“She was the bravest person I ever met. Not the bravest girl, the bravest person.”

Cilka ends up in a concentration camp at the age of 16 and in chosen by the guards to serve them in a room with a bed. She gets to wear her hair long and gets extra food, but she is a prisoner living in a hell that not only isolates her from the outside, but also from the people trapped inside with her. They hate that she is given a special status and so she is alone to deal with her shame. That hate is what gets her sent to the Russian Gulags when she is “freed” because another prisoner says she provided comfort to the enemy. It was not her choice – her choice was to live anyway she could.

I read The Tattooist of Auschwitz by Heather Morris last year and when I saw that she was releasing a new book on NetGalley, I chose to read it. Cilka’s Journey is the first historical fiction book I’ve read that is set in the Russian Gulags. Morris’ writing style captivates the reader right away in both books.

Cilka has a strong will to live and survives the trip to Siberia. There, they have a small respite before going to work in the mines. When Cilka hurts her foot, she spends some time in the medical clinic and finds there are still some decent people in the camp. Cilka has to find a way to trust people again and deal with the shame of her past, which haunts her every decision.

I learned a lot reading Cilka’s Journey. It is heartbreaking that people suffered through situations like this one. The author based the book on a real person, but also incorporated facts from other people’s lives who were imprisoned by the Russians. I am glad the author pursued telling the stories of these people who survived so we can all know and never forget the darkest parts of history.

Thoroughly enjoyed the sequel to Heather Morris's book, it had me crying and wanting to read more. A must read!

Cilka's Journey is based on Cilka who was first introduced to us in The Tattooist of Auschwitz. This novel tells the story of Cilka who is charged as a collaborator for sleeping with the enemy and sent to a Siberian prison camp! Her hardships and tragedies she endured are incredulous, but an important part of history for us to learn. I am glad I got to know more about Cilka. This novel is based on numerous stories similar to Cilka's Journey. Thank you to NetGalley for an advanced copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

I did not connect with the characters as much as I did in The Tattoist of Auschwitz but I am glad I read this follow up novel and appreciate the author's research and retelling.

"Cilka' Journey" by Heather Morris is an interesting follow-up to "The Tatooist of Auschwitz." It is a sad and yet hopeful tale. Having had a relative sent to the Gulag after WWII, I thought the horrors of the experience were actually understated in the book. Cilka had people who looked out for her and she was luckier than most. Her fantasy love and the ending were a bit too contrived. The people who experienced the Gulag - in addition to a concentration camp - were ever scared by the experience. They did not live happily ever after, as this book might lead one to think. But, on the whole, I found the book to be a compelling read.that I couldn't put down. It is well-written and well-researched,

5 gold stars for an extra-strong woman, and 5 sure stars for this extra-strong book!

Wow, this is some powerful historical fiction! It’s based on the real life of an unsung hero, Cilka, who went through the Holocaust and ended up in a Siberian labor camp. The book started out way too depressing—every single sentence was doom and gloom to the nth degree. The language seemed sort of dead and monotonous, and as the sentences and dread piled up, I could barely stand it. I thought, “Why am I reading this? This makes me feel awful! It’s too much!” I understand that the author wants to educate us about the gruesomeness of the times, but there’s a limit to what I can take. It’s a given that I can’t truly know how it felt to be Jewish in Europe during the Holocaust, but my overactive empathy gene makes me try to picture the horror, and it haunts me if I dwell on it.

I considered ditching the book. It’s not that I wanted lightweight; I just wanted it to let up a bit. But then I got totally absorbed in Cilka’s life, and I fell in love with her. Suddenly I couldn’t put the book down. In fact, it almost made me grab my pogo stick. I love it when I go from almost abandoning a book to giving it 5 stars!

This is a story about survival and camaraderie that happened under incredibly harsh conditions. Women in the labor camp had it way worse than the men, and god help them if they got pregnant. The sexual abuse alone was horrific. There were people I vehemently hated and people I completely loved. There are flashbacks to Cilka’s time at Auschwitz, and they are powerful, too.

This isn’t a book where I zealously highlighted sentences. Few words of wisdom, just a closeup look at an amazing person who endured unimaginable suffering. I only underlined sentences that I thought were eloquent, and there weren’t a lot. If I dole out 5 stars, it usually means I highlighted like crazy. Here, I gave the book 5 stars because Morris is such a good storyteller: The plot is well paced and almost flawless, and Cilka is well drawn. Morris taught me things about Siberian labor camps, mostly about the dynamics of prisoners and what they were forced to endure. Most important, Morris made me feel something for Cilka and her fellow sufferees. Highlights not required.

Cilka is full of positive adjectives: she’s smart, resourceful, kind, strong, resilient, and selfless—a version of Mother Theresa or Florence Nightingale. I found it impossible not to admire Cilka and to feel her pain. Of course, as in a lot of fiction, she has a secret, which always ups the anguish and the drama.

Two small nits. “Fuck” is used occasionally (as a noun), by men wanting to have sex, and I bought that. However, there are numerous times when “fuck” is used as an adjective or is otherwise colloquial, and the sentences seemed all wrong. The usage is way too modern. This one, spoken by a female inmate, especially bugged me: “I want you to go fuck yourself.” Each time I ran across a phrase like that, I was startled, because it didn’t fit the tone and style of the book. And each time, I was pulled out of the scene and the time period, which pretty much wrecked it for me for a short while. (Meanwhile, I can’t believe I’ve devoted a whole paragraph to the word “fuck”!)

The other nit: I don’t think Morris made the camp cold enough. She didn’t talk about the temperature much, and there were few scenes where we see people enduring frigid conditions. Most of us think of Siberia as being unbearably cold. Yet here I often forgot about the climate. I thought the harsh weather should have been ever-present.

The book will stay with me a long time; it’s storytelling at its best. If you love historical fiction, you’ll love this. I’m for sure going to check out Morris’s earlier book, The Tattooist of Auschwitz, where Cilka is introduced.

I would be so happy to see a movie based on this book. Still trying to pick the actress for the role, in case the producer calls me, lol.

Thanks to NetGalley for the advance copy.

As a FICTION book, this is a very lovely book and a great addition to the holocaust FICTION. However, as it is based off a true story it bothers me. There are many historical facts that are incorrect, many things that would never have happened to the character in Auschwitz. Had it been marketed even as inspired by a true story it would have been a massive improvement. I would not use this to teach in a curriculum for my classroom, the subject matter is just a bit advanced but mainly because the fact of all the inaccuracies that would make it unable to be used. So based off the idea that it is fiction being portrayed as fact is why I would give it a 2. Had marketing been different and been marketed ( as well as Morris' other book) it would have been at least a 4 for me.

Thanks Net Galley. I received an ARC of Cilka's Journey in exchange for an honest review. Here's my review:

Cilka’s Journey is the story of Cilka Klein, a young woman who comes of age during and in the aftermath of the holocaust. She is sent to Auschwitz-Birkenau at the age of 16, while there she is selected by a high ranking Nazi officer to be his whore. As a result she is granted privileges such as keeping her long hair, having nice things and being placed in a barracks where she had her own sleeping quarters which came at a cost. The barracks housed women who were being sent to the gas chamber. Cilka was to lead the women to their death. While putting on a visage of ruthlessness in front of the Nazis, for her own survival, in secret she tried to offer comfort to the women destined for execution.
After being released from the Auschwitz-Birkenau, she is charged as a collaborator for sleeping with the enemy. She is sentenced to 15 years hard labor and sent to Vorkuta Gulag (a Russian work prison/camp in Siberia). Despite the atrocities of camp life, rape, starvation, prisoners being worked to death, solitary confinement, etc., Cilka finds a way to keep her heart open and to provide care and comfort to others. She becomes trained as a nurse and risks her own safety to help others. She finds love in the depths of hell.
Cilka’s Journey is a gut-wrenching tale based upon the real life of Cecilia “Cilka” Klein. Cilka, brings a ray of light to others in the darkest depths of desperation. This is a story of survival and hope where there is none to be found.
I found the author’s writing has grown in this sequel to the Tatooist of Auschwitz. She presents relatable characters and draws you into their circumstance despite the horrors of their existence. I highly recommend this book and look forward to more from the author.

Absolute brilliant and heartbreaking

Cilka's Journey is another well-researched and well-written view into our still-recent, heartbreaking past of WWII and the post-war Soviet era. I enjoyed the Tattooist also, but perhaps this one a bit more. I think you can read this as a stand-alone novel without reading the Tattooist first. I was so engrossed in this book that I read it in a 24 hour period; starting it late a night, it would have been 12 hours had I not had a must-do social engagement. Please read and think about this book, about the stories of horror, the abuse of women in war-time and as prisoners. Is there perhaps a lesson for us today!?

I would give this book 10 stars if I could!

Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for the loan of an e-arc. These opinions are mine, and I was under no obligation to post a review.

This was a powerful sequel to The Tattooist of Auschwitz. Well , not exactly a sequel, but a spin off from one character.

I hadn't heard about the Siberian Gulags before! I was horrified, I am still..

My hearth aches for those awful times. And I appreciate this type of novels that allow with their hype to be a sort of education and very informative for younger generations, I think is important we don't forget.

This story is very much different from Lale and Gita's.

Cilka was truly the bravest person, she endured so much, and even though some events were fiction
, I could still ache for the events.

We've read novels illuminating the conditions in the concentration camps during WW II. Here we get a glimpse into the Siberian prison camps.

Morris has created the historical novel based on an actual young woman who, after years in a German concentration camp, is taken to Siberia. Cilka had been forced to have sex with German soldiers, as was the case with many of the women being held. The camp liberating Russians interpreted that as cohabiting with the enemy and thus assigned her to another camp for imprisonment, this time Russian.

This is a detailed fictional account of a young woman surviving under terrible conditions. Notes at the beginning and end of the novel inform readers as to which parts are historical and which are fiction.

This is the first book I have read by Morris and I was a bit surprised at the straightforward nature of the narrative. I was not captivated by Cilka as a character. I was a little disappointed in the lack of engaging scene structure in the freezing Siberian landscape. I actually started skimming a bit due to the day by day reporting style of the continuing narrative.

For readers who have not read about the Siberian camps, this may be a good read. Those who have read other fictional or historical accounts, may find this one a bit lacking.

I received a complimentary egalley of this book from the publisher. My comments are an independent and honest review.

The thing that compelled me the most to pick up this book and read it, was the first book "The Tattooist of Auschwitz". I pleasantly enjoyed the first book. The biggest obstacle I had in reading this book, "Cilka's Journey" was a mental obstacle of having to reenter captivity. In the previous book, the Tatooist's journey eneded at the end of the war and being released from the concentration camp. And yet this book, "Cilka's Journey" started with having to re-enter confinement again. It was mental drugery to have to prepare my mind to reenter a world similiar to the last one, because in my mind the previous story was concluded and characters freed.

What an incredible story. It's hard to imagine what Cilka had to go through and how many times she proved herself to be an amazing, compassionate woman. Yet, in her mind, she was still guilty and covered in the blood of those she couldn't save, even though she had no choice for those ones and saved countless others, even at her own expense. I can understand the shame these women felt and why they wanted to keep their pasts with the Nazi's a secret. Yet, they had no choice. They needed to do what they needed to do to survive. There's no shame in that and it's horrifying to think of all the women who carried that shame and guilt in their hearts or were tormented for what they did.

I was surprised to learn that Cilka was based off of a real girl. It makes it harder to remember her story but it's so important to read about her and honor all of her sacrifices, even those she felt were wrong, because she was strong and she was a survivor. She could have easily given up and ended it all, but she didn't. For that, I'm glad. I just wish she could have spoken about her time, like Lale was able to, and to get solace and comfort for what she endured, knowing that she wasn't alone all those years.

This is such a well written story, with the flashbacks to Auschwitz really digging the story in deeper. They give you more of a sense of who Cilka had to be and why she was so afraid for others to find out about her past. She needed to keep everyone at a distance, for her own safety and sanity. The ending was heartwarming. I'm glad she finally got the chance to live her life. I can only begin to imagine what these people went through, through stories like these. It's something we should never forget.

This was such an amazing read that I couldn’t put it down. It went everywhere with me. To the doctors office, the dentist, the eye doctor. IT WENT ABSOLUTELY EVERYWHERE. I was so sad when it ended that I immediately went and bought more books from this author!

I enjoyed this title very much. Morris tells both an engaging and concise story that keeps the reader hooked.

Heartbreaking. Horrifying at times what men will do, especially to women. This story though captured me from the beginning. I had to know Cilka’s story. Though Cilka appears in The Tattoo Artist of Auschwitz, I had not read that novel. I didn’t feel like I was missing out though in reading Cilka’s story. Her journey, her kindness, her continued questioning of her worth, such heartbreak. I cried with her and found hope at the same time. Five star read.

This was my first read from Heather Morris, and I really enjoyed how she brought her characters to life. The story is a difficult one—a sixteen year old girl survives Auschwitz only to be sent to a gulag in Siberia. Still you’ll find yourself rooting for the women and growing in compassion for those who lived through the unimaginable.

(There are horrendous acts that take place in this book. The author describes them in a way I generally thought was appropriate, but it could be difficult for some to read. I would only recommend for adults.)

Cilka's Journey, the sequel to The Tattooist of Auschwitz, is a heartbreaking story that follows Cilka Klein's (a secondary character in Tattooist) life after being released from Auschwitz. Accused of aiding the Nazis Cilka, a beautiful young women, is sentenced to a long prison term in a Siberian Gulag. Possessed of a strong character and amazing kindness and selflessness, Cilka navigates horrible conditions, treacherous fellow prisoners, and punishing winters. Cilka finds the good in all people and when a kind doctor takes Cilka under her wing, thought still hauted, Cilka sees a light at the end of the tunnel. The book shows how the kindness of some people can overcome the evil of others. Cilka is a wonderful character and her story is one the reader won't soon forget.

My Thoughts
This book is a spinoff of The Tattoist of Auschwitz. I have not read The Tattoist of Auschwitz so I can confirm that this book can be read as a standalone. Here are my pros and cons for Cilka’s Journey:

Pros

- I thought it was interesting that this story takes place (for the most part) after the war is over. Cilka is in a prison camp in Siberia for the majority of the book, not a concentration camp. This was a perspective I haven’t read about before… and I have read a lot of WWII fiction and non-fiction.
- I love that this novel was based – at least loosely – on a real person.
- Cilka is a strong, determined and hopeful woman. Even when she is discouraged or feels helpless, she still perseveres. She is well-written and likeable.
- Dr. Yelena is a hero. I don’t know if she exists as a real individual or if she is an amalgamation of several people that helped Cilka during her imprisonment – either way, the characterization of Dr. Yelena and how she treated and trusted and trained Cilka was refreshing and hopeful.
- I loved the interaction between the women in the prison camp. How they helped one another get through day by day felt honest and real.
- The writing is top-notch and engaging.
- This book is full of powerful themes – survival, hope, love, friendship, respect, fear, abuse, determination and perseverance – and you will feel each one of them strongly when you read the book.

Cons

- Some of the hospital scenes got a little boring for me. They just became a tad repetitive.
- We never found out what happened to Natalya and that drove me nuts.
- Some of the circumstances that happened to Cilka were amazingly fortunate… and maybe just a tad too fortunate for it to be believable to me. My summary below talks about how this book has been questioned regarding its “facts” and I understand that historical fiction often interweaves fact and fiction in order to provide a comprehensive story… but I think the author may have gone just a tad overboard in some respects regarding Cilka’s remarkable advantages during her imprisonment.

Summary
I read an article in The Guardian (Feb 1, 2019) that stated the Auschwitz Memorial Research Center identified many errors and misinformation in The Tattoist of Auschwitz and Cilka’s Journey. The author has stated that she “decided to honor Cilka by using her life as an inspiration for a novel” and that it would be “obvious what parts of the story are factual”. The author did interview some people that knew Cilka personally (i.e., Lale from The Tattoist of Auschwitz) but Cilka herself was deceased at the writing of this book. I often find it sad that we learn about awesome people like Cilka too late… how awesome would it have been to chat with her and get her real story?

Even if some of Cilka’s story was made up for the book, I still can’t imagine even an iota of what she must have really gone through. I kept thinking that even one of the terrible things she endured would have done me in almost immediately. Then again, I guess we never really know our strengths until they are tested, right?

This is a great story and I would recommend it to anyone interested in WWII novels, post-war prison camps, or just books about strong women in general.

Thank you NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for a free eARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

What an emotional read! This book covered a part of history that most people are not aware of ... Siberian Gulags. The relationships that develop or the conflicts that arise are both touching and angering. You will travel back and forth in time through Cilka's memories. There are no words strong enough to describe the hardships, the abuse, the brutality that individuals endured, but Cilka and so many others demonstrated an amazing level of strength and determination.

The author does a great job of bringing you into the story, developing the characters, making you feel their pain and hope, and holding your breath as your endure their daily existence.

Thank you to NetGalley for an ARC in exchange for my honest review.

I have not read The Tattooist of Auschwitz, and I didn't realize this was a companion novel when I started it. But I don't think you have to have read Tattooist to fully enjoy this heartbreaking novel about a young Hungarian woman named Cilka who has just been released from a Nazi concentration camp and is immediately transported to a prison camp in Siberia. While she was a prisoner in in Auschwitz, she gave "sexual favors" to the Nazi guards in order to survive. Anyone today would understand that this was rape, plain and simple, as Cilka had no choice but to give in if she wanted to live. But Stalinist Russia is not so forgiving of anyone who consorted with the Nazis, and they exhibit their own brand of evil when they imprison Cilka in the Siberian prison camp, where she is subjected to many of the same tortures that she experienced under the Nazis.

This is a story about survival, though, and while the story exposes all the atrocities of the Russian prison camp, readers will find that there is also compassion in the camp. A female doctor takes Cilka under her wing and helps her to discover meaningful work in the hospital, and Cilka uses the position to help the other prisoners.

I look forward to reading The Tattooist of Auschwitz after reading this novel. While I'm very familiar with the horror of the Nazi concentration camps, I did not know as much about Siberia, and now I'm interested in discovering more information about this very dark chapter in the twentieth century.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with an ARC in exchange for an honest review.