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In Love and War is a book of reconstructed memories. Written by a son trying to re-connect with his long dead father. It is driven by questions un-asked and opportunities missed.
In Love and War is the gripping account of one man’s war. Aged nineteen he was wounded on the beaches of Dunkirk, captured in North Africa, escaped from his PoW camp, walked 500 miles to rejoin his regiment and fought in Italy until the end of the war. Then, while spending two years in Palestine as the fate of that contested area was fought over, he met his wife-to-be for a brief few days and then pursued their passionate romance through copious love letters.
“The overall project, to engage with his father by every means possible, is noble, and an act of filial devotion that gives meaning and spiritual significance to all the detail. I admired the writerly technique, particularly the triple interweaving of dramatic scenes in which Bethell places himself as an unseen onlooker, factual stuff gained from research and official records, and then those love letters – what a treasure trove! All held together by his touching letters to his father. This variation of texture makes the book wonderfully readable.”
Paul Ashton Author: A Practical Guide to Bee Culture by Sherlock Holmes and A Puritan at Les Beaux
More reviews below
5.0 out of 5 stars
EYE-OPENING STRUGGLES OF A BRITISH SOLDIER IN WWII
Reviewed in the United States on 5 June 2025
Format: Kindle EditionVerified Purchase
The book’s graphic description of the British Expeditionary Force stuck on the beach at Dunkirk while being systematically strafed and bombed by German planes is shocking. I had the impression the BEF just waited there on the beach, unbothered by the Germans. Instead it was a turkey shoot. The way the author describes how his 19 year old father was wounded is unique, he uses a powerful slow motion writing technique to put himself (and the reader) THERE as the truck his father was in was hit by a bomb. And that was just the BEGINNING.
The book notes that the evacuation from Dunkirk using small, shallow draft boats was painted by the UK media as a national accomplishment. Rather than the debacle it was of having their whole army helplessly exposed on the beach to be systematically decimated.
The author had to put much of his father’s WWII experiences together AFTER his father’s death, which is exactly the position many of us baby boomers are in today. I appreciate that he took so much time and care to relate how these brave men struggled and suffered in WWII.
Highly Recommended!
Truly a must read for lovers of action, drama, romance and historical biography
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 1 June 2025
Format: Kindle EditionVerified Purchase
This well-written and well-researched book tells the story of the author Andrew Bethell's father, who was a soldier in WW2. Whilst key events include moments of dramatic action such as shelling on the beaches of Dunkirk, escaping from a prisoner of war camp and traversing the mountains of Northern Italy, the story is expertly told with a more humorous tone than one might expect going in. This, among other things, sets "In Love and War" apart from the standard fare; it explores the nature of a paternal relationship and wartime romance, including many first-hand materials which the author has collated presumably at great personal effort. It is a compelling read, delivers a fresh perspective on a familiar area of history and yet manages to weave what is, until now, a refreshingly untold story.
Throughout the text I was very touched by the relentless search for documentary evidence that would illuminate episodes in his father's life: and what a life that was!
The detailed resurrection of his war years was quite extraordinary. The letters to his father, the authorial narrator and the imaginary witness of events in the past worked well together. The imaginary witness device (with camera) served well to signal to the reader the heart-felt attempt to honour his father's life and bravery.
The wonderful multiple narratives drove me on to read the whole book in one sitting It was a real page turner that taught me lot about love and war.
Michael Simons Head of The English and Media Centre 1991 -2016
Well, I read it straight through last night - Completely enthralling. The letters to Dad are pretty much pitch perfect and their 'dialogue' with the material that precedes and follows each is brilliant. Really excellent stuff. I found the 'insertion' of the author into the beaches at Bray-Dune plage or in the wrecked barges of Margate and in the 'day' at Beaulieu House plausible and riveting, Recce Ridge is a completely extraordinary piece of writing.
Sandy Balfour Author:Vulnerable in Hearts: A Memoir of Father’s Sons and Contract Brisdge.
I found it a riveting read, in terms of the overall narrative, the picture it paints so vividly of the author’s father, of his courtship of his mother and of his relationship with his son. He comes alive - reticence and all – in the pages. The book is also, quite obviously, the result of a tour de force of detailed digging; investigation and inspired joining up of dots. sensation of “I wish I could have asked more questions, investigated more the background to the people that they were as we were growing up” resonated strongly with me. and will do with many.
Sir Tim Stevenson Lord Lieutenant of Oxfordshire 2008-2021
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