After my last book -The Book of Form and Emptiness- I was relieved to pick this up. I found the tone of writing adopted reminiscent of a Nevil Shute. She cleverly captures an English tone of that period, I thought. It was a quick enjoyable undemanding read. Just the tonic. Another book that looks at the use of artists in facial reconstruction during the First World War and the gruelling condition of the army hospitals at the front. Also a story of love and friendship in times of duress. ( )

I had an odd experience while listening to the audio book of Stella Bain, I listened to the first three discs and the morning that I was going to listen to the next, our apartment and all whole third floor were evaculated due to rain damage. We were away in motels for 41 days. Finally back, I wondered if I could remember the plot. Ironic?

This tale created by Anita Shreve does involve amnesia! In my college abnormal psychology class, wse were told not to think about amnesia because true amnesia is very rare. That thought lingering in my mind while listened to the book. In fairness to the author, I must say that I have three rare diseases and two rare reactions to medicines. This book is fiction but it does bring to light the condition of shellshot and brain trauma.

I enjoyed the story of a woman in the United States, who reluctantly married a man, had a daughter, and a son and found her life unbearable. Loving her children but fearing for her own safety, she left home. Later, in a panic after her husband located her, attacked and raped her, she wanted to get away from and joined the British war effort as a nursing aid. Voluteering to drive an ambulance, she receives injury and loses her memory of who she was. Having to tell her name when she could not remember it, she told the hospital that her name was Stella Bain. The author does an excellant job of showing through the character, the horrible demise of loosing your memory. We go with her on her painful journey of discovering her past with the aid of a doctor. The tale unfolds as she slowly recovers her past and then has to battle to make things right.

A very enjoyable and poignant story. ( )

It is not unknown for Shreve to revisit her characters, and I generally enjoy that approach. This time, however, it felt more like retreading ground than opening up new vistas. I have been an avid fan for a long time, but I was somewhat disappointed with this book.

Of course, I realize that were I not a Shreve fan, I would no doubt have found this book quite good. There is so much expectation. I will probably not be in a rush with her next release and will be content to wait and buy a copy when I don't have to pay top dollar for the read. ( )

Wounded Stella cannot remember who she is, but she can remember that she knows how to drive an ambulance and help with wounded in the wartime front. For some unexplained reason, she feels she must get to London and will find her answers at The Admiralty. Along the way, she begins to remember tiny bits of her memory, but only enough to frustrate her and aggravate her trauma-related symptoms. What will her mind reveal once the door to her memories is opened...and will she truly want to know?

This was a great book! I read it in 2 days and am excited to seek out more stories by Ms. Shreve! ( )

While this was not a bad book, it was somewhat unenjoyable to read, IMHO. I really can’t bring myself to rate it above two stars, for these reasons:

The early chapters based in WWI French front were interesting, the descriptions of the conditions were enjoyable enough to keep going through, and I enjoyed this part. The main character, made intriguing by her amnesia and the ‘shell shock’ made for an interesting focus to view the situation from. In retrospect I think that even at this early stage I could have done with more detail about the war and fleshing out of the historical context, however it was still interesting reading even if it was a bit ‘WWI-Lite’.

The slightly later chapters which dealt in more detail with Stella's amnesia, the condition then known as shell shock, and the ‘new treatment’ were also vaguely interesting...... I guess. I really tried to enjoy the use of her drawing and artwork throughout the story, but in this section it wasn't that effective. More details of the era and the situation would have been nice, and I found that this part of the book felt it was quite placid, and somewhat boring, rather than the thrilling one it could have been if the war had featured more strongly.

The latter part of the book when ‘Stella Bain’s’ memory comes back and we transition to America was... well, I can only say that I found it exceptionally tedious. The court 'drama' dragged on and on, and I found myself completely uninterested in it, whether Stella/etna would get her kids back, and I didn't really care. I gave up about 16 chapters of the audiobook, with ten left to go. I cannot stay awake if I keep listening to this, and I find I don't really want to.

I am quite disappointed in this novel. I really love a good historical fiction novel, especially set in the past (whether near or far). I felt that this novel entirely missed its mark. What could have been a great historical fiction novel about WW2, was reduced to a custody battle between an abusive husband and a woman with a lot of health issues. If I had wanted to relive this, I would get out my diaries and reread that mess. And the whole time I'm writing this, I am left with a faint sensation of 'glad to be finished'.

2 stars, sorry. ( )