A review by amy_alwaysreading
The Women by Kristin Hannah

5.0

Many thanks to my friends at @stmartinspress and @macmillan.audio for the #gifted copies of this book.  

 

Impactful. Eye opening. Drenched in emotion.  Women are heroes, and war is hell.  

 

This book has consumed my thoughts since finishing it.  

 

There’s no doubt that Hannah has written many books about significant timeframes and overlooked female heroes.  But this one, it’s quite possibly her most important to date.  

 

As a milspouse, this book hit particularly hard.  I’ve seen the impact of war first-hand.  And in this novel, Hannah gets it agonizingly right.  

 

It’s gut wrenching and raw.  It’s, “how can a person handle any more?!”  It’s sobbing tears and choking pain.  It’s being home and yet not free.  

 

Walking in Frankie’s shoes was an immersive experience.  To encounter such trauma and then to be overlooked and discounted.   It ripped my heart out.  I wanted better for her.  

 

It’s worth noting that Hannah utilizes two of my most detested tropes. I wanted to hate it.  Instead, I realized the brilliance in their execution.  They masterfully showcased the traumatizing, life altering effects of combat.  A person… irrevocably changed into something different, unrecognizable.  

 

It’s not all heartbreak and turmoil though.  There is deep, abiding, life impacting friendship.  There is hope and overcoming.  There is honor and recognition.  I was so proud of Frankie in the end.

 

And there are the real women behind this fictional account.  True heroes deserving a spotlight.  

 

A definitive must read, and a necessary lesson for us all.  

 

But grab a friend (like @books_and_biceps9155 ) and a box of tissues first! 

 

🎧 Narrated by the incomparable Julia Whelan, the audiobook is a richly executed, immersive experience.  Whelan fully embodies Frankie, bringing powerful emotion to life while also propelling the narrative with a sense of urgency.