The Canadians

The first novel in this sweeping epic series set during and after World War 2

Two troubled people in a turbulent world

In July 1940, Gwen Collingwood says goodbye to her husband at the railway station, knowing she may never see him again as he leaves for a destination unknown. Two days later, her humdrum world is torn apart when the sleepy English seaside town where she lives is hit by the first of many heavy German bombing raids.

In Ontario, Canada, Jim Armstrong is debating whether to volunteer for the army. His decision becomes obvious when he uncovers the secret his fiancée and his brother have been hiding. Rocked by this terrible betrayal, a few weeks later he is in uniform on a ship bound for England.

Gwen is forced to confront the truth she has concealed about her past and her own feelings. Jim battles with a bewildering and hostile world far removed from the cosy life of his Canadian farm. War brings horror and loss to each of them – can it also bring change and salvation?

From the author of The Pearl of Penang and A Greater World, the first volume of this epic and moving series.

Topics: World War 2, British war on the home front, Canadians at war, The Candians, Canada, Aldershot, British army, Canadian army, Eastbourne, seaside towns, England in WW2, life on the home front in WW2, Sussex, wartime England, bombings, Canadians in WW2, marriage, love story, romantic fiction, historical fiction, historical romance, historical novel, twentieth century love story, 20th century romance, WVS, womens Voluntary Service, women in second world war, love, strong heroine, family strife, female friendship, saga, romantic family saga, romantic suspense, romance books, historical books, historical novel, wartime fiction, war, air raids, Nazi Germany, Hitler, Beachy Head, life in the Blitz, family life, marital tensions, illegitimate child, unexpected pregnancy, falling in love, coping with bereavement, life in England, book set in Eastbourne,

Perfect for fans of Tracy Chevalier, Fiona Valpy, Deborah Swift, Jenny Ashcroft, Petra Durst-Benning, Nicola Cornick, Janet MacLeod Trotter, Jean Grainger, Marion Kummerow, Kate Furnivall, Kristin Hannah. Sharon Maas, Anna Jacobs, Helen Carey, Catherine Hokin, Sarah Lark, Tania Crosse, Rhys Bowen, Angela Petch, Hazel Gaynor, Jean Fullerton, Katie Flynn, Maureen Lee, Helen Forrester, Nadine Dorries, Elizabeth Murphy, Pam Howes, Lyn Andrews, Ann Baker, Ruth Hamilton, Annie Groves, Ann Bennett, Molly Green,