From Booklist Historical romance writer Sundin (With Every Letter, 2012) continues her Wings of the Nightingale series with the story of flight nurse Lieutenant Georgiana “Georgie” Taylor. As she flies alongside soldiers wounded while fighting in WWII, life seems to be going exactly on schedule until her path crosses that of Sergeant John Hutchinson, a pharmacist, and her eyes are opened to who she could become. As Georgie realizes her strength by seeing herself through John’s eyes, John must learn that his bitterness is gradually taking away the things he loves in his life. Sundin leaves no emotion unexamined in this mix of loss and hope. The author’s experience as a hospital pharmacist gives her story line credibility as it is matched by her extensive knowledge of WWII. With her nurse and pharmacist characters, Sundin has crafted an inspirational romance featuring a unique take on WWII that will pique the interests of readers who enjoy historical medical fiction. --Elizabeth Ponder Caught between the war raging around them and the battles within, two souls long for peace--and a love that remains true. Lt. Georgiana Taylor has everything she could want. A boyfriend back home, a loving family, and a challenging job as a flight nurse. But in July 1943, Georgie's cozy life gets more complicated when she meets pharmacist Sgt. John Hutchinson. Hutch resents the lack of respect he gets as a noncommissioned serviceman and hates how the war keeps him from his fiancée. While Georgie and Hutch share a love of the starry night skies over Sicily, their lives back home are falling apart. Can they weather the hurt and betrayal? Or will the pressures of war destroy the fragile connection they've made?With her signature attention to detail and her talent for bringing characters together, Sarah Sundin weaves an exciting tale of emotion, action, and romance that will leave you wanting more. "Sarah Sundin is a master of World War II romance! On Distant Shores swept me back seventy years into a whirlwind love story that took me to airfields, hospitals, and cities all over the Mediterranean. Kudos to Sarah for writing another exciting novel for those of us who love reading her historical fiction."-- Melanie Dobson , award-winning author of The Silent Order and Love Finds You in Mackinac Island, Michigan "I love a great love story, all the more one that's set during WWII. Sarah Sundin has given us both. You can't help but care about her characters, and the romantic tension kept me turning the pages to the very end. It's a fabulous addition to her Wings of the Nightingale series. I already can't wait to read the next one."-- Dan Walsh , bestselling author of The Discovery , The Reunion , and The Dance Sarah Sundin is the author of With Every Letter and the Wings of Glory series. In 2011, A Memory Between Us was a finalist in the Inspirational Reader's Choice Awards, and Sarah received the Writer of the Year Award at the Mount Hermon Christian Writers Conference. A graduate of UC San Francisco School of Pharmacy, she works on call as a hospital pharmacist. During WWII, her grandfather served as a pharmacist's mate (medic) in the Navy and her great-uncle flew with the US Eighth Air Force in England. Sarah lives in California with her husband and three children. Visit www.sarahsundin.com for more information. Sarah Sundin is the bestselling author of When Twilight Breaks , Until Leaves Fall in Paris , The Sound of Light , and the popular WWII series Sunrise at Normandy, among others. She is a Christy Award winner and a Carol Award winner, and her novels have received starred reviews from Booklist , Library Journal , and Publishers Weekly , and have appeared on Booklist 's "101 Best Romance Novels of the Last 10 Years." Sarah lives in California. Visit www.SarahSundin.com for more information. Read more
Features & Highlights
Lt. Georgiana Taylor has everything she could want. A comfortable boyfriend back home, a loving family, and a challenging job as a flight nurse. But in July 1943, Georgie's cozy life gets decidedly more complicated when she meets pharmacist Sgt. John Hutchinson. Hutch resents the lack of respect he gets as a noncommissioned serviceman and hates how the war keeps him from his fiancée. While Georgie and Hutch share a love of the starry night skies over Sicily, their lives back home are falling apart. Can they weather the hurt and betrayal? Or will the pressures of war destroy the fragile connection they've made?With her signature attention to detail and her talent for bringing characters together, Sarah Sundin pens another exciting tale in her series featuring WWII flight nurses. Fans new and old will find in
On Distant Shores
the perfect combination of emotion, action, and romance.
Customer Reviews
Rating Breakdown
★★★★★
60%
(467)
★★★★
25%
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★★★
15%
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Most Helpful Reviews
★★★★★
5.0
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The story was fantastic!
On Distant Shores is only the second book I've read by Sarah Sundin (the first being With Every Letter), so I was surprised (and a little confused - at first) that this story didn't pick up where book one ended. Instead, it went back in time a little bit and showed the last part of With Every Letter from Georgie's perspective and then continued on from there. I actually really liked this - it was cool to get Georgie's take on certain things. :)
I really loved the characters in On Distant Shores. I loved how Georgie and John had struggles and issues they had to work on. They felt very real and I couldn't help but care about them.
The story was fantastic! There were ups and downs and a lot of surprises - I definitely didn't see certain things coming! I loved the military aspect and all the history in On Distant Shores.
Overall, On Distant Shores was a great read. I enjoyed it even more than With Every Letter (which I really liked). I definitely recommend this book and can't wait to read Kay's story, In Perfect Time, when it releases.
*I received a complimentary copy of this book for my review. I was not required to give a positive review, only my honest opinion - which I've done. All thoughts and opinions expressed are my own.*
11 people found this helpful
★★★★★
5.0
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Another fantastic WWII story from Sarah Sundin!
Another fantastic WWII story from Sarah Sundin!
Georgie was a highlight in With Every Letter and I couldn't wait to learn more about her. I love her kind heart. Without it, she and Rose would have missed out on a great friendship with Mellie, who we met in the first book. Though she'd let other people make decisions for her all her life, Georgie found herself ready for a change.
There was a little overlap between the first and this one, but a very minor one at that, and it didn't affect Georgie's story at all. As always, Sundin's writing is excellent and smooth. The journeys she put these characters on were not easy. However, on the flip side, our journey isn't either. Watching Georgie and Hutch grow through the course of the story felt like the most natural thing. Nothing happened too fast or too slow.
It was effortless to get lost in the era and world Georgie and Hutch found themselves in. I love the WWII era. The relationships, the faith, the common hope for a better future. One of my favorite scenes is set on Christmas day with Georgie on a flight. She led the men in carols and Christmas cheer, despite the war going on around them. You don't see or hear things like that any more. The scene is a highlight for me. Speaking of highlights I'll note real quick that Lucia is a big one. I hope we see her again! She was absolutely adorable!
Previous fans of Sundin's work will not be disappointed by her latest release. I loved following Georgie and Hutch through their struggles and I loved diving into their worlds for a time. I look forward to getting to know Kay better in the next book. Perhaps I'll finally have my questions answered.
Available August 2013 at your favorite bookseller from Revell, a division of Baker Publishing Group.
I received this book from Revell in return for an honest review of my opinions, which I have done. Thanks!
5 people found this helpful
★★★★★
2.0
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Not What I Imagine A Flight Nurse to Be
Since I really liked Sarah Sundin's trilogy about WWII pilots, I had hoped that my disappointment with the first book in this series as an aberration; unfortunately, it was not. I guess I have a different image of flight nurses than Sarah Sundin. Her heroine is Georgiana Taylor. While I believe these ladies were the cream of the crop; the nurses Sundin write about were anything but. In the first book, Mellie was socially inept way beyond the point of shyness. In this book Georgianna is a ninny. She is an incompetent nurse who has followed her best friend everywhere. She can't compute drug dosages and can't figure out how to treat shock when the patient's bed isn't movable. The hero, Hutch, has a chip on his shoulder because other degreed medical professionals are officers but pharmacists are not. The other officers in the story are bullies, not leaders. They address Hutch as "boy". Really?
On the other hand, judging by what I've seen on Goodreads and Amazon, my opinion is in the minority. Sundin does a good job of describing life for GIs in Sicily during WWII. Promoting Christianity is definitely part of Sundin's aim.
I'd like to thank the folks at Litfuse for making a review copy available. I guess there will be a third book about Georgie's best friend, but I'll pass. DNF.
3 people found this helpful
★★★★★
5.0
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Another Amazing Tale From Sarah Sundin!
On Distant Shores is the second book in the Wings of the Nightingale series and it is a magnificently crafted novel. In typical Sundin style, the story's beginning overlaps with the previous book, so the first 70+ pages are a retelling of the last pages of first book, With Every Letter, but from a different perspective. I have to say that I love this a lot!
I wasn't sure how much I was going to like the book with both of the main characters being engaged, or nearly engaged, to other people, but I loved the way it was done.
Georgie and Hutch are both such likable characters and both of them have struggles and issues they need to overcome. I loved watching each of them grow and at the same time learning even more about this time in history.
One of the things I love the most about Sundin's books is how real her characters are. The situations they go through really tug on the emotions and this book had me teary-eyed many times.
Another thing I love is how she mentions song from the era in her books. A blogging friend of mine made a playlist of them to listen to as she read the book, which I thought was such a neat idea! When you do that it makes you feel even more as though you are transported back in time to that era!
I LOVED On Distant Shores and think it is a must read for any fan of WWII fiction, it is an absolutely amazing read! I have loved everyone of Sarah Sundin's books and can hardly wait for the third book in this series, In Perfect Time, to be released so I can read it.
***I received a complimentary copy of this book to review. I was asked to give my honest opinion of the book - which I have done.***
3 people found this helpful
★★★★★
5.0
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Courage and Trust in World War II
On Distant Shores picks up the history of the 802nd WW2 flight nurses with the life of Lt. George Taylor. As World War II continues, George learns two things about herself - the first, as the youngest, pampered daughter of a Southern family, she's never had to make decisions for herself. Even the decision to join the flight nurses was just following her lifetime best friend, tomboy Kay, into the program. The other thing George learns is that she's terrified, and when an emergency comes, she freezes. So the voices of family and fiancé saying "come home where you belong" are very loud. Along the way, she makes friends with John Hutchinson "Hutch", a pharmacist, who is also finding the way hard due to the lack of professional respect for his trade in the army. Though they both have a loved one waiting at home, these two believe it will be okay to be friends and encourage each other to grow. Ultimately, they are both learning the lesson that God's is the voice they should listen to, and His plans, not their own, are best.
In this second story of the series, the landscape changes from Northern Africa to Italy, taking the non-combatants closer to the war front and danger. Readers experience vicariously the enemy bombings of Red Cross tents, the irony of enjoying a party on the beach and visiting historic sites sandwiched between frantic efforts to save lives. Throughout the book, the deepening faith and spiritual growth of Georgie and Hutch remains an important focus. War II aficionados and those who just like a good story will enjoy this apparently accurate portrayal of day to day life for the medical personnel in Italy's war zones.
Sarah Sundin is an extremely good storyteller who has obviously researched well. On Distant Shores is a gripping novel that held my attention too long past my bedtime! I couldn't put the book down with only a few chapters to go. Although I'd definitely recommend that you read With Every Letter, this book would still be good as a stand-alone story.
I received a free copy of this book in exchange for my fair and honest review.
3 people found this helpful
★★★★★
5.0
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On Distant Shores
Sarah Sundin has been a favorite author of mine from the time I read her very first book. She writes World War II fiction with believable characters who have an unwavering faith in God. I love WWII fiction because my father served in the Coast Guard and since his death, my brother has been able to tell me more of his stories. I am sorry I missed hearing them first-hand.
Last night, I did something unusual--I went to bed early so I could read, Sarah's new book was just too fascinating to put down. I NEEDED to read it.
Georgiana is a flight nurse who feels she doesn't fit in, she went into this because her best friend was doing it too. Ward is Georgie's boyfriend back home and he desires for her to get out of flight nursing and come home to him. Her parents also wish for her to come back home and get out of such a dangerous profession. In other words, Georgie is coddled to the point of suffocation.
Georgie has decided to stand on her own two feet and listen to God instead of the cacophony of voices around her telling her what to do. After freezing up on a flight that ended in a collision with another plane on the ground, Georgie was sent back to the States to finish her training. Her commanding officer was hoping that Georgie would fail the training, but Georgie was determined to fulfill God's plan for her. If she failed, it was because she truly didn't have it in her to do the work. Georgie's determination is what got her through the training and allowed her to be transferred back to her original outfit.
Hutch is an enlisted pharmacist who is campaigning for a Pharmacists Corps in the Army which would allow the pharmacists to become officers instead of enlisted personnel. In the midst of his campaign, he forgets his purpose and his calling as a pharmacist, instead he pushes for the "respect" he feels he deserves from the other officers in the hospital.
During the course of their duties, Georgie and Hutch meet and have an attraction to each other, but both are faithful to those who are waiting for them back home: Georgie's Ward and Hutch's Phyllis. While Georgie was home to finish her training, she found that Hutch's Phyllis was already married and had had a son. She forces Phyllis to write to Hutch and tell him of her duplicity. At the same time, Ward's smothering ways and Georgie's decision to listen to God instead of the voices around her cause Ward and Georgie to come to a parting of the ways. When Georgie goes back to Italy, she and Hutch begin a romance, forbidden by the laws of the Army.
One of my favorite things to find in a work of fiction is finding something to learn from the characters in the book. Sarah has written a book that teaches me to block out the noise of the world and find God's voice. It reminds me of the verses in Proverbs 3:5-6 Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge Him and He will make your paths straight. This was the lesson Georgie and Hutch both had to learn, and they learned it well.
Five stars, two thumbs up, and a good dose of trust
3 people found this helpful
★★★★★
4.0
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Bibliophile Support Group Review
On Distant Shores is a historical fiction romance by Sarah Sundin and the second in her Wings of the Nightingale series.
Even though it is essentially a stand-alone novel, the characters from the first book With Every Letter overlap into On Distant Shores - for that reason, as well as that it's a lovely read, I recommend reading With Every Letter first.
Lt. Geogiana Taylor followed her best friend Rose to become a flight nurse during WWII. But she can't help but feel she's not up to the task.
Back home she has her longtime sweetheart waiting for her, a family that yearns for her return, and the comfort of not having men's lives in her hands any longer.
In July of 1943, Georgie is still struggling to do her job as unto the Lord when she meets pharmacist Sgt. John Hutchinson.
His warm smile and shy ways are endearing to her. He's also struggling - though determined to utilize his knowledge and education as a pharmacist he resents the lack of respect he receives as a non-commissioned officer. Just like Georgie, he has a fiancé waiting for his return as well - but he wants to return with a level of dignity he feels he's missing in his current position.
But as Georgie and Hutch's friendship grows, their lives at home begin to fall apart...
With Every Letter swept me in the era of WWII, and so did On Distant Shores!
Sarah Sundin expertly weaves a historical tale with enough fantastic, accurate detail and stakes to make everything feel very real - and has enough emotion and character depth to make you care about what's happening.
I love the believable period dialogue and banter! Nothing feels overwrought, overdramatic, or forced. There's a naturalness to On Distant Shores that makes the pages fly and my imagination land squarely in 1943. The characters have recognizable flaws that make them real.
On Distant Shores is romantic, inspiring, and soaked in WWII era life. It has great moments of personal growth and pivotal moments of recognizing the difference between man's goals and God's.
This is a truly effecting and touching novel! I cannot wait to read the third when it comes out!!!
*Available August 2013 at your favorite bookseller from Revell, a division of Baker Publishing Group.
*I received a copy of On Distant Shores from the Baker Publishing Group. Their generosity in no way influenced, nor sought to influence, my opinion of the novel.
*To read more reviews from the Bibliophile Support Group or comment on them, simply click on my Amazon profile and find a link there. I'd love you to check out my blog, where I post new reviews every Monday and Friday.
2 people found this helpful
★★★★★
5.0
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On Distant Shores by Sarah Sundin
Inspirational author Sarah Sundin brings readers the second book in her Wings of the Nightingale series, On Distant Shores. The series features a World War II setting and the lives of the flight nurses who served their country and their God during those turbulent times. Sundin's attention to detail seems effortless and her characterizations are realistic and believable. Her research is evident in every page of this romantic book, with a message. Fans of Sundin's work will not be disappointed and new readers will fall in love with the passionate characters and dramatic setting.
There were several things that I really enjoyed about this novel. Sarah Sundin always does her homework. She knows the ins and outs of World War II like the back of her hand. She is able to use her historical knowledge and background to give her books a very authentic and credible feel.
On Distant Shores focuses on the life of a flight nurse and a mobile pharmacist during the war. Both jobs were extremely important on the war front and Sundin does a fantastic job of showing the urgency and life and death situations that her characters were facing. It was so realistic at times readers will be able to imagine the sound of the bombs and smell of smoke in the air. Sundin is a master at making the reader feel like they are right in the middle of the action and in this case the war.
Georgie and Hutch were both excellent characters. What I think I liked most about Georgie was the personal growth she goes through in this story. Georgie has taken on the job of flight nurse during WWII. This was a hazardous job that meant taking your life in your hands on a daily basis. Though Georgie was scared and realized she had bitten off more than she could chew, she persevered and trusted in God to protect her. She began to realize that she wasn't very good at making decisions and that she had relied on other people in her life to tell her what to do. A lot of Georgie's growth dealt with the fact that she needed to trust herself and her own heart in deciding the course of her life. Sundin did a wonderful job showing Georgie's struggle and how she became aware of her issues and solved them. She was a character that readers will be able to identify with and understand.
The romance between Hutch and Georigie was very pure and wholesome, yet it had a real urgency about it, just like the situation they found themselves in the war. Hutch was very passionate about everything in his life from his work as a pharmacist to his relationship with Georgie. He had this zest for life that could not be dampened by the war. But there was a certain amount of pressure that continued to build between these two characters that was palpable. I liked the fact that Sundin was able to show their growing love for each other in romantic way without spoiling it with too much intimate detail. It left a little to the imagination which is often a novel concept in today's writing.
Sundin is always able to get her overall Christian inspirational message across in a way that doesn't beret the reader. She is subtle but doesn't shy away from the fact that her characters were relying on God to see them through. I liked the fact that she referenced Abraham and Issac and was able to show the reader a little something about the Bible that they may not have considered before. Sundin does an excellent job of getting her point across to the reader. This is a book that will appeal to romance readers of all kinds, with it's romantic appeal as well as it's underlying message.
2 people found this helpful
★★★★★
5.0
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Another fantastic Sarah Sundin novel!
After meeting Georgie (and briefly Hutch) in With Every Letter, I was really excited to see how their story would play out. They had so much going against them (they were both engaged to other people, officers and and enlisted men were not allowed to fraternize, and they were in the middle of a war) so I was very curious as to how they would make this relationship work. And while it was difficult they found a way which made a very beautiful story.
Georgie was a very fun heroine who never really learned to think for herself due to being the baby of the family whose decisions were always made for her. It was really cool to watch as she started to go to God to make her decisions rather than other people.
And Hutch, he was such an awesome hero and I honestly felt so bad for him. I was so impressed with the way he controlled himself around his rude superiors. He might have been seething on the inside but he never let it spill out to them, something I don't think I could do. He also impressed me several other times, like when he helped rescue and take care of an Italian orphan girl. His major fault was letting his desire to be in the Pharmacy Corps consume him and I loved when he finally realized that and gave his desire to God.
There were so many little things I loved in this book and they all came together to form a beautiful, emotional story that joined all of Sarah Sundin's other books on my favorites list!
I once again made a playlist of the songs mentioned in the book which you can find here: [...]
I received this book free from the publisher in exchange for my review. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own.
2 people found this helpful
★★★★★
5.0
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Great story!
I have thoroughly been enjoying the World War II romances by Sarah Sundin. Her most recent book is On Distant Shores which is the second book in her Wings of the Nightingale series.
The main characters of On Distant Shores are Georgie and Hutch, a flight nurse and a pharmacist, both working on the front lines of the war. It has been interesting to learn more about the World War II flight nursing program in this series, and this particular book focuses on the challenges of war-time pharmacists as well. The other "educational" element of the story had to do with astronomy.
In addition to the "I didn't know that!" moments throughout the book, I also appreciated the real-to-life struggles that Georgie and Hutch each had to deal with. In reading novels, I like to see the [fictional] characters overcome challenges in a believable way that can translate to similar situations or trials in my own life.
A well-written story makes me think, and hopefully, grow.
And if it broadens my education, so much the better.
