“Let them start their dreadful wars, let destruction rain down, and let plague sweep through, but I will still be here, doing my work, holding humankind together with love like this.” – 3.5/5 stars!

Attention! This book contains: Greek gods, romances, war, music, and beautiful art.

It’s 1917, and World War I is at its zenith when Hazel and James first catch sight of each other at a London party. She’s a shy and talented pianist; he’s a newly minted soldier with dreams of becoming an architect. When they fall in love, it’s immediate and deep–and cut short when James is shipped off to the killing fields.

Aubrey Edwards is also headed toward the trenches. A gifted musician who’s played Carnegie Hall, he’s a member of the 15th New York Infantry, an all-African-American regiment being sent to Europe to help end the Great War. Love is the last thing on his mind. But that’s before he meets Colette Fournier, a Belgian chanteuse who’s already survived unspeakable tragedy at the hands of the Germans.

Thirty years after these four lovers’ fates collide, the Greek goddess Aphrodite tells their stories to her husband, Hephaestus, and her lover, Ares, in a luxe Manhattan hotel room at the height of World War II. She seeks to answer the age-old question: Why are Love and War eternally drawn to one another? But her quest for a conclusion that will satisfy her jealous husband uncovers a multi-threaded tale of prejudice, trauma, and music and reveals that War is no match for the power of Love.

A sweeping, multi-layered romance with a divine twist, by the Printz Honor-winning author of The Passion of Dolssa, set in the perilous days of World Wars I and II.

I almost DNF’ed “Lovely War” if I’m being frank with you. I wasn’t feeling the book’s theme, the super slow pace at the beginning, the weird connection between Greek mythology and World War I, or the boring romances. I still pushed through and ended up continuing the book, and fortunately, it got a little better.

As I said, I wasn’t captivated at first, but as the book progressed, I was able to connect a little more to the story and characters. Unfortunately, it still wasn’t a 4-star read for me.

I think the best part of this book was the ending, where the author left a note for the readers. In this note, the author talks about the real historical facts behind the book (characters inspired by real people, real events that were added to the book, etc.). Knowing the book was pieced together with different real events made the book way more interesting in my eyes!

At the end of the day, it just wasn’t very memorable in my opinion. I think it’s important for you to take my opinion with a grain of salt because this is probably just a personal preference. It’s not a bad book, it just wasn’t for me.