Songs of Spring
Reprinted in paperback from its original publication in 2000, Songs of Spring is the final volume in the Seasons of War quartet. The time is now Christmas 1917 in The Rectory in Ashden, a village in East Sussex, where Mr and Mrs Lilley live with their five children: Caroline, Isabel, Phoebe, Felicia and George. It will be the final year of the First World War but the family do not know that although they have heard the rumours like everyone else. They are all engaged on war work of some kind: nursing at the Front (Felicia); working as a driver (Phoebe); flying one of the first planes in the fledgling air force (George); assistant to two Belgian intelligence officers (Caroline) and working for the Home Front running the local wartime cinema (Isabel).
All are involved in relationships of some sort, some of which are complicated and others not so. The story also enfolds other members of the local community, including the domestic staff. Mrs Dibble is the Rectory cook who also gives demonstrations on wartime cookery in nearby Tunbridge Wells. The domestic details about home life and food are as interesting as ever. Each person’s role in the war is detailed enough to inspire the reader to find out more. Although the ending is not happy for everyone, the author concludes the series with celebration for victory and sadness for those who haven’t seen the war out.
