Or Forever Be Damned review by Peter Dickerson

Or Forever be Damned 

Peter Dickerson's Amazon review

The author spent 2 years researching this historical saga. The research is obvious. There is great breadth and detail with regard to food, fashion, hardship, illness, culture and politics. The theatre backdrop to the story is essential and fascinating.

This soaring family saga covers generations and decades. It is grand in its involvement for the reader and in the shared experience of the pain and difficulty of the lives which have been endured.
The war decades are very like the despair and hardship described in Down and Out in Paris and London, and The Road to Wigan Pier. When reading during these decades one experiences the shortages, suffering and destruction. It is difficult to believe that humans could survive this horror. Many did not of course.

The characters are flawed, have strengths and talents, and affect each other positively and negatively. The story is very much a tragedy, but it is also a story of lives lived, of decades endured, or relationships shared and destroyed. It is difficult to actually like any of the characters. They are all so flawed and all cause so much destruction though their flaws. They are interesting to observe. The first half of the book is brutal and life is very difficult. The final half of the book is fascinating but remains harsh. The decades swept past.

I have to compare this book to the grand and majestic saga The Mists of Avalon which also covers generations and decades lived and endured. The similarities with the tragedy and suffering of the families in the two books seems worth noting.

A great and memorable read. The level of research and historical detail is noted and very appreciated.