Thank you to Netgalley and Kensington Books for the ARC. The opinions expressed are my own. This WWII novel follows several different characters. The Majewski family, living in Poland, are practicing Jews when Moscow is overrun. We watch the family as the Occupation is underway and the Ghetto is being built. They are transferred from their home to the Warsaw Ghetto in 1940, where 1/3 of the population is housed. The conditions are appalling. Things continue to get worse over the years. Who will survive and how?

Janka Danek is a Polish woman, unhappily married to a man who is considered an essential worker. He becomes close to some of the top Nazi officials, even rejoicing and participating in the death and relocation of the Jews. Janka meets and helps to save the Majewski family in small ways. Whether or not she succeeds with a dangerous husband is to be seen.

Daniel is Stefa Majewski's boyfriend. His parents are relocated to the same apartment as the Majewski family in the Warsaw Ghetto. He joins the Judenrat Police Force, hoping to have options of keeping the families safer. The Judenrat Police Force operates in the Ghetto, supervising the activities of people going in and out of the Ghetto. He eventually resigns because of the things he's being asked to do, against his own people. The brutality and inhumanity is unspeakable.

Hannah Majewski left her family before the War started. She moves to London to escape her family, its strict religion and customs. She lives with her mother's sister and her husband. The Blitz begins, with air raids and bombings. Her uncle buys a shelter for them, where they go when they hear nearby bombings. Unfortunately the shelter wasn't built to withstand nuclear bombs. Her aunt and uncle were killed in such a bombing, leaving Hannah far from home and injured. As she learns more about the War going on in her hometown, she longs to be useful. She joins the Special Operations Executive in England. Hannah throws herself into training and is eventually accepted into service and assigned a new identity and look. She's dropped from a plane near Poland where she's to send communication via a radio transmitter. She can't keep away from her family and soon becomes involved in a plan for their escape. But will it work? Will it be too late?

A heartrending, descriptive, captivating and touching read. I was moved in so many ways. The book evokes such emotion. A remarkable and highly recommend novel.

Thank you to NetGalley and @kensingtonbooks for this ARC. A family of Jews living in Warsaw have been preparing for war. Soon, they are moved to the Ghetto with hundreds of other Jews losing their livelihood and apartment. Hanna, their daughter who lives in London with her aunt and uncle until they are killed by a bomb, has nothing left to lose. With anger driving her, she signs up to be a spy in Warsaw, hoping to save her family. Is she too late? I have read a lot of WW2 books, mainly about France and England and but only one other about Warsaw. Personally, I feel Poland had the most atrocities against them. The Jews were just snuffed out. VS Alexander brings this story breath so all will not be forgotten. #TheWarGirls #VSAlexander #KensingtonBooks #July2022

I really like this authors books but I find them hard to hold my interest at the beginning and could do with some editing there because I feel some people lose interest but once you get past the beginning they speed up and are very good in providing the history of the time and are well researched.
Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for letting me read this book

This was my first read by V.S Alexander. The characters were well developed and written well. You could tell that the main characters Hannah and Stefa were brave and that their love for each other and their family was strong. You can tell that the author did a lot of research. The details and depth have you feel like you really there. I do feel that's a wonderful but tragic story that at times depicts vivid pictures of what the Jewish people of Warsaw had to endure. I think anyone who enjoys historical fiction books will enjoy this. Thank you to NetGalley and Kensington Books for the arc in return for my honest opinion.

Thanks to netgalley.com and Kensington Publishing for the advance ARC for my honest review.

I owe my new found interest into WW2 to my mom, who grew up during the War in Germany, whose gone to heaven, miss her stories and every WW2 book I read is to honor her.

This was my first read by the author V.S. Alexander, did enjoy it, like the mix of fictional characters, with real people, he puts the reader into the pages, your in the flawed shelter during the Blitz, in the Warsaw Ghetto and although it doesn't hurt the over all story, the ending could have been better.

Did like the three War Girls, being two Jewish sisters Hanna, Stefa , along with Janka, a married Aryan woman, they are neighbors, live across the street from each other, they have chemistry, come from different backgrounds and even the two sisters. are opposites.

What makes it so good is that you have Hanna who goes to London too live with an Aunt and Uncle, longing for an unfettered life, yet never forgets her family and her sister Stefa embraces Judaism, does what her parents want. Then you have Janka who been abused by her drunk husband, lacks confidence, yet due to what she see's due to the German invasion, gains confidence and helps the Majewski family.

Her husband Karol ,adds an element to the story, shows what people would do, so they could survive and even if they knew it was wrong.

Definitely would recommend this one, will have too see what else the author has written and will continue reading in the WW2 themed books.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for a sneak peek at this book. I had a hard time getting into the book. I found the characters confusing in the beginning. After that, I enjoyed the read.

This novel follows three "war girls". Stefa is a 16 year old Jewish girl in Warsaw. Her sister, Hannah, is 18 years old and left Warsaw for a more modern, unfettered life in London with her aunt. Janka is a married Aryan woman in Warsaw with an abusive husband who caters to the Nazi's occupying Warsaw. The three women each fight back in their own ways. The book depicts their great bravery and strength, and paints a vivid picture of the horrors of the Warsaw Ghetto and the Nazi mindset. Highly recommend.

I'm still a new reader when it comes to historical fiction novels but I am absolutely loving them! While they are certainly emotional and sometimes talk about hard subjects they are so important! This book was fantastic! Well written, deeply emotional, and riveting! I can't wait to read more from the author!

Slow paced. The story starts with the invasion of Poland and stretches out from the three women until the Warsaw uprising with an epilogue after the war,

I did not expect to like this book as much as I did! I actually learned a lot of new information about the Warsaw Ghetto that I didn't know. When I wasn't reading it, I was definitely thinking about it and anxious to finish it!

The War Girls by V.S. Alexander is a great WWII-era historical fiction that kept me interested from beginning to end.

I have read several books from this author and enjoyed each one, so I knew I would like this one as well.

I was definitely drawn in by the passion, emotion, suspense, high-stakes, and character-driven moments between and individually in regards to the two sisters. Hanna and Stefa may be sisters, but their individual experiences guve us different views on events and the atrocities that occur during the war. Their respective stories also give us images of love, hope, strength, and promise amongst the loss, fear, hurt, and pain.

I enjoyed reading this most recent addition to the Author’s impressive portfolio.

4/5 stars

Thank you NG and Kensington Books for this wonderful arc and in return I am submitting my unbiased and voluntary review and opinion.

I am posting this review to my GR and Bookbub accounts immediately and will post it to my Amazon, Instagram, and B&N accounts upon publication on 7/26/22.

Another novel set in WWII, why read this one, one can wonder. Well, easy answer: because V.S. Alexander wrote it. One of my favourite authors whose books I buy without needing to read the blurb! Indeed, one can expect a meticulous historical research, a great psychological insight, a powerful plot and a believable and vivid storyline! These proved true with his new novel as well.
Hanna (18) and Stefa (16) are Jewish sisters. Hanna left Warsaw a few months before WWII broke out: she wanted freedom from some of the Jewish traditions (arranged marriage, for instance). She went to London to stay with her aunt who had left her family for the same reasons.
Stefa is still with her family in Warsaw with her family.
Hanna is content with her London life experiences. However, when the war started, her thoughts turned to her family even though she believed she had left them all behind with her past...
I found Hanna's train of thought very interesting and realistic. All that she learned from her family while growing up: how much ingrained is our education in the heart, in the soul? Can one really put all and everything behind? What will be her reactions to the war? How is she going to act on them?
All characters' developments show the author's convincing psychological sensitivity to the human psyche.
Full of suspense from page 1 till the very end, this novel and its characters will remain with me. Highly recommended.
I received a digital ARC of this novel from NetGalley, for which I am very grateful, in exchange for my honest review.

Alexander's The War Girls is a well-researched novel that is good, but not great. It's clear that Alexander has done the work, developed the characters, checked the boxes. Somehow, though, it lacks the kind of heart that makes you truly love a book. Alexander offers a WWII story from the standard perspective: one sister in the SOE, one sister in the Holocaust. I have seen this device before and perhaps it is why I could not connect to it. I like the novel, am happy I read it, but couldn't find it in myself to love it.

A terrific read. Truly inspirational and action packed. The hardships endured are heartbreaking. A great novel of the horror the Jewish people endured in Poland during the war,

Thank you to #NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.

The War Girls is a well researched novel set during WWII that focuses on the Warsaw Ghetto. This was my first book by this author; I can’t wait to read more of his historical fiction novels.

Thanks to Net Galley and Kensington Books for this digital arc in exchange for my honest review which is not affiliated with any brand.

My first V.S. Alexander read was The Taster. It is one of my favorite WWII historical fiction novels, ever. I have read each new release from V.S. Alexander since then. The War Girls was another fantastic and emotional story! Well done!

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for the digital ARC in exchange for my honest review. All opinions expressed are completely my own.

Three women struggle to survive during WWII. Two of thje women are living in Warsaw, Poland when the Nazis invade and overtake their city.
One woman, Stefa is a Polish jew who lives with her parents and brother in Warsaw. Stefa's older sister Hannah moved to England before the war began, leaving Poland and her family's Jewish traditions behind.
The third woman is Janka, an aryan whose husband is an abusive drunk who caters to the occupying Nazis, hoping to get ahead, he forbides Janka to have anything to do with any Jewish people.
As the war escalates and Warsaw's Jewish community is imprisoned behind walls in the Warsaw Ghetto, these three women take on roles none of them would have ever dreamt. All three find courage and resiancy to survive the horrors of the war.
What a wonderful but sadly tragic story. Though it does paint a very vivid picture of what the Jewish people of Warsaw had to endure once the ghetto was built, and the horrors of what was to come when the Nazis began liquidating the ghetto there is even a brief mention of Janusz Korczak and his infamous orphanage that was moved to the ghetto, his last march through the ghetto with his orphans, heads held high in quiet dignity.
Anyone who reads and enjoys WWII historical fiction will find this a must read. These three women are very easy to connect with. I highly recommend this one. This book comes out on July 26 so mark your calendars and don't miss it.
Thank you to the publishers and to Net Galley for the free ARC, I am leaving my honest review inb return.

This is one of my favorite genres to read, so I was excited to check this one out. Alexander's characters are well-written and realistic. Hannah and Stefa demonstrate the bravery shown by so many during this time. It's obvious that the book was well-researched. The detailing makes the reader truly feel a part of the story, and since that's the case, be sure to have tissues nearby while reading this. It's an emotional, but an important, read.

📚The War Girls by VS Alexander
Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Let me start by saying I am an avid reader of historical fiction, especially around the WWII time period.

The characters in this book were well developed. The two sisters, Hannah and Stefa, are brave and wise beyond their years. The love they have for their family is unwavering in a time when despair ran deep. This book illustrates how love can overcome all hate.

I have read a lot of World War II fiction but nothing I've read has made me feel the despair of the characters who lived through the Blitz in London and the Warsaw Ghetto like this book. It was so well written that I felt like I was part of history instead of just reading about it. I cried with the characters and felt their fear as bombs were dropped in London and the Nazis worked toward their final solution in Warsaw.

The year is 1940 and the Majewski family in Warsaw believe that they will be safe even though they are Jewish because the father has a needed job of inspecting meat in a large hotel to make sure that it's safe and kosher. Stefa, her parent and younger brother all live in a nice house in a rich neighborhood. Hannah's older sister was living in London with her aunt and uncle. She left the family because she felt restrained by her life in a Jewish family especially since her parents were starting to look for a husband for her. Hannah didn't totally understand why her sister left but she knew that she missed the closeness that she and Hannah had always had and wonders about her new life in London. Hannah's life in London is wonderful until the fall of 1940 when the Germans started bombing London continuously. For eight months the Luftwaffe dropped bombs on London and other strategic cities across Britain. After a tragic night of bombing, her aunt and uncle are killed and she ends up in the hospital where she is approached by a woman who asks her to join the OAS. They believed she would be an excellent spy since she knew so many languages and she used to live in Warsaw. After her training is completed, she gets dropped into Poland with the objective of finding out more about the Germans plans and radioing that information back to London. She's been told not to try to rescue her family but she knows that once she's in Warsaw, she will try to find them.

In Warsaw, all of the Jewish families are removed from their homes. Some of them are immediately sent to the camps and others are forced to live in a small walled off area called the Warsaw ghetto. Life is horrible - there isn't enough room or food and the half a million Jews in the Ghetto are faced with starvation and disease and the constant threat of deportation to the concentration camps. The Nazis cruelty to the Jewish families is continuous and it seems as if they make their lives difficult just for the fun of it. Stefa joins the resistance group in the ghetto and does what she can to ruin the German's plans. She, her sister and a friend from the Aryan part of Warsaw call themselves the War Girls and fight to rescue their family and friends against the overwhelming odds that exist. Will the courage and the love between the two sisters be enough to save their family and loved ones from being sent to the camps or will the German hatred of the Jewish people overwhelm their lives and love for their family?

The characters in this book are extremely well written. The two sisters, Hannah and Stefa are brave beyond words and their love for each other and their family is strong. The author did very deep research into life in the Warsaw ghetto and described it in such detail that I sometimes felt as if I was there. Have tissues close because there will be some tears but the overwhelming feeling at the end of the book is that despite the sadness and loss of the war, love can overcome all the hatred that exists.