Rating: 4.5 Stars

The Butterfly Girl is the eagerly-awaited new historical saga from award-winning author Tania Crosse.

1941 and Hitler continues to wreak havoc and destruction all over the world. England is not spared his evil machinations and as bombs rain down on the city, the future up and down the land is bleak, uncertain and terrifying. Trainee nurse Pippa Luscombe vows to do what she can to serve her country and community. Although the hours are long and the work is hard, she is determined to be a force for good – until the hospital she works at takes a direct hit.

With her life in tatters, her future in ruins and her options limited, Pippa has no other choice but to fight. Picking up the fragmented pieces of her life with dignity and stoicism, Pippa decides to abandon her romantic hopes and instead focus on her career and on becoming the best nurse she can possibly be. Only romance will strike when she least expects it when she is handed a piece of paper from a patient with a note addressed to his butterfly girl.

With the war continuing to rage on, Pippa’s unsolicited note will force her to make the biggest sacrifice of all as she experiences love and loss in her search for her heart’s desire.

Tania Crosse is a master storyteller who touches her readers’ hearts and takes them on an unforgettable journey back in time and she is on superb form with The Butterfly Girl. A captivating saga about courage, determination, hope and love that will bring a tear to the eye of even the most jaded reader, The Butterfly Girl is the story of a resilient, resourceful and intelligent young girl it is impossible not to care about.

A stellar wartime saga that kept me gripped until the very last page, with The Butterfly Girl Tania Crosse proves that she is a writer of immense talent and skill.

Plymouth in March 1941, and another bad attack is underway and what Pippa didn't realise is that she was also going to be caught up in the devastation, where many people lost their lives, and as Pippa is a trainee nurse in the new maternity block, many new mums and their babies are also badly hurt or have lost their lives. Recovering afterwards Pippa spends some time occasionally meeting up with her friends and more importantly trying to persuade her mum to leave the city each night, to escape the bombing. But soon Pippa and her mum have devastating heartbreaking news to deal with and Pippa has to decide what is best for her mum, as Pippa spends all her time at the hospital. She is certainly kept busy, what with the continuing air attacks, studying hard and working hard and saving up her half days off so she could visit her mum in Tavistock in Devon, where she eventually got her mum to relocate to, away from the horror of the bombings in Plymouth.
But sometimes her fellow trainee nurse is not very friendly towards her and Pippa can't work out why! But after a while she thinks she knows why, but what has she done to deserve this treatment? All she wants is to qualify and become a theatre sister. Is there going to be happiness for Pippa?

A really lovely story, it also has some heartwarming moments and also some heartbreaking times in it too. I was sad when I reached the end, but I really hope that there is a follow-up to come. A well deserved five-star read from me, if you love WW2 family sagas or enjoy Call the Midwife you will love this book as I truly did.

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I liked this book. We follow Pippa as she goes to the hospital to be a nurse to the injured. Along the way she finds love. I liked how interactive this book is, the adventure in it was a really good touch. I really want to continue to read this author's backlist as well. The book can be read as a standalone. Thank you to the publisher and author for sending me this book, I enjoyed it.

The latest edition to Tania Crosse's series set in Devon.

Pippa Luscombe and her friend Steph are trainee nurses in 1941; working in a hospital in Plymouth, it's dangerous days as the Luftwaffe bombs Britain night after night - and Plymouth seems to be firmly in their sights. When the hospital receives a direct hit, Pippa wakes up in a hospital bed. Can she recover and continue with her chosen profession?

I read quite a lot about wartime Britain, but this novel covered events I was entirely unaware of. With a great cast of characters and the story of how families dealt with the constant disrupted sleep, this is a fine read. I particularly enjoyed the inclusion of local dialect - after all, we don't all talk the same way in this country. Another hit for this author, long may they continue. 5* and my recommendation.

My thanks to the publisher for my copy via NetGalley.

I loved this historical fiction. Pippin is such a strong soul overcoming such tragedy. The factual references are well researched. The characters are well developed. This is a wonderful cozy read!

Pippa Luscombe is studying to be a nurse in 1941. A bomb lands on the maternity ward where she is working and she is badly injured.Luckly for her she finally gets back too her work and studies.More things happen too her that cause her very many problems but can she pull through and finally pass her exams.Thank you to Netgalley and Joffe books.

A lovely heartwarming story telling the story about two friends who are training to become nurses during the war.. They keep on bringing comfort to those in need even when tragedy hits them both in one form of another.
A great book for those into wartime stories.

A highly enjoyable novel. The author clearly knows the area well, and has so thoroughly researched both the history of Tavistock and Plymouth, the locations in which the book is set, that she has brought the towns alive for the reader. The same thoroughness has gone into her research into the training and life of a nurse at that time, and the developments in the world of medicine, that the reader feels a fly on the wall of the hospital wards at the time of WW2.

Filled as it is with characters who for the most part are warm and friendly towards each other, this is a lovely story. People who were faced with adversity, and who were struggling to survive at the time of wartime hardship and fear, didn’t hesitate to offer their neighbours support.

The Butterfly Girl is a moving story of love, loss and hope. In the book, the reader follows the lives of Pippa Luscombe and her friend Steph Chappel. Steph was there to support Pippa when Pippa was badly injured on the occasion of their hospital being bombed, and Pippa was unfailing in the support she gave Steph when she needed it. Both are the sort of nurses you’d want to help you at a time of crisis. Pippa’s enemy, Ruby Sandercock, filled with jealousy, isn’t.

If you love ‘Call the Midwife’, and I do, you will love The Butterfly Girl. I highly recommend the novel.

I’m grateful to NetGalley and the publisher for a copy of the novel. My review is entirely my own opinion.

Historical drama,part of a series, set in Plymouth during World War Two.Testing times for Pippa and her friends. Heartwarming story.

This is a great description of the era and of life and work as student nurse. Loved the story and Ruth hint of romance as well. A must read.

I had not realised that this was part of a series but it appears that each book is a standalone and this would certainly apply to this lovely novel.

I trained as a midwife at Greenbank in Plymouth in the early 80s and then as a Staff nurse at Freedom Fields for a while so I knew the areas written about in part - I also realise that I was reading the vernacular in a Devonshire accent - thanks to my Gran who was actually Cornish (just over the Tamar) but had Devonshire relatives. The references to ‘Granfer’ brought back memories as my paternal grandfather was known by this name.

Anyway back to the book - not only was it well written and researched but in parts was heart wrenching - I can still see the ruins of St Andrews Church (in the middle of a roundabout when I was last there) in my minds eye. The details of the endless bombing of Plymouth and the surrounds was well described and the outcomes often heartbreaking.
At the same time the progress in medicine with the use of penicillin eventually in general use and the description of serum used in diphtheria was interesting.

As a trained nurse the training didn’t seem to change much - there were always nice Sisters and those that were harridans - though we did learn loads from them. And cleaning - endless cleaning

Pippa (Philippa) did have her problems, loss, love and the need to further her career and be a theatre sister and her friend Steph - she perhaps was not my favourite character - I wanted to shake her at times. Ruby was certainly not one to befriend,

It was a lovely story of wartime friendship, communities coming together and helping one another in times of hardship and loss and in the end old-fashioned love.

I shall certainly look out for more books by this author

A lovely story set during WW2 in the Blitz. I found this so interesting but sad too. I enjoy reading about this era. My thanks to netgalley and the publishers for giving me the opportunity to read this book in return for an honest review.

A sweet story about love, loss, resilience and courage. The characters were believable and the romance between them sweet and genuine.

Very much reminiscent of Call The Midwife, I loved it. Even the nurse on the cover reminds me of Nurse Patsy Mount.

Thank you to NetGalley for a copy of this ARC in return for my honest review.

A story of love, loss, sadness and so much hope. Pippa is a trainee nurse who is determined to focus on her studies to further her career so she doesn't have time for romance but life may have other plans. The war seems to be never ending but everyone still has high hopes of it coming to a cease fire. The plot is set to the times and I enjoyed reading how the medical side dealt with the bombings and I always enjoy learning more about how the hospital operated. The characters are all wonderful and deal with their situation with strength and determination. I became so immersed in the book that I lost track of time and I felt saddened that the story had to come to a end. It had me in it's clutches and I didn't want to let go. It has some tragedies and triumphs but mostly it has love so much love and care!

This was a really well done historical fiction novel, it had that element that I was looking for and enjoyed from this type of book. It uses the time-period perfectly and was engaged with what was happening in this universe. I enjoyed the way Tania Crosse wrote this and am excited for more.

This is a a wonderful story of love, sadness and overcoming adversity.

Pippa is a student nurse along with her friend Steph work at the hospital in Plymouth where the bombings are practically every night. Pippa finds she wants to learn and not get distracted by romance. There are some problems along the way.

I found the book very interesting and it fascinating it read about what happened in Plymouth during the War how they all coped with it. I liked the characters and sometimes it was sad in places.

Would recommend.

This was such a well-researched story it took me straight to the heart of Plymouth and Tavistock in the Second World War.
When the book opens Pippa Luscombe is a trainee nurse, which is where the title comes from – it refers to their hats. Nursing has always been her dream, and she pursues it doggedly as the blitz rages around them, and jealousy looms much closer to home.
This book is rich in period detail and in the way strangers pulling together in wartime became first friends, then almost like family. The characters are beautifully drawn and rather wonderful, which made The Butterfly Girl a most enjoyable read.

A lovely story of a wartime story of one nurse’s life in Britain during WWII, following her life with the trials that nursing brings during wartime. Could’ve expanded more on the characters but still a good read.

A pleasurable read although like one of the other reviewers I felt at times the book was a little rushed. I felt it could have extended over several books or even made a nice trilogy. There were aspects of the war that could have been explored further like the importance of the Atlantic Conveys. All of the main characters were likeable. It was well written and easy to read. I've not read all of the previous titles in the Devonshire Saga series so will look them out.

I'd recommend the book to others. Thank you to NetGalley, the publishers and author for allowing me to read and review an Arc copy.

1941 Blitz in Plymouth leaves Pippa Luscombe injured when she’s hurt during a raid on the maternity hospital. She’s left shaken and her wrist broken. Pippa and fellow nurse and best friend Steph pick up the pieces and carry on.
On the wards a patient writes a poem to the butterfly girl but unbeknownst to Poppy this sets of a chain of events determined to derail her career and life.pippa and Steph struggle through the war years determined not to let Hitler win.
Brilliant storyline and well written. Once you start this saga you’ll be hooked from the beginning to end.