Hold Strong

Robert Dugoni is one of my most read authors so when I saw his name on Hold Strong, I immediately requested an advanced copy from the publisher. Dugoni usually writes alone, but for Hold Strong he has joined forces with two other authors - Chris Crabtree, who brings his experience living in the Philippines where this story is set and as a volunteer in the U.S Peace Corps in West Africa and Jeff Langholz's whose eclectic life experiences help spearhead the research in this Historical Fiction novel set towards the end of WWII.

This is a big book, and I was soon getting strong vibes reminiscent of two of my favourite books - specifically The Women by Kristin Hannah and The Secret Keeper by Genevieve Graham. Like these books, Hold Strong has a war setting, but it was its recognition of women's contributions in war and the way these authors humanized different roles within war by giving us a few characters readers will care about, all the while wrapping a gripping story around historical events that impacted me the most.

The story is told by small-town sweethearts Sarah and Sam. After Pearl Harbor is bombed, Sam is sent to the Philippines where he becomes a POW at the mercy (or lack thereof) of the Japanese army who are brutal in their treatment of POWs. Sarah wants to do her part, and her mathematics prowess gives her a way to help the war effort. 

The story takes a bit of time to get into so readers coming into this book wanting a war drama will have to be patient, but they will be rewarded with a tense and no holds barred look at the atrocities committed against POWs. My only minor criticisms are the title and cover, both of which are weak and non-descript with a generic feel that isn't eye-catching and doesn't accurately represent the amazing story beneath the cover.

Thought-provoking, poignant and gripping, this is a must read for historical fiction fans who want a story about the bravery, courage and tenacity of everyday people who are put in harrowing, life and death situations.

Disclaimer: My sincere thanks to the authors and publisher for the complimentary digital copy that was given to me in exchange for my honest review.

My Rating: 4.5 stars

Authors: Robert Dugoni, Jeff Langholz, Chris Crabtree

Genre: Historical Fiction (WWII)

Type and Source: ebook from publisher via NetGalley

Publisher: Lake Union Publishing

First Published: January 28, 2025

Read: Dec 15 - 24, 2024

Book Description from GoodReads: From Robert Dugoni, Jeff Langholz, and Chris Crabtree comes an epic and inspiring novel—based on true events—about love, heroism, and resilience during the darkest chapters of World War II.

Sam Carlson is a projectionist in small-town Minnesota, where fantasies unspool in glorious black and white—for him and for his sweetheart, college-bound math whiz Sarah Haber. When the Japanese bomb Pearl Harbor, Sam is sent to the Philippines and captured as a POW. Brutalized but unbroken by the Bataan Death March and POW camps, Sam is one of 1,800 starved and weakened prisoners herded into the cargo hold of a barbaric hell ship called the Arisan Maru, his survival doubtful.

Determined to use her math skills on the home front, Sarah is recruited to Washington, DC, into the covert field of code breaking. When Sarah intercepts a message about a Japanese convoy, the US Navy’s mission is sink the Arisan Maru and send it to the bottom of the South China Sea. Now, the lives of the two young lovers are about to inadvertently collide in one of the most shocking acts of World War II.

Anchored in an extraordinary true story and breathlessly recreated, Hold Strong is a one-of-a-kind novel that explores faith, courage, survival, and coming home against insurmountable odds.