Daughters of War

August 1, 2011
I volunteered to collect wounded men from the battlefield and give first aid, not to nurse plague victims, insists Victoria, who convinced fellow socialite and heroine Leonora, called Leo, to join her in FANY, an organization of British women volunteering to transport soldiers from Serbian battlefields to safety and administer emergency aid. Though Turkish-Serbian hostilities wax and wane, typhus hits, and Leo is determined to stay and help. That's not the only unexpected development. Wearing breeches and with her hair cropped, Leo is mistaken for a young man by the dashing Serb Colonel Malkovic, who makes use of her translation and personal-assistant skills. In a Shakespearian turn, Leo is smitten and afraid that he will disdain her for her deceit in a time and place when only scandalous women ride horses astride. Green's smooth, measured pace perfectly fits the era immediately preceding WWI. This is the first in the Leonora trilogy, and the promise of more of her adventures will delight readers.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2011, American Library Association.)