War Poppy

by Nicole Lynne

Both my head and my heart hurt now that I have finished reading this book, I feel tortured almost, befuddled by the fact that a work of fiction should have such a visceral effect.

A story so intensely private that it was practically primal and one which left me feeling privileged to have experienced.

There is something about both Poppy and Brandon that took both them and their relationship to a place that I hadn’t anticipated. The had each other, yes and at times it seemed as if that was both, all they had and all they needed but was looks can be deceptive!

There wasn’t a single moment of their story that I didn’t feel connected too, the authors injected a life-force into them that was nothing short of brutal. Brandon…OMG how are you even functioning??

War and its effects had ravaged both Poppy and Brandon but it was Brandon’s pain that absorbed me, he was at the mercy of not just the physical effects of what happened but moreover the emotional and mental torture that refuses to give him peace. PTSD was his master, the demon that worn him like a second skin and that refused to allow him to move on, his continued pain its only objective…and it was winning!

 Brandon hid everything, including himself but Poppy was not only his best friends widow, she was his friend too, they had known each other since childhood. When she searches him out it wasn’t a given that he was going to accept her in his life again, her presence was far from a comforting fact but she was constant that he quickly determined that he couldn’t be without and she was where she needed to be, by his side but no matter how much I prayed and I was pleading at one point, my heart knew that what they had between them as never going to be enough and I so wanted to be proved wrong!

Overall this is more than just a story, it is a statement of fact, a harsh but realistic view at the truth of the pain that so many of our heroes suffer after conflict and war.

Was this what I expected, no if I am honest it wasn’t, it was so much more. Can I sum it up, yes, I think I can, it is heart-breakingly realistic.

Intensely emotional, this is a book that is poignantly astute, it will leave you with a heavy heart and a damp tissue in your hand.

I’m not only glad I read it but I’m glad the authors gave it and the characters the care and attention they deserved.