Though Cilka’s Journey is a sequel, you can read it as a stand alone. I didn’t read The Tattooist of Auschwitz, yet I was enthralled Cilka’s Journey. As you can see from the book’s synopsis, Cilka was a prisoner in Auschwitz-Birkenau Concentration Camp. Yet when the camp was liberated Cilka was not free. She was once again taken prisoner for a crime she didn’t commit, at least not willingly. She was raped time and time again. And when she should have been set free, she was stuffed into another cattle car.

I don’t remember ever learning about Siberian gulags in school, and I’m Gen X! I mean, somehow I knew that “bad guys” got sent to Siberia. But Cilka wasn’t a “bad guy” and neither were many of the prisoners. Though Cilka’s Journey is a work of fiction, it’s based on true events. Cilka was a real person who suffered horribly. The atrocities the prisoners of the gulag endured are unimaginable to me as someone who lives in the 21st century United States. The author’s research truly brings the gulag to life in the pages of Cilka’s Journey.

I love that throughout the book, there are moments of hope. In spite of their circumstances, the prisoners could find friendships and support. Enemies became friends. If they could find common ground, hope, and friendships while enduring this grueling labor, how much more should we be able to do it in a world where we’re so blessed? I definitely recommend Cilka’s Journey.

I finished Cilka's Journey last night, emotionally drained, yet surprisingly uplifted. What an incredible story about survival and the choices an individual makes to just get from one day to the next! Two things stand out - Cilka's generosity to help those close to her and an utter amazement at what this young woman was able to accomplish and learn. I find myself wondering how her life might have been different if she had escaped being sent to a Nazi concentration camp. Would she have lived a life of leisure and/or adventure? Would the desire/need to help others have developed or was that a product of her experiences?

Cilka's Journey would be a great book discussion title and should definitely be made into a movie. This is an era that must not be forgotten. Thank you, Heather Morris.

This is Cilka Klein’s story. An incredible account of one woman's journey through the depths of hell and survival. After surviving in the Auschwitz-Birkenau Concentration Camp for 3 years and seeing and experiencing the most horrific events the camp is liberated and Cilka is freed to only be sentenced to fifteen years in a Siberian gulag for collaborating with the Nazis. This is a gut wrenching, heart breaking story of survival. Being called brave is an understatement. Based on true events during this time I can only imagine the strength and will to survive to defy the hate that so many succumbed too.

Thank you to NetGalley for an ARC of this book. This review is in my own words.

Is it possible to love Cilka’s story more than Lale and Gita’s? An easy 5 stars. This book was heartbreaking, but reading how Cilka was so brave made the heartbreaking moments worth it. I loved how the author included her past in the chapters; both in Birkenau and her childhood. Cilka was sent to Birkenau at age 16 where she spent three years. After those three years she was charged with collaborating with the Nazis and sent to a prison camp called Vortuka Gulag in Siberia where she spent 8 years of her life. Just like in The Tattooist of Auschwitz, Heather Morris’ notes at the end of the book are a must read. Highly recommend!

Thank you to St.Martins Press for a copy of this book to review! First off let me just say, I LOVED this book! Everything about it was fabulous including the cover art! Cilka’s Journey is a follow up novel to The Tattooist of Auschwitz. I read The Tattooist of Auschwitz earlier in the year (if you haven’t read it yet, go buy it now!) and was very excited to read more about Cilka! I remember reading the epilogue in The Tattooist of Auschwitz and being shocked that Cilka was sent to prison for 15 years. I needed to know more about the story and what happened to her. Let me say that, this book was an emotionally hard read. I felt bad for all that Cilka went through not only surviving concentration camps but then surviving the horror of the prison camps in the Soviet Union! Eventually, Cilka is able to find peace! As I mentioned above, I adored this book! Seeing Cilka survive was very inspirational! I am so happy that I read this book and I recommend it 100 percent!

Cilka’s Journey is a sequel to The Tattooist of Auschwitz (which I’ve not read yet), but thankfully, it stands on its own.
I’ve always been a fan of Holocaust and World War II fiction, so the story of Cilka—a then-16-year-old Slovakian Jew who spent 3 years in Auschwitz and lost her entire family only to end up being sentenced to 15 years in a Soviet gulag in arctic Siberia—drew me in immediately.
I thought the writing itself flowed well, and I found it easy to become immersed in the story and the characters’ motivations and emotions.
It’s a tough read, as all Holocaust-related fiction is, but ultimately, it left me with positive feelings and hope. It reminded me that ordinary humans can be extraordinarily strong, courageous, and compassionate when faced with unthinkable hardship, and it made me appreciate those survivors and resistors even more.
Cilka made some unfathomable choices in Auschwitz, but those choices are precisely what kept her alive. She spent her imprisonment in Siberia ceaselessly attempting to atone for her past, where she displayed unwavering loyalty to her loved ones and a passion for doing the right thing.
There’s been some criticism concerning historical accuracy and certain choices made by Heather Morris, but Cilka’s Journey is historical fiction loosely based on a real Holocaust survivor.
My thoughts are simple: if a fictional story introduces somebody to the horrors of the Holocaust and encourages them to learn more about it, then it’s a success. The generation of survivors is almost entirely gone, so we need these stories to educate ourselves of the dark times in our history.

“Finding a little hope in the darkness is not a weakness.”
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Cilka is just sixteen years old when she is taken to Auschwitz, there a Commandant notices her beauty and takes her apart from the other prisoners.
She learns to survive at a young age, and when liberation day comes, she is then charged as a collaborator for sleeping with the enemy and sent to Siberia, where she experiences the horrors of the Gulags.
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This book is part fiction and part non fiction, but it works perfectly, and it goes back and forth with Cilka’s days in Siberia and Auschwitz.
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Cilka’s Journey it’s a powerful, brutal, devastating, emotional and beautiful story, about survival, inner strenght, friendship and love.
It’s simply captivating.
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Thank you @netgalley and @stmartinspress for giving me a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
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“There is a better world out there. I’ve seen it. I remember it.”
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“When she wakes from her nightmares Cilka Willingly invites the blankness back. But sometimes it will not stay.”
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“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.”

Thank you to NetGalley, St. Martin's Press and the author, Ms. Heather Morris, for the opportunity to read this Advanced Readers Copy of "Cilka's Journey".

This highly anticipated new work from the author who brought us the incredible story of Lole in "The Tattooist of Auschwitz", Ms. Heather Morris now reintroduces us to "Cilka Klein", a secondary but powerful character from Lole's life in Auschwitz. This is her unbelievable story.

This feast of writing invokes an emotional connection to an inspiring young woman.

Cilka Klein, not only fought to just live during the darkest days of modern history, she had to then survive many years of horrific hardships imprisoned in Siberia.

This heartwrenching powerhouse of Historical Fiction writing is guaranteed to stay with the reader, leaving you wanting to read more.

Ms. Morris brings Cilka alive through her outstanding descriptions of life in Auschwitz and the Volusia Prison.

After surviving the horrors of Auschwitz our heroine "Cilka Klein" is not rescued from behind the death camp fence, instead, she is arrested for her "crimes against her fellow prisoners" and is sentenced to 15 years hard labour in Volusia Gulag, Siberia.

A tale of profound resilience, desire to survive, and a depth of will to live despite the dark despair that lurks with every new day. Cilka lives each day with a vision for survival, although she struggles with the nightmares of all the horrors she witnessed. She was only 18.

Having read and enjoyed the Tattooist of Auschwitz, I was thrilled to learn that readers would have the opportunity to learn more about Cilka's story. Despite the horrid life that these characters had to endure, it is history, and I am a firm believer we must learn from that in order to move forward.

Heather Morris has a way with words, as this was the second book by this author that I was not able to put down. Every spare second I had, I was picking up this book, longing to know what would happen to Cilka. I also loved the information provided at the end of the story, facts about her personal life. The author truly captured what it must have been like to live through these experiences, as I often found myself holding my breath, reading to see what was next, feeling the fear of this young lady. I highly recommend this book and author.

I was provided with a free advance copy of the book by NetGalley in exchange for my honest review and opinion.

Wow! This novel was the perfect follow up to The Tattooist of Auschwitz. As difficult as it was to read at times, I thought the novel did an excellent job in providing insight to Clika's journey, which I yearned for when reading the first book. The writing was absolutely beautiful, and as always I enjoyed the post-novel notes from the author. This is a must read!

What a phenomenal story about a phenomenal woman. Fans of The Tattooist will absolutely fall in love with Cilka and her bravery. It's terrible that women like her had to suffer so much, but her strength and perseverance shown through the beautiful writing by Morris.

Cilka’s Journey is an engrossing, heartbreaking, inspiring story about Cilka Klein. We first learned about Cilka in The Tattooist of Auschwitz but in the end we did not find out what happened to her. She gets her own book describing her experiences at Auschwitz and her subsequent imprisonment in the Gulag. Cilka Klein is the bravest person Lale knew and it shines through in this book. Heather Morris has done an outstanding job telling her story.

Cilka's Journey by Heather Morris is the sequel to her acclaimed "The Tattooist of Auschwitz", however, it can be read as a stand alone novel. I'm not sure I can do this book justice, I don't have the words to. This book is based on a real person and what she survived. After already surviving Auschwitz Cilka is sent to Siberia to a work camp all because she did what she needed to in order to survive. However, there she gets to really help people and maybe find a bit of hope again, however small. This book made me cry but it also reminded me of the resilience of the human spirit and the power of kindness.


I would like to thank Netgalley and the publisher for providing me with a copy free of charge. This is my honest and unbiased opinion of it.

Cilka's Journey by Heather Morris is fiction mixed with facts and history. Difficult to read, knowing how much of this story and abuse was true, at the same time it is uplifting to read how this one woman survived and helped others on their journey. I was given an early copy to review.

After reading The Tattooist of Auschwitz I wondered what happened to many of the characters , most notably Cilka Klein. I’ve heard and learned about the horrors of the Holocaust and concentration camps, but cilkas story really helped me learn about an area of the holocaust I’d never really learned about, which was her continued rape by two commanders and guards at Ausvhwitz. It is unbelievable that she was sentenced to 15 years of hard labor in the Siberian gulags for “collaborating “ with the enemy. Like her previous book, we got to see the horror she faced. I liked it but it wasn’t as good for me as Tattooist was. Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for a free copy in exchange for review.

This is an incredible story of how strong one woman can be, even in the absolute worst times. Facts weaved with an awesome storyline. A time in history that each generation needs to be aware of the cruelty and survival.


A must read!

I add my voice and 5 stars to praise this wonderful telling of Cilka's journey. It is a story of unfathomable brutality, the strength of the human soul, bravery, friendship, horror, and love. Similar tales have preceded this - stories of what women had to do to survive the Nazi death camps of Auschwitz and Birkenau, stories of how prisoners of the gulag managed to survive - but rarely have they been told by someone with the special gifts that Heather Morris has brought to the pages of Cilka's Journey. Thanks to her, the reader literally walks in Cilka's shoes, or whatever she finds to cover her feet. Plot, character development, and setting are the three major elements of good writing, although usually one is stronger than the other two. In Cilka's Journey all three are strong and so elevate this from a good book about Cilka's unbearable hardships to a great one.

This was one of the best books that I have read this year. I didn't read the first book in this series but it didn't matter the writing was done in such a way that you could pick up either book and be able to catch on to the story. After reading this book it makes me want to search out everything written by this author.

Certainly books written about the Holocaust are difficult to read, but Heather Morris has done an excellent job in Cilka's Journey. The story follows you on Cilka's horrible journey through years of unbearable hardships and how she survived. So eloquently told, I could feel her struggles every step of the way. An incredible story of strength and courage in unthinkable situations.

I was able to read Cilkas journey through net galley. Thank you so much.

This book was heartbreaking and lovely still.

The courage of the women, the survivors is beyond comprehension.

Cilka was able to survive the auschwitz but then sent to Siberia. She was brutalized in every sense of the word and yet, and yet, she survived.

It was a wonderful story of a very strong woman.