Based on the unforgettable true story of Alma Rosé, The Violinist of Auschwitz brings to life one of history’s most fearless, inspiring and courageous heroines. Thank you to NetGalley for allowing me to read this book.

TRIGGER WARNING: this book contains graphic detail of Holocaust atrocities
A female Jewish inmate is discovered to be a famous violinist and is invited to lead the women's orchestra. Alma fights to save as many inmates as possible from Nazi torture but danger for them all is never far away...
The Violinist of Auschwitz is brutal and often made me put the book down due to the horrors included. However, the hope for humanity, a hint of humour, and love cannot be extinguished and shines through the despair. The struggle for survival, the detachment required to cope with the awful conditions and tragic cruelty, human nature at both its best and worst, all combine to make this an intensely compelling book.
Alma is a remarkable lead character. Brave and bold towards her captors, protective of her charges, determined to help others and offer a glimmer of hope amid the danger. We follow her journey of incredulity that people can treat others with such contempt and cruelty. Her clarity of purpose never leaves her despite the danger she put herself in by being a focal point.
The tension and fear is palpable at all times, yet Alma finds love with a Hungarian composer in the camp. This plot development allows a brief respite from the suffering which is heartwarming but the anticipation that something dreadful is imminent never leaves the reader.
The research for this book is brilliant and fact and fiction blur beautifully. Many of the characters, including Alma herself, are real and I have seen some of them speak in documentaries or on the news. This realism makes the emotional fictionalisation of the graphic content even more terrible.
The Violinist of Auschwitz is horrific but stunning. Hard to enjoy, hauntingly beautiful, impossible to forget.

“The Violinist of Auschwitz” is an incredible book!

I went into reading Ellie Midwood’s latest historical fiction novel with zero expectations. And zero knowledge of the true story of Alma Rosé, the famous violinist who saved more than 40 women from extermination by putting together an orchestra while in the Auschwitz-Birkenau concentration camp.

With every chapter, I learned more about Alma’s bravery, confidence and sass as she created the “Music Block,” and helped keep her “girls” alive. Despite working for racist murderers, Alma had to “show deference and keep decorum” if she wanted her orchestra to survive. And if she, herself, wanted to live.

Thanks to her working the system, and being favored by the SS guards, Alma was able to secure new instruments, beautiful clothes, double rations, Red Cross parcels, naptimes after lunch, a stove to keep warm, a shower every day and laundry once a week.

“All this time, she believed that she was saving them, but perhaps it was them who were saving her life. Her girls.”

Toward the end of the book, one of Alma’s closet friends, Zippy, told the orchestra: “We’ll all come out of here alive, and when we walk through those gates, I want you all to remember the name of the woman who made it possible, for as long as you live. I want you to remember her name and I want you to tell your children and grandchildren that it’s Alma Rosé, the Birkenau orchestra conductor, whom they owe their lives to as well.

This book is not only captivating, but quite emotional and sobering—as one might expect. I highly recommend it for fans of “Cilka’s Journey,” “The Tattooist of Auschwitz,” “The Choice” and “The Gift.”

Special thanks for an advanced reader copy, compliments of Bookouture (via NetGalley), in exchange for my review.

The Violinist of Auschwitz is based on the real life story of Alma Rosé, an esteemed violinist before her world came crashing down as she was brought to the camp at Auschwitz. Alma was indeed a very strong woman, who made it her mission to save as many lives as she could while building an orchestra in the midst of all the sorrow. Bringing even a small amount of joy or hope to the people around her made her happier. Learning to navigate the camp, Alma uses her talent to gain favour with the camp officials, cementing a place for her girls and ensuring their safety.

In addition to finding people around her, she finds love in Miklos, a talented pianist thus finding some happiness in the midst of it all. Alma's music, described as spell-binding and known to make even the most rigid person emote, made her indispensable in the heart of the camp. Alma's legacy continues on through her story, her music and love and all the girls she saved.

This story is a highly emotional read, the reality of the concentration camp and the people both in it and who ran it was difficult to read about. However, the author has done a wonderful job detailing the Auschwitz concentration camp and she doesn't hesitate to tell it like it is, right from the experiments run on the people to the gas chambers themselves. Ellie Midwood is a brilliant story teller and she brings Alma's story to life just like Alma brought music to life. This story is spell-binding, heart-wrenching, filled with so much hatred and even love, that it will remain with the reader even after finishing the book.

I’ll be honest, I saw this book and did not know if I had the mental or emotional capacity to read it. In 2020, there have been so many horrible and draining events, I wasn’t sure that I could read a book on a topic that I knew would surpass the horror of anything I’ve ever experienced in my lifetime. I thought it through and realized it is so important to bear witness to events such as the Shoah and make sure they stay in the public eye. Very rarely will I rate a book as five stars, but The Violinist of Auschwitz by Ellie Midwood is one of those books.

The Violinist of Auschwitz explored a topic in camp life at Auschwitz I’ve never seen covered before in both my fiction and non-fiction reading, an extraordinary woman in the Music Block. I read earlier this year (or maybe last year) that the stories we hear about the Shoah are still not the most horrific, because those who suffered the most died and their stories were never told. Midwood brings Alma Rosé and her story to life in the camp. I had no idea that during the time the camp was operating, there was an orchestra in the camp. Midwood brings to life the lives of the musicians, the terror of camp life, and the atrocities that were being committed. The reader hears and reads stories of hope, as well as gut wrenching sorrow. This book will stay with me for a while. I want to reiterate how important stories like this are. I couldn’t help but think of the stories of migrants to the U.S. being sterilized against their will coming to light just a short time before being in the Experimental block with Alma where bloodless sterilization experiments were being conducted. Midwood really also drew attention to the tension between different levels of inmates in the camp, and brought to light so many ethical and moral themes. I am hoping some of my friends or my book club reads this novel, because there are so many thoughts and reactions to this book that I want to work through.

Overall, this novel deals with very dark themes, however hope does permeate even when Alma’s at her lowest point. The butterfly effect of the actions Alma took throughout the novel has to be immense. Many likely survived the camp who would not have without her intervention and quick wit. Alma didn’t raise an uprising or revolt, but through shrewd actions managed to give others hope and keep them alive. Stories such as Alma’s should be told and retold and I’m glad that Midwood chose to do so. As an author, this had to have been a very heavy topic to live with for the months or years it took to write, but these stories are so important as we see creeping nationalism and an increase in the talk of the “other.”

Please be advised that I received a free copy of this novel from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

This is horrific and almost unbearable to read at times, but we have to read these stories because we can never forget the horrific treatment and deaths of millions of Jews in the death camps. This biographical novel is another imperative reminder. Yet, amidst the starvation, the stench of dead bodies, there coexisted the beauty and power of music that still could still be alive here, and that one woman miraculously found the strength and wherewithal to lead a camp orchestra at Auschwitz. This is a stunning fictionalized account of Alma Rose, famed Austrian violinist, a Jew who played so beautifully, she was even held in esteem by the SS guards and the Nazi commanders.

There are places in the story that will make you sick to your stomach and sick in your heart as they well should . However, the moments when Alma Rose brought beautiful music here and with her strength and guile and courage saved the young women she called “ her girls “ from the worst of the gruesome conditions, from the gas chambers will remind you of the resilience of the human spirit when life was over for so many. Alma played her violin to soothe her soul, but her aim was so much more as she led this orchestra. “You’re very strict with them.” “I have to be. They have to play excellently, so that the SS can’t send them to the gas.” She also saved them from the most gruesome of conditions procuring a place to sleep with more comfort than so, so many with clothing and food. She saved lives. The author in her note - “Nearly all of them (the women and girls in the orchestra) survived incarceration and were liberated in 1945.”

While an imagined telling of Alma Rose’s life at Auschwitz, so much of what is portrayed here is based on true accounts of some of Alma’s girls who survived. There are differing accounts of Alma’s fate and no matter which one is true, the truth of Alma Rose’s life is extraordinary.


I received a copy of this book from Bookouture through NetGalley.

Thanks to Bookouture for the DRC!
I apologize for sending late feedback, but I promise to write a great review on amazon. ]

This is one of the most emotional books I've ever read. We can't ever forget this happened.
Everyone should read the story of Alma Rosé, one of the most inspiring women that ever existed.

Had to DNF, the writing just didn't captivate me and was unable to hold my attention. I truly wished I had loved it more, but..... it didn't happen!

Thank you for allowing me to read this Arc. Unfortunately I found it to hard to finish. Wonderful writing but the subject was to painful to carry on.

This is beautifully written journey that Ellie Midwood takes her readers on. This novel, based on a true story, tells of the life of Alma Rose. A wonderful, brave woman and violinist that takes it upon herself to rebel and save many people’s lives. This book drew me in from the first page and will stay with me for a long time. It is so vividly described that I felt like a part of the story. It’s both a wonderful novel and a learning experience with a strong female lead. I couldn’t have asked for anything more from this book. 5/5⭐️

The Violinist of Auschwitz by Ellie Midwood
Source: NetGalley and Bookouture
Rating: DNF at 51%


The Bottom Line: As a reader, two things (among many others!) have always held true for me: 1) I am a devoted fan of historical fiction and, 2) I am always drawn to books about the Holocaust and the concentration camps. I can’t count the number of books I have read on this topic and most have left me a hot mess at the end; the atrocities perpetrated during this time in history are horrendous and should never be forgotten or made light of. In the case of this particular book, The Violinist of Auschwitz, I actually found myself laughing aloud at how ludicrous some of the scenarios and conversations among the characters were. In an effort to gain some perspective and determine if I was being overly judgmental, I talked with my husband about the book and the things I had already encountered during my reading. As we are both fairly well-versed in the time period, it was agreed between us that The Violinist of Auschwitz has some serious issues. Ultimately, I had to give up on this book because I found it to be far more fiction than historical fiction and that, I simply could not abide.

Also, of note: In the last year, I read a quite enjoyed The Tattooist of Auschwitz. If you’re looking for a proper read about this time and place, I can highly recommend this book. It is absolutely proper historical fiction and there isn’t a moment in this book that I wanted or felt compelled to do anything other than grieve for the people in the story.

Triggers : History - Holocaust

What I thought : This is a story of courage, love and talent. It is sad, as most stories are from this time and place. Based off a true story, Midwood brought this part of our history begging to be told and she brought it to life. Into a historical fiction, I’m a huge fan of her writing. So creative and I couldn’t put the book down.

Characters : Alma - she’s someone to admire to, her bravery, confidence and courage! She knew exactly who she was, how to use her looks and talent. She would try to do anything in her power and then trying to get whoever would listen to her to do what was best for her girls, her companions.

Read if you like : The Tattooist of Auschwitz
Would I pick it up again? Yes

I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

This is Anna's number 50381, story. This is how one woman worked through the most devastating times our world has seen. But when Anna is asked to be director of the camps orchestra, she at first hates the idea of playing music while others go off to die, but she soon sees she can help those same people with more food and care by taking this prestigious offer. So Anna plays for the people and dignitaries that visit the camp.

This is a true story of one woman's chance to help and save people and herself from the Nazi atrocities. This is a very good book but very hard in some place but you will see Anna's strength grow throughout. If you know anything about Auschwitz that you know how hard it is to portray all of this in words but Anna's light is the one you need to follow though the book it will bring you through.

Oh my, I’ve just emptied a box of tissues reading the last half of The Violinist of Auschwitz by Ellie Midwood. This book is both beautiful and heart breaking. It’s based on the true story of Alma Rose, a famous violinist in the Vienna Orchestra in Austria in 1943. Even though Alma was an esteemed violinist, her mesmerizing performances couldn’t save her from being sent to Auschwitz. Alma was Jewish and therefore will become a prisoner in the Nazi death camp like all other Jews.

When the Nazis find out that Alma is a famous violinist, she is taken to the orchestra and assigned as the Kapo, which is the leader of the orchestra. They play for the prisoners as they march to work and for the enjoyment of the SS Nazis Officers. Although Alma refuses to play at first, she begins to realize that being in this position affords her the ability to share her extra rations with some of the starving girls, saving some from death.

It is while playing in the orchestra that Alma meets Miklos Steinberg, a trained pianist. Together they make beautiful music and a love grows between them. It is this love that helps Alma survive her time in such a hellish place.

I loved ever minute of this book. It is a beautifully written story and gave me all the feels, I cried, I laughed and all along I was rooting for Alma! I loved that it is based on true events and you can feel the authenticity in the characters. It is an amazing love story that takes place in the worst possible circumstances and shows us that the power of love can keep us going against God awful despair. I’m sure I will have a book hang-over for days after this book!!

There are many accounts of life in Auschwitz and there need to be many, many more. Stories like this must be told if we are to retain the memory and the viability of one of the greatest horrors in memory. This account is intriguing and uplifting. It shows how the strangest twist of fate can literally be the difference between life and death. Well written and well balanced, this book tells the truth without seeking pity but rather seeks understanding and recognition of the importance of compassion and kindness.

An unforgettable read! Thank you Ellie Midwood for bringing to life the story of Alma Rosé, a famous Vienna Philharmonic concert violinist.
Alma finds herself transported to Auschwitz and after she is recognised she is put in charge of forming a women’s orchestra to play for the camp officials. It is her wit, courage, strength and determination that sees her keep ‘her girls’ alive. This massive task is unbelievable to undertake. Alma argues, cajoles and charms the highest ranking SS officers with her musical abilities. The respect she earns is well deserved.
Like most stories of the horrors of concentration camps and the cruelty of the German officials ‘The Violinist of Auschwitz’ doesn’t gloss over the inhuman treatment of the inmates.
A truly remarkable read and one that will remain with me for a very long time. A definite 5/5

Amazing journey and life!! when I started this book, I thought it was historical fiction but right at the end when I read the author's note I realized how wonderful that Alma was real, that her story was real, and that everything she did for her comrades was real.

Alma is a true heroine, strong, bold and with an attitude that made everyone fall in love with her, even the most terrible Nazis were in awe of her and her talents, she was a woman that should be celebrated and recognized as a true WW2 heroine.

Alma was a very famous violinist, she was used to playing in magnificent operas and concerts, people respect her and always look up to her until the war was unleashed, and she found herself in Auschwitz with a number on her arm identifying her as a persona non grata

Alma was not ready to give up, she was ready to help as many as she could even if by that she needed to improvise a huge orchestra for the Nazis to enjoy. she will seek musicians, musical teachers, anything that will make this orchestra possible but at the same time that will keep them alive and working.

I admire Alma so much especially how she was always kind and didn't felt any anger whenever someone was trying to sabotage her plans, she walked around the camp with an authority that some didn't understand, Alma went to the worst places to find her musicians, some of them where not even professional or had any experience but they will do anything in or to survive the worst. she will step up and say things or speak up to high Kommanders and she will not even shake or sweat.

I cried so much with Alma, she really deserved so much more, I hated what she went through, the only person that brought so much joy into her life, was stolen away in an instant. so many stories like that during those days, it was heartbreaking. her light was out after such a terrible event nothing will ever be the same.

I really recommend this book so much, to learn more about true heroines, true women who really fought so hard to survive and help others to survive the evilness of that era. we often hear the stories of WW2 but usually speak about the soldiers and the atrocities the Nazis did but we are missing so many women who were there fighting and helping others, they deserve the recognition and the validation too.

Alma Rose what a fantastic heroine you were and you ARE!!

The violinist of Auschwitz by Ellie Midwood is a historical fiction book that is based upon a true story. A book set during the Holocaust that straight away throws you into a very powerful and dark time.
It is about an Austrian woman called Alma Rose. I have never heard of her until this time, but with a story that hits so hard it will be a woman I won't forget easily now. Alma was a woman, a violinist, who got caught up in the living hell that was Auschwitz. While there she was recognised as the famous violinist that she was by the head of the womens camp.She was appointed as the conductor for the orchestra that played as the inmates marched to work, at first she refused but then she realised by doing this she could get better treatment amd extra rations for herself and the other members in the orchestra.Alma creates an orchestra that performs for the SS Officers. The orchestra becomes so large as she makes sure as many girls are able to be saved by playing in it. She meets Miklos a very talented piano player and composer who was celbrated in Europe before the war too. Their shared love of music and everything connected to it helps them to fall in love surrounded by the despair and death of the camp. This one simple thong helps to give Alma the strength to get through every day.
A story that I found so difficuly in parts. Auschwitz was a death camp, with Mengele firmly installed doing his 'experiments'. I read this story and the starkness of the conditions, the horror the camp inmates survived (or didn't) on a daily basis was like a punch in the face. I have previously read Holocaust books and they have all affected me to varying degrees but this book, with it's hard hitting details and brilliantly researched story hit the hardest.
Ellie Midwood actually based this book on the testaments from a few survivors from the camps and mant actually said if it wasn't for Alma, they would never have survived. How do you effectively portray that in a book? Well, this author has managed it and done a excelent job in showing us the harshness of the reality of specifically Auschwitz. A very real, bleak but upliftimg and very emotional account of Alma's time there. My words do not do this story justice, my advice...read the book!
Thank you to Bookouture and NetGalley for the copy of the book for my review today.

Everyone should read this book. It is beautiful and painful and necessary. I had never heard of Alma Rosé before reading this novel and I'm grateful to know her story.

Alma Rosé is a famous violinist, playing across Europe, until she is arrested and taken to Auschwitz. Alma's life of privilege, glamour, and music is gone in a second. When she manages to get her hands on a violin, her playing changes everything. The head of the woman's camp puts her in charge of the women's orchestra and, suddenly, Alma holds others' lives in her hands. She does all she can to keep the women in the orchestra alive, to place other women in the orchestra so they are under her protection, and does all she can to charm the SS camp administration in order to help her orchestra despite her deep hatred of them. When Alma meets Miklos, a piano virtuoso, she finds something more in the death camp, something she had not thought was possible in a place of death.

Based on the true story of the violinist Alma Rosé, who did run the women's orchestra and save their lives on multiple occasions, this novel is powerful. There are horrific moments that are incredibly difficult to read but there are also sweet moments and countless moments that prove the power of the human spirit. To know that these moments are based on reality only increases their power both on the painful side and the hopeful side.

The book includes information on where Ellie Midwood gathered information for her narrative and how most major events in the book are based on factual accounts from survivors. There are also a few fictional characters who work their way into Alma's narrative with creative license. There is only so much that can be known about Alma's life and so it is expected that such a story would include some pure fiction.

Midwood's writing is excellent. She has crafted and plotted this story brilliantly. Her writing style is clear and truthful in a way that honors the truths of the story she is telling. I immediately found myself forgetting that I was reading a book and feeling like someone was telling me a story because her prose is so clear and succinct that the words fall away.

I cannot praise this book enough. It was certainly difficult to read but reading this book in order to honor the real people who lived these lives, to keep their stories and their history alive, is well worth the challenge of reading about the horrors they had to witness each day they were in Auschwitz.

Rating edit: 3.5 stars

The Violinist of Auschwitz
by Ellie Midwood is not a pleasant or entertaining read. Obviously it's a war story, based in a concentration camp; so it's heartbreaking and shocking, but certainly a good read.

It's about loss and suffering. And yet it's hopeful. Because it's also about music and love and courage and determination.

"Music is eternal and so are the memories."

I really like Alma. Her talent, her passion for music, her courage and fearlessness. And I really liked Miklos. He's funny yet intense, and passionate. The Alma and Miklos love story is a very significant part of this story but it's a small part, as it's mainly about a concentration camp victims, their suffering and survival and music. However, I really liked this love story. Especially the way Miklos treat Alma: his small yet beautiful letters. The kind of things he says to her.

The writing is beautiful! Lyrical at some places.

"She didn’t just hear it; she felt the music inside of her. It spoke to her in a way that she couldn’t explain even to herself. Without once opening her eyes, without exchanging a single word with the pianist, she learned his entire life story through his music— his work and successes, the women he loved and lost, the life he celebrated and which was stolen from him in such a bastardly manner. He somehow managed to express it all— a broken man to a broken woman— and Alma understood him without understanding his language."

There are so many characters, naturally, but they all have their own importance.

Overall, a good, poignant read. The ending made me emotional, however I felt the epilogue was unnecessary. There are certain things in the epilogue that needed to be told, yes, but I felt it could have been told in the last chapter. Just my views. Must read if you like Historical/war fiction. It's based on a true story though.