I have to say, I never thought it would be a scary thing for Americans to be entering British towns during WWII. We were on the same side and were supposed to be coming to “save” them, from what I had learned in history class. But this book tells a different story. A story of a town full of people who were worried about foreigners coming into their town and taking advantage of them. Even if they were allies, they were still not sure if they would be safe as rural village folks and these strong American soldiers from all over their large country. The Americans have to prove themselves to be trustworthy, but some of them might not be fully trustworthy.

This was another book that I flew through!

Some great characters in this book, you can easily picture them.
Loved the way the villagers take the servicemen into their own lives to help welcome them. Especially the story with Miss Cutteridge and corporal Bilsky. Rev Henry Dawe is averse to be a little sneaky where daughter Agnes is concerned.
My favourite was Tom Hazlitt, who was very enterprising with ways to fill the oxo tin for mum.
Miriam Beauchamp with her airs and graces. I just felt it ended suddenly.

Margaret Mayhew’s involving, atmospheric and captivating wartime sagas are in a class of their own and the re-release of two of her best-known titles, The Boat Girls and Our Yanks is sure to delight her legion of existing fans and win her scores of new readers.

In The Boat Girls, it’s 1943 and the war shows no sign of slowing down. With everybody determined to do their duty for king and country, three girls from three very different backgrounds decide that the time has come for them to do their bit for the war effort and to try their hardest to help defeat the enemy. Privileged Frances has had enough of sitting on the side-lines while other women roll up their sleeves to help out their country. The time has come for her to shake off the stifling shackles which her overbearing parents have imposed upon her and help out working on the canal boats and delivering goods, a job that had been the preserve of men prior to the war. The work will be tough and the hours long and laborious, but Frances is going to meet two other girls with whom she will form a very tight bond. Actress Rosalind is a pretty girl who finds herself falling in love with a man far above her social reach – Frances’s stuffy elder brother. Meanwhile, timid Prudence imagined that her life would be boring and conventional – until the war came along and widened her horizons and made her realise that there is more to life than a dull job at the bank.

The lives of these three different girls are going to change beyond all recognition, but what won’t change is the fact that through the good times and the bad, Frances, Prudence and Rosalind will be always be there for each other.

In Our Yanks, the Northamptonshire village of King’s Thorpe is a sleepy little town where nothing much happens. The world might be at war, but in King’s Thorpe life is still as uneventful and unexciting as always – until a fighter group of US airmen come to town and turn everyone’s life upside down with their glamour, good looks and bravado. The older members of the community might not exactly be overjoyed at the new arrivals, but the younger girls in the village couldn’t be more thrilled!

Sally Barnett is immediately bowled over by the handsome new arrivals and she plans to use every weapon in her arsenal to win them over. Rector’s daughter Agnes, meanwhile, was stunned when she found herself experiencing emotions and feelings which she never imagined she would go through and for the newly widowed Lady Beauchamp, the Yanks might just end up providing her with a measure of happiness she never imagined she would feel ever again.

Nothing will ever be the same again in the sleepy town of King’s Thorpe and for the women whose lives will be changed forever by a handsome group of American airmen!

Margaret Mayhew is a fantastic writer who writes compelling and evocative historical sagas full of humour, drama and plenty of heart. The Boat Girls and Our Yanks are immensely enjoyable page-turners full of strong and resilient heroines, emotional and heart-warming plots and evocative descriptions of life in wartime England.

As the nights starting drawing in, fans looking for good old-fashioned storytelling at its best need to look no further than Margaret Mayhew’s The Boat Girls and Our Yanks.

Really great story. I highly recommend. I would love to read further installments. Very accurate to the the times.

This was a brilliant read and is being featured on my blog for my quick star reviews feature, which I have created on my blog so I can catch up with all the books I have read and therefore review.
See www.chellsandbooks.wordpress.com.

Margaret Mayhew was one of the first authors I read and she is part of the reason I gained so much interest in historic fiction. I learnt things from her books that I never knew such as the 'Little ships of Dunkirk'. I read her books when they were first released probably 20 odd years ago and enjoyed them as much today as I did then. Our Yanks helps readers understand that sadly the Brits were not always pleased that the Americans joined the war. It is well written and thoroughly enjoyable and I would recommend to others.

This is a gently paced WW2 historical saga novel set in 1943 in Northamptonshire England. This story captures the ethos of an English village during the second world war. The rationing, the loss of loved ones, the loneliness and the realistic mix of community spirit and village gossip.

The American airmen's'' impact on the cosy villagers is perfectly pitched in this novel. The villagers are worried about their daughters and how they airmen will alter the village's ambience. The American airmen are lonely, scared of war and dismayed with the lack of facilities and the villagers' reluctant acceptance of them.

There's animosity, friendship and romance in this historical saga with poignancy, humour and some happy endings.

I received a copy of this book from Transworld Publishers via NetGalley in return for an honest review.

It is 1943, and the little village of Kings Thorpe have, up to now had no bombs or been overtaken by Yanks. They have, however, obviously been affected by rationing and young men going of to war.We are introduced to some villagers and we follow their lives for a while. Then it is announced the Yanks are taking over the old RAF Aerodrome and the villagers begin to co.plain, no one wants them here.The older villagers exclaiming "They will be trouble!" Off course, when they arrive, these lads are just that, young Americans and we see clashes between them and the villagers. There are dances, socials as well as everything possible created to attempt to reduce the clashes and to help these young lads fit into the village...and for the villagers to allow them to become part of the community too.
The Yanks begin to slowly blend in and as the story develops we see budding romances and hopes shattered at the same time. A Yank, Joe Bilsky gets taken under the lonely Miss Cutteridge's wing and he becomes like a son to her. The American's that can't resist the ladies but are already married. All the things I have heard about from my Grandparents about the Yanks is all here in one book, for me to learn and also entertain myself with!
Again, another Maragaret Mayhew story that I could not put down. I am a sucker for a historical fiction story from the war and this is the second one that i have got lost in and loved the characters and the time period. So good to read and learn as well I feel.
Thank you to Random Things Tours, netgalley and the publisher for both books to take part in this double blog tour today. I really loved them both.

Our Yanks is the lovely story of how a group of US airmen, drafted in to help maintain morale, took over the small fictional village of King's Thorpe, where with their swagger and general bon homie they had their work cut out in trying to persuade some of the villagers that they were in the war for the long haul. From the poorest villagers, to the more well to do, it was fascinating to see how their prejudices and natural reticence were gradually overcome as general compassion and friendship for the airmen began to have an effect.

It was especially interesting to see tentative relationships become a little more personal, some would succeed, others not so fortunate but throughout the story the way the author brought everything to life in such a gentle and well respected way made the story all the more rewarding to read. I genuinely cared for the characters, some made me smile, especially the antics of young Tom and his brother Alfie, who filled their pockets with all the candies and chewing gum the airmen threw their way, and yet, there was such a poignant reason for Tom's lively entrepreneurial skills, that I always wanted him to win the day.

I think that it is such a lovely idea of the publishers to reissue the historical fiction written by this author twenty or so years ago. Her books deserve to be read by a new audience and I am sure that Our Yanks will continue to delight fans of the WW2 saga genre.

War is tragic. This book grabbed my attention.


I could feel for the American soldiers and I barely could understand why the older British characters in this plot disliked the “Yanks” as the soldiers were termed in the book.


The book cover was what made me to read this book. I wanted to figure out who the “Yanks” were.


Reading this book was like stepping into history. I was thankful the era of World War has been over long before I was born. I am thankful for this present century and period.


The author writes interestingly well. Human feelings and emotions will surge through you as you read this book.


I am a big fan of historical sagas so this book did a very great job in being detailed.


Such a sweet book with awesome characters that I had to be fair in picking favourites.


5 stars rating.

I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are mine.

I enjoyed reading this book because I found out a lot about the Americans and how they helped this country during the second world war. The characters were interesting but all different. The story line kept me wanting to know what was going to happen. There was sadness but also happiness and do recommend that you read this book.

Do you think history is dull and dry, found only in school books? Do you view history as a bunch of events and dates, but not about real people? Well, think again! Try reading books like "Our Yanks," and you will soon change your mind. Although this book is fiction, it is based on historical facts and events.

"Our Yanks" tells the story of a group of American airmen who are assigned to develop an airfield near a small village in England during World War II. The narrative takes place after the attack on Pearl Harbor, the event that thrust the United States into the war. Although the "Yanks" were disliked and disparaged at first, the villagers got to know them and welcomed the young men into their homes and hearts.

This book introduces readers to several people and families whose lives became entwined with those of the airmen. Agnes, the kindergarten teacher, Sally, the baker's daughter, and Lady Beauchamp, the local gentry, experience love and heartbreak in their relationships with the American men. Elderly Miss Cutteridge finds the "son" she never had, and village boys Tom and Alfie befriend and help the Americans.

Readers will be taken into the heart of England's experience with World War II: the rationing, hardship, and deprivation of daily life, as well as the courage and perseverance engendered by the situations the villagers faced. This book definitely grabs the reader from the outset, and does not let go until the last page is turned. This is a clean read, without graphic descriptions of adult situations or strong language. Learning history becomes enjoyable through books like this one.

I received this book from the publisher and from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. The opinions expressed here are entirely my own.

This is the first novel I have read by Margaret Mayhew and I thoroughly enjoyed it.
The yanks loud and brash come to stay at a quaint English village called King's Thorpe. It takes time for the English villagers to accept the Americans and all there ways.
I came to love the different characters and the author really brought them to life on the pages.

A lovely story of rural country life during ww2 and how the arrival of Amerucan Service Men turned their lives upside down and parents feared for their daughters.

A story about a small rural English village during WWII and how their world gets turned upside down when the Americans come to stay at the nearby airbase.

What I enjoyed about this book is how it portrayed the daily life of the British during this time. While the country wasn’t invaded, they suffered as well. Not only the loss of loved ones, but the rations and bombings as well.

I did feel the book ended a bit abruptly.

Thanks to Netgalley and Penguin Random House for allowing me to read this Arc.
Another beautiful World War 2 story from Margaret Mayhew.
It tells of the Americans landing in a small English country village.
The opposition of the locals in the beginning and then the subsequent acceptance.
I would highly recommend it.

Loved this saga ,drew me right in.I could not put this book down.The small town the characters the Yanks.I loved leaving my world and entering their lives.An author whose books I will be devouring.#netgalley#Ouryanks

Omg this book was everything and more than i expected. My ideal book as i love family saga books. Loved that it showed how the Yanks got involved with the girls during wartime . Highs and lows of everyday life. Loved, loved ,loved it