Far Side of the Sea

By: Kate Breslin

Narrated by: Sarah Zimmerman

Length: 10 hrs and 28 mins

Publisher's summary

In spring 1918, Lieutenant Colin Mabry, a British soldier working with MI8 after suffering injuries on the front, receives a message by carrier pigeon. It is from Jewel Reyer, the woman he once loved and who saved his life - a woman he believed to be dead. Traveling to France to answer her urgent summons, he desperately hopes this mission will ease his guilt and restore the courage he lost on the battlefield.   

Colin is stunned, however, to discover the message came from Jewel's half sister, Johanna. Johanna, who works at a dovecote for French Army Intelligence, found Jewel's diary and believes her sister is alive in the custody of a German agent. With spies everywhere, Colin is skeptical of Johanna, but as they travel across France and Spain, a tentative trust begins to grow between them.   

When their pursuit leads them straight into the midst of a treacherous plot, danger and deception turn their search for answers into a battle for their lives.

©2019 Kathryn Breslin (P)2019 Tantor

A little bit of everything

Far Side of the Sea is a difficult book to categorize. Is it a sweet Christian romance? Yes. Is it a good spy novel? Yes. Is it interesting historical fiction? Yes. This well-written story easily fits in any of these genres. I loved it. My book club has chosen it for their next read, and I know they will love it, too. (And I’m excited that I have an excuse to read it again so soon).

In the sweet Christian romance department, Colin Mabry is a man of honor, wounded during WW1 in body and in spirit—a hero in search of a fresh dose of courage. Johanna Reyer is a feisty young woman searching for what remains of her family during WW1—and also seeking to rise above the shame and secrets of her past. Together they must learn who they can truly trust.

I must confess, I don’t read many spy novels but I enjoyed this story, full of adventure and intrigue. It reminded me of the movie Charade (starring Cary Grant, Audrey Hepburn) in that I was constantly trying to figure out which characters could be trusted, and surprised when each one’s true “character” was revealed.

As for the historical fiction genre, I learned much about how carrier pigeons were used during The Great War, along with many other interesting tidbits of the history of that era. I consider it a mark of a good book when I want to pause reading to search out more of the facts alluded to in a historical fiction novel. However, this story was too engrossing to take many of those pauses until I had finished reading.

There is not much I didn’t like about this book except a particular euphemism that I felt was overused. I enjoyed the Downton Abbey-esque descriptions of the ladies’ fashion choices. I adore hats and the stunning cover art had me at hello. And that ending…all I can say is: goosebumps.

Far Side of the Sea

GreAt story ! The only thing that was a little frustrating was how often the main characters as spies were dupped . After the 3rd time of being drugged by tainted coffee I realized that double 07 they weren't ! Having them more astute to simple dangers would have made them more believable as high rankings spies !

Beautiful and suspenseful

As with all of Kate Breslin’s books, I was immediately drawn in by Ms. Breslin’s ability to paint a compelling picture with words. In this book, as with her others, she immediately works her way into your heart with believable characters and all the deep emotions revealed by both their interactions with each other and their private ruminating. She creates a vivid panorama of the world surrounding them in such detail that you feel as if you are experiencing it with all your own senses. The story is both tender and tense, tentative and hopeful, woven in such a way that you can’t stop reading because you can’t know what turn it will take next. All this, with perfect authenticity and simplicity. There is nothing contrived about any of this book; it feels completely real, like a page from your life. Once again, Ms. Breslin has taken us on a journey to a time and place we can never experience on our own, but one which leaves us feeling as if we were there, seeing, hearing, and feeling everything that transpired; and leaving us with an indelible memory.

I loved this so much!

Such a great story. It was exciting to the end. I love the characters, the dialogue, the intrigue. It was totally worth the read. Saving as a favorite!

Very intriguing story

Narrator has an awesome ability with different voices. Loved her voice in story Catching Christmas and searched for books she narrates. Surprising culprits. No wimpy or whiny heroine. Hero went through a lot and gained my admiration. He’s Grace’s brother from first of the series. Looking forward to book #3.

Worth a listen

I love that this isnt just another WW2 story. It’s different, and has just the right amount of espionage. Also, I never could figure out who to trust, and I think that takes skilled writing. The narrator was awesome too!

Enjoyed listening

I really enjoyed this book as I love series, the characters were believable and very interesting. The narrator was lovely and has a wonderful voice.

Amazing!

Amazing! Narrator was amazing, and the story was very well written. Definitely a new favorite of mine!

Great book

I really enjoyed this book. It had so many twists and turns. Great read! I love historical romances.

Historical romance mystery

Loved it. Writer has well developed characters, plot, and enough twists to keep the reader guessing