This story is about Sara and her parents who are from Poland and are Jews they escaped and ended up in France in a. village where they intended to escape and leave France.

It was a very interesting read to learn of the lives in France and the hardship that happened. You wonder what will happen to them. I enjoyed what happened to Sara and her life helping to try and free France.

It was a very enjoyable book.

I loved this book! I know the area where it is set very well and I think the author did a really good job of setting the scene.
It is has a good cast of characters, an interesting plot, it's well written and very well researched and I highly recommend it!

Being familiar with the Olive Farm and Olive Route books from Carol Drinkwater I was excited to read this and it did not disappoint. While not in the same genre that I usually read (I am not a reader of historical fiction) I thoroughly enjoyed it and couldn't not put it down until the end as I was so gripped with what was happening.

AN ACT OF LOVE by CAROL DRINKWATER takes the reader on an emotional journey through war-torn France. Presented through the eyes of Sara, who has fled from her homeland of Poland, every twist and turn feels like it is happening for the first time, and this is what makes it the finest book that Carol has ever written.

There are many subjects that are told, and retold, with accuracy and meticulous attention to detail, but these can often end up being cold and detached. Carol however has managed to bring the whole period to astonishing life and has created a community of characters that are both believable and human.

You care what happens to the people, what happens to the village, and what happens to Sara’s family. You travel alongside the characters thanks to Carol Drinkwater’s incredible descriptions of scent and scenery. Your heart breaks as the realisation dawns that real life doesn’t always end happily, although peace can be found in those final moments.

In a similar way to her previous books, AN ACT OF LOVE is both cinematic and immersive. The story is told with compassion and eloquence, and you come away feeling that you have been allowed to take a privileged look at a family’s journey and also how it was to become an adult during wartime.

The final words surely belong to the lead character of Sara, “Souls are not trapped: they rise above the shackles.”

This is the latest brilliantly written historical novel from author and actress Carol Drinkwater, whose writing I have admired for many years now.

Set in a small village in the Alps during The Occupation, we follow Sara’s war journey from adolescent refuge, whose family are given lodgings in a small mountain village, to a life filled with danger when change was forced upon them once more.

In this beautifully descriptive book, it was easy to visualise the village and the mountains, and to feel Sara’s emotions. In the small mountain community, we meet those who are prepared to fight, those who crave acceptance, whatever the cost, those who care and those who are driven to do what they can, no matter the consequences. As the changing of the seasons mirrored Sara’s maturity, I could feel her determination to fit in, her frustrations at her parent’s reluctance to embrace their new haven of peace, as well as her fear of change, and strength of character.

Carol’s words painted a vivid picture of the Occupation in the south of France and the situation of the Jewish refugees. Things here were very different to Paris, but no less shocking, and the liberation came later than on the northern coast, something I hadn’t fully appreciated before. Sara’s story gripped my attention and I lost hours among the pages, my heart in my mouth, fearing for her safety. There was a plot twist that totally took me by surprise and in one particularly moving scene Carol gave death a sense of peace and beauty that I’d not experienced before.

This book will stay with me for a long while. I may have finished reading it, but I’m not ready to let Sara leave me just yet.

Sara’s family of three, her father who is a doctor, and her mother, who is a housewife, are Polish Jews. It is 1943 and they have been forced to flee from their homeland. Their destination is a small town in France, high up in the Alps, where the villagers are kind and friendly. Their accommodation is in a beautiful setting, run-down but a huge house a good walk away from the village, once the summer home of an English family. Sara comes to know the family through the photographs still on display and also through their abandoned possessions. She learns that they too have faced tragedy and sorrow.
Soon there are as many refugees as local residents. The Italian soldiers who visit the area ignore the refugees and soon the family settle down and begin to feel safe. Sara makes friends with local teenagers and soon she is asked to help teach the younger children. She also has a job as a childminder for a local family caring for their children because the wife is heavily pregnant and needs to rest. Sara meets Alain, a university student who is home for his vacation and they get on well. As their romance blossoms through the hot summer days, the German army moves nearer and nearer the village. The refugees all need proof of identity before they are safe to leave the village, once again fleeing for their life. Sara’s father and mother leave, assuring her that they will soon be back together as a family.
Sara and Alain make a bunker in her home, storing food and puzzling their way through the problems they encounter. Then, with Alain gone, Sara is approached to undertake a dangerous and frightening journey. This could be her way of escape but is she up for the challenge? This is Sara’s poignant story, a story of love and loss, new beginnings, courage and loyalty. It is a cracking story and it kept me turning the pages, my heart thudding and my respect for Sara increasing in each new challenge she accepted. This story is based on real events, but the characters are fictitious.
I have always been a fan of this author, both her Olive Farm memoirs and her sweeping fiction stories. This one reeled me in and kept me turning the pages, and it has to be my favourite. Carol writes with integrity, her research is bang on point and her storytelling vivid and exciting. I loved the tension, the beautifully created characters and the sense of danger and impending capture. I loved every page I turned and I loved the care Carol took to fully complete the story, although the prologue had teased me, I still felt bereft when the story ended. The characters had become real and I truly cared about their fortunes.
I received a complimentary copy of this novel from publisher Penguin through my membership of NetGalley. Thank you for my copy. These are my own honest opinions without any outside influences. I thought this was an excellent read and recommend it to you as a 5* read.

Highly addictive novel from Carol set the Second World War. Sara and her family fled from Poland to France and were supported by the locals, but life was full of danger and constantly changing as the Germans sought out all Jews. It was a fascinating read and very descriptive as you could feel the oppressive atmosphere and danger they all were in. Even in this terrible time romance reared it’s head.

I couldn’t download it.message says was sent to my kindle.but I didn’t receive it into my kindle.sorry can’t leave a review.was looking forward to reading it.I have tried again so luck sorry

Another wonderful read from Carol Drinkwater.

An Act of Love is set in the South of France during World War Two. Sara and her parents are Polish refugees who have fled to France and are moved to a small mountain village for safety.

Sara settles well in the village, makes friends and enjoys a typical teenage summer, despite the constant worry that war brings.

However as summer ends and the German army advances towards the village tough decisions have to be made to survive and life for all villagers will change forever.

A story of courage, bravery and love and proof that, against the odds, good things can happen in the worst of situations.

Carol Drinkwaters writing style transports you to the South of France and makes you feel like you are a village bystander watching the story unfold. I really enjoyed this book.

I enjoyed this book very much, it was an excellent book, well written with great characterisation. The locations were well described and the story unfolding in a heartbreaking way. Such sadness in the times of war. The concept of a Jewish family living in Italy was enlightening, they really had to struggle to live, but the village opened its arms to them. I thought it was very good.

A well written and enjoyable story set during WW II in the South of France. I found the descriptions of the area were how I remembered them having changed little over the years. I was swept along by the story of the struggles and heartbreak of the people who were living in fear of their lives. Expecting to be captured at any minute by the German invaders. The little town had become a haven for the refugees who were mainly Jewish families who had fled their own countries to what they thought was safety in the hillsides about the Cote d'Azure. They were taken in and aided by complete strangers but always had the fear of being discovered or betrayed.

I wanted to love this one, the writing was beautiful and the setting was gorgeous, but I struggled to connect to the characters. I found myself often skim reading and wanting more information on what was happening and the general context of the political backdrop of the war. Drinkwater has a way with words, despite struggling to connect, I still found myself emotional at the end. I just wish I was able to love it more.

Thanks Netgalley and the Publisher. I have liked everything this author has written and this was no exception. Great storyline, great characters. A thoroughly enjoyable read.

I love Carol Drinkwater's writing as it is so evocative of the south of France - you can almost smell the maquis. This was a part of the war about which I had no idea and it showed a more positive view of the French to foreigners; rather than reporting them to the authorities they actually looked after them. As well as the historical aspect this is a story about a girl on the cusp of womanhood, an only child, coping with constantly changing environments. The narrative can feel rather slow at times, but that is what makes it even more engrossing as the level of detail envelops the reader.

Thanks to Net Galley and the publisher for the opportunity to review this book.