The Words I Never Wrote started out in 2016 with the purchase of a vintage typewriter once owned by well known journalist Cordelia Capel. Within it's case, Juno (the purchaser) discovers an unfinished novel detailing the story of Cordelia and her sister Irene in the days leading up to, during and following WWII. Ending up on both sides of the conflict, it tells a fascinating tale of what life was like in these days both in Germany and for those outside. It had me captivated early on and kept me waiting anxiously to know just what would come of these two sisters in the end.

I must admit at first I wasn't sure how I liked the back and forth between past and present. At one point, I found myself thinking that I didn't quite see the point in this present story line and could have frankly done without it. At first. Closer to the end, I found that this format allowed for a gradual reveal that actual really gave us a full scope of the story and what became of the sisters not just immediately following the war but throughout their lives as well. Though I still certainly enjoyed the past parts of this novel more regardless.

The Words I Never Wrote did not sugarcoat anything in the realities of life in Germany during this time frame. It was not pretty and at times it was VERY hard to read. It should be noted that there is talk of rape that could be triggering for some, but again a sad reality in the given time. It is certainly eye opening in many ways to some of the details that perhaps our history books have glossed over a bit.

Because I typically review Christian novels (or otherwise clean reads), it is important to note that this is not that. There are scenes with sex (in addition to the talk of rape) and a few curse words throughout. The language was very minimal--- a handful of uses of the d-word and the romance scenes were not overly graphic, nor were they are an overwhelming part of the story. Personally, it was minimal enough that while I certainly could have done without it, it didn't take away from the otherwise great story. Some more conservative readers should be aware of this before reading.

Overall, it was a truly heartbreaking story of love and loss that was beautifully written and I'm glad to have read.

**I received a complimentary copy of this book from the publisher via Netgalley for consideration. All thoughts are 100% my own.

A very well researched and written book told in two time periods, “The Words I Never Wrote” is the story of two British sisters who end up on opposite sides of WWII. Juno, a photographer in present day America, buys a second hand typewriter that comes with a half finished novel written by a famous British journalist, Cordelia Capel. This prompts her to find out the rest of the story of Cordelia and her sister, Irene. Early in the story, Irene marries a German industrialist and moves to Germany. Through him, she quickly becomes unwillingly involved in the higher echelons of the Nazi party. Meanwhile, Cordelia becomes a fashion reporter in Paris. The two exchange letters, but soon come to odds about Irene’s closeness to the Nazis.
This book was quite a page turner and had many twists and surprises it was an enjoyable read. Thank you to Netgalley for the ARC of this book.

“The Words I Never Wrote’ by Jane Thynne tells of the experiences of two upper-class British sisters during the years leading up to and during WWII. One sister, Irene, marries a German industrialist in the 1930’s, and her husband becomes very involved in the Nazi party over time. The other sister, Cordelia, who is single, takes a job in Paris with a newspaper, writing about women’s fashion. Each sister is engaged in fighting against the Nazis as Irene works with the Jewish resistance and Cordelia works for the British SOE. As neither sister can talk of her activities, neither is aware of the other’s actions which leads to a long-term estrangement. While the story was mainly told in alternating viewpoints of the two sisters, some chapters were devoted to the actions of a few minor characters which I found to be a beneficial addition to the overall story. The pacing was just fast enough to keep my attention and not weigh me down with too many details, but not so slow that I skimmed some pages. I also learned of an actual hospital that was created to treat Jewish patients, even during the last days of the war which allowed several hundred Jewish patients to survive the war. I was intrigued enough to do some more research and have added few books to my “to read” list as a result…which makes “The Words I Never Wrote” a great historical fiction read.

The story started with the purchase of an old typewriter in modern-day America by a journalist. When the journalist, Juno, finds a half-finished manuscript that was started by Cordelia hidden in the lining of the typewriter case, Juno is determined to research the sisters’ lives and find out the rest of the story. However, I did remove one star from my rating as I thought Juno’s story detracted greatly from the overall book. There was not enough detail given about Juno that I cared about her, and she found the answers way too quickly with minimal effort. To me, it was just not a very effective mechanism to introduce and keep the story moving forward. Overall, a great read, and I will look for other books by this author.

Absolutely loved this book! The story flows, the characters are fascinating and I couldn't tear myself away. Highly recommended.

The Words I Never Wrote by Jane Thynne is a very interesting historical fiction that involves two time periods between present day and WWII.
I was mostly interested in the stories of Irene and Cordelia, two sisters that were once close, and like many things during times of war and unrest, are separated by different paths that their lives take, however both unified in their quests to help undermine and fight against the Nazis in their own ways despite initially their opposing political views.

The author did a good job in interweaving present day Juno with the stories of Irene and Cordelia. A touching and harrowing story.

4/5 stars

Thank you NetGalley and Ballantine Books for this ARC and in return I am submitting my unbiased and voluntary review and opinion.

I am posting this review to my GR account immediately and will post it to my Amazon, Bookbub, and B&N accounts upon publication.

Wow! I love when a novel grabs hold of you and doesn’t let go until the last page!

Set during WWII, The Words I Never Wrote is an emotional read centering around two sisters. The story starts out in present day (2016) in NYC with Juno, fresh out of a 15 year relationship, deciding to buy an antique typewriter. Not just any antique typewriter, this one previously belonged to the well renowned journalist, Cordelia CapelIrene. Cordelia had tucked a partially finished biography based on her and her sister, Irene. Irene and Cordelia grew up close, but once Irene got married and moved from England to Germany in 1936, their relationship was strained. Cordelia found herself moving to Paris to follow her dream to be a journalist and eventually the sisters correspondence became even more taut as they shared different views on politics and the war...or so it seemed! Juno is completely entranced the sisters and their story and is determined to figure out how their story ends!

I really was completely captivated by this book! I enjoy reading WWII based novels and The Words I Never Wrote gives an original and new perspective—love that! Jane Thynne did a great job with jumping between Cordelia and Irene’s points of view (as well as Juno’s in present day) seamlessly! This 5 star read will touch your heart and have you grabbing for the tissues! I found the Author’s Note at the end the icing on the cake, Jane Thynne put into words how I was feeling throughout the book —the past and present have so many correlations and similarities.

A Tale of Two Sisters

The story started a little slow but it soon picked up and by the end of the book I couldn't wait to finish it. I did get distracted a few times between England, France Germany and current day. Had to go back and reread a few pages to find where I was.

Juno buys an antique typewriter from 1939 and finds an unfinished novel in an envelope inside the computer case. Her search for the ending of the story takes her to Berlin. What she finds is the story of two sisters that were very close until Irene married a German man and moved to Germany. Cordelia began to work for a newspaper reporting on fashion and soon was sent to France. The sisters corresponded back and forth a few times and then stopped talking as the Nazi's took over and they decided not to write anymore because they disagreed with each other over politics.

The story is about the lives (so very different) of the two sisters both working against the Nazi's each in a different way. They miss each other but do not talk for several years. The book tells about each sister's life Irene with Ernest and then the Nazi officer Hoffman. Her activities in the underground helping the Jewish under her husband's nose. Cordelia with her writing job that turns into a job with the resistance in France and her love for Torin. After the war Cordelia is working as an interpreter she goes to Berlin to interpret for the British during interrogations. One of those interrogated is her sister Irene.

It shows that sisters love each other no matter what has happened and that sometimes life has a way of throwing a kink into things so they turn out way different than what we would wish them to be. Sometimes people are not what we think and events happen that we cannot control.

The book had a lot of history during the War how the Elite Nazi's lived, how the Jews struggled, betrayal, love , and heartbreak. It was a good book, I enjoyed it and would recommend it.

A wonderful read a book about post Ww2 a book full of emotions characters who come alive.A very engaging read. Highly recommend for lovers of historical fiction in its most literary form.#netgalley#randomhouse.

Beautiful, engaging, full of drama and love and post WWII. So eager for this publication date in January 2020! Thank you for allowing me the opportunity to review this book!

This was a novel about two sisters during WWII. The novel is incredibly well-written. The setting of war torn Europe is very realistic, dark, and gritty. However, I could not connect to the characters. Also, some of the scenes were very drawn out and could have been shortened. Still, I recommend this for fans of The Alice Network, The Orphaned Train, and The Secret Keeper. Full review to come!