The title employs the phrase used by many at the start of the First World War; sadly, those hopes were greatly optimistic and the conflict lasted four years, claiming thousands of lives. So many lives. In a brave and bold attempt to reflect those lives and times, William Daysh has examined a number of real life people and imagined other fictional characters, blending them into an engrossing novel about cataclysmic events.
Some two years before the outbreak of war, Prime Minister
Asquith, 59, fell in love with 24-year-old Venetia Stanley. Married and a
father of five, Asquith confided state secrets to Venetia. Alongside him were
politicians and military leaders whose bickering and antagonism towards each
other simmered and often affected the decision-making process during the war.
Among these were Churchill, Admiral Fisher, Lord Kitchener, Bonar Law and Lloyd
George. Naturally, the common soldier and sailor sent to fight the politicians’
war were oblivious of the in-fighting and preening self-importance of their
leaders. Which was just as well, for morale if not for the war itself.
One family who went to war was the Royals. George followed in
his father’s footsteps, joining the Royal Navy as a gunnery rating. The naval
town of Gosport is brought to life, as are the hardships of serving at sea.
Time ashore is savoured and George spends much of it with his best mate, Bill,
a tradesman who was deemed unfit for service. It is during one of his visits
that he meets Bill’s live-in girlfriend, Carrie, who is an unwed mother.
The scene is set for a love triangle. Before any kind of
relationship can be sorted for George, his ship is called to the South Atlantic
to avenge a bitter naval defeat under the guns of German Admiral von Spee’s
heavy cruiser Scharnhorst. It seemed that no sooner was that action
successfully concluded than Churchill, Admiral Fisher and the Prime Minister
concocted a scheme to invade Turkey through the Dardanelles, thereby breaking
through to relieve Russia. Little did they realise that this Gallipoli campaign
would have dire consequences for more than one political and service career.
George’s ship was sent to the Dardanelles, where he would be involved in a
landing party and life-and-death situations.
Inevitably, Carrie and George are drawn to each other, but
life is not going to be simple for this ill-starred couple, it seems…
Daysh manages to juggle several balls with assurance during
the narrative. The conditions at the home front are well depicted and the
emotions of Asquith’s wife, Churchill and the confused Venetia are
realistically conveyed. The narrative is aided by the inclusion of excerpts
from Asquith’s letters to Venetia – he tended to write at least once a day to
her. The battles at sea, and the rise of ungentlemanly submarine warfare, are
recreated in suspenseful and taut prose. The bickering between Churchill, Lord
Fisher and Kitchener make grim reading when it is realised how many lives are
at stake. At one point, it is mentioned that the loss of ships is causing
concern – they’re hard to replace, whereas men are plentiful. Saved for the
closing chapters, there is an intriguing revelation from Carrie’s past that puts
much into perspective.
We learn of Asquith and his infatuation, his peers and
faulty decision-makers; we share in the trauma and loss of conflict at sea and
on the Turkish peninsula; and we empathise with those left at home to pick up
the pieces and make something of their lives during a period of grey austerity.
Everybody seems to realise that no matter what the outcome of the war – and by
the book’s close, the conclusion is not certain – nothing will ever be the same
again. Highly recommended.
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