'The Kind Ghosts' by Linda Newbery

Summary: It is the summer of 1917 and still neither side seems close to victory. Jack and Alice Smallwood, already disillusioned by the harsh realities of three years of war, have each lost someone dear. But the war grinds on, to Jack, in the mud of Flanders, and to Alice, at a base hospital in France, it seems that it must go on forever. And after the armistice, the joy and relief at returning to home life are soon cut short by unexpected and dramatic complications.

Warning: This review contains spoilers from its prequel, Some Other War. Proceed with caution.  

 MY THOUGHTS:

I consider myself lucky with book sightings. I plucked this paperback off the freebie trolley at a secondhand bookshop. It was clearly a vintage read with a catchy title. At first I thought it might have a supernatural theme, then discovered it is the second in a duology about the First World War. Fortunately its prequel is available on Internet Archive, so I raced through that (Some Other War) to get to this one. 

We are back with Jack and Alice, the Smallwood twins, whose lives were abruptly shattered in 1914. Part One picks up where Some Other War leaves off, in the chaos of combat. This time, each twin narrowly avoids death. Jack gets gassed in the trenches and Alice's Base Hospital is bombed by German planes. 

Although many characters cross these pages, the seven main characters are essentially the same as the first book. Jack and Alice, Philip, Edward, Lorna, Harriet, and Stephen. The two dead guys deserve to be still included, for the influence they continue to wield. 

Part Two deals with the twins trying to put together the pieces of their lives after Armistice Day. Jack deals with survivor's guilt, PTSD, and recurring nightmares. Then his wife, Harriet, delivers him a whopping emotional blow. 

Alice's continued grief over the loss of her beloved Edward leaves her wondering whether she remains in love with an idealized, embellished version of her fiancė rather than the real one. Edward's sister, Lorna, suggests this might hold some truth. Then the last person Alice would ever have expected romantic overtures from suddenly declares his love for her. 

I appreciate how Jack and Alice always have each other's backs whenever necessary. She changes her plans to stay near him when he's in hospital, and in turn, she's the first person he thinks to confide his heartbreaking domestic news to. Their relationship is bedrock. It's almost enough to make me wish I'd had a twin brother. 

Every character lives and breathes, including the infamous Harriet. I'm sure we've all come across girls like her in real life. They are shallow and restless, acting on sudden whims, and never thinking beyond their own concerns. Yet the Harriets of the world tend to fall on their feet and live reasonably easy lives, because they never lapse into moments of self-reflection. Therefore, they completely avoid self-reproach or remorse. 'Shame' is a word that never crosses their minds. Some archetypal characters similar to Harriet from the classics include Lydia Bennet and Rosamond Vincy. 

It turns out Harriet made a calculating, cold-blooded move in the first book. Yet from her own own point of view, this heartless character simply performed an action that needed to be done for her own protection. The person who put her in the position to deem it necessary is equally culpable (and he shall remain nameless). 

The twins' faith in the supernatural takes a sound battering, and understandably so. Alice admits to herself that she's merely going through the motions of singing and praying in church. Yet is their faith in providential machinations really dented beyond repair? On the very last page, Jack considers that the benevolent ghosts of Edward and Stephen may be working behind the scenes to find him and Alice each perfect soul mates. At last, the significance of the book's title is revealed. 

If I had any criticisms, Newbery spends a lot of time having Jack and Alice interacting with lovers who are completely wrong for them. Scenes spent with their perfect soul mates are far sparser in comparison, and I would have lapped up more of these.  

Yet The Kind Ghosts leaves me still thinking about the characters long after I finished, which is the litmus test of a great novel. With Jack and Alice in particular, Newbery has us share so many intimate moments in their skin, even when they're alone. Hence, I can't help loving these two in a really empathetic way. And since the unfolding horror of war elicits these reactions, it reinforces what I've long known, that a well-written story is the best way to bring history to life. 

🌟🌟🌟🌟