I did start to feel frustrated with both characters, but most especially with Audrey. The young couple is happy at first, but they begin to have their share of struggles and this was a difficult section to read. Travelling from England, to start a new life with her Canadian husband, Audrey is a representative of the legacy of how the war brides changed and shaped our early 20th century society. Something which will be a struggle for the traditional Danny. Graham also exposes us to the social issues of women desiring the vote and we see that Audrey is a product of that change.

Her brief encounter with Danny during his time in France and the letters they share are a testament to the love that they feel for each other. In Audrey Poulin, our female protagonist, we see a young woman that was orphaned at a young age that grew up with grandparents that at times did not make her feel loved. I felt that Graham really paid careful to attention to the struggles soldiers had with what we now know as PTSD and also how alcoholism became a real coping mechanism. Danny, is forced to re-adjust to civilian life although the horrors of what Danny saw in the war still haunt his dreams. I swear after the first four chapters I had to stop and grab a Kleenex. Graham packs an emotional punch right from the beginning with an injured Danny Baker returning to his parents in Nova Scotia. As a person who bursts with pride at hailing from the 'Maritimes', I am very glad that Graham chose to a) speak about the life of a soldier in World War One, a war that our country is slowly beginning to ignore, and b) the devastating disaster of the Halifax explosion. If you have never read a Genevieve Graham book, what's wrong with you? Seriously, this author knows how to take her readers back into the past and it's a real gift.

Tides of honour by genevieve graham