The Girl Without a Name is set in a dual timeline of WW2 and more current day. A daughter discovers her dad after he has had a stroke and cannot communicate with his family. The daughter discovers some information about her dad's past that does not align with her beliefs and knowledge about her father. 

Ruby and Stevie met as long children and their relationship grew as they grew. Their lives intersected at many different points and they came to rely on each other. It appeared that they had a true love. Ruby was the one person that understood what horrors Stevie had seen during the war and was able to comfort him. 

I understand that the horrors of war and conflict can change people. The impact can be devastating and this was no different for Ruby and Stevie's relationship. 

This is a big disconnect for me between Stevie's pronounced love and adoration for Ruby and his total dismissal and lack of anguish at her perceived death. He just walked away. I understand it was a different time and affairs and divorce were hush hushed. But he just left. He didn't even try to find her or find out if she survived. I get there was a perceived assumption she was dead. This was the final act that made me come to dislike Stevie with a great passion. 

And don't get me started on Aunt Ida. She was a horrid person.

While this books description pointed to things during the war the reality wasn’t the case. Though parts of the book took place during the war the main storyline of between Ruby & Stevie didn’t. I think I was expecting more (during the war)because of the description, but the great story made up for this. I loved the mousey character of Ruby, she just pulled on your heartstrings and you wanted such good things for her. And that shocker of an ending! Wow!

This was a really,really good book! Suzanne Goldring is a fantastic read,heartwarming and a love story of what went wrong. Grab a few tissues,just in case,I did! Learn what happens when you cover up a secret ,it so eats at you and it takes over your life. Sad and true but there's a surprise at the end but not for all. The characters, Ruby,Stevie,Joan,Billie and some others find out what happens to them during the war in England,must not forget Miss Honey who took in children in the country to escape the bombing in London. Another different way to live in the country compared to the city. See how do many children escaped the bombing and country people took them in. Some who really cared,some not so much,but who you going to tell? Follow Ruby and Stevie's lives as young teens and see how their adult life turns out some for the good and some for not so good.. It takes a heart a long time to heal when it's hurt,especially at that age,do you really get over it. Watch as this story unfolds for you and draws you in where you have to keep reading!! Received from Net Gallery thank you!!

Keeps you guessing until the end…
Written in a classically English Suspense style (think Rebecca by Daphne du Maurier), The Girl Without a Name by Suzanne Goldring is a literary labyrinth that will surprise you, turn after turn, and lead you to a totally unexpected conclusion.  Told as two concurrently unfolding stories that begin with Billie’s discovery of a worn, black and white snap shot of a young girl in her widowed and retired father’s wallet after a stroke leaves him hospitalized and repeatedly saying, what sounds like “Ruby”.  The story then jumps back to England in the 1940s when children from larger cities were sent to the countryside and subsidized to live with rural families as a way to escape the near constant German bombings during WWII.  Ruby and Stevie are two of those children, schoolmates who develop a deep friendship and affection away from London.  Their experiences in these evacuee homes differ drastically and are the catalysts to many of their views and actions after the war. When circumstances beyond their control push them back to London, they lose contact until an unexpected meeting, as young adults, ignites into a tragic romance.



Suzanne Goldring has spun an entrancing and captivating drama that catches the essence and nuances of Ruby’s adolescent mind during the great war and her subsequent development into a young lady, whose heart has loyally belonged to Stevie all those years.  Their significantly different experiences during the war and after, one sheltered and one exposed to great trauma and horrors, greatly impacts their outlooks and behaviors going forward, leading to a ripple effect that will eventually tear them apart.  I was fascinated by Suzanne’s ability to deftly blur the lines between good and bad in establishing who the ultimate victim ended up being.  You cannot help but vacillate your support between Ruby and Stevie the more you come to know each character and what they have experienced.

The Girl Without a Name is a fabulously thought out and written drama that will keep  you in suspense until the very end.   Suzanne’s writing style and attention to detail makes the story flow effortlessly from page to page and between the two past and present perspectives. The historical details give the story great authenticity and the experiences of Ruby and Stevie, and its impact on their lives and relationship, personalize the mystery.  While there is not the happily ever ending, in the traditional sense, there is a definite sense of closure and poetic justice meted out in the end.

This was a gripping, emotional read.  I highly recommend.  
Many thanks to Bookouture and to NetGalley for providing me with a galley in exchange for my honest opinion.

I'm a big fan of historical fiction/women's fiction so when I saw this book was available on Netgalley I knew I had to read it. The plot sounded so good I knew I would enjoy every second of this. The characters are well rounded and the story so well constructed. I definitely can't wait to read more by this author.

I LOVED Burning Island by Suzanne Goldring, so I was THRILLED to read her new book! This book is an excellent look into the effects of adverse childhood trauma as a person becomes an adult. There were fabulous twists in the story. I felt every emotion throughout this book! Great novel!

Thank you NetGalley and Bookouture for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Book Description:

September 1940. As the bombs of the Blitz fall on London, Ruby and Stevie are falling in love. United by a shocking experience when they were evacuees, Ruby believes that she understands Stevie like nobody else can. But then Stevie is sent abroad into danger and as Ruby waits, desperately, for letters with foreign stamps that never come, she begins to fear that he is lost forever.

August 2004. Billie has rushed to her father Dick’s hospital bedside. A terrible stroke has robbed him of his speech, and he is a shell of the man he was before. But when Billie finds a crumpled black and white photo in his wallet of a smiling, dark-haired girl she doesn’t recognise, Dick frantically tries to talk. Billie knows that he is trying to tell her something important, and she must ask the questions her father cannot. All she has to go on is the name he is just able to mumble. Ruby.

Billie tracks down Ruby’s aunt, her only surviving relative, and learns that Ruby’s life contained great love, but also great tragedy. Billie is determined to find out what happened to this brave woman, last seen leaving her home for a secret weekend away. Why did nobody miss her? And how is she connected to Billie’s beloved father? Can Billie lay the ghosts of the past to rest, even if it means revealing the darkest secrets of her father’s life and breaking her own heart?

A completely compelling and heartbreaking read, this is the story of the courage of a young woman in wartime and another woman’s quest to right the injustices of history. Fans of The Letter and The Nightingale will be hooked on The Girl Without a Name.  

BLOG TOUR REVIEW 

Review for 'The Girl Without A Name' by Suzanne Goldring. 

Read and reviewed via NetGalley for Bookouture publishers and Bookouture anonymous 

Publication date 5th November 2020

This is the first book that I have read by this author. 

I was originally drawn to this book by  its eye catching cover and intriguing synopsis. I was looking for a different genre to my usual crime and this one definitely caught my eye. I must admit I was also biased due to the publisher being Bookouture. I have yet to read a book published by Bookouture  that I haven't enjoyed. Hopefully this won't be the first... Watch this space! (Written before I started reading the book).

This novel consists of 63 chapters. The chapters are short to medium in length so possible to read 'just one more chapter' before bed...OK, I know yeah right, but still just in case! 

This book is based in the UK 🇬🇧 . I always enjoy when books are set in the UK as I'm from Wales and have sometimes visited areas mentioned in the book. This makes it easier to picture the scenes. 

This book is written in third person perspective and the main protagonists are Billy, Stevie and Ruby. The positives of third person perspectives with several protagonists are it let's you see the bigger picture of what's going on and you get to know more characters more, what they are thinking and what they are doing. It feels like you get to see the whole picture and not miss out in anything. 

This novel is very well written with a beautiful cover that compliments the storyline well. The descriptions were vivid and it is obvious that the author has done her research. There's nothing worse than reading a historical novel which is littered with mistakes about that era. 

I loved how the storyline weaved between the past and the present smoothly and at the correct timings not too give too much away. I also enjoyed the fact that there wasn't many gaps in time lines so you didn't feel you were missing bug chunks out. I really enjoyed reading how the characters grew from children to young adults and all the changes in their lives. It had me completely hooked and I really felt that I was going into the past with them. The only thing I will say is that i do think it may have read better in first person perspective during some parts to get a better grasp on what was going through their minds. I absolutely LOVED and did not expect that final chapter which left me gob smacked but also was very thought provoking. It left me with lots of questions about whether I think some people did the right thing and if they deserved it. I can't say more than that as I don't want to spoil anything for future readers. 

THE characters were a large mix of personalities and my feelings towards the characters definitely changed throughout the book. There were parts where I really felt for Stevie but then afterwards I thought he was horrid and really did deserve what he got. I adored Mrs Honey and thought her name suited her perfectly. I really couldn't abide Ida and I had mixed feelings with Ruby throughout the book. The Barfords were horrid people but I also know that many people took evacuees for their own gain and without a care to the children. 

I am looking forward to reading more books from this talented author and would love to see this turned into a movie!! 

Overall an eye opening, gripping, emotion filled novel with an unexpected twist that will stay with you for a long time after you finished the book. 

Genres covered in this novel include Romance Novel, Historical Fiction and Historical Romance amongst others. 

I would recommend this book to the fans of the above as well as well as anyone looking for a gripping historical fiction 

334 pages.

This book is £1.99 to purchase on kindle via Amazon which I think is an absolute bargain for this book!!! 

Rated 5/5 (I loved it ) on Goodreads, Instagram, Amazon UK and Amazon US and on over 30 Facebook pages plus my blog on Facebook. 

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Author Bio:

Following an eventful career as a public relations consultant, specialising in business and travel, Suzanne Goldring turned to writing the kind of novels she likes to read, about the extraordinary lives of ordinary people. Whether she is working in her thatched cottage in Hampshire or her seaside home in North Cornwall, Suzanne finds inspiration in the secrets hidden by everyday life.  

 https://suzannegoldring.wordpress.com/
https://twitter.com/suzannegoldring

Buy Links:

Amazon: https://bit.ly/3kGjTKJ
Apple: https://apple.co/2ZE3rCo
Kobo: https://bit.ly/2WxpvwS
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I loved this book! I am always captured by books with a past and present link, especially ones of WW2 era in Europe. I could hardly believe the story as it unfolded before my eyes. As Intriguing and compelling as I have read in awhile. 

I voluntarily reviewed a copy of this book provided by NetGalley.

Thanks to Netgalley and Bookouture for the opportunity to read this book for an honest review.

Set over 2 timelines, this book seemed interesting but, I must admit, I was a little disappointed. 

I really enjoyed the first half of this book, learning about Ruby's childhood. The second half though was totally different. The story redeemed itself at the end but not enough for me to give it a higher rating.

This story follows the live of Ruby and Stevie during the war and the present day through Billie, Dick's daughter pov. The present timeline is Billie trying to find out her father's past after something bad happened to her father. I like the timeline during the war more.

I don't like Stevie!! The way he treated Ruby after he came back from his National service is pretty fucked up. I hated him even after that!! Goshh I don't understand why Ruby is blind and dumb?  

Thank you Netgalley, publisher and author for The Girl Without A Name ARC!

2004: Dick suffers a stroke but is desperately trying to communicate something to his daughter about the photo of a young woman that he has carried in his wallet for years. 1939: Ruby and other London children are evacuated to Devon. A friendship between Ruby and Stevie develops intolove over the 1940s but will they survive the war and get a happy ending?
I was immediately drawn into The Girl Without A Name. The description of Dick's stroke felt very realistic and his attempts to communicate to his daughter Billie were heartbreaking. The mystery of the girl in the photo is introduced to further grab the reader's imagination.
Then we are introduced to the past: WW2 is breaking out and children are being torn from their homes to find safety int he country. But some of the billets are not as pleasant as others. Ruby misses her mother desperately but she is not beaten like her friend Stevie who eventually runs away back to London, preferring the threat of bombs to the threats of a beating.
The descriptions of life during war time were authentic and unpleasant, especially Stevie's experiences searching bombed properties in London and then later in post war Palestine. He suffers from PTSD which explains his actions later in the book as he attempts to forget the terrible things he saw.
We know that Ruby is not Billie's mum or Stevie's wife so are aware that something will drive the pair apart. I felt like I was emotionally preparing myself for their separation while also enjoying their gentle courtship. However, there are some unpleasant scenes and descriptions, and I found Stevie's growing selfishness very sad to read even though I understood his PTSD was behind it.
It is not until the very end of the book that we discover the reason behind the title. I found myself feeling sad but content at the ending. The author's note at the end informs readers of the basis for the novel: a real life mystery.
The Girl Without A Name is wonderfully written and evokes the time period really effectively, bringing the characters and events into life vividly. I felt a huge emotional investment in Ruby and Stevie's relationship and loved reading their story.

For me this book was just okay.  A WWII story about love and separation.   When Ruby’s sweetheart Stevie, goes off to war he comes back a changed man.. When he left he pledged to love Ruby but things are different when he comes home. I know I'm going against the tide, however, this was not a story that gripped me and I struggled to read it until the end.  I have read many, many WWII stories, yet this one was not one of my favorites.  My thanks to NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Overall, I really enjoyed this book. I love dual timelines (1940's + 2000's) and this one was very exciting, emotional, and left me curious. I did wish the ending connected the two timelines and characters a little more. Thank you, NetGalley!

I was excited to read The Girl Without a Name as it was set in London, Devon, and Weston-Super-Mare during WWII. My mother-in-law was born and grew up in Weston-Super-Mare and served four years in the Woman’s Auxiliary Air Force as a transport driver during the war. My great grandparents immigrated from Somerset. Our story is set in two time periods, the war years through 1952 and 2004.  When the book opens in 2004, Billie’s father, Dickie, had a stroke and Billie found a picture in her father’s wallet of a young woman who she does not know.

I really enjoyed the first half of the book. I knew about children growing up in London being transported to the country to be safe from the bombs being dropped in London. I felt like I was walking right beside Ruby as she and Joan are placed with Mrs. Honey. Mrs Honey is a wonderful mother figure for the girls. Joan’s brother, Stevie, is placed with a terribly mean farmer, Mr. Bardford, who does not treat Stevie well—lack of food and corporal punishment.  The author made me cry in the scenes where Stevie was abused and smile in the scenes with Mrs. Honey and the girls.

For different reasons, Stevie and Ruby end up back in London a couple of years later. A sweet romance is started. Stevie helps search for people after the bombing raids. Imagine what this does to a young boy. Ruby’s life does not get any easier. At this point in the story, I think it should be developed more and forget what happens right after the war with Stevie. Just too much ground is covered, and I did not feel the same excitement to want to read the last half of the book. Maybe it should have been a sequel?

So I loved the first half but not so much the second half of the book. My thanks to Bookouture and NetGalley for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

3.5 stars rounded up to 4

Two time lines for this family story 1940 amidst the war and its aftermath and then 2004.

Billie is one of three children all grown up, their mother has just passed away and their father is trying very hard to keep it together and move on. When he has a stroke, Billie takes over his care and finds a crumpled photograph. When shown this Dickie becomes distraught trying to tell her something which is incomprehensible to Billie.

Trying to go back sixty years is hard. Most of the people who associated with Dickie are either senile or dead. Billie is adamant that she must put the pieces together for the sake of her father and later for the sake of the dead girl Ruby.
This becomes a very circuitous exercise but Billie will not give up. 

The adage that somethings should be left undisturbed is very valid here but in this context it leads to a very interesting tale. 

For Ruby it was heart breaking to see that her idol had feet of clay, for Dickie it was decades of guilt which became too much to bear. The whole gamut of emotions are played out here.

The Girl Without a Name by Suzanne Goldring is an emotional and heartbreaking story told in dual timelines between the present and the past. When Billie, Dick’s daughter, finds an old photograph in her father’s wallet after he suffers a stroke, Billie is determined to find out about her father’s past seeing as how the picture seems to upset him, but being unable to speak, Billie can’t get any answers. So she goes in search of the answers herself never realizing that she will unveil a tragic past, one her father never ever talked about.

It is the 1940’s and children are being evacuated from London to Devon on account of the war. Ruby is only eleven years old when she is sent away along with Joan and Stevie, a brother and sister who were on the same train as her. Joan took Ruby under her wing and Stevie and Ruby became friends and as they grew older they started to fall in love. But, war isn’t kind and can leave a lasting impression on those who witnessed the horrible aftermath of bombs and the destruction it causes to lives. Stevie, feels the brunt of this from a young age and we now recognize the distress he felt as PTSD. This is really a catalyst in the story as the story weaves its way to what happened between Stevie and Ruby during the 1940’s and 50’s.

I really wasn’t sure how this story would go and in a way, I thought it was going to be this beautiful love story like most books I have read during this time period. But, this story is so much more than that and i was often left feeling anger at some of the actions taken by the characters of this book. It was definitely a whirlwind of emotions I went through while reading and even though I may not have liked some of the decisions that were made, I still couldn’t help feeling sorry for them and for all they went through. This led me to try to understand why certain things happened in the story and in a way I could certainly find myself understanding them while not necessarily agreeing with them. While the ending came as a huge surprise, I also felt it was the perfect ending and one that needed to be said and really fit the overall tone of the book.

The Girl Without a name is gripping and emotional with rich and vivid writing that will pull you right in until the very last page is read. You will find yourself immersed with the characters, feeling their pain as well as their accomplishments. Another five star read for me!

Wow grip at first I did not like but had to gave it a good go once I got into story I was glue I like the writting  style  good plot good characters strong ones

Suzanne Goldring is back with a heart-breaking, emotional and evocative new novel: The Girl Without a Name.

September 1940 and the Second World War relentlessly chugs on extinguishing lives, hopes and dreams. Yet, amidst all this tragedy and devastation, Ruby and Stevie find themselves falling head over heels in love. A shocking experience they have both endured as evacuees has forged a bond between them that nothing and nobody will break. Ruby feels as if Stevie is the only one who understands her and despite of the uncertainty that overshadows their burgeoning love, she cannot help but hope that they can spend the rest of their lives together. But when the real world intervenes and Stevie is sent abroad, Ruby is devastated. Every day she waits hoping for a letter from her one true love and hoping against hope that he is not lost to her forever.

August 2004 and Billie rushes to the hospital to be by her father’s side. Her father has had a stroke and has been robbed of his speech and is a shell of his former self. Yet, Dick has something important he wants to tell his daughter. When Billie finds a crumpled photograph of a beautiful dark-haired girl, Dirk becomes increasingly agitated and manages to mumble a name that makes Billie determined to uncover the secrets of her father’s past. Billie has nothing to go on other than an old photograph and the name Ruby. Tracking down Ruby’s aunt, Billie begins to learn the story of this enigmatic woman who has known great love, but great loss and tragedy as well.

Ruby’s life is shrouded in mystery. She had left her house for a supposed weekend away and had never been seen since. What happened to her? Why didn’t her family try to find her? And where did she go? What connection does Ruby have to her father? Will Billie discover what links Ruby and Dirk? Can the ghosts of the past ever be laid to rest? Or will some demons simply refuse to be vanquished?

Ruby’s quest might lead her down a dark path, but whilst she may get the answers she has been searching for, will she be ready for the shocking revelations she is about to uncover?

Keep a box of tissues handy when reading Suzanne Goldring’s The Girl Without a Name because it is so poignant and emotional that it could sever your heartstrings. Suzanne Goldring is such a wonderful storyteller who brilliantly captures the joys of falling in love and the terror and devastation wreaked by war. Her evocative descriptions and effortless rendering of the past will sweep you back in time and into a world of danger, secrets, jeopardy and love which will hold you in thrall from start to finish.

A beautifully written page-turner from a writer at the height of her storytelling powers, Suzanne Goldring’s The Girl Without a Name has got winner written all over it.

The Girl Without A Name by Suzanne Goldring is a powerful dual time-line novel that had me completely enthralled from the start.
The action begins in 2004 looking backwards to 1939 before working its way forwards. The voices alternate within the time periods.
This was a novel that I ‘lived’ as I read. I put myself in the role of the leading lady. Due to the artistry of words of Suzanne Goldring I ‘felt’ what the character felt – the highs and the lows, the loves and the losses.
London was seen as a dangerous place to be for the children and many were evacuated at the start of World War II. The clean air of the Devon countryside contrasted with the grime of London. Some evacuees found loving homes. Others were cruelly treated and my heart broke.
The reader witnesses the awful effects of PTSD on a young mind. A moment in time would be forever etched in a brain, lasting a lifetime. Subsequent events would compound the effect of the original event, changing a personality forever as the guilt piled up.
Young love budding and blossoming is beautiful to witness. The reader wants it to last a lifetime and not be tainted by the world. In contrast, serving men used the services of women to block out the horrors of war.
There are actual events incorporated within the story. This adds to the realistic feel of the novel.
I found The Girl Without A Name  a really powerful read and one that played with my emotions. This was a wow, oh wow read as at one point I literally gasped out loud. Suzanne Goldring perfectly manipulated my emotional response throughout. She truly is a masterful author. I cannot wait to read more by her.
 The Girl Without A Name will break your heart, lift your emotions and make your jaw drop. It really is a fabulous roller coaster read.
I received this book for free. A favourable review was not required and all views expressed are my own.