May 30, 2022

The Wedding Dress Sewing Circle by Jennifer Ryan

Genre/Categories/Setting: Historical Fiction, “UpLit,” Women’s Fiction, WW11, English Village, Friendship

*This post contains Amazon affiliate links.

My Summary:

Thanks #NetGalley #BallentineBooks @RandomHouse for a complimentary eARC of #TheWeddingDressSewingCircle by Jennifer Ryan upon my request. All opinions are my own.

“Make Do and Mend”

In The Wedding Dress Sewing Circle, women come together during the WW11 years to mend, repurpose, and recycle clothing. Led by three spirited women, the sewing circle project to repair a wedding gown grows into mending wedding gowns for local brides and for brides across the country.

“The Wedding Dress Exchange is our way to show that we might be losing our homes, our families, and our normal way of life, but there are some traditions that live on in spite of the Nazis–that romance and hope and love can flourish, no matter what our ememies do. It is a reminder that the most important parts of us…our hearts–will always be free.”

My Thoughts:

UpLit: Told from multiple viewpoints, The Wedding Dress Sewing Circle is a delightful, uplifting, and gently-told story of the power of friendship during wartime. I grew to love the characters and their unique personalities. I love reading stories about women working together and finding ways to thrive during the difficult days of WW11. A slow-burn romance (closed door) rounds out this heartwarming story.

Lovely Themes: I greatly appreciated the lovely and thoughtful themes of finding your voice, finding your true self in spite of expectations from parents and/or society, true love/soul mates, tradition, women empowering/supporting women, family loyalty, problem solving, and friendship.

“In a good family, you’re loved simply by being part of it, and whatever happens to you, wherever you go, you will always know that you’re loved. It doesn’t matter how successful you are, how beautiful, or how rich. The only thing that matters is that you’re you and that you belong…”

“Friendship always sees you through. If you have friends, what more do you need?”

“Friends provide more than just company. They form an invisible net that is so strong and wide that it can catch any of us if we fall.”

Enthusiastically recommended for fans of women’s fiction with substantial themes and for those who love stories of independent, inspirational women. The Wedding Dress Sewing Circle will appeal to readers who appreciate a story set in England and features women making the best of it during wartime. Fans of Chilbury Ladies’ Choir and The Kitchen Front will love Ryan’s new release!

My Rating:  4.5 Stars

The Wedding Dress Sewing Circle InformationHere

Meet the Author, Jennifer Ryan

Hello, I’m the author of National Bestseller The Chilbury Ladies’ Choir, The Spies of Shilling Lane, and The Kitchen Front. Before I began writing, I was a nonfiction book editor with a passion for the Second World War. My warm and cheerful grandmother would tell stories about that era, both funny and fascinating, and the books are based on these.

If you have read any of my books, do get in touch and tell me what you think. And please visit my website for free monthly giveaways.

http://www.JenniferRyanAuthor.com

Twitter: JenniferiRyan

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QOTD:

Is The Wedding Dress Sewing Circle on your TBR or have you read it?

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