The first time I picked up this book was at my grandparents’ home in Idaho, probably a dozen years ago now. I remember sitting on the twin bed in the guest room of my grandparents’ home one afternoon, reading the story of the missionaries getting out of Germany. I was riveted. I finished the first book over the next few days. When Grandma saw that I’d picked up the second volume in this series just a day or two before we were driving back to New Mexico, she told me to keep the book.

I loved the Children of the Promise series the first time around and learned a lot of history from the books — this was one of my first experiences with historical fiction (well, maybe aside from The Work and the Glory; I can’t remember which books I’d read first). I loved the characters. It was pretty easy reading despite its length and sensitive content (I mean, it’s a book about war; there’s lots of fighting and violence).

This time around the book was just as good. I’d forgotten quite a few plot elements and it was fun to reread the beginning of the story, knowing how the characters will change by the end. The details surrounding some of the historical events had gotten fuzzy, and I liked re-learning those. The best part of the book was still the part I remember reading at my grandparents’ house, where the missionaries (mostly Americans) in Germany are fleeing the country just days before the invasion of Poland. This time, that part made me cry (either from the added experience and appreciation that twelve years’ time will bring … or pregnancy hormones and lack of sleep and watery eyes from a cold. Something.) At any rate, it’s an inspiring story in Church history that deserves retelling. I only wished Hughes would have done like Gerald Lund and included at least some endnotes; I would have been interested in more of the real history behind the stories!

Definitely looking forward to the other volumes in this series!

This whole series is amazing. It's a series about an LDS family from Salt Lake during World War II. Loved them all!

I have never been as interested in World War II history, until now. This book is one of my new favorites and I cannot wait to finish the series. The characters are fleshed out and I cared deeply about what happened to them from the very beginning. The tension is perfect, we know there is danger because of what is happening with Hitler (and because we know at least the framework of what happened, we know at times to be nervous than the characters, which only adds to the tension) and there is normal, everyday tension as well as the children of the family are making life decisions. The book is never intense though, and very interesting. The only parts that weren't as brilliant for me was the beginning of some chapters. Hughes wraps up what happened in the war at that time at the beginning of some of the chapters, rather than putting it into the story somehow. I can see why he did it, but it was still exposition. The book was so wonderful and I loved the themes of God watching out for us and having faith through hard times. And don't let the size intimidate you--I couldn't put the book down and couldn't believe how quickly I flew through this. It is well worth the read.

This is a cut above your average LDS fiction. I love that it portrays a realistic LDS family with realistic challenges instead of the cookie-cutter characters and cliché plot elements the genre usually presents. The author has clearly gone to great lengths in his research to give his novel historical detail and accuracy. It's bringing the war and the time period to life in a way I've never quite experienced before. I'm looking forward to the next one.

I liked reading all the Children of the Promise books, I wanted to know what happened and read all the books quickly, but for me, to be a four- or five-star book, I would want to read it again. I don't think I will get around to these again.

Excellent. A family to fall in love with - to the point that they become family - and a story that stays with you long after the close of the final volume.

I stay far far away from all LDS literature except for the Children of the Promise series. I love the feminist themes in the book, and Bobbi's relationship with a non-LDS man mirrored some of my own personal experiences. The thing that made me most uncomfortable about the book was the conversations the German people were having about Hitler, and how similar some of those conversations are to the ones we are having about Donald Trump. The author doesn't shy away from topics regarding race, sex, rape, interfaith relationships, and many other subjects Mormons might find uncomfortable. I read a review on GoodReads saying there was a lot of sex in this book that made me laugh. Sure, sex is mentioned, but it's absolutely in no way coarse or gratuitous. This series is one of my life-long favorites.

It was very interesting...

these books are sooooooooo good!! the series is awesome!!