Characters of importance include:
- Juliet Ashton, author and protagonist
- Dawsey Adams, Juliet's first Guernsey correspondent and close friend
- Sidney Stark, Juliet's London-based publisher and friend
- Sophie Strachan, Sidney's sister and Juliet's best friend
- Amelia Maugery, Guernsey resident and hostess of the dinner party that started the Society
- Isola Pribby, Guernsey resident, quirky Society member, and vegetable and herb vendor
- Eben Ramsey, Guernsey resident and former postman
- Eli, Guernsey resident and Eben's grandson
- Will Thisbee, Guernsey resident and creator of the first potato peel pie
- Kit McKenna, Elizabeth's adorable, ferret-loving daughter
- Elizabeth McKenna, London-born young lady who was caught on Guernsey at the war's outset, and the quick-witted founder of the Society
- Remy Giraud, a Frenchwoman and friend of Elizabeth's in a German concentration camp