Thank you for allowing me access to this story. After several attempts, I couldn’t get past the first chapter. The way it is written left me having to go back and reread and reread. Should I make another go of it in the future, I will definitely posit a review on my goodreads page.

While this book was obviously well researched and based on fact and family history, it just didn’t draw me into the type of story I had hoped it would be. I personally just wish it had a bit more flow to the story and better connection between me the reader and those in the book.

I voluntarily reviewed a copy of this book provided by NetGalley.

This book is based on a true story which occurred in the author’s family. It begins with Consie’s favorite uncle who has just died. After the funeral, Consie finds a letter which leads to her finding out more information through an interview with a cousin, Magda. The story really begins here and concentrates on the family in Czechoslovakia during the 1930’s. There are many facts that make it seem as if it were a non-fiction book. I didn’t get a feeling for the character’s lives and didn’t care to read a non-fiction type book. It was well written and the author did a lot of research. I wish to thank the publisher and author for an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

This book is based on the history of the author's family. The main character Consie discovers a letter after a funeral about her great-uncle Hermann and his family being imprisoned at Auschwitz which sends her down a path to discover the truth and learn the history of her family.
Although this book is supposed to be fiction based upon a true story, to me it read more like a non-fiction book. There was no connection for me to any of the characters and the book skipped unevenly from person to person making it somewhat disjointed and hard to read. But the story of Hermann and his family and the facts of Nazi Germany and the events that happened there were interesting and very informative. The writer does a good job with the research and timeline of the historic events of that era.
I am giving this a 3 star rating, good fact detailed book, just lacks the warmth and connection I like to see in a work of fiction.
Thank you to W.W. Norton & Company and NetGalley for the free advanced reader copy of the e-book version of this novel in exchange I am giving my honest review.

Consie is home for a funeral when she stumbles upon a family letter sent from Germany in 1945, which contains staggering news: Consie’s great-uncle Hermann, who was transported to Auschwitz with his wife and three daughters, might have escaped.

I have been to Auschwitz and done many Holocaust tours and visited many memorial sites. The topic means a lot to me. I am always interested in learning more and enjoy reading non-fiction and fiction surrounding the topic. The author is very empathetic and you can understand why and where the links are to the author. The story flows well and there is good character development. The book cover is clear and eye-catching and it would make me interested if in a bookshop and I saw this on a shelf.

Afer a family funeral, Consie discovers a letter that contains news that a family member might have escaped from Auschwitz near the end of World War II. She is able to find an old interview with her cousin Magda who survived the war and immigrated to Canada. From there most of the book is Magda's story, but it reads more as non-fiction history, brutal and gruesome, but not much dialogue among her and the other characters. The history of Czechoslovakia starting in the 1930's with the family is enlightening as is the worlds response to Hitler's rising. There is much poignant, factual information and the author says it is based on her family, but I didn't feel a connection to Consie as a fictional character. I received a digital copy of this title from the publisher and NetGalley for an honest review.