This book kept me turning the pages, like the previous book in the series, [b:measure of days|375806|The Measure of Our Days A Spiritual Exploration of Illness|Jerome Groopman|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1174275346s/375806.jpg|595889], but my heart wasn't in my throat as much. Many of the same Morland House characters readers have come to love populate this third installment of World War One in the overall 30 volume series of [a:harrod-eagles|130|Cynthia Harrod-Eagles|http://www.goodreads.com/images/nophoto/nophoto-F-50x66.jpg] English historical fiction series. The abdication of Nicholas II and the imprisonment of his family is part of the storyline here. As the noose tightens around the royal family, the sympathy that [a:harrod-eagles|130|Cynthia Harrod-Eagles|http://www.goodreads.com/images/nophoto/nophoto-F-50x66.jpg] usually builds for her characters is lacking, these characters are not as well developed as the reader usually enjoys, they are more like two dimensional figures on history's stage. But, the concurrent storyline of the battles at Ypres is compelling and the soldiers' plight in the trenches and the mud can not be ignored. To give credit where credit is due, [a:harrod-eagles|130|Cynthia Harrod-Eagles|http://www.goodreads.com/images/nophoto/nophoto-F-50x66.jpg] does not allow the awful years in the trenches to pass in a page or two . . . the three books she spends on the war bring home, even these many years later, the huge sacrifice in human life that the War required of so many for so long. ( )

Barely a year covered in this latest book- not that I'm complaining- 1917 was a pretty big year for the history books. More drama for the Morlands- and a big surprise at the end. Need the next book! ( )