Heart wrenching story about Warsaw and Ghetto uprising during WW II. Wonderful efforts of Sara and Elzbieta to save the children from the ghetto. Elzbieta meets Roman when she visited his family to offer rescuing his siblings. This is a story of family, friendship and love in the midst of suffering.

✨”I would endure to tire and starvation and even death if it meant I could stay with my family. There was nothing more important to me in the world.”✨

Kelly Rimmer has done it again. I thought I was at my emotional tether with The Things We Cannot Say, but no, Kelly has come and once again proven why her stories are so amazing. Her research and in depth emotional journey you go on with the characters is eye-opening. In particular this story relates to characters from previous novels (not required to read previous novels) however, I think I was more invested for this reason.

These stories of heartache, determination, grit, love, sadness, grief, greed courage and of course sacrifice. These people would give up nothing, in the hope that their families remain safe. These stories continue to encourage the read to understand how the hell these young women and men survived. HOW?! It’s incredible.

At the end of the day, Kelly Rimmer has
absolutely nailed it. I highly recommend this when it appears on shelves April 28!

Captivating is the only way to describe Kelly Rimmer’s new novel, The Warsaw Orphan. Inspired by the real-life heroine who smuggled thousands of Jewish children to safety during WWII, this is a story of bravery, suffering and survival that will have you enthralled and heartbroken until the very end.

Elzbieta Rabinek is a young teenager living under Nazi occupation in Warsaw. In the spring of 1942, grappling with the reality of her own wartime tragedy, she learns of the terrible plight of the families within the walls of the Jewish Ghetto. She decides that she must act.

Roman Gorka is a teenager living within the walls of the ghetto, his family is starving, the stench of death and disease permeate the streets and rumours abound around the plight of the many Jews who are being forcibly shipped out of the ghetto to work for the Germans. Roman becomes involved in the resistance, and the lives of the two teenagers become inextricably intertwined.

The deep suffering and inhumane treatment of the Polish people during the war years is certainly hard to disregard, Kelly Rimmer has managed to humanise these atrocities though her skillful storytelling in The Warsaw Orphan. I was drawn into the worlds of the people on each side of the wall, and the cruel conditions that they endured under German occupation. Rimmer manages to take the reader there, into the thick of the lived experience. Through the eyes of the characters, I gained a new understanding of the reality of living through this period of history and cried many tears.

A beautiful, thoughtful and well researched book that will touch the reader in a profound way. Rimmer has immortalised these stories of bravery and resilience for future generations, we must never forget the atrocities that were endured throughout this period in history. The Warsaw Orphan will remind you that even at the darkest times, humanity and love can triumph. Kelly Rimmer has swiftly become one of my must-read authors.

Thank you to NetGalley, Hachette Australia and the Author for the opportunity to read and review this wonderful book.