I read this collection of historical fiction short stories because I've recently been reading works by some of its contributors:  Heather Webb, Jessica Brockmole, Hazel Gaynor, Jennifer Robson, Beatriz Williams, and Lauren Willig.  Like any collection of short stories, some are better than others.

The stories are all set around the time of Armistice Day, the end of World War I, November 11, 1918, and all involve some sort of love - romantic, maternal, etc.  There's a good mix of characters and settings across the stories.

If I had to pick a favorite, it would be Jennifer Robson's "All for the Love of You," which was especially interesting as the story involved the creation of realistic masks for soldiers with facial wounds.

The other stories are: "The Daughter of Belgium" by Marci Jefferson, "The Record Set Right" by Lauren Willig, "After You've Gone" by Evangeline Holland,  "Something Worth Landing For" by Jessica Brockmole, "Hour of the Bells" by Heather Webb, "An American Airman in Paris" by Beatriz Williams, "The Photograph" by Kate Kerrigan, and "Hush" by Hazel Gaynor.  All worth reading. ( )

Nice anthology, great authors, 5 stars!~

As with most anthologies, some stories were better than others. For me, only a couple of these will be remembered. ( )

When I see a collection of stories from authors I have read and enjoyed before, I am pretty much guaranteed to want to add it to my collection. The nine short stories in Fall of Poppies, edited by Heather Webb, are written by authors I have either read and enjoyed before or by popular women's fiction authors who I have in my to be read stacks. So there was definitely no passing it up. That the subtitle of the collection is Stories of Love and the Great War made it just that much more appealing.

Each of the stories is short, fleeting but complete. They are from many different perspectives, soldier, mother, widow, lover, wife, giving a rounded view of the aftermath of this war that rocked the world. No one in the western world was untouched by it and Armistice Day, which anchors all of the stories here, was a day of great celebration. Some of the stories are hopeful, telling of love finally winning, and others are heart-wrenching. All of them, though, tell of the need, the struggle, and of how to make a life after the upheaval and horror of war. Each story's main characters have survived, battered, bruised, frightened, or worse, but they are all alive and they all have a strong determination to move forward even as they carry the physical and emotional after effects of the war. Many of the stories feel sepia-toned and carry a sense of melancholy, even those that end happily. Each has the feel of a time long past, of remembrance and memory. The stories are brief but moving and are a great way for a historical fiction reader to try out the authors included here as all are strong entries about love, loss, and the trauma of war. ( )

This book of WW1 stories was an excellent read. My grandfather served in WW1 and for that reason, that time period and all that surrounds it holds an interest for me. These stories gave me a peek into what it might have been like for persons touched by the Great War. I will recommend. ( )