I received a complimentary copy of this book via Netgalley and the publisher.
All opinions are my own .


This follow up the the tattooist of auschwitz was a beautiful book. emotionally hard to read as all books about the holocaust and it’s aftermath are but certainly worth it. Lovely story and the I’d recommend it.

Thank you NetGalley for this book in exchange for a honest review.

Loved this book! The story flows the characters are fascinating and I couldn't put it down. Highly recommend.

This is the sequel to The Tattooist of Auschwitz. Cilka, whose real name is Cecilia Klein, was introduced to us in that book. At the age of 16, she was taken to the Auschwitz-Birkenau concentration camp. Her will to survive allows her stay alive, but after the war, she is charged as a Nazi collaborator (she learned that her survival depended on doing some things she would never have done given a choice) for sleeping with the enemy. She had been “adopted” by one of the Nazi commanders which gave the appearance of cooperation with the enemy. So after being liberated from the concentration camp, she is convicted and sent to Siberia where she once again puts survival over morality (if that is the right way to put it). Once again, Cilka must do what it takes to survive under unthinkable circumstances, and although the threat of extermination is gone, the climate and the prison personnel are formidable foes. While the Tattooist was based on interviews with Lale Sololov, this book is truly fiction as the author was never able to speak with Cilka although Lale definitely did talk about her when being interviewed. The gulag system did exist in the USSR from the mid-1930’s until after Stalin’s death in 1953, and the conditions are well documented now. Another emotional story from a very good author. Thank you to St. Martin’s Press and NetGalley for the opportunity to review the ARC of this book.

4⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
How does someone survive a labor camp, let alone two? How much can one person suffer?
Living freely here in America I can’t even take in all the brutal conditions she endured. I think the thing that got to me the most was how awful the prisoners were to each other. Of course I couldn’t ignore the unfair treatment from the guards either but I couldn’t believe how these people we’re living.
The author once again pulled me as I watched her tell me of the horrors and the sacrifices being made in this place. Friendships were made and love still grew in these awful conditions. Evil was everywhere and at times I could barely take it in but I had to finish this. I’m very glad I read this and I’d definitely recommend it to my friends.

This was a NETGALLEY gift and all opinions are my own.

Imagine surviving Auschwitz only to be declared a political prisoner and shipped off for 15 years hard labor in Siberia. Such is the fate of Cilka Klein.

Cilka’s resilience in the face of so much atrocity is truly inspiring. Her struggles with memories of the camp and PTSD particularly stood out for me.

Anyone who has read Heather Morris' debut novel, The Tattooist of Auschwitz, will recognise the name of the character Cilka, good friend of Gita & Lale during their time imprisoned at Auschwitz-Birkenau together. She was the young, beautiful, fairly quiet - somewhat enigmatic - one. If you wondered what fate befell this Slovakian teen, this second novel will fill you in. But even if you haven't read the Tattooist, you can easily read this one as a standalone; enough information is given to bring you up to speed and fill in any gaps.

When the Russian army came to liberate the concentration camp, it should have been the beginning of a new, better life for Cilka. But labelled a collaborator for her passive resistance to the actions of her Nazi captors, Cilka is sentenced without trial to 15 years in the Siberian gulag of Vorkuta, 99 miles above the Arctic Circle. There she finds herself facing many similar but some new challenges, as she focuses on survival alongside political prisoners, common criminals and other enemies of the state. A stroke of extremely good fortune early in her sentence, has Cilka taken under the wing of a civilian doctor in the gulag hospital, and she begins to hope that she will be strong enough to complete her term of imprisonment.

I wondered if this novel was going to be more fictionalised than the first. However it seems that at the very least, the major elements of Cilka's story have been very thoroughly researched. It is a great, fascinating story, so I feel mean rating it slightly lower than Tattooist. But there were two things that slightly detracted from my reading experience. The first was the way Morris delivered the dramatic tension - it was too episodic for my liking. Sometimes it felt like sitting in a boat on a choppy sea, with the tension building (never too high) over the course of a chapter or two, then suddenly something positive happens...over and over again. On the one hand, it's a true (ish) story, so that's just the way it happened. But by publishing it as fiction, I think Morris could have taken more liberties in the way the story played out, to be able to bring it on more of a climactic arc. The other issue I had was that it was written in the present tense, which I 'noticed' and thought about more than I probably wanted to.

Overall I thought it was a fantastic story, with a couple of minor problems in delivery.

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ /5⁣⁣
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I couldn't put this book down. I've read so many books about the Holocaust, and never once heard a thing about the Gulag in Vorkuta, Siberia. I read this with a buddy group, but couldn't keep myself from reading ahead of schedule. Oops.⁣
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This book was disturbing on so many levels. I enjoyed Ms. Morris's previous book, The Tattooist of Auschwitz, but Cilka's Journey really, really wins her accolades. I don't personally rate books 5⭐ often, so best believe this book was worth carrying around with me to read at every turn. ⁣⁣
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Thank you, NetGalley (@netgalley), St. Martin's Press (@stmartinspress ) and Heather Morris (@heatherrelizabethh ) for a free e-copy in exchange for my honest review. ⁣
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Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for a copy of this amazing book. A well written and heartbreaking story of Cilka who survived a concentration camp and ended up in Siberia. I haven't read the previous book so far but this one stands alone for itself so that you won't miss anything. I will definitely recommend this book to all my friends and family. Five stars well deserved.

“Did I tell you about Cilka?”
“No, Lale, you didn’t. Who was Cilka?”
“She was the bravest person I ever met. Not the bravest girl, the bravest person.”

Cilka’s Journey by Heather Morris is a companion book to The Tattooist of Auschwitz and is the story of Cilka Klein and what happened to her after her time at the concentration camp.

What a history lesson this book was for me! I was completely uneducated about the aftermath of the war...especially as it related to Stalin and his forced labor camps such as the one in this story. Cilka was a fighter and had to make some impossible choices to ensure her survival. Through her positivity and compassion for others, Cilka was able to overcome the constant abuse and brutality she endured for about 15 years.

Cilka’s Journey was a more difficult read than The Tattooist for me. The content was so heavy and heart wrenching that I found myself needing to take more frequent breaks from it along the way. It is, however, an important story and one that needs to be shared. It helped me to have read The Tattooist first, but it could definitely be read as a stand alone as well. It would be a fantastic book club pick, and I’m really looking forward to discussing it with my buddy read group later this week!

I urge you to read this book when it is released October 1st! Thank you @netgalley and @stmartinspress for the digital ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Heart-Wrenching. Powerful. Brutal. Incredible.

The stories of those who went through the Holocaust and other travesties continue to inspire people, proving that humans are stronger than we think. After reading the Tattooist of Auschwitz, I was inspired to start working for an organization that helps Holocaust survivors in Israel. The book spoke to me and showed me how the power of love makes all the terrible, horrific, situations fade into the background. When I learned that Heather Morris was writing a sequel that would focus on the life of Cilka, I grew very excited! Cilka's character in The Tattooist of Auschwitz was one that stood out to me, and I wanted to know what happened to her at the end of the war; however, when I began to read, I felt my heart breaking and my eyes filling with tears at the things this young girl had to go through.
Cilka's Journey is an incredible book of survival, hope, perseverance, and strength. As I read this novel in my comfortable bed, I couldn't begin to imagine what these women went through. The book didn't leave any details out and showed just how brutal and horrifying their lives were. Nevertheless, I know that the descriptions cannot begin to describe what went through the mind of each of the women who were sentenced to labor camps after World War II.
This novel begins where the Tattooist of Auschwitz finished. The concentration camp is liberated, and Cilka is sent to Siberia to serve fifteen years in the biggest, toughest, labor camp in the Soviet Union as a punishment for "sleeping with the enemy." Going from one horror to the next, Cilka continues to fight for her survival while continuing to question why she is still alive. The road is rough, cold, barren, and treacherous; but even in the worst conditions, Cilka will demonstrate why Lale told Heather Morris, "She was the bravest person I ever met. Not the bravest girl, the bravest person."

Heather Morris’ second novel picks up the story of a Cilka, a fellow prisoner at Auschwitz-Birkenau and friend to Lale Sokolov and Gita from “The Tattooist of Auschwitz.” Cilka Klein was 16 when she was imprisoned by the Nazis, and 19 when imprisoned by the Russians … ironically for collaborating with the Nazis. While some of her Auschwitz experiences are told in flashbacks, this novel focuses on Cilka’s experience while at a Soviet gulag in Siberia.

No electric fences are needed at the gulag because the harsh weather conditions prevent escape. Originally assigned to work in the coal mine, Cilka’s sharp mind and language ability garners her a job in the camp hospital where she is mentored by a sympathetic female doctor. Nevertheless, she still endures repeated rape, threats from fellow inmates, and malnutrition. Cilka’s resilience is amazing, although not without cost.

This is a memorable story of human endurance and courage, based on the life of a real woman. It is not necessary to have read “The Tattooist of Auschwitz” first; I read them in reverse order.

Cilka’s Journey by Heather Morris is an incredible story. It’s based on a real person and Cilka’s trials and experiences are harrowing and difficult to read. This book is by the author of The Tattooist of Auschwitz which is another must-read historical fiction book. It is unimaginable to me that a human being can withstand everything that Cilka went through, as I read this book I was captivated by the story but also horrified.

Here’s what you need to know:

Cilka is just sixteen years old when she is taken to Auschwitz-Birkenau Concentration Camp, in 1942. The Commandant at Birkenau, Schwarzhuber, notices her long beautiful hair, and forces her separation from the other women prisoners. Cilka learns quickly that power, even unwillingly given, equals survival.

After liberation, Cilka is charged as a collaborator for sleeping with the enemy and sent to Siberia. But what choice did she have? And where did the lines of morality lie for Cilka, who was sent to Auschwitz when still a child?

In a Siberian prison camp, Cilka faces challenges both new and horribly familiar, including the unwanted attention of the guards. But when she makes an impression on a woman doctor, Cilka is taken under her wing. Cilka begins to tend to the ill in the camp, struggling to care for them under brutal conditions.

Cilka finds endless resources within herself as she daily confronts death and faces terror. And when she nurses a man called Ivan, Cilka finds that despite everything that has happened to her, there is room in her heart for love.

This book was a solid five-star read. While I find it hard to read at times, I think it’s important we learn about people in history and honor their experiences.

Order the book now and it will be delivered on October 1.

Cilka's Journey - wow, she will take you step by step and day by day of her life. You will cry, laugh and just agonize over it. She has a heart of gold and will not be broken. She cares more about others than she does herself.
The reader gets a different insight life in camps. Cilka and her friends will make you want to join them for afternoon tea.
This book can easily stand-alone.

I was excited to read Heather Morris new book Cilka's Jouney since I had lloved her first one The Tattooist of Auschwitz. Her second novel is just as wonderful but more painful to read. Cilka is a brave caring young teenager who has been caught up in the cruel Nazi's world. She does her best to survive and help others. She manages the best that she can and makes friends aong the way. In the end she is freed and is able to marry and live a long happy life.

Cilka's Journey is the best companion to Tattooist of Auschwitz. As emotionally invested as I was in Lale's story, I was more so in Cilka's. Her resilience and strength are just amazing. If you love a book with strong female characters, friendship, complicated relationships and redemption through the toughest of times, this is it. It broke my heart and I loved it all at the same time.

I'm not sure I could fully articulate what I felt when reading this story. It was heartbreaking in the most profound way. Cilka's Journey is a story of bravery, compassion, friendship and survival. Its the story of impossible choices and the resilience of the human spirit. Author Heather Morris tells the incredible story inspired by the life of Cecilia Klein.
Cecilia Klein is a child when she first arrives in Auschwitz-Birkenau concentration camp. At just sixteen, her beauty is a curse and catches the attention of the SS commandant. For three years she is forced to endure all kinds of depravity as well as witness the last moments of life within the death camp.

When the war ends she is again subjected to the cruelest of fates and is charged as a collaborator for sleeping with the enemy. She is sentenced to 15 years in the Vorkuta Gulag in Siberia. Again, Cilka experiences unimaginable horrors. For the first few years the constant rape, threat of violence and indescribable cruelty threatens to overpower her will to survival and her hope for a future.

However, she is one of the "lucky" ones. Instead of the hard labor in the bitter cold she is given a job in the hospital. Its here, despite the death and destruction all around her, she experiences life giving moments of joy and love.

Heather Morris has written a truly inspiring novel both powerful and heartrending; startlingly raw with moments both cruel and beautiful. I couldn't quite hold my sobs in as I read Cilka's Journey." I was most relieved to find that their were moments of beauty to be found among all the horrific scenes from her life, one being when she gave her place of freedom to her friend. Another, was when she finally experiences a love that is pure and not one that wants something in return. This women's experiences, her harrowing sacrifice and courage will be hard to forget.

If you enjoyed Morris' debut, The Tattooist of Auschwitz (as I did), then you will likely also enjoy Cilka's Journey. It's a not-quite sequel that focuses on Cilka, a young woman who was held in the same camp as Lale and Gita during WW2.

Cilka Klein survived the Nazi camps by sleeping with the officers against her will, but she wasn't liberated with the other prisoners at the end of the war. Instead, she traded one camp for another, becoming imprisoned by the Soviet forces for working with the enemy. She lived and worked in Siberia for several years before finally finding freedom.

By the time Morris had met Lale Sokolov, who is the core of The Tattooist of Auschwitz, Cilka had already passed away. This story is therefore inspired by what Morris could glean from Lale and others who knew Cilka, in addition to her own research. That does make the book a weird historical fiction/non-fiction hybrid, but the story shouldn't be discounted. Not many WW2 narratives I've encountered reveal what happened to the prisoners who found themselves under the Soviet regime. Morris does take some liberties with fact (i.e. the treatment of Cilka's sister/husband) but it's all transparent in the afterword.

Overall, I really enjoyed the story. I think Morris' writing improved since her debut, which was sometimes a bit too detached. It's so important that we still have stories like this being published, so I think it's worth picking up.

Cilka is just 16 when she is taken to a concentration camp. She endures years of torture, immediately followed by imprisonment in a Siberian prison camp. Her strength is tested again and again. She forms friendships, but seems doomed to lose the precious ones in her life. Follow her story as she shows just how strong she can be. This was an amazing story. I actually had to wait a few days after finishing it before writing the review, because I basically wanted to retell the whole story. This is truly an unbelievable journey. I loved the book!

I was beyond thrilled when I saw that Heather Morris would be publishing a book about Cilka. Like many other readers, I was intrigued by her character and utterly heartbroken by her unjust sentencing after the horror of the concentration camps. It did not feel right leaving her story untold, and I am glad that the author felt the same way.

This book reads so smoothly that I flew through it over the course of a couple days. Morris has an incredible way of writing that evokes such strong emotion while still being incredibly straightforward. I actually found that I enjoyed this book even more than The Tattooist of Auschwitz because it covers a topic in history that I know almost nothing about. I have read many books about the Holocaust, but I have never read one about the work camps in Russia. I was appalled that these camps operated for decades in terrible and dangerous conditions completely unchecked. It is staggering how many people were sentenced to these camps and how many of them died.

Cilka was an incredibly brave and resilient woman to have survived both camps. I would have very much liked to meet her, and it makes me happy to know that the legacy of her extraordinary life will live on through this book.

Her beauty saved her life - and condemned her.

Cilka´s Journey based on the powerful true story of Cilka Klein is a story of love and survival. Cilka is just sixteen years old when she was taken to Auschwitz-Birkenau Concentration Camp. She is a beautiful eye-catching girl. She does what she is ordered to do to survive in camp and in 1945 when the camp is finally liberated, she is charged with treason for sleeping with the enemy and is sent to a Siberian gulag when she will spend 15 years more like a prisoner.

Heather Morris gives us again a tremendous story, heartbreaking and beautiful written. Cilka is a character that I will always remember, her strength and will to survive and help others on the way. Highly recommended for those who enjoy reading WWII related books.

'She was the bravest person I ever met' - Lale Sokolov, The Tattooist of Auschwitz

Thank you Netgalley and St. Martin’s Press for sending me an e-copy ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own. #NetGalley #CilkasJourney