Helen Humphreys knows how to tell a good story. Her latest book, The Evening Chorus is about a marriage, a love affair and the effects of war on both. James and Rose marry in England during World War Two amidst uncertainty and turmoil. When James is taken prisoner by the Germans, he fills his days behind barbed wire studying birds while his young wife tries to fill her days back in England by growing a Victory garden, tending to her parents and falling in love with another man.

When James’s sister Enid asks to move in with Rose following the bombing of her London flat, Rose is hesitant. The two women get off to a bad start but eventually come to an understanding that allows them to coexist under difficult conditions. Humphreys has a lyrical writing style that is easy to read. The plot and characters are not complicated but the story is engaging and worth reading.