June 1940. Despite losing her mother at a young age and her father away on important war work, 17-year-old Rita Smith has plenty of people to turn to in the close-knit community of Cliffhaven. Until Italy sides with Germany and Rita's closest friends and neighbours are interned as enemies of the state. As war rages across Europe, Rita is more determined than ever to do her bit for the war effort. Although she is forced to give up her dream of joining the WAAF, she volunteers as a fire warden.

When her own home is destroyed, Rita vows she will not lose spirit and throws herself into doing her bit for king and country, longing for the day when she is reunited with those she loves best....

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Product details

Listening Length	11 hours and 37 minutes
Author	Ellie Dean
Narrator	Julie Maisey
Whispersync for Voice	Ready
Audible.com.au Release Date	20 September 2012
Publisher	Random House Audiobooks
Program Type	Audiobook
Version	Unabridged
Language	English
ASIN	B089R661FC
Best Sellers Rank	108,534 in Audible Books & Originals (See Top 100 in Audible Books & Originals) 6,761 in Historical Fiction (Audible Books & Originals) 8,141 in Family Saga Fiction (Books) 15,154 in Genre Fiction (Audible Books & Originals)

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karen harding

The bravery of people and the humanity on display.

Reviewed in Australia on 12 March 2020

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I have enjoyed reading the Cliffhaven series. Ellie Dean brings the characters to life, warts and all. The period her stories are written in portray the indomitable spirit of the British people who struggled through every day.

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Sherralynne

Super story

Reviewed in Australia on 10 June 2018

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I really loved this super story. Lots of intrigue, romance and human emotions that will keep all readers entranced. Thanks.

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Rebecca

Somewhat confusing!

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 7 August 2017

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I would like to start this review by saying that I love Ellie Dean's writing and this series of books has me hooked. However, having read books 1 and 2, I have been thoroughly confused by 'keep smiling through' as book 3. In books 1 and 2 Anne gets married and is expecting her first baby and Cissy has a bad experience at the theatre. Yet in book three Anne's forthcoming wedding is mentioned (she has already been married), it states that Sally is making Anne's wedding dress (she did this in book 1) and that Cissy is still at the theatre (which she wasn't at the end of book 2) Hence, I have lost my motivation to read on. I am hopeful that if I do keep reading that there will be sort of time hop and I will get to understand why we have gone back in time but so far I'm left puzzled. Needless to say I will continue with this book as the others have been so brilliant but I'm struggling to keep up right now!

8 people found this helpful

Kat Willows

I loved books 1 and 2 in The Cliffehaven Series

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 14 December 2017

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I loved books 1 and 2 in The Cliffehaven Series. I ordered the other 11 to continue reading about the family (Peggy) and all those who came to Beach View. However, I'm very baffled. In this book it would appear we have gone back in time as Anne is planning her wedding (she got married in book 2), Cissy is still at the theatre (she had left in book 2) and Sally is still living there (she left in book 2 to go and live with her friend Pearl and then got married). Now we have a new character, Rita, who I am wanting to know and read more about, but being re-introduced to everyone from books 1 and 2 has spoilt it for me and am now wondering what will happen in the other 11 books I've got at the side of my bed! Should this have been book 2 instead of 3? Puzzling and distracting to be honest.

3 people found this helpful

Shirley

The Excellent Saga Continues

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 6 March 2020

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Book 3 now read and soon will be starting Book 4 of this brilliant saga. At no time have I felt Ellie was struggling with the storyline, it is just another great pageturner of a book.
i know what people mean about Anne's so called forhcoming wedding which actually happened in Book 2, but so what......its just a little error and not detrimental to the book!
Here's hoping the next one is as good!
Great stotytelling Ellie!

M. A. Richardson

WWII continues

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 30 November 2020

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another brilliant book. a few reviews have complained about a wedding. How Ellie has done this - there are 18 in the series - Ellie is working her way thru the war, which is the non fiction part, entwined with the fiction stories. Book 2 & 3 overlap in years, so Ellie recaps the story etc in 3. New residents come to Beechview. The main residents feauture. I can recomend this

Petra 🤗📚📓🖋📮

Excellent read as always..though I do wish we all had a Peggy Reilly in our lives..

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 2 April 2013

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Keep Smiling Through by Ellie Dean is the third book in this wonderful series and once again the author does not disappoint her readers, I do believe she has went one step further by doing what no other author ever had the bravery to do she has written this book as a partner to the second book in the series Far From Home (Beach View Boarding House) beautifully as the book was based on the same time frame therefore there are some storylines you will recognise as once again we are brought to the Reilly home and you will feel you are reading the same book over again but do not stop reading, I promise you will not be disappointed as the author has done a very clever thing in my opinion. Other authors write books based on the time frame following the previous book, as the first part of the book was already covered in the last book. Ellie did not just cover the same information she covered in the last book she allowed the reader to see a more detailed look at this time e.g. Sally's wedding and other plots were only briefly covered in the last book. Therefore I felt I missed no part of the lives of Peggy and her lovely family. As a reader I got to see how other characters regarded those same special times which happened in Far From Home and what their experiences were through this time. The second part of the book takes off after Sally's wedding which did not fail to keep me entertained. As always Mrs Finch never fails to have me smiling as she lovingly looks after the Reilly family as her own and the Reilly family regards her as one of their own.
The main character in this book is Rita and her father is off to war who she clearly adores, though Rita is not Italian she is brought up among the Italian families who are her neighbours and friends and this is where we meet the formidable Louise who treats Rita more like a possession rather than a neighbour's daughter. Internment has become compulsory and we see how this affects their loved ones and those they leave behind, Louise is married to an Italian and as her husband and son in interned she clings to Rita like someone drowning at sea but as Rita slowly gets used to life without her father she shows her true brave self at work though she still fears to stand up to Louise. As Rita continues to show bravery at her work it takes some time for her to show that same bravery within her home life. As the author showed the reader Rita as a character from the first page I knew she was going to be different from others, as she rode her motor cycle better than any man she showed men she could handle any engine they showed her and though rough was her exterior inside she was a beauty who just needed Peggy Reilly and her family to give her courage and faith in herself to show that beauty to the outside world.
As always Peggy has also her own problems to deal with and as always she does so with strength and the love of her family. Peggy continues to miss her boys as they are now living with Sally's aunt in the country away from the bombs. While the rationing causes havoc in her home Peggy still has the heart of Gold and she rushes around looking after everyone in her vicinity while taking no nonsense from anyone. But the war brings other pressures and more friends seeking refuge in Beach View Boarding House and with each new character we see how lives were so different to today but life was cherished more and new and old friends were treasured as no one knew what the next hour was going to bring before they had to think of tomorrow. As always Peggy's father-in-law Ron and his side kick Harvey his dog provides the laughs along with his son Jim aiding his minor crimes to provide those little extras which make life that bit easier on making those rations stretch a little further. Ellie Dean has developed Ron and Jim as characters and they play a good part in making this wonderful book that bit more special as along with bravery these two men never failed to entertain me at any time throughout this wonderful read even when Ron was a patient in the local hospital with the matron watching every move he makes.
As an author Ellie Dean has a great way of making sure the reader misses nothing of what is going on in front of them from the clothes the characters wear to the places they are based in but what makes this author different she researches not just the war but how it affected those which lived through this time and how they lived day to day. I always learn something new while reading this author's work and long may she continue as always I look forward to her next book as with each new book the author never lets her reader's down.

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