"Blue Skies Tomorrow" by Sarah Sundin

 


Ray Novak set aside his heart's work of being a pastor in order to serve in the military during WWII. Training pilots stateside is noble, but hardly the stuff of heroes. He feels even less needed when he's reassigned to a desk job near his home town. It does put him in the path of childhood friend and war widow Helen Carlisle, which is a definite advantage, but he still feels like he needs to do more for his country.

Thrilled to reconnect with Ray, Helen hopes her days of pretending are over. She feels like rejoicing that her abusive marriage came to an end thanks to a Japanese torpedo, but she's never been honest about where her broken bones and scars came from. With Ray there's hope that she can stop her pretense of grief and secure a future of safety and love. But hurt people tend to hurt others, and Helen's brokenness soon drives a wedge in the fledgling romantic relationship.

Deciding to prove his bravery, Ray signs up for a combat tour and soon finds himself stationed in Europe. It's nice to be near his brothers Walt and Jack, but it's hard to know his actions are causing death and destruction even though the cause is just.

As Helen begins addressing the pain in her past, the freedom of healing begins to emerge. With new eyes, Helen begins to hope for better days ahead for herself and her young son. Her struggle continues as she realizes her father-in-law controls so much of her life yet, and he has no notion of releasing her or his grandson if he can possibly help it. Hoping and praying and loving Ray from across the ocean, Helen navigates one day at a time.

With WWII drawing to a close, Ray has no idea the lengths to which his bravery will be tested. Captivating action will keep the reader glued to the pages as the Wings of Glory series comes to a close. I would caution that verbal and physical abuse is dealt with in detail in this story and may be of concern for some readers. This story caps another exciting series by Sarah Sundin, an author I would recommend to all historical fiction fans.