The Note Through the Wire is a fascinating true love story involving prisoner of war and a resistance fighter during World War II. Their story is interwoven among the devastating struggles and unthinkable circumstances they encounter. It is truly one for the ages!
It is brutal to read about the atrocities of Hitler's reign and the way it affected so many, but it also lends a greater understanding as to what these people were going through and just how much they had to overcome to find love.

I find books about WWII fascinating. The things these people had to endure under Hitler was atrocious. It is unfathomable to me that today we still have people with such discriminating and racist views towards others.

This was a must read book if you like to read about WWII. It is nonfiction with some fictional items added in where no reports existed. I loved the separate backgrounds and stories on Josephine and Bruce and then how their lives became intertwined.

Books like these help to show the courage and resilience of people to never give up even when faced with seemingly insurmountable obstacles. They show there is always room for hope and love.

4.0 stars

I received a complimentary Kindle copy of this book from Allen & Unwin through NetGalley. The opinions expressed in this review are completely my own. Thank you to Doug Gold, Allen & Unwin, and NetGalley for the opportunity to read this book.

As many of my friends and family know, historical fiction is my absolute favorite. I love learning about history as it can help us make our present and future a better place! But, I have been in a rut reading WWII book after WWII book. Unfortunately, during the time of COVID, this isn't the best for my mental health.

However, I am glad that I read this book. It was ultimately about good triumphing over evil which is very timely during the times that we live in. I did not know much about the New Zealand forces in North Africa, Greece, or anywhere at all. This novel filled in a lot of gaps for me and broadened my knowledge.

This book was very good. I like that it was told in the two-person format which was perfect for this storyline. I really like the characters and the development of the story!! My only suggestion would be to know what happened to characters in greater detail after WWII ended.

Recommend!!

Every time I look at this cover and I am reminded that this novel is based on a true story my heart skips a beat and I unintentionally hold my breath for just a second. I don't often read something so heavy, but this is absolutely worth it. The simple twists of fate aligns two people who couldn't be in two more different places in life. I think it's the unbelievable bravery that always strikes me as most moving in any work that focuses on WWII. The power of the human spirit and soul to endure is nothing short of remarkable.

I wasn't sure if I wanted to read this book. I just finished a WW2 story that was ok. I usually pace myself with WW2 books because some of them can be quite harsh. But I really enjoyed this story. It's quite a story and so very glad it was written. Bruce and Josefine are amazing and I'm very glad they had a life together. What makes my sad is that they are not alive to see their story become known. I have recommended this book to friends

I found this story a very interesting read. I am a self-confessed WWII junkie so I was very happy to receive a copy of this book. The only problem I have is that I can’t make up my mind to call this non-fiction since the author created the conversations and many of the incidents in the book but it is based on actual people and their story of survival. So, it’s not truly non-fiction but I feel like it would be an insult to their memory to call it historical fiction. Oh well, it’s my dilemma.

The author had to do a lot of research to compile the story of Bruce a New Zealand soldier and Josefine a partisan in the Slovene (Yugoslavia). We have alternating chapters of the same time period both before and after they meet. Their stories apart and together are of bravery and courage and their individual struggles to survive World War II all while somehow managing to not only fall in love but stay in love through all the devastation.

And yes, the first time they meet is when she passes him a note through the wire and never returns for the response and yet, some how, some way, they end up meeting again.

Thank you to William Morrow, HarperCollins Publishers, Netgalley and the author Doug Gold for the ebook of this story.

What a horrific subject but a beautiful love story. The brave men & women that died & lived for freedom was & is still Unbelievable!! I loved the characters & read this book in 2 days. I could not put it down. Tgank you Netgalley for this book!

What a fascinating story of love during a window of history that saw such atrocities and tragedy. The Note Through the Wire follows Bruce and Josefine as they meet by chance when he is a POW and she is seeking news of her missing brother. The story does a wonderful job of explaining how Bruce came to be a POW through the course of WWII to their forced separation as the war came to an end. The description of battles, locations, and what challenges the people living in Europe experienced painted a bleak picture. If you are an avid reader of stories from World War II, you will enjoy the story of a love that endured despite the hardships faced by Bruce and Josefine.

This is a true love story that takes place across Europe during WWII between an Austrian resistance fighter and a New Zealand prisoner of war. It brings a different perspective of the war as seen through their eyes and experiences.

This book is great! Would definitely recommend. Thanks so much to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC.

The Note Through the Wire by Doug Gold is a mix of fact and fiction as it follows the love story of a New Zeeland soldier and a Yugoslavian partisan. Bruce Murry heads off to WWII with his hometown buddies. After a battle in Greece, the truck that Bruce is riding in takes a wrong turn and he ends up as a POW. Josephine's family are all partisans fighting to keep the Nazis from taking over their country. Through destiny or chance, Josephine and Bruce meet briefly and he can't forget her. I don't want to give away any spoilers so I will stop there, but this story sometimes seems hard to believe in the way things happened. However. much of it is documented by history as well as Bruce and Josephine's letters. Thank you #NetGalley #BookBub for allowing me to give my honest opinion on #TheNoteThroughtheWIre.

"The Note Through the Wire" by Doug Gold
Release Date: 3.16.2021

Josefine Lobnik, an underground resistance fighter, and Bruce Murray, a New Zealand POW, met in Europe during World War II.

Josefine passes a note to Bruce, hoping to find her brother. He doesn't understand the language. Eventually, love notes are passed between a fence between the two lovers.

This is based on a true love story! I found the perspectives of both Josefine and Bruce interesting, as they both were individuals who are not normally focused on in World War II novels. It was well-written, vividly descriptive, and well-researched.


Thank you to NetGalley for the opportunity to read this in response for an honest review.


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Based on a true story. Against all odds, WWII brings two people from two corners of the world. They both have the same mission to defy the Germans. She passes a note to him through the wire of the compound as she is searching for her brother. He can’t forget this young woman disguised as an elderly lady.

Slovenia (part of former Yugoslavia), 1942. Bruce Murray is a prisoner of war at Stalag camp on the outskirts of Maribor. Through a barbed wire, he receives a note from a woman. A note written in a language he doesn’t understand.

Maribor, 1942. Josefine Lobnik carries a package of documents from one partisan group to another when she encounters Bruce at Stalag camp. Recently, her brother was captured by Germans and now she searches for him. She passes a note to a stranger at a camp asking if her brother is there.

Both stories go back in time and interestingly reveal backgrounds of both characters.

Through his story, we get a more frivolous approach to war, at first. With his two best friends, they leave New Zealand eager to experience the world, the more exotic places and women. The journey takes them from their homeland to Cairo where they roam the streets and get the taste of a very different culture, then Greece where they get the first test of a battle.

Through her story we get to experience a more serious side of the war. Her country is invaded by German forces. Her people want to preserve their identity. They don’t want everything German being shoved down their throats. Her people join the resistance forces. Some get captured and tortured. And for some no matter how long the torture lasts, the spirit doesn’t get broken. It gets even stronger as torture only amplifies their resistance.

It was interesting to read about prisoners of war who at a camp where separated depending on what part of the world they came from. Eastern Europeans were treated the worst, with the pettiest rations of food and the most abusive treatment.

With crisp prose, moving the story fast, we get a true feeling of many places and the time period, from the streets of Cairo filled with fun through Maribor’s policy of “reGermanization” and tensions between ethnic groups to Greece revealing the spirit of its people, their resilience and resistance.

With depth, we get to experience an extraordinary story of two ordinary people, the challenges they face and what fuels them to take such risks. Vividly depicted dangerous work of the partisans – the superheroes.

This is one of the best WWII stories I've ever read. Brilliantly wrought story capturing the trauma of war, the love forged against all odds, the prose peppered with humor despite the sad subject of war.