Blog tour: Less Dreadful with Every Step

Welcome to the blog tour for Less Dreadful with Every Step by Clive Woolliscroft!

More about the book…

In August 1914, the lives of two young people seem mapped out in front of them. Frank, happily employed as a bank teller, is to marry his fiancée in the spring. Emily is also to marry around the same time. Both are natives of Jarrow. Their homes are about a ten-minute walk away – but they have never met.

Then, everything changes. Carried along with the jingoistic national celebration that follows the declaration of war, Frank enlists in the army, leaving his family and fiancée behind. Shortly after this, a devastating loss leaves a massive void in Emily’s life. To help fill that void, she volunteers with the Voluntary Aid Detachment.

By the end of summer 1916, both Frank and Emily are serving in France. Their lives intersect twice, once in France and once in Jarrow. After they meet, the destiny for one is tragedy, and for the other, hope.

More about the author…

Before retiring, Clive Woolliscroft worked as an army officer, a money market trader, a management consultant and a solicitor. 

Less Dreadful With Every Step is his first novel.

Its roots lie in a visit made to commemorate the fiftieth anniversary of the Battle of the Somme – a visit that prompted a lifelong interest in the Great War.

He lives in Cheshire with his wife, Sue, and cocker spaniel, Bonnie.

My impressions…

I often read books set around World War II but not many set around World War I – not for choice, I guess I just come across them less frequently. It was therefore a bit of a treat to read this book – albeit a treat that was often hard to read. War is not an easy subject to write about, I think, but the author handled it in a thoughtful way.

I enjoyed reading about the experiences of Frank and Emily, very cleverly interwoven both between them and with historical events. Overall, a well-researched novel that acts both as a reminder and as a warning.

Three words to describe it. Sad. Hopeful. Evocative.

Do I like the cover? Yes, it’s oh-so-shiny!

Have I read any other books by the same author? No, this is a debut novel.