Publisher's Synopsis
The year is 1914 and war is erupting in Europe. Henri and his older brother are eager to join the war effort as they depart their bucolic French village to fight the Germans. Charismatic and handsome, Henri leaves behind a loving family and his beautiful girlfriend, Sophie, the daughter of a wealthy banker. Sophie vows to write, vows that after the war they will be together forever, but the letters between the young lovers are mysteriously lost, adding to the already overwhelming mental angst, as the war overtakes them all.
Fighting side by side as snipers, the brothers struggle to survive the horror of trench warfare. As the Battle of the Somme unfolds its grisly terror, the unthinkable happens, and Henri's older brother is mortally wounded. Traumatized and grieving, Henri huddles next to his dying brother in a battlefield hospital. As death closes in, Henri's brother reveals a secret, a dark truth. Overcome with emotion and struggling to accept the revelation, Henri reluctantly agrees to fulfill a promise to his dying brother, a promise that will change his life forever. Henri is a mere shadow of his former self as he returns to Bayeux. Although WW1 is over, there are still battles to be fought, as he struggles to heal himself and restore the family farm in the Normandy region of France. Along the way, he must find the courage to confront the secrets and injustices of the past, and ultimately fulfill the promise he made to his dying brother. This is much more than a war story. It is a generational tale that illustrates the impact of strong women who sacrificed and bore the pain of their decisions so those they loved could survive and know a fulfilling life. But most notably, it is a story of redemption that has at its heart, the scrappy, imperfect struggle to do what is right for those you love. It will renew your faith in the human spirit.
