The Bungalow by Sarah Jio

The year is 1942 and the country is at war. Twenty-one year old, Anne Calloway is about to marry a man she has known all her life. As Anne prepares to walk down the aisle, she begins to question the life set before her. Her best friend Kitty announces she has enlisted to serve as a nurse and is headed to the Pacific island of Bora-Bora to serve. Anne believes this is her chance to make sure she is about to choice the right life for herself. So Anne heads to Bora-Bora with Kitty.

Shortly after arriving, Anne meets a handsome soldier named Westry. Anne and Westry find an abandoned bungalow on the beach and they begin the processes of repairing it. While repairing the bungalow, they would leave each other little notes in and over time their friendship turns to romance. Then one evening everything changes when a shocking crime occurs. Anne’s tour is over and Westry is being redeployed. Yet the mystery of what happened that night is still lingering. Will they find each other again, was their love the sort of love that stands the test of time and war? You need to read it yourself to find out, but I promise you will be glad you did.

 I’m not sure about anyone else, but when I read I see the story in my head. Some books are more real than others. Sometimes they are even a little hazy and I get moments of focus. For me, The Bungalow was an old black and white movie straight out of my grandparent’s generation. I was swept away by Jio’s vivid descriptions and I loved every minute of it. I honestly could visualize the entire book! Once again, I couldn’t put Sarah’s book down! Thank goodness I mostly read after the kids went to bed because I was so engrossed in the story I lost track of time. I finished The Bungalow in a day.

When the story was over, I was left with a few questions. At first this really bothered me, but truthfully it makes the whole story more realistic. When in real life is everything tied up nice and pretty? Almost never. When the story ended, I was sad. I wanted more—I didn’t want to leave these characters. I will now have to sit on my hands and wait for Jio’s next novel to be published.

An absolute definite recommend! I recall after I read Sarah’s first book, The Violets of March, saying it was my favorite book. I think after reading The Bungalow I can say Sarah Jio is my favorite contemporary writer. 

http://www.sarahjio.com/