Lighting the Stars by Gabriele Wills
Publisher: Mindshadows, November 2020
Category: Historical Fiction, World War II, Historical Romance
Tour dates: May-June, 2021
ISBN: 978-1775035411
Available in Print and ebook, 477 pages
Description Lighting the Stars by Gabriele Wills
A riveting tale of a generation torn apart by war.
Tucked into the rugged Canadian wilderness of Muskoka’s majestic lake country, Merilee Sutcliffe’s peaceful town seems worlds away from the escalating conflict in Europe. But life is about to change dramatically in the Summer of 1940. As her patriotic friends and relatives leave for battle, her small town is thrust into the war machine. Merilee’s formerly tranquil skies soon roar with aircraft from the Royal Norwegian Air Force, stationed nearby to train young men determined to liberate their country from Nazi occupation. When German Prisoners of War march into her shocked community, they become Merilee’s closest neighbours – and biggest threat.
What unfolds in her remote town and on foreign shores sets Merilee and her growing circle on a collision course with an unimagined destiny. Caught up in the chaos is Luftwaffe pilot Erich Leitner. Shot down during the Battle of Britain and transplanted to a lakeside prison in Muskoka, he discovers he has more to fear from his comrades than his captors.
While her cousin-in-spirit, Elyse Thornton, navigates the treacherous skies of Britain as a Spitfire Girl, audaciously ferrying warplanes from factories to airfields, Merilee becomes quietly entangled in her own dangerous liaisons on the home front. Caught between worlds, with conflicted loyalties and a sense of duty, she joins the Royal Canadian Air Force, Women’s Division, and soon finds herself in ground-zero London, focussing her photographer’s lens on a city under bombardment.
Far from carefree summers on the lake, struggling to survive the relentless demands and sacrifices of war, Merilee, Elyse, and their friends wonder if they dare to risk their hearts as well.
As unlikely lives intersect, ideologies and social hierarchies are challenged, loves and friendships are forged or broken, and countless heroes are made and lost. But even those who return to the serenity of Muskoka are changed forever.
Praise Lighting the Stars by Gabriele Wills
“I MISS THEM ALREADY! I love your characters SO much and of course, love the setting. I’m just in awe of how you weave the story, characters and actual history. I find that I become a character who is quite invested in the story lines of one and all like they are my family and friends. I just can’t even put words (though I try) to how much I love your writing.
I’m a super slow reader ON PURPOSE so I can savor, but I just couldn’t…and I tried. I tried to give it a day or two in between, which wasn’t hard with the busy life pre-Christmas, but I just couldn’t put it down when I had time. THANK YOU! It was just wonderful.” – Laura Langevin, Echoes in the Attic
“If you enjoy learning history through fiction, then you will enjoy this novel. It is impeccably researched and accurate historical. Lots of action, personal entanglements, romantic relationships, realistic air battles set against the World War II conflict and its most significant theaters. The author is obviously a gifted writer and a thorough researcher. You will enjoy reading about the many characters as they grapple with their conflicts. I highly recommend this novel.”-Amazon Review
“Bravo, you have written a masterpiece. You write so passionately about your characters and infuse them with incredible empathy. A Bronte reborn, you recount stories with a distinct Victorian flavour. The relationships between the characters are artfully established and realistic. The air battles are real and the air manoeuvres are exciting. Your knowledge of history and the inclusion of many historical characters, Bishop, Massey, etc., make this both realistic and informative.
I love the character of your women. They are courageous, intelligent, super capable, and strong. And I did not know that they were flying planes and helping the way they did.
The air raid sirens, the sudden bombings are so dramatic and real. You describe them so well and with such urgency.” – Ken Hills, author
“Best book yet! Lighting The Stars shares Canadian WWII stories with world events and the glorious lifestyle of that era in Muskoka. Gabriele Wills has seamlessly woven very accurate historical information into an enticing love story. Her many interesting plots make for an exciting book with a superb ending. As a reader of historical fiction, a person who studies Muskoka history, and one who just loves a good story, I was entertained, and highly recommend this fantastic novel.” – Mary Storey, volunteer archivist, Muskoka Discovery Centre, Gravenhurst, ON
In conversation with Gabriele Wills, Author of ‘The Muskoka Series’
Please welcome Gabriele Wills to Teddy Rose Book Reviews Plus More.
TR: Please tell us something about ‘Lighting the Stars’ that is not in the summary. (About the book, character you particularly enjoyed writing etc.)
GW: I hadn’t planned to write a book set during WWII, but I kept being tantalized by obscure stories I came across while researching the previous book, Under the Moon – intriguing historical events that deserved a wider audience, like the women pilots of the Air Transport Auxiliary and the German Prisoner of War camp in Muskoka, Ontario. The more I delved into them, the more enthralled I became. Once I had an inkling of plotlines, I had to choose the players from an enormous cast who had populated the first 3 novels in the series. Now it was their children who were in the spotlight, and the rest had to make way for necessary new characters. Once I began writing, they took over the story, and – as usual – took it in new and exciting directions. Relationships were particularly affected by the chemistry between characters, which I should have foreseen, because it’s happened in every novel I’ve written.
So, every day is an adventure for me, because I’m never quite sure what my unruly characters are going to be up to next!
TR: Covering WWII from both Canada and Great Britain has a lot of moving parts; how much time and effort went into your research for the book?
GW: I need to immerse myself in an era in order to portray it accurately and compellingly. So, in the 8 years since my last book was published, at least 2 of those were completely devoted to other projects. And because I was touching on so many different aspects of the war and the time period, there was a tremendous amount of research involved. These days there’s so much fascinating information on the internet that I have to reign myself in and actually stop researching to get on with writing. But I did read over 80 history books and memoirs (my favourites), explored hundreds of websites, scoured archives and old newspapers, watched vintage and current documentaries, listened to old BBC broadcasts and eyewitness news reports from the battlefronts, visited museums, interviewed a few people, and travelled to some of the locations in England. That is one of the most delightful perks of research, and always a good excuse to spend time in beautiful Muskoka. That’s my soul food as well as my characters’.
Writing is a full-time job that I absolutely love. The fact that others enjoy the books is a thrill and a bonus.
TR: Are any of your characters based on real-life friends or acquaintances?
GW: I think as a writer, I’m a giant sponge, absorbing not only the physical environment, but also people’s mannerisms and personality traits. Some of those will inevitably become an aspect of a character, even if not deliberately. But I do include real historic personages where relevant, and this time, I’ve also mentioned a few non-famous people, who I do know. One is the father of my friend, whose Muskoka cottage inspired the novels. Arthur Patterson was captured at Dieppe and became a Prisoner of War in Germany. He is mentioned as a friend of one of the characters who shares that experience in the book. I also pay homage to two pilot brothers and their sister, Helen, now 97. She’s a huge fan of my novels, and was absolutely delighted to be listed in the “Cast of Characters” alongside Winston Churchill.
TR: Where did you get the inspiration for your cover?
GW: I’ve used my daughter’s photos for all my novels, so we were looking for ones that fit the theme, drew the eye, and captured enchanting Muskoka moments. The front cover is actually a composite of a sunset and a dragonfly – the latter being a meaningful symbol in the book. The spine and back cover starry night photo is also hers, but the Spitfire is a stock photo that my cover designer incorporated. I hope the cover entices you to want to sit in that Muskoka chair and savour the serenity of the lake at sunset. And then dive into the book. LOL!
TR: Will we hear from Merilee, Peggy, Elyse, Drew, etc. again? I miss them already!
GW: Thanks, Teddy, that is one of the most complimentary and heartwarming comments an author could hear! I haven’t yet settled on an intriguing enough plotline for the saga, so I’m taking a break from it. I discovered Muskoka as a teen in the ‘60s, and my cottage friend has always expected me to write about that era. That would definitely involve characters from Lighting the Stars. I’ve known some of the older ones, like Ria, since I started writing the series 17 years ago, and have become very attached to them – which is why my family has occasionally come across me with tears trickling down my face while furiously typing – and I’m sure my fictional friends will bug me to write more about their lives. But first, the younger generation has to let me in on their secrets.
TR: Merilee explains how to “light the stars”. Can you explain it and tell us how you came up with the concept?
GW: When you’re far from light-polluting cities and the moon is no more than a shaving, the billions of stars shine brighter and seem layered as they appear to light up deeper into infinity the longer you look at them. And you notice the beautiful colours and textures of the Milky Way. At a lake, the heavens are also reflected in the water, which is truly magical. You don’t see the darkness anymore, just the light. Stars also figure in the motto of the RAF and RCAF – “Per Ardua Ad Astra”, meaning “through adversity to the stars”, which is relevant to the story as well.
TR: Can you tell us what you have in store for your readers next?
GW: I’ve started working on a novel set in Muskoka – but not part of the series – in 1999, with flashbacks to previous decades. It’s the last summer for an aged resort, whose motto is “Making your holiday wishes come true since 1879”. But be careful what you wish for. Very careful.
Thanks so much for the chat, Teddy!
TR: Thank you, Gabriele, it has been a pleasure! I loved the Muskoka series so much and will never forget the wonderful characters that welcomed me into their
About Gabriele Wills
Gabriele at the location where ‘Lighting the Stars’ begins
Gabriele Wills is the author of 6 highly acclaimed historical novels, including 4 in The Muskoka Novels saga set in North America, Britain, and Europe through the two cataclysmic World Wars and the seductive Jazz Age.
Her passion is to weave compelling stories around meticulously researched and often quirky or arcane facts in order to bring the past to life, especially with regard to women’s often forgotten contributions.
The first novel in her ‘Muskoka Novels’, ‘The Summer Before the Storm’ was the “Muskoka Chautauqua Reading List Winner”
Website: https://www.themuskokanovels.co
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/GabrieleWills
Twitter: https://twitter.com/GabrieleWills
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Giveaway Lighting the Stars by Gabriele Wills
Print copies are open to the U.S. and Canada only. Gifted Kindle is open to the U.S only and Kobo is open to anyone who has a usable account on Kobo. It ends on June 30, 2021,midnight pacific time.
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