I was so excited about this book because of the description. I love reading historical fiction, especially when it involves Europe and stories of resilience during WWII but I could not get into this book. The narration made it tough for me to care about any of the characters, which in turn made it difficult for me to care what happened to them.

I received an advanced copy of this book from NetGalley. The book sounded so interesting from the description and I enjoy reading fiction centered around World War II. This book was very slow but the history of Hungary is very interesting and it opened my eyes to the challenges of another country in World War 2.

This one was good but not great . It was slow to get into and felt at times disjointed. I did enjoy learning about Hungary and it’s history

Thank you to Netgalley for this ARC. The premise of the story peaked my interest. The story itself drowned that interest quickly. I struggled through the first 100 pages of character upon character and back stories. I don’t care what they were wearing even if it added to character development which it didn’t. I don’t need to know the trains were slow and smelled. What else would you expect just after WWI. The book doesn’t flow smoothly, the characters themselves aren’t particularly interesting and I do hope you enjoy their enjoyment of an abundance of food because that was what they did. They ate. They had tea. They took post-prandial strolls. I then forwarded to more than halfway through the book. The story surely tugs on the heartstrings as we read about concentration camps and the liberation of camps by Allied forces. However, I would rather read non-fiction or accurate historical fiction on WWII and the Holocaust than a book that can’t find its focus. This was a disappointment.

An interesting combination of stories but I found it difficult to see the tie in until the very end. Now sure this a bad thing but I go back to times of frustration.

The history of Hungary is very interesting and it opened my eyes to the challenges of another country in World War 2.

I saw this book on NetGalley, and I thought to myself, 'I am drawn by this cover, I am going to take a look!'. I read the description, and I was keen on reading it. I always had a thing for history, especially the WW II stories, so this seemed like the right novel for me. I requested it and funny enough I received an ARC edition of it. It pains me to write this review, but they asked for an honest one, and this is the right thing to do.
The story is about Natalia and her journey since childhood until WW II in Prague. Natalia was an ideal student, but when she was 16-years-old, her mother made her give up school to travel with her from Berlin to Prague. The action focuses on her journey and the people that are going to change her life forever. She meets an exceptional woman (who is going to have a significant impact on her life), her future husband, and she finds things about her past that are going to change her life forever. This is an unusual story about loss, fighting for your own life, love and friendship. Doesn't it sound like the perfect kind of book?
As soon as I received the ebook, I sent the file to my kindle and began reading. After the first page, the problems started; some words where split up in the middle and a new paragraph started, at the end of the chapter, they didn't leave the remaining page blanc, and the next one started right away. That annoyed the hell out of me, but I still didn't want to give up the book, so I downloaded the PDF version on my computer and continued reading. To my happiness, there was nothing wrong with the PDF file, and I was able to read it without complications. It has been a bumpy road, that is all I have to say.
And here I am, reading the book. I usually don't have any problems with the books written in the passive voice, but this one has been a pain in the ass. It didn't help at all. I didn't feel like I was building a connection with the characters because I was rather watching what they were doing, instead of living the action with them. On top of that, my reading experience has been paved with misunderstandings and a bit of anger because of the usage of the passive voice. It hurts me to say all of these because I believe the idea of the book is frankly astonishing, and it has the potential of being a delightful read. The action is engaging, and there are some plot twists. The description paragraphs are well written, and it makes you see the scene in your head. It seems like the perfect novel for the fans of history and mystery books, but the writing quality leaves it to be desired.
I have high hopes for this novel, and I am going to give it another try when the audiobook is released. I still want to read this book, and I think I'll recommend it for further reading.
Rating:
Writing Quality 3/5
Character Development 4/5
‘Couldn’t put it down’ – ness 2.5/5
Intellectual Depth 2/5
Originality 5/5
Overall 3.3

Already not a fan of historical fiction based around the World Wars, this didn't help that opinion. I didn't feel as if I could follow the plot and I felt nothing for any of the characters.

The story is about Natalia Faber, her life from childhood, her schooling in a Ursuline convent in Munich to her trip from her home in Berlin to Prague and then her life during WWII in Prague. Natalia has an eccentric mother Beatriz who takes her out of school to accompany her on one of her many trips. Her mother is as quick to abandon her daughter as she is to pick up new travelling companions. Natalia meets Miklos Count Andojan on this trip and her life changes.
I found the book hard going at times but was invested in finding out how Natalia’s life turns out.
It is a book about love, loss and friendship. It was not the usual historical fiction about the events of WWII but an enjoyable read.

I don't like to give low ratings for ARC books, but have been asked for my honest review, so I feel that I need to rate this book 2 stars, which is 'it was ok' for me. I felt like the book I was reading was different from the book described. I had difficulty keeping track of the character lines, the time lines, and the locations. I hope that will be fixed before printing & publishing.
One issue I had that was not related to the writing, exactly, but did detract from my enjoyment of the book was the narration being in passive voice. I don't enjoy books that give me the gods-eye view of the story, I prefer to be in the story. I felt like I couldn't connect with the characters because I was just watching from afar. But even that isn't fair - you can watch a movie and still understand and identify with characters, but with this book, it was all observation.
I also felt like the story was inconsistent and actually looked to see if there was one or two authors. Some portions were more engaging and I could get into the story a bit more, but then there would be a change and I lost interest in it all again.

Once the book is published and an audio version is available, I might give this another try. I feel like there is a good story somewhere in there, but I couldn't find it.

This was a book I was really looking forward to. But to my dismay it was all over the place. There were to many sudden jumps from flashbacks to present and then storyline failed to hold my attention.

I was really excited for this book based on the description but it dragged for me. I wasn’t able to finish it as I didn’t connect with the character.

Thank you Netgalley for a copy of Midnight Train to Prague in exchange for a review::

I did not enjoy this. I was really looking forward to it, as I love historical fiction and love Berlin, but those loves were soon ignored as I couldn’t get a handle of this book. It was all-over the place.

First of all, it didn’t help that the majority of the story was told in the passive (tell). There was a lot of: ‘When they finished doing this, X did this and Y then did that.’ Pages and pages of tell. Very little active/ present voice. I felt like I had a narrator standing behind me telling me things I was already watching.
It also didn’t help that there was lots of backstory. In fact, on the very first page, the hopping back and forth between present and past was rather jarring.

I might give the book a “re-read” when the audiobook comes out, I don’t know why, but that sometimes helps polish out the bumps that I, as a reader, experience.

Loved the book the people and you feel like you are in the countries with them sad emotional funny all rolled into one

On what should have been a simple train trip from Berlin to Prague with her mother in1927, Natalia Faber learns the truth about father, whom she believed died when she was a baby. She also meets two people who will become central to her life, Magdalena Schaefer and Count Miklos Andorjan , the man she will later marry. Years later, with the onset of World War II, Natalia finds herself in a Prague waiting for Miklos to return from the fighting at the front. There she meets Anna Schafer, the daughter of the woman she met in 1927. The Nazis send Anna to a concentration camp for spying and Natalia is left bereft. This is a story of sacrifice and loss, something most of us are just beginning to experience in our own lives. This story will put our petty predicaments to shame

This book was so good! The characters were so well rounded, you felt like you actually knew them! The plot was so good you didn't want the book to end!