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The Underground Library by Jennifer Ryan

Having thoroughly enjoyed Jennifer Ryan's previous book, The Wedding Dress Sewing Circle I was thrilled to get my hand on The Underground Library - from sewing to books, two of my favourite things!

In this story we follow three strong women, all finding purpose and solace in the library. 

When the library in Bethnal Green in London is hit by the bombs during the second world war, they are threatened with closure, but the deputy librarian Juliet and the other staff have other plans. They are determined to keep the library going, to provide a safe and welcoming place for the locals, helping them escape from the horrors of the nightly bombings. 

With more and more people taking shelter in the underground station, Juliet and her team move as many books as they can there and the underground library is born providing a social place for everyone to meet.

Based on various true event, with the freedom of a fiction writer, Jennifer Ryan has created another amazing story which drags you in and makes you want to know that everyone will be OK in the end - be it an unexpected pregnancy, the death of a loved one, a malicious boss or stolen jewellery. 


The Underground Library by Jennifer Ryan will be available on 12 March 2024, but can be preordered now. 


#TheUndergroundLibrary #NetGalley.


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