“War is not a game, but it does have rules. And the first rule is: never fall in love on the battlefield.”
— Aphrodite's initial warning to Hazel and James.
Archivist's Choice
Lovely War
Julie Berry (2019)
Genre
Fantasy / Historical Fiction / Young Adult / Romance
Reading Time
960 min
Key Themes
See below
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During two World Wars, the Greek goddess Aphrodite shares the love stories of mortals, showing that even devastating conflicts cannot conquer love.
Synopsis
In a luxurious Manhattan hotel room during World War II, the Greek goddess Aphrodite is on trial. Her jealous husband Hephaestus and her lover Ares accuse her of meddling in human affairs. To defend herself, she tells the interwoven stories of four young lovers during World War I. Hazel, a shy pianist, and James, an aspiring architect turned soldier, fall in love in London, but his deployment to the Western Front separates them. Meanwhile, Aubrey, an African-American jazz musician from New York, arrives in France with his regiment. There, he meets Colette, a Belgian singer scarred by German occupation. As the war continues, these four navigate prejudice, trauma, and combat. Their fates are subtly influenced by the gods themselves. Aphrodite tells their tales of romance, loss, resilience, and hope. She argues that love persists and even thrives during war, showing the strength of the human spirit.
Reading time
960 min
Difficulty
Medium
Pacing
Variable
Mood
Romantic, Poignant, Hopeful, Historical, Mythic
✓ Read this if...
You love epic historical romances with a magical realism twist and enjoy stories told from multiple perspectives, including divine narrators.
✗ Skip this if...
You prefer strictly realistic historical fiction or find divine intervention in human stories distracting.
Plot Summary
Aphrodite's Trial
In a luxurious Manhattan hotel room during World War II, the goddess Aphrodite is on trial. Her jealous husband Hephaestus accuses her of infidelity with Ares. To defend herself and explain the connection between Love and War, Aphrodite begins to tell the stories of four mortals whose lives met during World War I: Hazel, James, Aubrey, and Colette. She, along with Ares, Hephaestus, and Hades (who joins later), narrate, giving comments and insight into human experiences of love, loss, and prejudice during war. Their divine viewpoints frame the human story, questioning love and suffering.
Hazel and James Meet
London, 1917. Hazel Stone, a talented but sheltered pianist, meets James Alderidge, a newly enlisted soldier who wants to be an architect. Their connection is immediate, a quick romance blooming as war approaches. James likes Hazel's quiet strength and musicality, and Hazel likes James's kindness and artistic spirit. Their growing love is strong, a bright spark in a darkening world, but James's upcoming deployment to the Western Front soon threatens it. They must face the fragility of their new happiness.
Aubrey's Journey to War
Aubrey Edwards, a talented African American jazz musician from New York, has already gained some fame, having played Carnegie Hall. He joins the 15th New York Infantry, an all-black regiment, facing much racial discrimination even within the American military. His journey takes him to France. His regiment, first assigned to manual labor, is eventually loaned to the French army because of severe manpower shortages. Aubrey carries his trumpet, finding comfort and expression in music, though he believes love is far from his mind given the realities of war and prejudice.
Colette's Trauma and Resilience
Colette Fournier, a young Belgian woman and a skilled singer, has faced terrible things under German occupation in her hometown. Her family was killed, and she herself suffered brutal treatment, leaving her deeply traumatized and mistrustful. She finds refuge and a way to survive by singing in a cabaret in a French town behind the lines. She uses her music to both numb her pain and connect with others. Despite her broken spirit, Colette has inner strength and a strong will to survive, though she remains emotionally guarded, believing love is a luxury she can no longer afford.
James in the Trenches
James Alderidge arrives on the Western Front. He is immediately thrown into the horrors of trench warfare. He sees firsthand the devastation, constant fear, and loss of life. His romance with Hazel feels distant, yet her memory is a strong anchor, a reason to survive. He writes letters to her, trying to explain the unspeakable without truly showing the full brutality. The war tests his spirit and resolve, but his love for Hazel remains a beacon, a hope for a future beyond the mud and blood.
Aubrey and Colette Meet
Aubrey's regiment, the Harlem Hellfighters, is assigned to the French army. While performing with his band at a local café, Aubrey sees Colette Fournier, the quiet but captivating singer. His music, especially his trumpet, speaks to her wounded soul, and she is drawn to its beauty and emotion. Despite their cultural differences and Colette's deep trauma, a tentative connection begins to form between them. Aubrey's gentle nature and his respect for her pain slowly start to break down Colette's defenses, offering her a glimpse of comfort and perhaps a new start.
James's Injury and Recovery
During a particularly brutal fight, James Alderidge is badly wounded. His hand is severely injured, ending his dreams of becoming an architect. He is sent to a recovery hospital, where he battles physical pain and deep emotional despair. The injury feels like a personal defeat, and he questions his future and his worth. He believes himself less of a man and unworthy of Hazel's love. His letters to Hazel become less frequent and more distant, showing his inner turmoil and growing hopelessness.
Hazel's Service and Search
Driven by her love for James and a desire to help the war effort, Hazel Stone trains as a VAD (Voluntary Aid Detachment) nurse. She volunteers to serve in France, hoping to be closer to James and perhaps find him. Her search leads her to the hospital where James is recovering. However, the James she finds is a shadow of the man she fell in love with – withdrawn, bitter, and convinced he is no longer worthy of her. Hazel, despite her own fear and the challenges of nursing, steadily tries to reach him, refusing to give up on their love.
Aubrey and Colette's Deepening Bond
As the war continues, Aubrey and Colette's relationship deepens. Aubrey’s patience, understanding, and their shared language of music help Colette slowly talk about her past traumas. He sees past her scars, recognizing her strength and beauty. Colette, in turn, finds in Aubrey a safe place, a gentle soul who offers comfort and respect, something she desperately needs. Their love becomes a quiet resistance against the destruction around them, showing the power of human connection, offering each of them a path towards healing and hope.
The War Ends, New Beginnings
The armistice is declared, ending the brutal fighting. For all four characters, the end of the war brings both relief and new challenges. James, still dealing with his injury and trauma, slowly begins to accept Hazel's steady love and support. He understands their future will be different but not diminished. Aubrey and Colette, their bond strengthened by shared experiences and love, look towards a future together. They consider the difficulties of a mixed-race couple in a prejudiced world but are determined to make their own way.
Post-War Realities
Back in England, James struggles with his disability and the psychological scars of war. But Hazel's steady love and his renewed passion for art (drawing instead of architecture) help him heal. Meanwhile, Aubrey and Colette face significant racial prejudice when they return to America. Colette, though deeply in love, must navigate a society unwelcoming to her and her relationship with Aubrey. Their love is strong, but external pressures are immense, forcing them to make difficult choices about their future and where they can truly belong and thrive together.
The Gods' Verdict
Aphrodite finishes her narratives, showing how both couples, Hazel and James, and Aubrey and Colette, found lasting love and some peace despite the suffering and prejudice they faced. She argues that love is not weak or unimportant, but a powerful, resilient force that thrives even during war, offering comfort, healing, and hope. Her stories show that while war may destroy bodies and break spirits, love can rebuild, inspire, and ultimately overcome despair. Hephaestus and Ares, having listened to the human stories, consider the complex interaction of their domains.
Principal Figures
Aphrodite
The Protagonist (divine narrator)
Aphrodite's arc involves proving to her fellow gods, and perhaps herself, the profound power and necessity of love, even amidst the most devastating conflicts.
Hazel Stone
The Protagonist (mortal)
Hazel transforms from a sheltered girl into a strong, independent woman who actively seeks to help others and fights for her love.
James Alderidge
The Protagonist (mortal)
James's arc is about confronting and overcoming severe war trauma, finding a new identity and purpose, and accepting love and healing.
Aubrey Edwards
The Protagonist (mortal)
Aubrey's arc shows him finding profound love and purpose in helping Colette heal, while also confronting racial injustice.
Colette Fournier
The Protagonist (mortal)
Colette's arc is about healing from severe trauma, rediscovering hope, and learning to trust and love again.
Hephaestus
The Supporting (divine narrator)
Hephaestus's arc involves a gradual shift from cynical jealousy to a more nuanced understanding of love's power and its resilience.
Ares
The Supporting (divine narrator)
Ares's arc shows him moving from a purely destructive view of war to acknowledging the intertwined nature of love and suffering.
Hades
The Supporting (divine narrator)
Hades's role is primarily to provide a consistent, sobering perspective on the finality of war's consequences and the preciousness of life and love.
Zeus
The Mentioned
N/A
Themes & Insights
The Enduring Power of Love Amidst War
This is the main theme, shown through Aphrodite's story. The love stories of Hazel and James, and Aubrey and Colette, show how love can give comfort, strength, and a reason to survive even in the most brutal war. Hazel's steady devotion to James helps him through his trauma, while Aubrey's gentle love helps Colette heal from terrible experiences. Love is not a fragile emotion, but a strong force that can rebuild lives and spirits, making sense of chaos and offering hope for a future. The gods' comments reinforce this, showing that even divine beings are moved by its power.
“War is a beast, yes. But love is a god. It does not die.”
Trauma and Healing
The novel explores the psychological and physical trauma of war and the long process of healing. James's hand injury and PTSD, and Colette's experiences under German occupation, are key examples. The characters' journeys show that healing is not simple and often requires much patience, empathy, and support from loved ones. Hazel's steadfastness and Aubrey's gentle understanding are important for their partners' recovery, showing how human connection helps overcome deep suffering. The gods observe this human resilience and vulnerability.
“He carried the war inside him, a heavy, silent thing. But she carried a light.”
Prejudice and Discrimination
The novel clearly shows the widespread prejudice of the era, especially racial discrimination faced by Aubrey and his African American regiment. Despite their bravery, they are often assigned to menial tasks and not given the same recognition as white soldiers. The challenges Aubrey and Colette face as a mixed-race couple after the war further highlight the systemic barriers and societal intolerance. This theme shows how human conflict goes beyond the battlefield, revealing the 'wars' against injustice and bigotry in daily life, even among allies.
“They were good enough to die for France, but not good enough to be treated like men by their own country.”
The Role of Art and Music
Music and art are powerful tools for expression, healing, and connection in the novel. Hazel's piano playing, Aubrey's trumpet, and Colette's singing are not just hobbies but key parts of their identities and coping methods. Music allows Aubrey to communicate with Colette when words fail, and it brings comfort to soldiers and civilians. For James, drawing becomes a new outlet for his creativity after his injury. Art provides beauty, meaning, and a sense of humanity during destruction, offering a way to process trauma and imagine a future.
“Music was the only language that could truly speak of the unspeakable.”
Fate vs. Free Will
The divine framework (gods narrating human lives) raises questions about fate and free will. Are the mortals just puppets in a divine drama, or do they make their own choices? While the gods observe and comment, their influence is more about interpretation than direct action. The choices made by Hazel, James, Aubrey, and Colette—to love, to hope, to heal—suggest that even within the grand story of war and divine observation, human choice and resilience play a key role in shaping individual outcomes and finding meaning.
“We may watch, but they still choose. And their choices, in the end, are their own.”
Plot Devices & Literary Techniques
Divine Narration
Greek gods Aphrodite, Ares, Hephaestus (and Hades) serve as omniscient narrators.
This device frames the entire story, allowing for a unique perspective on human suffering and love. The gods' witty, often cynical, but ultimately empathetic commentary provides context, foreshadowing, and philosophical depth. They observe the mortal world from a detached yet invested viewpoint, discussing the nature of love, war, and humanity. This allows the author to explore complex themes through ancient archetypes, creating a meta-narrative that elevates the individual stories to universal significance.
Intertwined Dual Narratives
The story follows two distinct but eventually connected romantic couples.
The novel masterfully weaves together the love stories of Hazel and James, and Aubrey and Colette. While initially separate, their paths subtly cross, creating a broader tapestry of human experience during WWI. This device highlights both the universal nature of love and loss in wartime, and the diverse ways individuals from different backgrounds navigate these challenges. By contrasting their experiences, especially regarding race and class, the author deepens the exploration of the war's multifaceted impact and the enduring power of connection.
Symbolism of Music and Art
Music (piano, trumpet, singing) and art (architecture, drawing) are central motifs.
Music and art are not just hobbies but powerful symbols of hope, healing, and communication. Hazel's piano, Aubrey's trumpet, and Colette's voice provide solace, express emotion beyond words, and forge profound connections. James's passion for architecture (and later drawing) represents his dreams and his journey of finding a new purpose. These artistic elements stand in stark contrast to the destruction of war, representing the human capacity for creation, beauty, and resilience amidst devastation.
Epistolary Elements
Letters exchanged between characters, particularly Hazel and James.
The inclusion of letters between Hazel and James provides intimate insight into their emotional states, their longing, and the challenges of communicating across the vast distance and horrors of war. These letters reveal the changing dynamics of their relationship, James's descent into trauma, and Hazel's unwavering hope. They serve as tangible links between the lovers, emphasizing the importance of connection and the emotional toll of separation, while also showing the limitations of words to convey the full truth of war experiences.
Critical analysis
Notable Quotes
“Perhaps the greatest courage is not to fight, but to choose to love despite the fighting.”
— Hades reflecting on the nature of human love amidst war.
“For the living, the dead are always watching. For the dead, the living are always remembered.”
— Ares observing the enduring connection between the living and the fallen.
“There are a thousand ways to break a heart, and war is every one of them.”
— Aphrodite lamenting the pain caused by conflict.
“Hope is a terrible thing to lose. It’s worse than losing a limb, because you can’t see where it went.”
— James reflecting on the emotional toll of war.
“Music does not stop the war, but it makes the silence between battles bearable.”
— Hazel's perspective on the power of music during wartime.
“Even in the darkest times, love finds a way to bloom, fragile but persistent.”
— Apollo observing the resilience of human connection.
“The greatest weapon in any war is not a gun or a bomb, but a story.”
— Aphrodite explaining the power of narrative to the other gods.
“Sometimes, the only way to heal a broken world is to mend a single broken heart.”
— Hades's realization about the importance of individual suffering.
“To forget is to die twice.”
— Ares emphasizing the importance of remembering those lost.
“We are all just trying to find our way back to each other, even when we don't know where we're going.”
— Aubrey reflecting on the universal human desire for connection.
“Love is not a battlefield to be conquered, but a garden to be tended.”
— Aphrodite's ultimate understanding of true love.
“The gods don't make the choices, darling. We only tell the stories. It's up to humans to live them.”
— Aphrodite explaining the agency of humans to Colette.
“Every soldier carries two wars: the one he fights, and the one he remembers.”
— James's internal struggle with his wartime experiences.
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Key Questions (FAQ)
'Lovely War' is primarily set during World War I, following two intertwined love stories: Hazel and James, and Aubrey and Colette. The overarching conflict is the brutal reality of the Great War itself, which constantly threatens to separate and destroy the lovers, explored through the divine narration of Aphrodite.
About the author
Biography coming soon.
