This book is gripping and engrossing. The characters were well developed. It was fast paced. The chapters are told in alternating POVs. The narrative has a dual timeline.

Another fabulous read from Suzanne Fortin. A story that takes you on a journey and you forget the time. Enjoyable and well-written.

After Suzanne Fortin’s other book The Forgotten Life of Arthur Pettinger and All That We Have Lost, I was hoping for another book by her and so Beyond a Broken Sky was much welcomed.

I was initially concerned that the mention of a dead body would be too gory, but I was immediately pulled in by the mystery and the plot. I love stained glass windows and it was interesting to see how this window linked the characters.

The novel has a great pace and it’s quickly paced but highly detailed with carefully chosen words to evoke emotions in the reader.

Another great book by Suzanne Fortin.

Thanks to Suzanne Fortin and Aria/ Head of Zeus for my ARC in exchange for an honest and voluntary review.

4 stars

Rating: 4.5 Stars

Suzanne Fortin returns with Beyond a Broken Sky, an emotional, dramatic and involving dual timeline novel.

It’s 1945 and Alice Renshaw has got herself into trouble. Pregnant and alone, she has nobody to turn to and is left to face this terrifying time all on her own. She is sent away to hide her shame and finds herself being taken in by Louise Hartwell, who has a farm in Somerset worked by prisoners of war. Alice’s fear and trepidation soon give way to a feeling of safety and security as she begins to settle down and make new friends. Yet, not everybody is happy about Alice’s presence at Telton Hall and although the world is now at peace, closer to home another kind of war is going to break out…

In the present day, stained-glass expert Rhoda Sullivan goes to Telton Hall to examine a window designed by an Italian POW during the Second World War. Rhoda thinks this will be a quick job, however, she gets the shock of her life when, alongside owner Nate Hartwell, she discovers a dead body buried underneath one of the flagstones in the chapel. Rhoda finds herself intrigued by this mystery and becomes consumed with a desperate need to uncover the truth. Still haunted by her twin brother’s disappearance when they were eighteen, Rhoda understands the pain and sorrow of missing a loved one. Yet, her investigation into Telton Hall’s past is making some people uneasy and as threats on Rhoda’s life escalate, she begins to wonder just what other long-buried secrets are hidden at Telton Hall…

Suzanne Fortin’s Beyond a Broken Sky is a heart-wrenching, poignant and immersive dual-timeline tale of secrets, courage, hope and love perfect for fans of Kate Morton and Lorna Cook. Suzanne Fortin writes so beautifully that it’s impossible not to find yourself drawn into the world she creates from page one and she keeps you gripped and riveted until the very end.

Alice and Rhoda are two characters that capture your imagination and will have you laughing and crying alongside them. Although separated by decades, both characters are strong, resilient and simply inspirational.

A first class read perfect for curling up with, you will not be able to resist falling under Suzanne Fortin’s spell with Beyond a Broken Sky.

Beyond a Broken Sky was the second book by Suzanne Fortin that I have read, the first being The Forgotten Life of Arthur Pettinger. I loved this dual timeline historical fiction, set in present day and in Somerset towards the end of World War II.

I loved the mysterious element of this story. When Rhoda and Nate find a skeleton under the flagstones in the chapel, they set out to investigate whose body is buried in the chapel, and that links to the storyline we follow in 1945 with Alice and Italian prisoner of war Paolo. Rhoda was such a brittle character, as a result of her childhood and the loss of her twin when she was 18. The fact that her brother had never been found left her unable to get on with her life, and it affected every element of her life. I loved that her friendship with Nate and his son, together with their investigation, gave her the clarity she had always needed, and as she opened up, her brittleness subtly changed.

The storyline in the 1940s was very different, with chapters from Alice and her story, interspersed with letters from Paolo, the Italian prisoner of war working at Telton Hall, to his mother and sister. The way in which the secrets from the past were gradually revealed was perfectly done to unveil who had been buried in the chapel, and what lead to the secrets building over the years.

As a dual-timeline historical fiction, this beautifully written and compelling story captured my heart!

Another one of my favourite types of novels, dual time historical fiction!

Do you enjoy dual timelines?

The story switches between 2022 and 1945. In the present day, 2022, Rhoda Sulivan who is a stained-glass expert and works for a living museum, is sent to Telton Hall in Somerset to examine and remove a special window from the church on the estate. This is a particularly unique stained-glass window, as it was designed by an Italian POW.

Back in 1945, Telton Hall was owned by a compassionate woman named Louise Hartwell who not only took in young women in trouble but also had the estates farm worked by Italian POWs.

Alice Renshaw was sent away from her home having found herself in trouble and was taken in by Louise. She soon settles into the farm's way of life and begins to build friendships; however, one particular resident has a vendetta against the Italian POW and will go to extreme lengths to make life as difficult as possible for them.

Back in 2022, a body is discovered in the church, and Rhoda cannot let sleeping dogs lie. She has previously lost her twin brother. He went missing just before their 18th birthday and having spent years trying to find him, to no success, she struggles to let this body go unaccounted for.

This is an easy-to-read historical fiction, which is an ideal palette cleanser for me. The story itself is predictable, however, I enjoyed the setting and the two timelines. It left me intrigued as to what the window looked like, and if there are stained-glass windows in the UK designed by POW – not an area I know much about really. This book is perfect for you if you enjoy historical mysteries which bring feelings of hope, a touch of romance and a bit of suspense to keep you turning the pages, then you will enjoy this story.

A dual timeline story of WWII and the present. A skeleton is found by Rhoda, a museum, under the floor of a chapel. Intriguing story of the past and WW II.

I’m not usually a fan of historical fiction, this dual time line story was a great read that had me hooked until the last page.
The well developed characters were all perfect in their own lifetimes, the connections blended seamlessly. I enjoyed reading each character’s story and how relatable they were.
The storyline centres around the restoration of a chapel and how intertwined everyone’s lives are!
This is a captivating story about life’s hardships, family dynamics and the friendships that last a lifetime, truly heartwarming!

Thank you to Aria Books, NetGalley and the wonderfully talented Suzanne Fortin for allowing me to give an honest review.

Beyond a Broken Sky is a dual timeline story with the settings being WWII and present day and revolves around the mystery of a body found in a chapel. The story is engaging and the characters are easy to identify with. Due to the air of mystery the story keeps the reader engaged.

Suzanne Fortin has written a fascinating story with well developed and compelling characters. I will definitely be reading more of this author.

ThanK you to #netgalley and #headofzeus/atria for allowing me to read the eARC of the book. All opinions expressed above are my own.

“In a time of war, can love save them?”


I just knew that I had to read this book, as soon as it became available on NetGalley. Not only have I read one of the author’s previous books and enjoyed both her wonderful storytelling, and fluent writing style. But the notion of a storyline which included the words ‘stained glass expert’ in the premise, was simply too good to ignore, as this is a profession which runs deep within the veins of the American arm of my own family and has always intrigued me. Plus, the village, farm and chapel locations, are all in Somerset, the county I now call home, albeit that many of the place names used are fictitious. However, there are several more relevant and comprehensive references and acknowledgements at the end of the book, which helped me pinpoint places.

It would be all too easy to let ‘spoilers’ slip into my storyline premise, so this one is deliberately short and sweet…

…

1945 – Fallen woman, Alice Renshaw, is sent to Telton Hall, Somerset for her forthcoming confinement and the subsequent adoption of her baby. Louise Hartwell is a kind and compassionate woman, as are her small team of staff, her young son and his cousin. Unfortunately, the same cannot be said for her older stepson, who has been invalided out of the army and cannot cope with life cooped up on the farm. Bitter and twisted, he despises the situation the young girls find themselves in, but believes them to be fair game after their babies are born, making him unpredictable and dangerous. The only people he hates more, are the two Italian POWs Louise has working on the farm, especially when Alice catches the eye of one of them and her feelings are reciprocated.

2022 – Sussex based, Rhoda Sullivan, is finding it difficult to move on with her life, always waiting for news on social media, which never comes. Her twin brother Dean disappeared 10 years ago just before their 18th birthdays and no one has seen or heard from him since. They had grown up in the care system, although they had been separated by many short stay, foster parent placements.

In her role as stained glass expert, at the living museum she works for, she is assigned to remove and renovate some windows from the farm chapel, at Telton Hall, in Somerset, so that the chapel itself can then be relocated to the museum and the windows re-installed, with the remaining farm buildings destined to be demolished for development.

It soon becomes apparent that the incumbent farmer, Jack and his cousin Aggie, have something to hide, and the chapel seems to hold the key to all their darkest secrets. Jack’s son Nate and grandson Isaac, together with a very inquisitive Rhoda, soon become embroiled in the stoic war of silence being waged by the the farm’s elderly residents, with the three of them being determined to get to the bottom of a mystery which grows deeper and takes on darker meaning and undertones, as time goes on.

When wartime actions collide with present day reckoning, there are spectacular and far-reaching consequences as the timelines merge, and tensions run high. Documents suddenly go missing and there are obviously many family secrets to which Nate is not party, making it difficult for him to protect an increasingly vulnerable Rhoda, as she begins to unravel the web of lies and secrets held so close, for so many years, placing herself in extreme danger.

When Nate and Rhoda, with the help of a very usefully attentive Isaac, finally begin to piece things together and work out just how the two timelines are so intricately balanced and woven together, they have some tough decisions to make, which will affect all their futures.

…

This emotional, intriguing, atmospheric and immersive, multi-layered storyline, is well researched and structured in short, seamless and easy to navigate chapters. Narrated as an alternating dual timeline story, set in 1945 and 2022, interspersed with some additional sad and poignant letters written by an incarcerated man, to his family at home, far away. Part thriller, part love story, there were plenty of secrets, twists and double twists, which were just waiting to trip me up. Even with the added advantage of knowing much of the history, which Rhoda is not privy to and must piece together little by little, I was still unsure about the final outcome until it happened, even though I was right about the general direction in which things were heading.

There were so many poignant and interesting strands to the storyline, which kept me intrigued – The societal mores of a time when bearing a child out of wedlock was a matter of extreme shame and many mothers found themselves enduring birth away from home, with the knowledge that their new baby was going to be taken away from them immediately for adoption. The bitter hatred of a war invalid and his inability to re-join society, which today would almost certainly be recognised as PTSD. The decision of a group of people to deal lawlessly with a criminal situation, an act which they know they must never discuss, as to name any one of them might see them all found guilty, then to have the strength to keep their silence until their dying days. The total devotion of a father to a son who is on the spectrum and can be quite single-minded and difficult to connect with, but finds himself holding the key to unlocking the puzzle. And a woman, so scarred and damaged by the care system as a child, that moving on alone, or allowing anyone to get close to her, has always caused an emotional trauma.

Notwithstanding my own personal preference for the use of real place names in books, the beautifully nuanced and descriptive narrative and dialogue, afford a wonderfully visual and evocative feeling of time and place, lifting the sights, sounds and smells from the page, as I took my ‘armchair journey’ back in time; then bringing those same senses bang up to date and into the present.

Suzanne’s evocative portrayal of the fragility and frailty of the human mind is carried out sensitively, sympathetically and compassionately, in her well-developed cast of multi-faceted characters, who, whether they are on the side of good or bad, are authentically realistic and genuinely believable to the individual roles which have been created for them. Some are understandably emotionally complex and vulnerable, raw and passionate, with little or no synergy or dynamism between them. Others are unreliable and volatile witnesses, manipulative and duplicitous and whilst my feelings and emotions were really divided right down the middle, I’m not sure that I ever felt connected with, invested in, or identified with, any of them totally, although a new and brighter future is a distinct possibility for Nate, Rhoda and Isaac.

This book definitely ticks all the right boxes for the reasons I read and how I want to feel when I have finished the last word and closed that final page. Thank you for taking me on another amazing journey, Suzanne.

As a huge fan of this author, having already read her previous novels, ‘All That We Have Lost’ and ‘The Forgotten Life of Arthur Pettinger’, I was eagerly anticipating this new release.

A master of the dual-timeline, Fortin has an incredible ability to weave history and characters together with effortless ease, creating absorbing fiction at its very best.

‘Beyond a Broken Sky’ is no exception. The reader is immediately drawn into the tale as, in the present day, human remains are discovered buried in a chapel. Fortin’s narrative is engaging and her characters fulsome and well-depicted, even if not always likeable, as in the case of Billy in this instance!

Thorough historical research is another Fortin trademark and in this story, it is especially interesting to read about the Italian prisoners of war and how they were treated.

There is also an element of romance but this is an added subplot rather than the driver of the tale.

An immensely enjoyable novel and highly recommended!

With thanks to the author, Ayo at Head of Zeus and Aria Fiction for the opportunity to participate in the tour.

Beyond A Broken Sky by Suzanne Fortin

I’m a big fan of historical fiction and Suzanne Fortin cemented her place as an author to look out for when I read her debut novel The Forgotten Life of Arthur Pettinger. Her combination of time-slip narrative, history and romance is irresistible. I’m interested in the stories people don’t tell us about themselves and the years spent at war often feel like a parallel dimension where people and stories were lost. People died, became displaced, or were simply too traumatised to relive the events of those years. For many, their ordinary every day lives stopped in 1939 and they lived a completely different life away from friends and family, with a new occupation and a changing sense of self. They could act completely out of character in the high pressure of combat or became worn down by the difficulties of being a civilian in a bombed city, living on rations and making new friendships with the unlikeliest people.To then return and pack everything that’s happened neatly away to restart where you left off seems impossible, but many people did. How often do we hear people say that their father or grandfather never talked about the war? My own father-in-law had been sent to a Russian work camp in Siberia, because his father was in the military. His brother didn’t survive, but he and his Mum escaped and lived in a forest camp with the Polish resistance, gradually walking their way down through the Middle East, across Northern Africa and into Europe and eventually England. I would never have known this incredible story if I hadn’t seen a photo of him as a boy, standing in front of the pyramids. My mother-in-law was a child in the Warsaw Ghetto who escaped through the sewer system. Yet neither dwelled on that life, preferring to look forward where life was less painful. Suzanne’s novels fill that gap, that silence where someone’s experience is perhaps too painful to share. She writes these stories that are often complex and present something new about the war, and about people, that I hand’s thought of before.

It just happened that I’d read Ruth Druart’s The Last Hours in Paris and Joanna Quinn’s The Whalebone Theatre very recently, both of which included characters who were enemy prisoners of war, brought to English camps, but often released into the community to help out farmers or do other work that helped the Allied war effort. Some of these men waited up to three years after the war ended to be returned to their homeland and working within communities led to friendships and relationships with some British people. In Fortin’s latest novel we are taken to Somerset in 2022. Telton Hall is the home of Jack Hartwell, a farmer in his eighties, trying to come to terms with the compulsory purchase of his land and home. Rhoda Campbell is a stained glass expert and restorer, visiting to look at a stained glass window designed by POW Paulo Sartori. She works for a museum that conserves old historic buildings and they hope to move the whole chapel and window to their site. However she finds Jack blocking the driveway in his tractor, in the hope of delaying a little bit longer. It takes Rhoda’s charm and the arrival of his son Nate to get things moving again. As the three of them look at the chapel, Jack’s terrier disappears down a gap between flagstones. Rhoda lays on her front to see where he’s gone and makes a terrible discovery, human bones buried underneath the flagstones. This puts in place a chain of events that reaches all the way back to WW2 and has an effect on Rhoda whose own brother is a missing person.

The story alternates between 2022 with Rhoda’s urge to investigate the mystery she’s uncovered and back to the end of WWII when a young woman called Alice Renshaw finds herself pregnant to an American airman, Brett. As she prepares to marry Brett at the village church, Alice is so happy even though it’s an uncertain future she faces, possibly over in America. However, Brett doesn’t turn up at the church and thanks to his father’s connections he is transferred out of the country immediately. Alice is heartbroken. A few weeks later she’s at Telton Hall, where Louise Hartwell takes on young girls ‘in trouble’ and finds homes for their babies with couples who can’t have children. Louise is also still running the farm, with the help of Jack who is ten, his step-brother Billy, who needs to walk with a stick after being wounded. There are also two Italian POW’s helping with the produce gardens, one of whom is Paolo Sartori. Every time the book delves into the past we hear a little more about the story of Telton Hall, the diverse characters staying there and the connections they form with each other. Each time we go back to WW2, we’re getting closer to the answers and the tension builds, while in the present those that would like Rhoda silenced, come ever closer.

I was gripped by the drama of Telton Hall in the 1930’s and desperate for the hateful Billy to get his just desserts before he can permanently hurt anyone. In the present I was convinced I wouldn’t like the answers to the mystery. I was worried that it would have an impact on characters I’d become attached to, who might have only acted badly due to the extreme circumstances. The ending was a surprise and gave me the answers, as well as putting a smile on my face knowing that there was a happy ending for some. I loved Alice’s ability to trust and love after her experience with Brett. I felt the author really captured that sense of displacement and dislocation that many felt during the war, their separation from ‘normal’ life and the way their actions within that time had repercussions for years to come. Ultimately, the story shows us the amazing ability we humans have to heal, our incredible resilience and capacity to love. This could manifest in holding on to a love that won’t die or in finding we have an endless capacity of love, even when our experiences have shown us a depth of loss that seems insurmountable. For Rhoda it means the possibility of letting love in, despite having no blue print of family life from her own childhood. This book is heartfelt and moving, showing us that like Rhoda’s stained glass we are made up of many parts, each experience and influence adding together to make something uniquely beautiful.

There are several things I loved about Beyond a Broken Sky.

The dual narrative works really well making connections between the past and present. I thought the timing of that information was perfect, building the drama and suspense. This contributed a lot to me not being able to put the book down!

In the present day there’s lots of intrigue, suspicious accidents and of course not forgetting a spark of romance. In 1945, I felt so much for Grace and the situation she found herself in. Paolo’s letters home are a great introduction to how close he is to his family before we get to know him at the Hall.

In the present day it’s clear that Jack is up to something underhand (although it doesn’t fit well with his personality). The first time Rhoda meets Jack sparks conflict with his son Nate. Rhoda’s childhood has given her survival skills and hard edges (and a lot of understanding for Nate’s son Isaac). It was great to see her questioning her motives which leads to her engaging more openly with others.

I loved the setting. The characters bring Telton Hall to life in both timelines. It was interesting to compare what it was like during the war to the emptiness of the present day.

I loved learning about stained glass and I enjoyed the museum visit as much as Isaac did!

My hackles were up a lot in 1945 – not only on behalf of Grace but also how the Italian prisoners of war were treated by Billy. It’s clear that Suzanne Fortin knows her history giving this timeline authenticity.

One thing I didn’t expect was to be questioning my morals and ethics! I felt really satisfied with a couple of outcomes and perhaps shouldn’t have done so!

Beyond a Broken Sky is a compelling historical mystery. You’ll be turning the pages as fast as you can and falling in love with (most of) the characters.

I so enjoyed this dual time-line book, some I have struggled with but not this one. . It was set in present day and 1945. and it kept me turning the pages.
My thanks as always to Netgalley and publisher Head of Zeus. Aria for giving me the chance of the early read

I really liked this story of love and redemption. It was so fast-paced. I could easily have read it in one sitting if other things didn’t get in the way! I like a story with a dual timeline and this one doesn't disappoint. Both parts of the story were well written with a hint of danger. I love stained glass windows and it was interesting to see how this window linked the characters. Though not suspenseful, this book is soothing, escapist, and well worth reading. As the story unfolds, the link between past and present is carefully revealed. A moving story showcasing that love can conquer all. A very nice mystery.

Thank you to Netgalley and Aria books for this E-arc in exchange for an honest review.

The Chapel on the hill

A dual timeline story with present dating back to WWII.
When Rhoda took the job of fixing a stained glass window and moving a chapel from the Harwell farm to the museum she would never have guessed how this would affect her and what secrets the chapel held that she would uncover.

Rhoda didn't count on meeting the handsome son of the grouchy farmer Jack Hartwell. When Rhoda and Nate discover a skeleton under the chapel they decide to solve the mystery and find out who the skeleton was. This puts them both in danger as someone does not want the mystery solved.

The first story is of Jack Hartwell, his cousin Aggie that lives in the cottage on the farm, his son Nate and Nate's son Isaac and Rhoda the girl from the museum come to fix the stained glass window in the chapel.

The second storyline is of the Harwell family in 1945. Louise Hartwell took in unwed mothers and Alice went to stay on the Hartwell farm. Mrs. Hartwell lived on the farm with her son Jack, his cousin Aggie, another girl Lily that came to stay at the farm, and Mrs. Hartwell's nephew Billy. There was also two Italian POW's that worked on the farm and lived in the Attic Paolo and Carlos.

These two stories tie in together with the mystery of the skeleton in the chapel as do the characters in each one.

It is a story of Love, romance, war, and a mystery. The story was a great read and I would recommend it.

Thanks to Suzanne Fortin for writing a great story, to Head of Zeus for publishing it and to NetGalley for making it available to me to read and review.

Wow, there was a lot going on in this book! Set in a dual timeline, between the present day and 1945, this story has a lot of layers of complexity.

Alice is 18 years old in 1944 when she accidentally becomes pregnant. She is not married. This is a major problem. She is sent away to Telton Hall, where a kindly woman takes her in and she settles into a new life there. However, not everyone around her is as kind as this lady.....

Rhoda is a stained glass expert in the present day who is tasked with restoring a window on the grounds of Telton Hall. She finds herself getting caught up in a series of events that she just doesn't understand, but she knows it has something to do with events from the past.

I enjoyed this book, although there were some loose ends not tied up that I would have liked to have been. There is an overwhelming feeling of menace about this story, although it does have it's lighter moments too. I learned about why POW's were put to work in the UK - not something I had any idea about at all. And I felt thankful that unmarried, pregnant girls have a lot more options now.

Overall, I think this is a 4.5 star kind of novel, bumped up to a 5 because a lot of effort has gone into making this story as powerful as it was.

Thank you to NetGalley and Head of Zeus.

WWII era novels seem to be all the rage now, What set this one apart was that it was also a mystery.

The story is set in dual timelines. 1945 and 2022 at the same place Telton Hall. In the present time, stained glass restorer, Rhoda Sullivan is called to the hall to review if a stained glass created by a WWII prisoner of War can be repaired. While investigating the glass, she stumbles upon a skeleton along side the Hall owner’s son Nate. When the local police seem less than enthused to investigate, Rhoda and Nate decide to investigate tne bones.

In 1945 Alice Renshaw, pregnant and unmarried finds sanctuary at Telton Hall, but she also finds prejudice and danger. How do the two timelines match up and who is the skeleton under the chapel?

I am not a huge fan of WWII novels, but I do love a good mystery and I enjoyed Beyond a Broken Sky. I would definitely recommend this book as a good escapist read.

Thanks to Netgalley, Head of Zeus/Aria and the author for the chance to read and review this book

What a wonderful book, completely addictive!
Buried bones from 1945 are found in a condemned building by a restoration expert with her own demons. The village closes ranks over what they may know, and soon the risks become personal. Will the threats and close calls put Rhoda, and landowners son Nate off their search for the truth?
This is a time slip novel, where the balance and trope are perfect. A fun read and cleverly crafted. Highly recommend.

In 2022 Rhoda is an artisan who restores antique glass. Having spent part of her childhood in the care system, she dislikes authority and still mourns losing contact with her twin brother when they were eighteen. The removal of the old chapel at Telton Hall in Somerset needs her expertise, but the owner doesn't want to move, and a chance discovery of human remains with the owner's son leads to a web of dark secrets. In 1945 pregnant Alice finds a temporary home at Telton Hall. She finds friendship with the other workers and a menacing danger threatening them all.

A dual timeline story, it explores the prejudices prevalent in wartime Britain and the camaraderie that existed between relative strangers. Suspenseful with an underlying menacing ethos in both 1945 and 2022, it keeps you reading to find out what happens to the easy to empathise characters.

I enjoyed the female protagonists and the plot twists. The historic details create a believable world, and the ending, whilst not a total surprise, was satisfying.

I received a copy of this book from the publisher.