Laura Burrows

North Wales, 1919

The end of the war was supposed to bring freedom. For Alma, who found welcome independence as a munitions worker, it means a painful arrangement with the man who saved her family from destitution. And for Jack – a Canadian soldier who fought for Britain – it means degradation in the feverish repatriation camp where thousands wait longer than they should to sail home.

When they meet in the shanty town which serves the camp, their love becomes the one chance of escape. But their dreams are fragile: ships home are delayed time and again, Spanish ‘flu is spreading and the men – their bravery ignored – are mutinous.

Inspired by a true story of a mutiny, The Canadian Soldier weaves together the story of a woman’s search for freedom and a soldier’s struggle to return home as the world reels in the aftermath of war and pandemic.