In a Field of Blue by Gemma Liviero

In a Field of Blue by Gemma Liviero was our second book for Quill Quotes Book Club! Find out more about our Book Club and check out discussions for In a Field of Blue. Historical Fiction won the genre vote for May. Kevin had previously read a book by Gemma Liviero, A Road Beyond Ruin, and really liked it. So he was pretty excited when this book won the book vote. There were mixed feelings about the book. Most people thought 3 or 4 stars making the average 3.5 stars which I think is fitting.

Book Stats

• Title: In a Field of Blue
• Author: Gemma Liviero
• Genre: Historical Fiction
• Publication Date: Feb. 1, 2020
• Pages: 402
• Est. Reading Time: 10 hours
• My Rating: 4/5 Stars
• Buy Now: Amazon or BAM!

In a Field of Blue Summary

Rudy’s brother Edgar went missing in action in France during WWI. Four years later, Rudy and his family are still grieving when a woman, Marriette, shows up to their estate with a little boy. She is claiming to be Edgar’s widow and the boy Edgar’s son. Rudy asks her to stay while they figure it out. Rudy starts to develop feelings for Mariette but she brings up more questions than answers about his brother. Determined to find out what happened to his brother, he sets out on a mission. Along the way, he learns the horrors of WWI.

Thoughts

We broke the book down into 2 discussions. The first half of the book seemed very different from the second half. I wasn’t a huge fan of how descriptive the author was. I like more dialogue or action than descriptions of scenery. Also, I am not very familiar with the WWI era Europe but even with lots of descriptions, I had a hard time envisioning it.

I did enjoy the mystery aspect. I had my suspicions but I wasn’t 100% right, whereas Kevin got it almost right on the nose. The mystery wasn’t everything though; I would say the main theme was family with a focus on siblings. Almost halfway through the book, we switch to Marriette’s perspective and I really like her section. I enjoyed learning about her back story but it seemed almost like a separate book.

There were mixed feelings about the epilogue. If you would like to see more of our thoughts with spoilers check out our final book club discussion.

Favorite Quotes

My Favorite Quotes:

“Helene believed that you must never dwell on bad things, because they will infect and blacken your brain like the plague.”

– Gemma Liviero, In a Field of Blue

“There is enough to carry in life without having to carry the worries of others.”

– Gemma Liviero, In a Field of Blue

I always like quotes that can be read out of context but it’s still easy to understand the deeper meaning. Recently, I have been highlighting a lot of quotes about mental health. There are a lot of people struggling right now and it can be a heavy burden to bear. PTSD is another theme throughout the book. Liviero does a great job describing it and showing how ill-equipped the army, hospitals, and everyone were at dealing with it during and post-WWI.

Kevin’s Favorite Quotes:

“Children are much more resilient than we think. They need to learn the hard lessons, and that life can change in an instant. Mistakes are the only way to learn.”

– Gemma Liviero, In a Field of Blue

“I had been warned at an earlier stop about the cold, but I did not think much about it, my mind only on the prize. And one often has to experience something to fully understand.”

– Gemma Liviero, In a Field of Blue

Final Thoughts on In a Field of Blue

This is not my favorite book from Book Club but it’s a decent read. I gave it 4 stars but Kevin wasn’t a huge fan and gave it 3 stars. He didn’t like the romance; I didn’t mind but thought they fell in love a little too quickly for my taste. He also didn’t really like the mystery aspect, since he guessed it right, or how the book changed character perspectives. Again, the average rating was 3.5 but I would still highly recommend to people who are into historical fiction, especially set around WWI.