A marine scientist is sent to a remote British island where she discovers a cache of unsent love letters, written in the 1950s, in an old suitcase.

To read more about the site or if you want a graphic to link to us, see the about page for more details. I really appreciated the way in which she used both timelines – WWII and 1999 – to demonstrate this. She encourages us to question the assumptions we have about the natural world based on our own animal instincts about threat and survival.

I honestly didn’t even know there were canteens in operation during the war either, much less that they travelled from battle to battle, entirely run by women who had volunteered for the service. In 1999 Bea finds that her home is beginning to fall apart around her, forcing her to bring the netsuke out for auctioning.

What I valued the most about reading Kayte Nunn’s latest effort was that this powerful story provided me with a lasting reminder and appreciation of the efforts of our servicewomen during all conflicts of the Second World War. The reunion in the title refers to a New Year's party taking place in Galway at the end of 1999 at the home of fellow Wasbie Plum. I do really love stories about female friendship that also celebrate strength of character and the ties that bind. To go from afternoon tea parties to fearlessly facing the terrifying scenes of frontline fighting is really quite incredible.I will put up a list of these books at the end of this blog post but for now here is the interview I was lucky enough to conduct with the wonderful author of this beautiful book, Kayte Nunn. The Last Reunion by Kayte Nunn is the story of a group of women who volunteered to serve in the Women's Auxiliary Service (Burma) or WAS(B) in 1945. Olivia doing an internship with an art dealer and is sent to a country location in England from London to visit an elderly lady who may have a rare Japanese netsuke to sell. I found all the Burma details really interesting - definitely a unique perspective for a Second World War novel. Told over 2 timelines we learn the women’s stories, as well as the history of the artwork at the centre of it all.