Wow, what at story, this one is unlike any other book that I have read about WWII, the Holocaust, or Auschwitz. This is the fictional story that parallels closely to the true story of an SS guard and a Jewish inmate.
The story begins at the denazification hearing of Franz Dahler a SS guard at Auschwitz. He is there to face charges of crimes against humanity, one of the co-plaintiffs being a former inmate of Auschwitz who knew Dahler while there. He claims Dahler is evil, cruel and very abusive. Upon finding out that Dahler's main witness is his wife Helena, a former inmate of Auschwitz also, and who worked under Dahler's command, Novak states that she is being forced by Dahler, that he beat her in the camp and has her completely terrified and under his control.
Helena tells her story in a completely calm manner, and it is a very different story than inmate Novak's. Her portrayal of Dahler is completely baffling. The psychiatrists that are observing the testimony don't know what to make of it. She doesn't appear to act as one who is terrified of the man sitting next to her, holding her hand throughout the proceedings. To the observers she seems to truly love Dahler. But how is this even possible? How can someone love someone that their race murdered and tried to eliminate all of her people? Surely that is impossible, and to fall in love under the conditions they were under in the camp? To actually go as far as to marry? Baffling indeed.
At the time of the denazification tribunals there was no Stockholm Syndrome in the mental health test books, if there had been could this explain Helena's feelings and dependence on Dahler? Maybe, maybe not.
The author has written Franz and Helena's story as close to the true events as possible. Reading it I felt as if I was there in Auschwitz. I could almost smell the bodies burning, see the human skeletons, the "Muselmanner" walking the grounds, feel my heart freeze in terror when a SS guard other than Franz approached Helena. This book comes alive. You aren't simply reading the words, you are experiencing them.
This should be required reading, it is a story of fear, terror, abuse, but also of hope and change, a reaffirmation of the power of love, the power of love to conquer evil, and to change people as Franz Dahler was changed by it.
Thank you to the publishers at Bookouture and Net Galley for the free ARC of this novel, I am leaving my honest review in return.

The third book in the series, “Women and The Holocaust,” and definitely her best work so far, “The Girl In The Striped Dress” is an unforgettable novel about forbidden love within the barbed wire confines of Auschwitz.

I’ve read many Holocaust books and noted that some prisoners worked at Kanada and gathered from clues that it was definitely where you wanted to be should you be destined for Auschwitz. I was happy author Ellie Midwood took time to explain what it is and how it got my country’s name. This is Helena’s -The Kanada Girl’s – story.

Helena’s story is different from any other Auschwitz-Birkenau historical fiction I’ve ever read. Sentenced to death for a crime she didn’t commit, Helena, a Slovakian Jewess, arrives in Auschwitz one snowy day in the Spring of 1942. Given only 24h to live, she’s not even tattooed with a prison number. As fate would have it, she’s pulled out of a prison line up and ordered to sing Happy Birthday to one of the guards. Entranced by her singing, the birthday boy passes her a slice of his cake and before she can even gobble it down, he’s ordered her life spared. He needs her to work under his command in the Kanada work detail.

In a place where there is little hope, love blossoms. You’ll have to read and determine for yourself if you believe it’s a case of Stockholm Syndrome or whether Helena actually fell in love with Franz. Regardless, it touched my heart to read about “an SS man who changed under his beloved’s influence from a ‘natural Jew-hater’ into someone who began helping inmates.” It testifies to the idea that love is always stronger than hate, and that choosing kindness over violence can transform anyone.

You’ll experience a wide range of emotions with this true story as well as add to your knowledge of the Denazification Tribunals held in 1947. Midland, a Nazi Germany history expert, masterfully takes her readers to the scene of the action and accesses her character’s innermost thoughts and emotions.

To be published August 9, 2021.

I was gifted this advance copy by Ellie Midwood, Bookouture, and NetGalley and was under no obligation to provide a review.

*previously published as Auschwitz Syndrome

We first meet Franz and his wife Helena at a denazification tribunal in 1947. Franz was an SS official working in Auschwitz and Helena was a Slovakian jew who was due to be gassed on her arrival at Auschwitz. However she was spared this fate and instead was placed in the Kanada area, said to be the best place to work in Auschwitz. Dr Hoffman, a psychiatrist is one of the Dr"s presiding over Franz''s case. What he sees astounds him, Helena is fully dependent on Franz, is she really in love with him or is she being coerced by him to save his own skin.
As with all of Ellie's books she takes you into the head and hearts of the inmates at Auschwitz. She doesn't shy away from the reality that all inmates face and at times it can make disturbing reading, for which I admit had me in tears and had to put the book down on a number of occasions to compose myself. This book was also interesting because she allows us into head and heart of a German Officer, who in his mind is just doing his job.
I was delighted to have been approved for this advanced copy and my sincere thanks go to Netgalley and Bookouture for the opportunity to give my honest feedback

Thank You NetGalley, Bookouture and Author for the chance to read this amazing novel!

A story based on the true story of an Auschwitz victim/survivor. This was a fantastic story! And one that will stay with me for some time!
The story is hard hitting, dark and simply wonderful. Heartbreaking, horrifying, unimaginable and tear-worthy this book you won't be able to put away!
Ellie couldn't have done a better job writing this. It was mind blowing at times!
Overall this was one for the books and one that I will most definitely be taking about!

Thank you again for giving me the opportunity to read and review your this amazing novel!

Midwood produced an emotional, powerful book. I liked that it was based on a true story. It examines a young Jewish woman who worked in the sorting shed of Auschwitz and had a relationship with an SS member. The author's prologue and end note were extremely informative. I had never heard of this particular story before. I think the author captured the gamut of raw emotions throughout the book from absolute horror to apathy. As more Holocaust survivors pass, stories like these, although historical fiction, remain imperative to keep the story alive for future generations of readers.

A fictional story, with so much truth behind it, but how could something like this really happen?
What a wonderful job the author has done with this book, and it should be mandatory reading.
We will never know for sure if one of the prisoners that we come to know was suffering from Stockholm/Auschwitz Syndrome, with a Jewish inmate in a relationship with an SS Officer, and through the words of the author we are there for the Nuremberg trials.
A story of heart wrenching pain, atrocities, forgiveness, love, such a range of emotions, and you will feel them all and more in this book.
I will be looking for more by Ellie Midwood!
I received this book through Net Galley and the Publisher Bookatour and was not required to give a positive review.

What an awesome story of love and persistence during one of the most awful times in history. The main character falls in love with her Nazi guards... is it love... or has she been brainwashed....

Wow! It was like being at the scene of an accident where you want to look away because it is so horrific but you just can’t seem to. That’s how I felt reading this book, a story during WWII of a Jewish inmate at Auschwitz and an SS guard who fall in love with each other. Franz is on trial for a Denazification Trial while married to a former inmate, Leni. Was he just a follower or truly a monstrous murderer? Leni testifies on his behalf to tell her side of the story while another former inmate who is now a Nazi hunter and also served in that camp tells his. It should be noted that this book is based on actual events but the characters are different. The descriptions and accounts of the inner most experiences of inmates behind the barbed wire is so graphic and dehumanizing that it leaves the reader very empty and disgusted. Actually, at times, it was hard to read on. The author tried to show the human perspective behind both characters to show how such an experience affects the human soul. Those that survived, whether German or Jew, were never the same again. How could they be? In this story though, because of love, it showed that people can change. but also that we must never forget what happened because evil had a grip during WWII.

This book is not for light reading, nor like other books that I’ve read that have taken place during WWII. Additionally, there were several phrases in German that made it at times how to understand. While it is about courage, love, forgiveness, and survival of the human spirit, the graphic details were uncomfortable to absorb. It is a story that will stay with me for quite awhile.
Thank you to #netgalley for allowing me to read this and give an honest review.

A fantastic and compelling story that was so well researched and beautifully written that I could not put it down. Ellie Midwood is a superb author who writes with compassion and is a master of her craft. 5* and my thanks go to Netgalley and Bookouture for giving me the opportunity to read this book.

In what appears to be a clear case of Stockholm Syndrome, Helena is a Jewish prisoner of Auschwitz who ends up falling in love with and marrying one of SS guards, Franz. The book follows his war crimes trial after the war, flashing back and forth between the trial and life in the camps. {Caveat emptor - the book is startlingly graphic in its description of the treatment of prisoners within the camp.} The trial uncovers just how complex relationships are, and the ironies that exist within camp life....are Helena and Franz a true couple, with real feelings for each other, or is it a case of dependency and misplaced emotions? No spoilers here!

Great story! The characters were believable and heartbreaking. Great historical content. I would read this author again.

Wow. Wow, wow, WOW. I almost have no words. This was an incredible, heart-wrenching read. The story is true, the main characters are real and that made it even more insanely captivating. Disclaimer, I usually avoid books about the Holocaust because obviously, the subject matter is hard to get through. It is sickening to think of the level of evil that exists in humanity. However, the premise of the story intrigued me and I thought I would give it a try.

It is Germany, 1947, just after the end of the war. The DeNazification trials are happening, where former SS soldiers are being tried for their war crimes and depending on the level of their crimes, are either released or jailed. Dr. Hoffman, an American psychiatrist is one of the specialist that attends the cases to determine their fates. Franz Dahler, a former Auschwitz guard is scheduled to appear, and as his witness, he's bringing his wife, Helena, his former inmate in Auschwitz. This immediately makes everyone sit up and say, "WHAT?!?"
The twist of this story is Andrej Novak, also a former Auschwitz inmate and now Nazi hunter, recognizes Franz's name and demands a full tribunal into his crimes and goes on the record as co-plaintiff. He claims that Franz physically, mentally, and sexually abused Helena and is using her a ploy to save his own skin.
Helena begins to tell her story; she is shy, withdrawn and does seem to display "abused" symptoms. However, as she tells her story, Dr. Hoffman finds himself more and more at odds between what he knows as a psychiatrist and what is being displayed before him. He doesn't know if what he's listening to and seeing is the most imaginable love story ever or a yet undiagnosed psychological disorder in which a hostage displays a savior like view of her captor. Is it true an inmate and an SS soldier could fall in love in such a cesspool of evil? Could a SS soldier, brainwashed from a young age to worship his Fuhrer, be truly rehabilitated?

I cried buckets reading this story. The details in which this author went to in order to describe the scene in Auschwitz-Birkenau were skin-crawlingly real. You already "know" what went on there, but to have it in such detail made you feel like you were there with Helena. I felt her fear, her anxiety, her growing dependency on Franz, in order to survive. This is not a "light" read by any mean, just due to subject matter but wow...what a tale. I seriously can't get over this and I'm so glad I was able to read it. I did receive a copy of it from NetGalley for my unbiased review but I wouldn't change a word.

Loved this soul renching storyline about Helena and Franz who despite everything happening around them fall in love and actually get their happy ending unlike the rest of the poor souls who suffered in Auschwitz, love the fact that it's based on a true story about the jew girl who wasn't even supposed to live a day when she arrived at the camp of Auschwitz but got saved by an SS soldier who took a liking to her, and throughout tried to make her suffering just a little easier without getting into trouble himself
Wonderfully written and a brilliant insight into the horrors of Auschwitz
Highly recommended

The girl in the striped dress....wow!!
Time to clear your schedule for the afternoon, coffee pot on and phone turned off - you won’t want to put this one down. This was a compelling and thoroughly enjoyable (if emotional) read from start to finish based on a true story. All capped off by skilful writing. It's well worth your time if you appreciate great historic storytelling.

THE GIRL IN THE STRIPED DRESS by ELLIE MIDWOOD is the sensitively told love story of Helena, a Jewish inmate of Auschwitz, and Unterscharführer Franz Dahler, told against the horrific background of Nazi cruelty and despair that reigned in that hellish place. We must never forget the Holocaust and the wickedness of Hitler and his cohorts, especially towards the Jews.
I like to see Franz's unquestioning loyalty to the Reich, of which he says, "Our hearts, just like our lives, belonged to the Fatherland. They only had the right to beat for it - all else was treason", change into sacrificial love for Helena and his own serious introspection.
I found the Denazification court case against Franz, especially the psychiatrists observations, very interesting, as Helena tells her story.
Do not miss this book - it is a WW11 novel based on a true story, by an author who has done a great deal of research. It is one of the best that I have read in this genre.
I was given a free copy of the book by NetGalley from Bookouture. The opinions in this review are completely my own.

Nazification

This book is bit different from others I have read about the Holocaust. It was actually based on a true story. The characters were engaging and believable.

The story takes place at a denazification trial after WWII. Through the testimonies of the witnesses and the German Who was once an officer at Auschwitz concentration camp in Poland in charge of the warehouses called Kanada.

The story of a young woman, her sister, and the Nazi officer that saved her life more than once and saved her sister’s life as well. How she fell in love with this officer and their story.

It is filled with death, tragedy, life, horrific acts , hatred, and a bit of kindness all thrown together. The stories of what went on at the camp are horrific, but they need to be told. This story is based around those that worked around Kanada and those in charge.

I do recommend this book.

Thanks to Ellie Midwood , Bookouture and NetGalley for allowing me to read and review a copy of this book.

A haunting historical novel based on true events. Helena is shipped to Auschwitz, and finds herself saved from instant slaughter by a guard who insists she sings for a SS Guard's birthday. What follows is an impossible love story, against all odds.

This novel was beautifully researched, with many highly emotional moments. The subject matter is not an easy one, but the author manages to make the reader feel sympathy for both Helena and Franz. Well worth a read for those who enjoy historical fiction.

I was sent a copy of this ARC by the publisher for my honest opinion.
First off ,the tattooist of Auschwitz has been on my TBR for the longest and even if i have not read and secrectly saving it for a good time read i know quite a lot about the book itself.
If you are a fan of that book then i am quite sure you will admire this as well.
I have always been intrigued by this historic moment and the author turns out a nice story around it.