Title: Two Wars and a Wedding

Author: Lauren Willig

Publisher: William Morrow 2023

Genre: Historical Fiction

Pages: 435

Rating: 4/5 stars

Reading Challenges: Clock; Decades - 1880s-1990s

September 1896: An aspiring archaeologist, Smith College graduate Betsy Hayes travels to Athens, desperate to break into the male-dominated field of excavation. In the midst of the heat and dust of Greece she finds an unlikely ally in Charles, Baron de Robecourt, one of the few men who takes her academic passion seriously. But when a simmering conflict between Greece and Turkey erupts into open warfare, Betsy throws herself into the conflict as a nurse, not knowing that the decision will change her life forever—and cause a deep and painful rift with her oldest friend, Ava.

June 1898: Betsy has sworn off war nursing—but when she gets the word that her estranged friend Ava is headed to Cuba with Clara Barton and the Red Cross to patch up the wounded in the Spanish-American War, Betsy determines to stop her the only way she knows how: by joining in her place. Battling heat, disease, and her own demons, Betsy follows Teddy Roosevelt’s Rough Riders straight to the heart of the fighting, where she is forced to confront her greatest fears to save both old friends and new….

Set during an electrifying era of nation-building, idealism, and upheaval, Two Wars and a Wedding is the tale of two remarkable women striving to make their place in a man’s world—an unforgettable saga of friendship, love, and fighting for what is right. 

I needed a book with the word “two” in the title. I went to Goodreads and did a simple search and this book came up. I really enjoyed Willig’s Pink Carnation series and The English Wife, so I thought I would give this one a chance. Overall, this was an enjoyable story of a one woman’s journey through life, two wars, and heartache. After reading the historical note, I was more interested in the true history behind the story. The historical fiction sections detailed a time period and conflict that not many books focus on. I enjoyed the information about the archaeological digs and the nursing training. I ended up really enjoying following Betsy’s journey. And amazingly, I really came to love Holt as a leading man worthy of Betsy. A very enjoyable historical fiction novel.

Next up on the TBR pile: