The Last Lifeboat is story based on historical facts, but with fictional characters to show the human impact of war. Following the evacuation of thousands of children, we see the difficulties parents had to face in either chosing to send their children away or keep them in London to face the bombings. Our key characters are the parents, children and travel companions of the children sent on one particular vessel to Canada, which was torpedoed just after its protective ships left it. Whilst the majority of lifeboats and children perished and only a few children rescued, the last lifeboat and its occupants survived 8 days adrift on few rations and little water. This is a moving story and one of great courage, but also one mindful of the impact political decisions had on its nations people during WW2. #thelastlifeboat #hazelgyanor #netgalley

This is a very dramatic book from the start, and it continues with a really emotional story that is based on real life events. The author has done a wonderful job of conveying the emotions and courage of all those involved.

Set in WWII, this is the story of the seavacs children who were sent abroad during the war, and those who volunteered to take care of them. Alice and Lily feature throughout the story and they both have very different stories to tell, but children are at the heart of their concerns. You really do connect with these women with the way they are written about and it really captures the fears and uncertainty of the times - wondering what is the right path to take. Extraordinary times really do reveal extraordinary people!

This became quite emotional at times as I became so engrossed in the drama unfolding and it's a wonderful read.

The Last Lifeboat is closely based on the real life tragedy of the SS City of Benares, a ship which was evacuating children to Canada in 1940 when it was torpedoed in the mid Atlantic. Lifeboat 12 was presumed missing but the survivors in it, including several children and an escort were eventually rescued 8 days later.
This was a guaranteed five star read for so many reasons. The pacing and structure of the book was perfect. Highly emotive without turning into mawkishness and high levels of dramatic tension that didn’t turn the book into some kind of tawdry thriller.
The strong female characters were beautifully written. The anguish felt by the mothers deciding whether to evacuate their children to safety against the impossibly gut-wrenching thought of not being with them.
I also enjoyed a different take on the male characters in the book who were conscientious objectors or too terrified to continue fighting and killing. The addition of Mass Observation diary entries also strengthened this stance that war wasn’t as black and white as sometimes represented. In that it seems that the major consensus of particularly British wartime values such as ‘Stiff Upper Lip’ was hoisted upon the general public in an enforced attempt to keep people in check. And any step away from that norm was considered weak and un-British.
I shall definitely read more by Hazel Gaynor.

WW2 from a very different perspective.

1940. With the threat of German invasion ever present, evacuees are being sent to Canada for safety.

Alice King wants to do her bit, but can't find the right fit, until she volunteers to help with the evacuees. As she stands on the deck of SS Carlisle, waiting to escort a group of children to Canada she finally feels she is doing something worthwhile.

Lily Nicholls, widowed, knows that she must send her son and daughter to safety, or they may not survive the Blitz on London. So she send them on to the SS Carlisle, to take them to Canada..

And then they are on their way to safety at last...

Everything is fine, until it's not.

The SS Carlisle is torpedoed. In the chaos reigns, children are separated from their original chaperones, and the only option is for everyone to find a lifeboat, and hope and pray that rescue will come quickly.

Alice finds herself in the last lifeboat. The one that no one seems to be searching for. All she can do is pray that they will be found as the food and water begin to run out, and she fears for all of their lives

Set during worl war 2 this is based on a true story of seavacs children sent abroad during the war. When the boat is torpedoed they must survive in the lifeboat until they are rescued. A great read.

What an emotional rollercoaster this book is. I’ve read a lot of fiction set during World War Two but ‘The Last Lifeboat’ by Hazel Gaynor is a new take on wartime conflict and its effect on ordinary people. Children are being evacuated on ships, sent to safety in Canada, travelling in convoy across the Atlantic where German u-boats wait to attack. When the worst happens, Gaynor asks what does it take to survive?
England 1940. After a short first chapter set in the lifeboat immediately after the u-boat attack, the story tracks back four months earlier. Alice King is a schoolteacher-now-librarian in Kent, a quiet job in a quiet place, but she longs to do something with her life. In London, widow Lily Nicholls considers the hard decision to send her two children, Georgie ten and younger brother Arthur, on an evacuation ship to Canada. Invasion threatens and the Blitz is just beginning. Lily struggles with competing fears, that her children may be killed in the bombing expected in London or that having sent them away for their safety they may die en-route or stay in Canada so she will never see them again. Lily is a daily help at a household in Richmond. Her employer Mrs Carr has already sent her two eldest children privately to Canada and the third, Molly, will go as soon as she’s recovered from a horse-riding accident. Deciding to register Georgie and Arthur and decide nearer the time, Lily queues next to a woman who introduces herself as mother of five Ada Fortune.
When Lily says goodbye to her children, she hands them into the care of ‘Auntie Alice,’ an escort with the Children’s Overseas Reception Board [CORB]. It is Alice’s first journey and she is excited, nervous, and worried about her pregnant sister Kitty left home alone. When the ship is torpedoed at night by a German u-boat there is enormous confusion. It is dark, disorientating, most people are asleep, distress drills forgotten. Alice finds herself the lone woman in a lifeboat of men and seven children, some from her own group, others are strangers. Thirty-five souls.
The story unfolds – and we already know Alice will be adrift in a lifeboat – through the eyes of Alice and Lily. It’s a slow mover at first as the scene is set but after the sinking, both women are waiting. One is hoping for rescue not daring to think of the alternative, the other hopeful then despairing, finally angry. Gaynor is especially good at writing the children, their characters, their influence on the adults, their bravery and ability to look beyond the horrible present up to the stars in the sky.
Inspired by the real life sinking in September 1940 of a vessel carrying ‘seavacuees,’ child refugees, Gaynor has brought new air to a story that made headlines and generated many letters of complaints when it happened, but is unfamiliar today. I’ve not been disappointed by a novel by Hazel Gaynor yet, she’s fast becoming one of my must-read authors.
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3,75 stars

"The Last Lifeboat" was a quick read. I liked the characters and the overall plot, but I wish there had been a little more character development and depth in some places.

This was my first time reading a book from the author but I am delighted to say I thoroughly enjoyed the story and I look forward to reading more books from the writer in the future

I haven’t been disappointed in any of the books I’ve read by Hazel Gaynor and The Last Lifeboat is another compelling read. Inspired by the true story of the SS City of Benares, (SS Carlisle in the story) which was sunk by a German U-boat while evacuating children to Canada during WWII. Many of the passengers perished, others were rescued and one lifeboat was missed. The survivors in that lifeboat spent a seemingly endless eight days on the ocean and even then they didn’t all make it home.

1940s London was on high alert as bombing raids by the Luftwaffe were becoming more commonplace as days and weeks passed. As well as evacuating children to the countryside, thousands were also being evacuated abroad. Recently widowed Lily Nichols had an extremely hard decision to make – whether to sign her two young children up for evacuation to Canada or keep them with her and hope the bomb shelters kept them safe.

Alice King is a school teacher without a job as schools have been closed for the duration. Volunteering at the library fulfils her love for books and reading but isn’t enough to dispel her burgeoning desire to ‘do her bit’. Alice decides to put in an application with the Children’s Overseas Reception Board (CORB) as a volunteer escort.
The story is told from the perspectives of Lily at home, desperately waiting for news of her children while trying to stay alive during the blitz, and Alice and the survivors in the lifeboat. The alternating points of view keep up the pace and the tension high.

The Last Lifeboat is a beautifully crafted and powerful reminder of a tragic historical event. Hazel Gaynor has captured the emotions and atmosphere vividly. I can’t even imagine being adrift for eight days in a small boat with limited provisions on a very unpredictable ocean. Or have to make the decision to send my children to another country. An incredible, heartbreaking but ultimately uplifting story that highlights not only the futility of war but also courage and strength of character.

A gripping tale of love and strength, courage and hope. I felt like I was right there in the mist of the war. You can feel the despair and hope for a future.

Loveable, engaging characters. Loved this book, found myself deeply invested in their story. Hazel never disappoints.

Be prepared to cry! This story was slow-burning for me. Different narratives interwoven meant that it took a while to get to know the characters and it surprised me how much I started to care for them by the end.

There are shocks and gritty moments of reality which come quite suddenly and shockingly. I loved that it is inspired by real events and was surprised by some of the last minute plot twists which left nothing as predictable.

Grab the tissues and find a chunk of time as you will not want to put this one down!

Another lovely novel by Hazel.Rally interesting read based around historical facts.Really enjoyed this book.

A brilliant read and one I really enjoyed. The characters are loveable and varied, the plot is one that is engaging and medium paced. I found myself completely drawn into the story and enjoyed the writing style.

An excellent read.This was was based on a true story about child evacuees who were sent overseas for safety during the second world war.It was very emotional and beautifully written it was something I had never heard of but it certainly tugged at the heartstrings. The resilience of the children and the relationships between the families shone through this historical novel.

I have not read as many of the author's works as several of the others who picked this up have. There is a certain standard when it comes to how she deals with history and historical facts (and the people), or so my limited exposure to her and her books has determined.
I admit to going in with that background in mind, but I stayed because I liked the writing and the people I was introduced to. The only reason I did not give it a perfect rating is that I found a certain relationship at the end to be a little too convenient, given the gravity of the events that occur. The author has included helpful details regarding the actual facts that she worked with.
The story begins with the shock of finding herself on a lifeboat, but then we pan back to see where Alice comes from and her frame of mind when she volunteers to escort children who are being evacuated. On the other end, we have a mother who is struggling with loss and making the dreaded choice to send her two children to safety. The war is but a murmur in the back as these regular individuals try to eke out a life under dark circumstances. None of them are over the top - they have just the right amount of resilience for it to seem realistic.
I enjoyed the flow of the story, and the children were especially interesting. Extended family, both natural and found, are well developed and a crucial part of the narrative as a whole.
I highly recommend this book to readers of this genre. The author is definitely one I will be returning to.
I received an ARC thanks to NetGalley and the publishers, but the review is entirely based on my own reading experience.

I was gripped from start to finish. Another superb story about a fascinating part of the war I was only vaguely aware of but revealed in sharp relief, uplifting and heartbreaking by turn. Fabulous!!

A beautiful well told story about the true life experiences of a group of children and their guardians who were evacuated during WWII to Canada. Called ’seavacs’ this group were escorted out of England on the SS Carlisle with a convoy of vessels to ensure the safe journey of all the passengers. However they only provided safety for part of the journey, the government deemed that beyond a certain limit they would not be harmed. This was not the case and soon after the convoy departed the ship was torpedoed and sunk. What happens next is amazing, some of these passengers found themselves on a lifeboat drifting hopelessly waiting to be rescued while at home everyone assumes they’ve been lost at sea.
A super story which has been greatly researched and will truly pull at the heartstrings.
Many thanks to #NetGalley for my advanced copy of this book. I would give this book 5⭐️and would urge everyone to read it.

I absolutely loved this beautifully written, incredibly moving book set in World War 2 and centred around the story of the "sea vacs" ie the children who were evacuated to Canada and other countries by sea during the war. I did not know about the sea evacuations and was fascinated by the story of them, especially as it was based on fact. Hazel Gaynor is a fantastic author and I will definitely be reading more of her books in future.
5 stars from me.

I live reading books that are set I World War 2 and I was excited to read this book.
I loved the characters and the build up to the children's evacuation. There was a lot of drama and action. I soon became engrossed in the storyline. It wasn't until the end of the book that I found out that this is based on a true story. This made the book even more enjoyable.
Thank you to Netgalley and the Publisher for my ARC.