Books about World War I are much less common than WWII, so Bluebird caught my interest.
In the present day, Cassie is interested in the history of her little Canadian town, where during prohibition, the rumrunners ferried illegal whiskey across the Detroit River into the United States. When bottles of Bailey Brothers' Best are found in an old home, she is eager to help the recent owner of the home. The home also happens to be her family home, the one in which Cassie grew up. I must admit, I lost interest during these parts of the book. Fortunately, this part took way fewer pages than the historical part.
In 1918, Adele, a "Bluebird" Canadian nurse is stationed in Belgium at a field hospital. Jerry, a tunneler also from Canada, is brought in after a cave-in at the tunnel that he and his brother are helping to dig under enemy lines. He's badly wounded, and during his recovery, Adele and Jerry form a very close relationship. Turns out they live very close to each other back in Canada, near the Detroit River.
From that, you can probably figure out the storyline. They both return home and eventually meet up. Jerry becomes involved in whiskey production and rumrunning. The story is fascinating. We think we have it hard now, but when they came home from the war, the Spanish Flu was running rampant. And there was also prohibition.
Bluebird really kept my interest, and I love the historical aspect of both the horrible atrocities of war and the interesting manifestations of prohibition. Like I said, I didn't think the present-day story was really needed, but it was okay.
If you are interested in WWI, and/or prohibition, Bluebird is well worth your time.
Published by Simon & Schuster, April 5, 2022
eARC obtained from NetGalley352 pages
Rating: 4/5
