This book was just not a good fit for me. I was excited to read something compared to “Lilac Girls,” which I’m such a huge fan of. But this book didn’t hit the same mark for me. I had a super hard time getting into it and the pacing was just way too slow for me to feel engaged. I did like the characters, but not enough for me to feel like I would recommend this to anyone.

Thank you NetGalley for this novel.
My first book by this author, but I love her style and will be looking for more novels.
2016-An antique typewrite from 1939 is bought by Juno. She discovers an unfinished manuscript in the contents. She starts to investigate and finds herself in Berlin and her journey begins to unravel the past. She discovers the story is about two sisters. One of whom, Irene married a German and moves to Germany. Cordelia works for a newspaper and is sent to France. As the Nazis take over, the sisters find they do not agree over politics, and communication stops.
Even though the sisters are very different the find a way to work against the Nazis. Can Juno find out what happened to the sisters fate? Do the sisters reconcile their relationship? I love that it mentioned the bookshop Shakespeare and Co, as I just finished a book about that bookshop. This novel explores loss, betrayal, sacrifice, relationships, and forgiveness.
#janethynne, #thewordsineverwrote, #ballantinebooks, #bookreview, #bookstagram, #booksconnectus, #stamperlady50

This was a very well written and interesting WWII historical novel! Thank you to NetGalley for a complimentary copy of this book in exchange for an honest review
3.5 stars

There are SO many WWII historical fiction books out there that it’s becoming harder and harder to notice the standouts, but this was one. All the POVs felt entertaining and intertwined, and the whole thing was very well written. Hoping to read more of this author in the future.

This was such a good book. I couldn't put this one down. Once i started i had to finish this immediately.

The Words I Never Wrote was very well plotted and written. Everything intertwined beautifully. This was a credit to World War II books.

I am a HUGE fan of Jane Thynne's previous Clara Vine novels (please write more!!!) and so wanted to read this one very very badly. And I did, and I loved it. I loved duel time novels, and this one was so well done. I liked all the characters and thought the premise was very interesting. An excellent read and a great one for difficult family dynamics.

In the novel, Juno Lambert, a photographer, in 2016 purchases a typewriter that contains the copy of an unpublished novel by Cordelia Capel, a celebrated journalist that spent WWII days in Paris. The novel includes letters from Cordelia to her sister Irene, married to a high ranking Nazi industrialist. Cordelia continues to write to Irene begging her to leave Berlin as the Nazi’s rise to power alarms the rest of the world. The novel goes back and forth between Irene and Cordelia’s war experiences as well as present day Juno’s own investigations into what happens to the sisters that are not included in the unfinished manuscript. What she finds out is both heartbreaking as well as life affirming. The author did a good job with character development with the sisters – additional development of Juno’s character would have improved the book. Thanks to NetGalley and Random House Publishing for giving me the opportunity to read and review the novel.

Thank you to NetGalley, the publisher and the author, for an ARC of this book, in exhange for an honest review.
I loved reading "The Words I Never Wrote" by Jane Thynne.
I thought the book was so well written that it made me feel as if I was really there during that time period.
I thought the plot, characters and setting were all fascinating and interesting.
I spent the whole weekend reading this book and avoiding all the things that I should have been doing.
I would definitely read another book
by Jane Thynne.

I enjoyed this book immensely. The story takes you through the lives of two sisters, Irene and Cordelia, who wind up on different political sides of WWII and how they deal with once being so close to now being torn apart.

Irene gets married to a German who she later finds out isn't who she thought he was. Once she moves to Berlin and realizes that he is high ranking Nazi official, and realizes what is happening, she does her best to stay true to herself at the risk of her own life while Cordelia moves to Paris to cover fashion only to work for a journalist reporting on the Nazi's and becomes a spy. Throughout the book, the two sisters periodically communicate through letters.

The story unfolds in 2016 when a young photographer, Juno, peruses a used typewriter shop and the shop owner hands her a manuscript that was found inside which was incomplete. Juno takes it upon herself to find out who Irene and Cordelia really are. You read about how Irene struggles to accept what her role as a Nazi wife should be according to the National Socialist Guide and feels like she must yield in order to survive.

Meanwhile, her sister, Cordelia, reports on fashion in Paris while working for a journalist and questions her sisters political allegiance and ethical behavior. The ending is nothing that I would have expected but was so happy with.

Thank you to Netgalley and Random House Ballantine for an advanced copy.

The Words I Never Wrote by Jane Thynne is a phenomenal time slip novel. An unfinished novel begins a series of events linked to the past and secrets never told. It is a heartbreaking novel, full of painful secrets and stories that you'd expect from brutal war life. And secrets were kept to cope the best way possible. Readers of historical fiction and war fiction will enjoy this book. I received a digital copy of this book from the publisher with no obligations. These opinions are entirely my own.

In The Words I Never Wrote the author departs from her popular Clara Vine Series to write a standalone novel about two English sisters who took separate paths beginning in 1936. Their story begins at the wedding of 22-year old Irene Capel, the beautiful elder daughter of British aristocrats, to Ernst Weissmuller a German industrialist 13 years her senior. She is happy to enter a proper and financially secure relationship, move to Germany where her husband is in a circle which includes Goering and Heydrich, and be the mistress of a home in the most fashionable part of Berlin.

Her sister and best friend Cordelia, at twenty, is more adventurous than her sister. By a quirk of fate, at the wedding Cordelia mentions her desire to be a writer to a guest and he offers her an entry into journalism with an apprenticeship at the Paris desk of an English newspaper. She finds herself writing about fashion and reveling in the avant garde of the industry.

As German society become more reactionary Cordelia begs her sister to leave Berlin and return to England, but Irene chooses to remain the wife of a Nazi industrialist, although she has her small rebellions. She accepts the fact that her husband has mistresses but secretly practices birth control because she does not want to have sons for Germany as the Fuhrer demands. She helps the Jewish family of her husband’s former secretary.


When war is imminent and it is obvious that Irene will remain in Berlin, her relationship with Cordelia is fractured. Cordelia is recruited into the covert war effort where her valuable knowledge of French fashion makes sure that spies are outfitted properly down to the cheap materials in their clothing and the contents of their pockets.

I found the parallel stories of the sisters compelling and I had to agree with Cordelia. I kept asking myself why Irene remained in Berlin. Her reason seems to be that as the wife of an important Nazi factory owner she would not be welcome back in England. The story of the sisters ends with a bittersweet conclusion. (Again, I am puzzled by Irene’s final decisions)

The author frames the account of the Capel sisters with a modern plot about a photographer who buys Cordelia’s old Underwood portalbe typewriter which contains a 140 page fragment of a novel Cordelia never finished about Irene. She wants to find out what happened to Cordelia who was a famous photo journalist after the war and her mysterious older sister. I thought the frame was unnecessary to the plot and slowed it down, but not enough to distract from a compelling novel.

This book was excellent. The author obviously did her WWII research when writing. I was hooked from the beginning of the book until the end. I was invested in the characters, I wanted to learn more about them like they were real people. Really enjoyed this one, 4 stars.

Thanks to Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine and NetGalley for the ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

This should not shock anyone who reads my posts regularly…I read and am recommending another WWII novel:
The Words I Never Wrote: A Novel by Jane Thynne

This book was featured on my early 2020 reading list.
In our standard dual timeline, it’s 2016 and Juno is looking for a typewriter as a prop for a photo shoot. She finds a Hermes 3000 that the seller says belonged to Cordelia Capel, a famous journalist. The timewriter case contains half of an unpublished novel.
Juno reads the novel which details Cordelia and her sister Irene’s lives before and during WWII, then the novel abruptly ends.
Cordelia works as a journalist in Paris and later for the British intelligence. Irene has married a German (in 1936) and is living in pre-war Berlin married to a highly respected man among the Nazi-party.
Juno has just broken up with her boyfriend and gets an opportunity to go to Germany under the premise of her own job (eye-roll) but mostly to research this story. So some of this story line was similar to some I have read before, and a few times I rolled my eyes at the coincidences that moved the story along. However, overall it was an enjoyable read, and I am still recommending this book. Because:
The sisters’ stories were both engaging. Cordelia’s life is exciting working the fashion scene in pre-war Paris, and Irene’s perspective as a British wife in Germany who at first enjoys the parties and lifestyle before she sees the ultimate terrors materializing was one I have not read as many times. And the book is 80% or more these two sisters’ stories. In fact there was one time it went back to 2016 abruptly, and I had forgotten that story was even part of the book!
Despite my minor annoyances, I truly enjoyed picking this book up each evening, and that is my most important criteria for my recommendation.
Thank you NetGalley for providing a download of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you, NetGalley and Random House, for a complimentary copy of this book! This review reflects my personal opinion!

Oh my, oh my, where to begin with this review! The author did a fantastic job writing this one with dual timeline and multiple POVs. I was able to experience the feelings and thoughts of the main characters. Another thing that really stood out was that Jane Thynne made me feel like I was reading a nonfiction book in narrative format. She included names that were familiar--both on the Nazi side of the war and the British side. That made the story even more believable. The character building was great as well. Throughout the book, the author added more pieces to the puzzle. I felt like I got to know the characters and understood their motives a lot more by the end of the book. Seeing two sisters on two different sides of the war was fascinating! I didn't want to put the book down until I knew what happened to them and if they saw each other again. I also liked that there was a link to the present. Juno's story added even more interesting twists to the novel. An overall great book!

This is so eloquently written, that it captured me immediately. I love the author's writing style that so deftly captures the reader that you feel as if you are present . I highly recommend this book for your reading enjoyment
Thank you to the publisher and to Net Galley for the opportunity. My review opinion is my own,.

This is a fascinating story of two sisters during wartime on opposite sides. It is also the story of a a women in present day who finds one of their stories when she buys a old typewriter used by one of the sisters. Her life is forever changed as she pursuers the story and along the way finds herself changed in profound ways by their wartime story. The two timelines work seamlessly to interweave the stories of the three women . This reader was so engrossed in this story I was unable to put it down until completion. You feel the emotions of each sister as their stories are defined by wartime and choices must be done that forever impact their lives.

A most excellent read and one I highly recommend Very well done to the author !

The Words I Never Wrote by Jane Thynne is a sweeping historical novel. I found this book to be well-written with developed characters. The story takes us from 1936 through 2016 moving from England, New York, Paris and Berlin. Juno Lambert purchases a 1931 Underwood Portable typewriter for a photoshoot. It once belonged to the famed journalist Cordelia Capel and there is a partial manuscript inside the case. After reading the document, Juno wants to uncover the rest of the story. Cordelia’s sister, Irene married a German lawyer and moved to Berlin. Her husband is a Nazi sympathizer and they moved in exalted circles. There are endless parties and social functions for Irene to attend. At first, she believes everything is normal in Berlin. Slowly Irene begins to see what is really happening in Berlin, but she needs to be careful. Irene is watched because she is English and her letters to Cordelia are monitored. Cordelia becomes a journalist. Something happens between the two sisters that has them become estranged. The author captured the time period with her descriptions of the clothing, the atmosphere in Paris and Berlin, the attitudes of the people, the political climate and so much more. Real historical figures are included like Hitler, Joseph Goebbels, Martha Dodd, and Kim Philby. I did feel that some descriptions were too detailed and there were a few scenes that were drawn out which slowed down the pacing. The middle is a little sluggish, but then I reached the climax which had me quickly turning the pages to see how the story would turn out. It was interesting to learn what it was like in Germany leading up to World War II. I liked that each sister had a distinctive voice and point-of-view (as did Juno). I am glad that I decided to read this book and regret not fitting it into my schedule sooner. My favorite phrase is “. . . words could change the world.” The Words I Never Wrote is a complex and moving novel with a unique Underwood typewriter, a celebrated correspondent, a socialist socialite, lighthearted letters, an incomplete manuscript and a wicked war.

The Words I Never Wrote is a unforgettable and very remarkable book by Jane Thynne. The story is very complex with so much WW2 history to take in.
This is one of the best WW2 books I have ever read. If you are interested in a gripping book about WW2, you need to read this.
Many thanks to NetGalley, the publisher and author for the opportunity to read and review this book for my honest opinion.

I received this from Netgalley as an ARC and was it worth it. The Words I Never Wrote is an amazing story of two English sisters that were best friends until circumstances drive them apart. Irene marries an important German industrialist with important social connections. She is perfect for this role in her life as she is the stoic in the family and no one ever knows for sure what she feels, except for Cordelia.

Cordelia is the exact opposite and can’t keep a secret in her mind. What goes in must come out. So when WEII breaks out and the Nazis take over Cordelia breaks communication with her sister.

We start this story with Juno, a photographer, in the present time that buys a typewriter on impulse. In the typewriters carry case is an unfinished manuscript of the two sisters Irene and Cordelia. Juno is intrigued by this manuscript and must try and find out the end story of these sisters.

#netgalley #TheWordsINevwrWrote

In this day and age of computers, iPads and smart phones, it's hard to believe that it wasn't that long ago that typewriters were the vessels that brought our minds stories to life, some fictional accounts and others all too real.
Modern day photographer, Juno Lambert, buys a 1931 Underwood typewriter and discovers an unpublished novel by celebrated author, Cordelia Capel in Jane Thynne's book, The Words I Never Wrote.
Cordelia's story is the harrowing account of two sisters, Cordelia and Irene. Two sisters on opposite paths and opposite sides during WWII. Cordelia, a reporter in France, working for the British undercover while Irene marries a Nazi and moves to Germany. Thynne gives us complex characters and what could have been a simple good girl-bad girl scenario is thought-provoking and full of depth. Parts of this historical fiction account are chilling and heartbreaking as Cordelias and Irene's journey through WWII are a devastating portrait on the toll that WWII had on families. Can two sisters that are not only distanced by an ocean but also by an ideology find a path to redemption and salvation?
Can Juno find the ending to their story before it's too late as Cordelia reflected when she says, "I'm fading like a book left out in sunlight, all words erasing gradually from the page."
Lovers of historical fiction will find The Words I Never Wrote some of the best words ever read. I received an advance copy of this book from #NetGalley #TheWordsINeverWrote