The Spanish Flu outbreaks and Cleo Berry is in a boarding school temporarily, while her brother and his wife enjoy a trip away.  She's an orphan.  When the flu breaks out she decides to go home and then feels compelled to try to help, so she finds herself in a hospital, finds that it is truly terrible devastation that is happening with people, so many deaths and many of them start to be people she starts to know, it fells people so quickly.

It wasn't bad but I felt I wanted to know Cleo better. It needed more for me to be happier with it. It was an interesting look into that period and the complex issues. 

I did not want this this book to end.

Details were great, very vivid and at one point I almost threw up with the main character. 

I really wish it was longer, I wanted more to happen and I felt like the ending went too quickly, but that was the only issue I had.

spanish flu is a b word and tore though the US and people had to step up and help those who couldnt even stand up. I felt the fear the main character expienced, felt her need to help and angry towards those who either ran or did nothing to help anyone.

Finally back home :)

I got a good amount of reading done while I was away :)

Got though all these :)

Im excited to be backs :) :)

An interesting story, but at the end I felt like nothing had happened. Cleo goes through some difficult things, but in the end it didn't feel like she changed that much. This would be find except that at the end of the book I got the feeling I was supposed to think she changed a lot.

There are some interesting details about the Spanish flu. Some of it is quite graphic, so if medical descriptions make you squeamish this might be one to skip. There were also bits that felt strangely modern but might be accurate to the time (I'm no expert on 1918 Portland, so I just trusted the author on this one because there are very few stakes in whether people wore deodorant back then or not).

Also, this book counts for the Diversity on the Shelf challenge because the author is a woman of color, but I don't recall anyone being explicitly described as a character of color in the book.

This was such an amazing book! I won a ARC through Goodreads and ended up finishing it within a few days of receiving it, because I just could not put it down. This is a quick-read and a beautiful work of historical fiction. It has something for everyone; suspense, romance, philosophy, drama. A very-well rounded and intriguing story. Lucier even includes a short blurb about Spanish Influenza at the end and how it connects to her own writing, which adds to her story. Having not known much about Spanish Influenza before reading this book, I found her writing very informative as well as creative. This is a great story which delves into human nature during times of struggle. Her contrasts between fear, compassion, empathy, and selfishness were absolutely stunning. This has definitely become one of my favorite books and I would recommend it to anyone. Truly amazing!