The East End Girls by Jean Fullerton has WAAF’s working on barrage balloons during World War II. I liked most of the characters in the story including Effie (there is always a bad egg or two in a group). The ladies came from diverse backgrounds. I wish the characters had been fleshed out more. Effie and Nathan are more developed than the other characters. We get to hear quite often that Nathan is handsome and that his pants fit his backside nicely. It was interesting learning about the barrage balloons, how they operated, and what it took to keep them in place. It was not an easy task (it was dirty, difficult, and dangerous), and they had to operate whether it was sunny, rainy, or snowing. I like the camaraderie between the ladies. They took care of each other (except for the mean girls). I was disappointed that Effie and Nathan’s romance overshadowed everything else in the story. The East End Girls needed more substance, a peppier pace, and less repetition. The ending is predictable. The East End Girls is a sweet story with diligent training, a fussy fiancé, an appealing pilot, barrage balloons, surreptitious missions, and a troubling ordeal.

The East End Girls marks the first in a brand new WWII series, by new-to-me author, Jean Fullerton.

Effie is determined to contribute to the war effort, so despite her upper-class background, she enlists in the WAAF to protect London’s East End. A chance encounter on a station platform leads her to Nathan, whom she never expected to see again—until he arrives at her barracks! However, her joy is short-lived when she receives the heartbreaking news that Nathan's plane has been shot down and he is now classified as missing in action

Although I wasn't gripped by this novel, I enjoyed the story and getting to meet Effie and her colleagues while watching love bloom. I loved how Jean created Effie’s character to be “inclusive” of everyone, despite their background. If you enjoy WWII novels featuring women of war, you need to get this! I'm looking forward to reading the next one.

Effie has recently joined Alice, Nell, and George, who have all recently joined the Women's Auxiliary Air Force to defend the East End from the bombings. She meets handsome Nathan on a station platform and sparks fly, even though she's with her fiancé.

This is the first installment of a series, introducing Effie, who falls in love with Nathan despite her parents' disapproval. She's in the process of training to be a barrage balloon operator. It was a compelling story of romance, military service during World War II, friendship amongst the girls who are training together, as well as romance. I'm looking forward to the next story in the series.

Thanks to @bookouture, @netgalley, and the author for this arc.

I found this an enjoyable World War 2 saga with developing friendships, women in war settings, and a conflicted romance. It has historical detail that gives the story depth and makes it an informative read. The female protagonists are diverse, and hopefully, each will have their story told. Effie's story is the subject of this book; it's a tale of female friendship in adversity, coping with misogyny and prejudice, and a conflicted, gentle romance. The author's use of sensory imagery brings the war setting to life, and I was soon immersed in it. I enjoyed the original setting, the romance and the strong female friendships.
I received a copy of this book from the publisher.

Don't you love coming across the first book in a new series that you just know you're going to enjoy it? I did! The East End Girls is Jean Fullerton's new book. It's set in 1942 East London, Britain.

I really enjoy WW2 historical fiction. But it's not all fiction. Our lead character is Effie Weston. She is one of a number of women who are learning how to launch a Barrage Balloon. I did not know about the Balloons before this book - it was fascinating.

I quite like Effie as a lead character - she's intelligent and determined to support the war effort. There's a good number of supporting players as well. I mostly enjoyed them. But...there is always a bad apple. It will be easy to find them. And of course - a romance!

The settings are well described and easy to imagine. The mind sets, the shortages, the mores, and the attitudes of the citizens are very well written. The realties are there.

I really enjoyed The East End Girls. I'll be looking for the second book!

The title caught my attention, having read a few WWII books and enjoyed the historical aspects, and the first chapter had me hooked. It is not often that I find a read that gives an in depth look into the lives of the Balloon Girls. Their lives were shaped by a need of their country, but also by the internal strength of each woman.
As Effie struggled with learning new and difficult responsibilities, she is also faced with new realizations about what her family's expectations for her. Disappointment, love and personal growth come to head. Following her and her crewmates was an adventure in literature.

This is about Effie who is a WAAF corporal .Effie leaves home and her fiancé Leonard to do her training along with Nell, Alice and George on barrage ballon’s and meets Flying Officer Nathan Fitzgerald from Barbados while waiting for her train .Later Effie meets him again at a dance and begins to doubt her relationship with Leonard.Her parents don’t like the friendship and when she ends her relationship with Leonard they are not happy.I enjoyed reading about Effie and her friends and what the training was for working the barrage ballon’s.Thank you to Netgalley and Bookouture.

Thanks to the Publisher and Netgalley for an early review copy.

I loved reading this book set during WW2.

Effie who is a WAAF corporal is leaving her parents and Leonard her fiancé so she can start her training which is going to be for fourteen weeks at Bletchley.

She will be alongside Alice, George and Nell from the 906 balloon squadrons.

Whilst she at a dance, she meets Nathan who is a flight officer, she’d met him before at St Pancras train station before she got on her train. She ends her relationship with Leonard as she’s in love with Nathan.

I enjoyed meeting the characters, some were nice, some not so.

This was a brilliant start to a new series.

I highly recommend this book.

I struggled with this book. It didn’t catch my attention and it felt very slow. I was not able to finish it, unfortunately.

Thank you to NetGalley in exchange for my honest review.

I read this book expecting it to be predictable and to run the same as many other books in the WW2 genre - and I was not mistaken.

There was romance, racism, lost Airmen and the interesting bit - that women were trained to raise the barrage balloons.

I don’t think I was helped by the fact that I was reading a book at the same time ( for a different author) which was based on a real person and that RAF Tempsford was used for the transfer of SOE agents. It did mean that this book became less believable somehow.

This book centred around Effie, her fiance and a pilot,Nathan, who became the love of her life - with predictable consequences when it transpired he was a Barbadian - even a well educated one wasn’t good enough.

Having said that Jean Fullerton obviously did her research and all in all the book was well written and I would read further episodes int he series to find out more about the characters - even though there, predictably, was the well-bred young lady that partied too much and the down to earth East End girl with a history and someone who really wasn’t a nice person at all.

I thought it was a very well written book. Especially the historical aspect. It really included the smaller details like the daily life in the army. An extra bonus I learned about the barrage balloons. Which before this book I had never heard of before. Furthermore I don’t often like dual pov’s, because I find they mess with the suspension of the novel. But this book with dual pov only added a lot more to the suspension. I was sitting at the edge of my seat waiting for the hopefully happy ending. Except then the ending came and I wanted more. I enjoyed the characters. They all had very different and strong personalities adding to the story line in their own ways. Them supporting each other through all the struggles was very endearing to see. And they were a joy to read about. The one note I have is that it felt like the time line of the book was a little off. But it wasn’t very bothersome if you didn’t look for it too much.

In conclusion, I really liked this book it was such a heart warming, but also a very suspenseful book. I can’t wait to see what more there is to come.
Thankyou to netgalley and Bookouture for letting me read this Arc.

A sweet and enchanting WWII romance. I don’t know why this is called the ‘East End Girls’ though. The leads weren’t from the East End and only one of the balloon girls was from the East End of London. The Barrage Balloon Girls would make more sense as a title.

I was not familiar with the balloon barrage sites used as part of the effort to protect London during the Blitz before reading this and found that aspect of the story fascinating. Effie and her pals operate the site, always dealing with the disdain of men who don't see their contributions. And then there's the love story. Nathan is an RAF flight officer from Barbados and Effie falls hard for him, defying her parents who can't see past the color of his skin. This becomes quite gripping when Nathan flies missions and.....no spoilers. There's a certain pluckiness to Effie and her colleagues and that's just right. Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC. A good read for those interested in life on the home front.

I love Effie and all the girls in this book even the not so nice ones were fun to read about as they all have different but such strong personalities. There are friendships forming and plenty of romance blooming in the emotional story that warmed me right up. I laughed, cried, screamed and smiled. It shows what hard work women also put into fighting in the war while dealing with prejudices. I really appreciate and value stories like this because the fiction side is fun to read while there are also elements of truth.

The East End Girls is a WWII romance novel between two characters both fighting in the war. I could not put this book down and read it in just a couple of days (for me that is fast!).

I love how the author combines not only a romance, but also a really good historical fiction, with a lot of detail about the character's military positions within the war. I love a WWII romance novel, but I really enjoy reading about the different types of work people whom signed up to serve in the war did. I had never read anything directly related to the barrage balloon operators before this book, and I really enjoyed the detail and descriptions that the author put into the women's training, and their active employment of the barrage balloons. It felt like someone explaining the inner workings of the entire process who had actually been in one of these WAAF units and had manned the barrage balloons themselves. I really appreciate that the author puts that kind of detail into explaining things (since those of us reading probably have no clue about the inner workings of WWII barrage balloon units), because it really takes you from just reading this story, to feeling like you are right there with Effie, George, Alice, and all the ladies as they work together to get Bessie in the air.

This story keeps you on the edge of your seat! What is a WWII romance without a little bit of angst about the main characters surviving their missions! Nathan, the MMC, flying those secret missions, made me nervous every time, I was just waiting for something bad to happen. Effie, the FMC, I love her character. I could tell right from the first chapter, that her and Leonard were not exactly meant for each other. Especially when he had to complain about the fact she had signed up for the military, how selfish of him to think that way. I am so happy that Effie decided to follow her heart, regardless of what "people might think" because honestly who cares what other people think. But in the 1940's, it wasn't always so easy to just go against your parents wishes, so I applaud Effie for refusing to let expectation, or bigotry, stand in the way of her love for Nathan. I find all the women in the WAAF to be extremely brave, as most of them volunteered to work in the barrage balloon units, yet even then, the male officers still didn't think they would have what it takes to actually appropriately operate the balloons. But the women had no problems, and not only had to deal with all the other atrocities that working in a war zone brings, but also the constant cat calls and degradation by their male counterparts. It would be hard to be a female soldier in WWII, but that didn't stop thousands of women from volunteering anyway.

I also loved all of the other female characters, Effie's friends and fellow barrage balloon unit comrades, in this story. They all have amusing personalities, and knowing this book will be a series, I am excited to see who the next one will be about!

This book is an amazing love story, and historical fiction, that you will not be able to put down, so free up some time when you start reading!!

Thank you to Netgalley, Bookouture, and the author for a copy of this book!

I am a big fan of WWII historical fiction. What I loved about The East End Girls is that it tells the story about a part of WWII that I was not familiar with all the while focusing on relationships and incorporating other social issues.

Effie Weston is a Corporal in the Women’s Auxiliary Air Force. Tasked with defending London’s East End from German raids, Effie and the other women in her unit manage one of the barrage ballon sites. Together they went through an intense training program building bonds of friendship, though not all the women in the group saw eye to eye leading to some issues among the team.

After a chance meeting at the train station, Effie once again crosses paths with Nathan, a Flying Officer from Barbados serving on a base in England. Sparks fly and the two find themselves falling for each other. But can their love survive the trials of war?

This is not just a love story or a story about women serving in the military. Through the cast of characters, it explores tough subject matter including racism, biracial relationships, pregnancy out of wedlock and alcoholism as well as others.

This book was a heart-warming story of love, friendship, perseverance, and strength. I found myself rooting for Effie and Nathan but also loved the bond shared between Effie and Alice and the way the group of girls comes together for each other.

Thank you to Bookouture for the ARC of this book. This was a refreshing read that was so enjoyable that I read in one sitting.

a great start to a book series that has great potential. and i definitely want to follow and no more about these woman going forward. i liked how we got some strong woman here, determined to do their bits. and knowing it was just as important. what some did at home only served to help those out fighting just as much. the job they faced wad particularly dangerous at times. i cant imagine also knowing you were all your family had at the moment, you were here keeping things together but all were often in danger yourself. but still these woman went to their assigned plots and continued to work.
this book we focus more so on one of our three girls. Effie and her two friends trained together and end up in the same balloon site and is strong friendship already starts to form.
Effie has alot of questions to ask herself in this book. she feels under pressure from a few sides that dont feel like they meet her hearts wants. and this is especially highlighted when a blue eyed man meets her eyes and holds them there. and so a love story begins even under the frustration of others.
but can love withstand war and all its dangers.

I have seen many pictures of barrage balloons floating over London. I have heard of the importance of the balloons as away to deter the German planes flying overhead. I never stopped to think how they were in the sky. I never stopped to think who was responsible for the actually putting them in the air, transporting them, or taking them down. I definitely didn't know what it entailed.

Thanks to Jean Fullerton, I am not as clueless as I was before reading The East End Girls. I am amazed that on many occasions it was women holding the lines, standing in extreme weather conditions, with bombs falling all around them. The East End Girls taught me so much as I escaped into a dramatic tale and a forbidden romance.

Effie is part of the first women barrage teams. She and other volunteers go through a grueling training program in order to do their part. Reading of conflicts, jealousies, and friendships had me wondering how they got through it all. Would they be able to work as a team? Catiness, secrets and numerous struggles weave a very dramatic tale. Total respect to the WAAFs for their dedication and bravery.

It was never all work. There was some play. Dances helped them escape the depth of despair. Daliances helped. Effie isn't sure about the dances. Was it appropriate for an engaged woman to attend? A chance encounter on a train platform becomes a chance encounter on the dance floor. Effie finds herself hoping for more and more chance encounters with Flying Officer Nathan Fitzgerald.

My hope for a romance, even if it is a forbidden, had me reading page after page hoping to see what happened next. I didn't realize the challenges they would have. I didn't know if they would find their happily ever after. I honestly didn't know if he would survive his missions to Occupied France.

Another wonderful EastEnd book from Jean Fullerton. Following a group of women who are being trained to act as Barrage balloon operators the storyline focuses on Effie who falls in love with an Airforce pilot. As war progresses Nathan is sent on several risky missions and risks missing his own wedding. Can’t wait for more in this new series. Thanks to Jean and her publisher. Thanks also to NetGalley

A nice easy read, which I really enjoyed, a fantastic story and. characters, can’t wait for the next one