Sarah’s War by Eugenia Lovett West is set during the Revolutionary War. I received this book as part of BookSparks’ Blind Date with a Book Spring 2019 campaign.
Sarah’s War is my first blind date with a book! It’s a neat concept that I’ve seen many bookstores incorporate. The idea is that you don’t know what book you’ve received until you open the packaging. I really like the concept because it forces me to step out of my comfort zone when it comes to reading.
There’s many historical fiction novels focused on the 1920s up to the 1990s; with lots of novels covering WWII. But Sarah’s War takes the reader back to the American Revolutionary War and the battle between the American Patriots and the British. I don’t think I’ve read any fiction books that take place in this era so it was definitely a change of pace.
Synopsis:
The year 1777 is a pivotal in the United States. The Revolutionary War has long since begun, with no end in sight. George Washington and his untrained militia struggle to survive. The thirteen states are torn apart by politics. Amidst all this chaos, Sarah Champion―a young Patriot and parson’s daughter whose twin brother was killed in the Battle of Long Island―is sent from rural Connecticut to live with a rich Loyalist aunt in Philadelphia. There, she is plunged into a world of intrigue and treachery. She spies on British officers enjoying festivities in winter quarters. She goes to Valley Forge with information about a plot to kill Washington.
As the war drags on, Sarah digs deep for the strength, courage, and wits to overcome the numerous deadly threats she faces, driven on by her determination to realize one dream: being part of the efforts to form a new and independent country.
The era
The key with historical fiction is really bringing the reader back to a certain era. I imagine writing a story set in 1777 came with plenty of challenges. I felt that the author did well with the story setting. The characters also sounded from another era as well. There was no guarantee the American patriots would be successful so having the story take place in the middle of the conflict is intriguing. You can tell the author did plenty of research from the battles to the spies to the overall feel of that time period.
Multiple perspectives
While Sarah is the main character, we do read the perspectives of quite a few other characters. However, Sarah is the most engaging character—some of the characters aren’t as memorable. Also, while I love any historical fiction story that features women as spies; I wanted more undercover work from Sarah!
There is also romance, more than one, and I had mixed feelings about those. While I do enjoy romance within this genre, some of it felt a bit rushed. But maybe it’s because it was during a war?
Overall, I though this was a well-researched story about a very long ago era.
