Genre Fiction
![Danielle Steel - [object Object] author](https://res.cloudinary.com/readsomnia/image/upload/authors/a_a_danielle_steel.jpg)
Flying Angels: A Novel
NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • World War II brings together six remarkable young flight nurses, who face the challenges of war and its many heartbreaks and victories as unsung heroes, in this inspiring novel from #1 New York Times bestselling author Danielle Steel.
Audrey Parker's life changes forever when Pearl Harbor is attacked on December 7, 1941. Her brother, a talented young Navy pilot, had been stationed there, poised to fulfill their late father's distinguished legacy. Fresh out of nursing school with a passion and a born gift for helping others, both Audrey and her friend Lizzie suddenly find their nation on the brink of war. Driven to do whatever they can to serve, they enlist in the Army and embark on a new adventure as flight nurses.
Risking their lives on perilous missions, they join the elite Medical Air Evacuation Transport Squadron and fly into enemy territory almost daily to rescue wounded soldiers from the battlefield. Audrey and Lizzie make enormous sacrifices to save lives alongside an extraordinary group of nurses: Alex, who longs to make a difference in the world; Louise, a bright mind who faced racial prejudice growing up in the South; Pru, a selfless leader with a heart of gold; and Emma, whose confidence and grit push her to put everything on the line for her patients.
Even knowing they will not achieve any rank and will receive little pay for their efforts, the "Flying Angels" will give their all in the fight for freedom. They serve as bravely and tirelessly as the men they rescue on the front lines, in daring airlifts, and are eternally bound by their loyalty to one another. Danielle Steel presents a sweeping, stunning tribute to these incredibly courageous women, inspiring symbols of bravery and valor.
Audrey Parker's life changes forever when Pearl Harbor is attacked on December 7, 1941. Her brother, a talented young Navy pilot, had been stationed there, poised to fulfill their late father's distinguished legacy. Fresh out of nursing school with a passion and a born gift for helping others, both Audrey and her friend Lizzie suddenly find their nation on the brink of war. Driven to do whatever they can to serve, they enlist in the Army and embark on a new adventure as flight nurses.
Risking their lives on perilous missions, they join the elite Medical Air Evacuation Transport Squadron and fly into enemy territory almost daily to rescue wounded soldiers from the battlefield. Audrey and Lizzie make enormous sacrifices to save lives alongside an extraordinary group of nurses: Alex, who longs to make a difference in the world; Louise, a bright mind who faced racial prejudice growing up in the South; Pru, a selfless leader with a heart of gold; and Emma, whose confidence and grit push her to put everything on the line for her patients.
Even knowing they will not achieve any rank and will receive little pay for their efforts, the "Flying Angels" will give their all in the fight for freedom. They serve as bravely and tirelessly as the men they rescue on the front lines, in daring airlifts, and are eternally bound by their loyalty to one another. Danielle Steel presents a sweeping, stunning tribute to these incredibly courageous women, inspiring symbols of bravery and valor.
Readers Top Reviews
marvin gouldBarb
Loved the story line.So many twists and turns plus history. Plus a love story an comraderie. Devotion, courage, and pride.
Annettemarvin go
Danielle steel Never disappoints. There were a lot of suspenseful moments in this book and The outcomes We're not always expected. It really tells The side of what that many do not see.
Kindle . k
My Mother was a Army nurse on the border of Germany inWorld War 11. She treated our solders and German war prisoners. She told us many stories of the women she worked with. This book showed me what a hero she was. She was a Captain when she came home after the war. Those women were so brave. My Mom keep in touch with some of the women she served with for years after. She was nurse at at a local hospital when we were young and eventually became Head Nurse of the first a Intensive Care Unit that hospital had. She was a wonderful mother and inspired us to be good people and strive to be the best at what ever career we chose to do. She a very smart, compassionate loving person. I am so proud to be her daughter.
Kindle Kindle .
The book was about military nurses during World War II. The nurses in the book worked as medical transport nurses stationed in England. They went to Europe to pick up wounded troops that needed quickly transported back to England. The book focuses on 4 nurses from the United States and 2 from England. We learn about their families and their lives. I loved the plot and storyline. The characters and their stories were what Danielle Steel does best. She weaves her magical spell and talent for another great book.
Cathy Kindle Kin
Few words can describe the feelings I am left with after reading another great read from Danielle Steel. Her well documented words to this tragic story of war and the hurtful pain it leaves to those that survive and need to pick up the pieces to continue on are well shared in this awesome book. Well done, Thank You Ms Steel.
Short Excerpt Teaser
Chapter 1
It was a big day for the Parker family, on a perfect morning in June 1938. Audrey had set her mother's clothes out for her the night before, the blue-gray silk suit she wore whenever she had something important to go to and felt well enough to go out. It didn't get more important than this. Ellen's son, Audrey's brother, William Edward Parker, was graduating from Annapolis Naval Academy, as an ensign, like his father and grandfather before him. Ellen was only sorry that her late husband and father-in-law wouldn't be there to see it. She and Audrey were the only family Will had now. Unlike his father and grandfather, Will was more interested in planes than ships. His next stop was basic flight training at the Naval Air Station at Pensacola in Florida He was going to be a navy pilot. He would receive more advanced flight training after that, and eventually would become an expert at taking off and landing on an aircraft carrier. He had earned a Bachelor of Science degree.
His father, Captain Francis Parker, had died three years before of a brain tumor. His grandfather, who had died when Will and Audrey were very young, was only a dim memory now, a tall man in a uniform with a lot of braid on it: three-star Vice Admiral Jeremiah Parker. They were a distinguished naval family, and there had never been any question about Will following in their footsteps. It was an unspoken law in their household, Parker men went to Annapolis, and Will wouldn't have dared do otherwise. He wouldn't have wanted to disappoint his grandfather or his dad, even though they were no longer there to see it. He would be wearing his dress white uniform for the graduation ceremony.
Her parents' illnesses had had an impact on Audrey's life. Only months after Audrey's father had died, after his painful deterioration from cancer, her mother had begun exhibiting strange symptoms: muscle weakness, a lack of balance, and trembling hands. Both Ellen and Audrey thought it was caused by nerves at first, but then she had been diagnosed with the early stages of Parkinson's disease. The doctors had explained to them that it was a progressive illness that would eventually leave her severely impaired, bedridden, and unable to walk. Hopefully that would be a long way off.
For two years before that, Audrey had helped take care of her father during the advancing stages of his illness until he died. As a result, she had developed an unusual seriousness and maturity for her age, and seemed much older now than her eighteen years. She had spent five years nursing her parents, which had ultimately affected her life choices. Her social life had become almost nonexistent while her parents were ill. She had no time to see friends, and rarely dated. While her classmates were having fun during their high school years, Audrey had to be responsible far beyond her true age, and act as support system and unofficial nurse. Her only distraction was the books she read, which kept her from being lonely and provided an escape from the daily realities she faced. She was graduating from high school in a week and was starting nursing school in September. She'd never had a lifetime ambition to become a nurse, but knowing the long, slow degenerative process her mother had ahead of her, Audrey wanted to be able to help her and take care of her, and hopefully extend her mother's life.
She had no resentment for the years she had already spent first helping with her father's care, and then her mother's. She'd given up a great deal for them, her ballet classes, sports, parties, and hanging out with other girls. She'd only been on a few dates, had nervously gone to senior prom, and worried so much about leaving her mother home alone that she had apologized to her date and left early. He'd been nice about it at the time but didn't call her again. For a girl of eighteen, Audrey had already sacrificed a lot for her parents, accepted it as her duty to them, and didn't resent it.
She was a pretty girl with a slim figure, long dark hair, and a delicate face. Her sky-blue eyes were serious, as she kept an eye on her mother, worried that she would fall and hurt herself. It had happened a few times, and they all knew it would happen again. It was the nature of her illness, which had advanced slowly but steadily in the past few years.
Audrey had grown up in Annapolis, a pretty town on the Chesapeake Bay. Her father had taken her and her brother sailing on weekends, and now she and Will sometimes went out in their small sailboat alone. She trusted him completely, and they were both good sailors. She looked up to him as her hero, and he provided her with the only distraction she engaged in, sailing and going to dinner with him occasionally. He brough...
It was a big day for the Parker family, on a perfect morning in June 1938. Audrey had set her mother's clothes out for her the night before, the blue-gray silk suit she wore whenever she had something important to go to and felt well enough to go out. It didn't get more important than this. Ellen's son, Audrey's brother, William Edward Parker, was graduating from Annapolis Naval Academy, as an ensign, like his father and grandfather before him. Ellen was only sorry that her late husband and father-in-law wouldn't be there to see it. She and Audrey were the only family Will had now. Unlike his father and grandfather, Will was more interested in planes than ships. His next stop was basic flight training at the Naval Air Station at Pensacola in Florida He was going to be a navy pilot. He would receive more advanced flight training after that, and eventually would become an expert at taking off and landing on an aircraft carrier. He had earned a Bachelor of Science degree.
His father, Captain Francis Parker, had died three years before of a brain tumor. His grandfather, who had died when Will and Audrey were very young, was only a dim memory now, a tall man in a uniform with a lot of braid on it: three-star Vice Admiral Jeremiah Parker. They were a distinguished naval family, and there had never been any question about Will following in their footsteps. It was an unspoken law in their household, Parker men went to Annapolis, and Will wouldn't have dared do otherwise. He wouldn't have wanted to disappoint his grandfather or his dad, even though they were no longer there to see it. He would be wearing his dress white uniform for the graduation ceremony.
Her parents' illnesses had had an impact on Audrey's life. Only months after Audrey's father had died, after his painful deterioration from cancer, her mother had begun exhibiting strange symptoms: muscle weakness, a lack of balance, and trembling hands. Both Ellen and Audrey thought it was caused by nerves at first, but then she had been diagnosed with the early stages of Parkinson's disease. The doctors had explained to them that it was a progressive illness that would eventually leave her severely impaired, bedridden, and unable to walk. Hopefully that would be a long way off.
For two years before that, Audrey had helped take care of her father during the advancing stages of his illness until he died. As a result, she had developed an unusual seriousness and maturity for her age, and seemed much older now than her eighteen years. She had spent five years nursing her parents, which had ultimately affected her life choices. Her social life had become almost nonexistent while her parents were ill. She had no time to see friends, and rarely dated. While her classmates were having fun during their high school years, Audrey had to be responsible far beyond her true age, and act as support system and unofficial nurse. Her only distraction was the books she read, which kept her from being lonely and provided an escape from the daily realities she faced. She was graduating from high school in a week and was starting nursing school in September. She'd never had a lifetime ambition to become a nurse, but knowing the long, slow degenerative process her mother had ahead of her, Audrey wanted to be able to help her and take care of her, and hopefully extend her mother's life.
She had no resentment for the years she had already spent first helping with her father's care, and then her mother's. She'd given up a great deal for them, her ballet classes, sports, parties, and hanging out with other girls. She'd only been on a few dates, had nervously gone to senior prom, and worried so much about leaving her mother home alone that she had apologized to her date and left early. He'd been nice about it at the time but didn't call her again. For a girl of eighteen, Audrey had already sacrificed a lot for her parents, accepted it as her duty to them, and didn't resent it.
She was a pretty girl with a slim figure, long dark hair, and a delicate face. Her sky-blue eyes were serious, as she kept an eye on her mother, worried that she would fall and hurt herself. It had happened a few times, and they all knew it would happen again. It was the nature of her illness, which had advanced slowly but steadily in the past few years.
Audrey had grown up in Annapolis, a pretty town on the Chesapeake Bay. Her father had taken her and her brother sailing on weekends, and now she and Will sometimes went out in their small sailboat alone. She trusted him completely, and they were both good sailors. She looked up to him as her hero, and he provided her with the only distraction she engaged in, sailing and going to dinner with him occasionally. He brough...
