5/5 stars ★★★★★
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This book! Just when I thought Robert Dugoni, author of The Incredible Life of Sam Hell, couldn’t impress me more, he surprised me. He wrote this amazing book, Hold Strong, with co-authors Jeff Langholz and Chris Crabtree. If I could, I would give it 10 out of 5 stars. This historical fiction book took ten years to write, and it shows. I wanted to cancel all of my plans until I could finish the book. It was that good!
About The Book:
The story is based on two fictional characters during WWII. Sam becomes a POW and experiences death-dying events at the hands of the Japanese. Sarah, his high school sweetheart, becomes part of the highly classified code-breaking team for the US.
This story is based on true events and real heroes. The main characters, however, are fictional.
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My Thoughts On The Book:
If you haven’t figured it out yet, I loved this book. At first, I didn’t want to read ANOTHER book about WWII. When you teach about it, you think that you couldn’t learn much more. I was wrong. I haven’t read much about the American POWs in Japan. I definitely didn’t know much about the women that became code-breakers. The code-breakers were told to keep what they did confidential, so I’m so glad that these authors did their research.
I loved the characters, Sam and Sarah, in Hold Strong. Not only was their love story realistic, but I learned so much from each of their perspectives about the war. When it was Sam’s point of view, it felt intense. As he experienced the atrocities of a POW, it was almost overwhelming. I had to put the book down a couple of time just because it hurt my heart. I was glad when the next chapter would switch to Sarah to hear her story. I love a strong woman character. Sarah transitioned from a small-town girl to making a big difference in the outcome of the war.
I read this on my Kindle, and I didn’t know there were notes at the back of the book. I wish I had known this ahead of time. The authors took the time to write out what historically happened by page number. It would have been fun to read the true events or what they used for research chapter by chapter.
This story is a beautiful tribute to those that gave up their lives in World War II. Some of the supporting characters in the book were based on real people. I have to say that Chavez was my favorite. You always need that one person around who brings light to any dark situation. Do you know a person in your own life like that?
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Other Books By Robert Dugoni That I Recommend:
Extras:
You can buy this book at: https://amzn.to/4hBFZuY
*If you want to read more of my book reviews, you can find them at: https://judiholst.com/book-reviews/
*If you missed my post about my Top Books of 2024, you can find it at: https://judiholst.com/top-20-books-that-i-loved-in-2024/
Thank you to NetGalley, Lake Union Publishing, and authors: Robert Dugoni, Chris Crabtree, and Jeff Langholz for my free copy of this book. This is my honest review.
I gave this book five out of five stars. The book is fast paced and well-written. I would recommend this book to anyone that enjoys historical fiction. I will remember this book for a long time. Does this book sound interesting to you?
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