
Published: February 2011
Source: For review, Pump Up Your Book

Summary: It's 1944 in Chicago, in the midst of World War II. Three young women Liz, Betty, and Julia, friends and roommates, are each coming to a crossroads in their lives. Liz is supposed to marry her childhood sweetheart, Dalton, but now she's not so sure, especially after she meets Morgan, a soldier, at a USO dance, and feels an immediate connection... but he's being shipped out the next day. Julia's meant to marry the love of her life, Christian, who's also overseas, but is offered a prestigious fashion internship at Vogue due to her immense talent, and feels that if she takes it, it will mean sacrificing her relationship. Betty, a bombshell, is out in the world searching for herself when she meets Morgan, right after Liz leaves the dance, and decides to write to him while he's overseas. Knowing that her writing skills are less than stellar, she enlists Liz to ghostwrite these letters to him. Liz is apprehensive, but knowing Dalton is in the background, she agrees, allowing Morgan to believe the letters that he loves are really written by Betty. Who will find love, and where will it come from, for these three women?

My Thoughts: On the front cover is a blurb from Kristin Hannah saying that this is "an absolutely lovely debut," and I really couldn't agree more. If I could use just one word to describe this story, that would be it: lovely. If I could use two, I would also throw in delightful. Each chapter is told from alternating viewpoints, shifting between Liz, Betty, Julia and Morgan. I wasn't expecting this after reading the back cover. I thought it would mainly be about the Liz/Morgan scenario, but was pleasantly surprised to find several other stories going on at once, concerning all three friends. All of the characters were developed extremely well, and had their own distinct personalities, dreams, and inhibitions.

I was also pleasantly surprised when I found myself really engrossed in the novel because I'm not usually into historical fiction, but this had a really nice balance in that while it certainly implemented the historical aspect, it could have easily been a modern love story too. Regardless, I found myself getting really drawn into the war portion of the story too, and have found myself thinking about WWII now after finishing the book and becoming more interested in it. The story made me feel like I was right there with the girls living through what they were living through. It also had a coming-of-age and finding one's self aspect as well, which I can always relate to, as I'm in that stage of life myself.

I felt that this book was beautiful and touching. It's a really enjoyable and lovely story that I'd strongly recommend to fans of historical fiction, romance, and women's literature.

My Rating: 5/5