Keep Calm & Carry On

A Stepney Girl’s Secret by Jean Fullerton is a compelling historical novel that entertained me from the start.

The action is set in London in 1940 at the start of the Blitz. We witness the preparations for fear of attack after the end of the phony war. We see children returning to London after being previously evacuated to the countryside.

The British are a stoic nation. They take what life throws at them, keep calm and carry on.

A family move from a rural vicarage to a London one. They throw their lives into the war effort, providing shelter for refugee mothers and their children as well as opening up the crypt for an air raid shelter.

Everyone is required to play their part. The vicar’s daughter signs up for war work and is rather surprised at the job she is given. With the men away fighting, the women must step up into the vacancies left behind.

Life and death, birth and marriages still continue. True love will find a way despite the actions of some.