The Call of the Wrens

by Jenni L Walsh

Overview

The Call of the Wrens introduces the little-known story of the daring women who rode through war-torn Europe carrying secrets on their shoulders.

An orphan who spent her youth without a true home, Marion Hoxton found in the Great War something other than destruction. She discovered a chance to belong. As a member of the Women’s Royal Naval Service—the Wrens—Marion gained sisters. She found purpose in her work as a motorcycle dispatch rider assigned to train and deliver carrier pigeons to the front line. And despite the constant threat of danger, she and her childhood friend Eddie began to dream of a future together. Until the battle that changed everything.

Now twenty years later, another war has broken out across Europe, calling Marion to return to the fight. Meanwhile others, like twenty-year-old society girl Evelyn Fairchild, hear the call for the first time. For Evelyn, serving in the war is a way to prove herself after a childhood fraught with surgeries and limitations from a disability. The re-formation of the Wrens as World War II rages is the perfect opportunity to make a difference in the world at seventy miles per hour.

Told in alternating narratives that converge in a single life-changing moment, The Call of the Wrens is a vivid, emotional saga of love, secrets, and resilience—and the knowledge that the future will always belong to the brave souls who fight for it.

• Historical, stand-alone novel
• Book length: approximately 94,000 words
• Includes discussion questions for book clubs

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781400233885
Publisher:	Harper Muse
Publication date:	11/15/2022
Pages:	368
Sales rank:	28,463
Product dimensions:	8.20(w) x 5.40(h) x 0.90(d)

About the Author

Jenni L. Walsh worked for a decade enticing readers as an award-winning advertising copywriter before becoming an author. Her passion lies in transporting readers to another world, be it in historical or contemporary settings. She is a proud graduate of Villanova University, and lives in the Philadelphia suburbs with her husband, daughter, son, and various pets.

Jenni is the author of historical novels Becoming Bonnie, Side by Side, A Betting Woman, and The Call of the Wrens. She also writes books for children, including the nonfiction She Dared series and historical novels Hettie and the London Blitz, I Am Defiance, By the Light of Fireflies, and Over and Out. To learn more about Jenni and her books, please visit jennilwalsh.com or @jennilwalsh on social media.

Editorial Reviews

09/05/2022

Walsh (Becoming Bonnie) offers an enticing story of two Englishwomen serving their country during both world wars. In 1917, Marion Hoxton ages out of the orphanage she was raised in and joins the Women’s Royal Naval Service (the “Wrens”), while her best friend Eddie Smith joins the Royal Navy. As they each make their way toward the front lines in France, their friendship develops into romance. Meanwhile, Marion works as a dispatch rider and helps her new friend Sara train carrier pigeons to send and retrieve messages. In a parallel narrative set in 1940, well-to-do Evelyn Fairchild joins the Wrens, desperate to prove she’s overcome a childhood disability impacting one of her legs by serving as a motorcycle driver. Evelyn and Marion’s paths cross when Marion returns to be a leader in the new Wrens, her romance with Eddie having turned out not as they’d hoped. Marion also harbors a secret about Evelyn’s true parentage, as Evelyn’s parents failed to disclose she was adopted. Walsh expertly contrasts the lives of orphaned Marion with privileged Evelyn to expose their common desire to show their value outside societal labels. Historical fiction fans will be riveted. Agent: Shannon Hassan, Marsal Lyon Literary Agency. (Nov.)

Publishers Weekly

Walsh really captures the intensity of war, transporting the reader back in time and driving home the anxiety and uncertainty of the era, but also the fortitude and sacrifice of the men and women who dared to join the fight.

Nashville Book Review

'A tale filled with strong emotion, hope, and determination, it is highly thought-provoking and entertaining. It is clearly evident Ms. Walsh has spent indeterminable hours researching and putting together a well-written and memorable story about past events to make them truly authentic as well as informative.'

New York Journal of Books

'Walsh follows two English women, Marion and Evelyn, showing how they became involved with the Women's Royal Naval Service, more commonly known as the Wrens . . . This well-written, straightforward book will be of interest to readers curious about the types of work available to English women who wanted to aid in war efforts during both world wars.'

Booklist

'Spanning decades in a story that is both epic and intimate, The Call of the Wrens is an original and compelling tale of sisterhood and strength.'

New York Times bestselling author of The Woman wit Pam Jenoff

'The heroines in Walsh's latest can be found racing around war-torn Europe on motorbikes, relaying secret messages and undertaking daring missions as part of the real-life women's branch of the Royal Navy . . . an absolute treat for historical fiction lovers.'

New York Times bestselling author of The Magnolia Fiona Davis

'Laced with triumph and tragedy, bravery and redemption, this tale of finding oneself in modern history's darkest hours will break your heart and put it back together again, all in one delightful read.'

New York Times bestselling author of The Forest of Kristin Harmel

From its intriguing cover to the author's note at the end, this book will captivate readers . . . The characters (including a brave pigeon) are sympathetic and believable, the plot has plenty of surprises, and the history of these heroic women is fascinating . . . an ideal read in a cozy chair with a cup of tea in front of the fireplace.

Historical Novel Society