The Underground Library
Grade : B+

The Beatles famously sang, “I get by with a little help from my friends.” The Underground Library is the book form of those cheery, uplifting lyrics, showing, through the lives of three young women, that a little help can make all the difference.

1939: Sofie Baumann doesn’t want to go to London on her own. She dreads leaving her Jewish family behind in Germany, but they are adamant that she accept the domestic service visa they were able to get her. The journey is fraught with danger; numerous Jews, even those with work visas, are pulled from the train by Nazi soldiers, and it is only the intercession of an elderly nun that gets Sofie through all the checkpoints and into England. But once there, she finds that location fraught with danger as well. Her employer works her slavishly, forces her to sleep in the cold, damp cellar, and leaves bruises on her arms from his anger. When he sends her to the library to get him a book of maps, he doesn’t realize that he is giving her a ticket to a better life. But meeting the people there will change everything for young Sofie.

Juliet Lansdown is thrilled to be offered a position at Bethnal Green Library. It is her shot to leave a home where she is unwanted, unloved, and unappreciated and do work she cares passionately about. It is good to have this slim chance to build a career; the three years of her engagement had not progressed into a wedding, and has ended in possible humiliation. She knows her fiancé is missing, but there’s a chance he deserted - as opposed to being taken prisoner or killed - during those last hectic days in France. Regardless, he will not be back before war’s end, and a lot can happen between now and then. London isn’t without its problems, however. The library has few patrons, and there is talk of shutting it down. Complicating matters, the other tenant at her rented flat is her former nemesis, Sebastian Falconbury. Juliet, determined to ensure this opportunity is a success, quickly works to breathe new life into the fading library and takes pains to get along with Sebastian.

Katie Upwood, an ardent reader, is thrilled to be working at the library until she is able to start at university in the autumn. It’s been a great way to keep her mind off Christopher, her boyfriend who headed to war four months earlier. But just as it seems all her dreams are set to come true, she receives notice that Christopher has died, and she will be left alone to face the consequences of their passionate affair.

When the Germans begin bombing London, the ladies are forced to spend their evenings sheltering from the devastation. It isn’t long before everyone is gathering on the station platforms of the London Underground. Initially, Juliet brings novels just for the reading pleasure of her and her friends. Reading aloud for an hour a night to her little cluster of book-lovers is a way to help pass the stressful nights far from the comfort and former safety of their beds. Juliet’s sessions quickly extend beyond their little group, however, and she soon finds herself bringing many more books along to lend out.

When the library is destroyed during one of the endless blitzes, Juliet gathers what inventory survives. She convinces the council to let her start a new library in a new location in the Underground station, where she has already garnered a small set of patrons. It becomes a beacon of hope and a source of escape for those facing a trial of fire with no end in sight.

As always, Ms. Ryan does a lovely job of setting her story within a rich historical tapestry. While the London Blitz was a horrific event, full of terror and death, the author lands us in the warmest, safest spot of that frightening era - the London Underground. Whole communities built up in these areas, full of people doing their best to carry on through a grim situation. Our characters make a lovely, close-knit extended family out of those who share the space with them. Especially charming are the Ridley sisters, Irene and Dorothy, who play pivotal roles in helping Sophie break free of her sadistic employer and build a new life. The elderly sisters also set up a school for the children whose buildings have been bombed and who need a new place to learn. Mrs. Ottley, Juliet’s landlady, plays the role of the warm, caring mother all of us wish we had, and young Meg, a lonely little girl who must brave the blitz by herself while her father works, is the perfect child who makes all their efforts at education and encouraging reading worthwhile. These secondary characters are richly drawn and make delightful additions to the story.

The theme here is about taking your first steps into independence and helping others as you find your own way along that path. Juliet’s parents had refused to let her go to college or really plan any sort of life except getting married, and it’s pretty clear she chose the man she did simply to fulfill their demands while still maintaining some level of freedom. When everyone is asked to ‘do their bit’, it gives her the perfect opportunity to respectably leave home and fulfill her dream of embarking on a career. It also gives her the chance to make fresh assessments of old rivalries and discover the type of love - and the type of life - that will suit her best.

Sophie has many harrowing experiences on her way to freedom. Finding the right people makes all the difference for her, enabling her to grow strong rather than bitter from her struggles and leading her to love, both of the romantic and of the found family sort.

Katie, too, discovers that the right people make all the difference in the world. While I found her story the sappiest in a saccharine-saturated tale, I appreciated the author showing how difficult it was to rise above an unplanned pregnancy for an unmarried woman at this time. Katie initially tries to get an abortion but quickly discovers how dangerous and difficult that is and has to find other ways to deal with her situation. The author waves a great many magic wands to ensure there are no painful consequences to Katie’s actions, but there are clear implications that things could easily have gone badly for her.

I can’t give details on the heroes because the love stories take place in the second half of the book, but there are two lovely romances, as well as a miraculous HEA in the tale. I enjoyed Sophie and Juliet’s relationships a lot.

Like this author’s previous works, The Underground Library is a bubbly, hopeful tale about rising above any and all challenges life may throw at you with the help of friends. It is heavily sugar-coated, so that bad decisions never lead to bad results, but you should definitely pick this one up when you're in the mood for something super sweet.

Reviewed by Maggie Boyd
Grade : B+

Sensuality: Kisses

Review Date : March 13, 2024

Publication Date: 03/2024

Review Tags: London World War II

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Maggie Boyd

I've been an avid reader since 2nd grade and discovered romance when my cousin lent me Lord of La Pampa by Kay Thorpe in 7th grade. I currently read approximately 150 books a year, comprised of a mix of Young Adult, romance, mystery, women's fiction, and science fiction/fantasy.
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