Thank you to NetGalley for the advanced reader copy of Heather Morris' newest novel, 'Sisters Under the Rising Sun'. I absolutely loved, 'The Tattooist of Auschwitz' book series, so I was very excited to be selected for Heather Morris' newest book. This books is not about the Holocaust like Morris' other books however, this is a beautifully written book about suffering and hope in the midst of unspeakable times and is based on true events experienced by Norah Chambers, nurse Nesta James and their fellow women prisoners of war in Japanese internment camps during WW2. Morris again provides readers with a heartbreaking, but inspiring story about persevering in horrific conditions while somehow becoming more compassionate. Highly recommend reading this one!

Heather Morris has done it again! This book about a little know slice of history, #sistersundertherisingsun is full of wonderful characterizations, humanity in the face of inhumanity, survival and forming a family where you are. I was moved to tears and felt for the characters in this WW II novel following some Australian nurses and women internees. At times the events were hard to handle but this was told with compassion and frankness but also courage and perseverance. Thank you to #netgalley and #stmartinspress for this arc to read and review, all opinions are my own.

Firstly, I have loved Heather Morris' previous books. I love the way she sheds light on lesser known stories of major historical events. While I enjoyed her last 3 books, this one was very hard for me to read. I'm not sure if it was the diverting from Europe to Asia, or the fact that I have issues with Japanese POW camps, but this book was not good to me.

While I know I got to read an ARC, I found the format of this book to be very off. Disreguarding the many (MANY) spelling, grammatical and editing errors, the format made me feel really disconnected. The chapters are long, but they are broken up in to so many mini paragraphs I found it really hard to keep track of who's POV it was and what was going on. I also just didn't connect with any of the characters, not particularly liking anyone so not being overly worried about what happened to them. Did I do a huge Wiki spiral into all the women and events? Hell yeah! But that's the only reason I kept reading, was just to get more of that historical knowledge; not because I was particularly enjoying the story.

2 stars. Am a little disappointed with the book overall, but can't help but appreciate the effort it must have taken to bring this story to light, and showcase the strength and resilience of these wonderful women.

I have a hard time reviewing Heather Morris’ books. Like The Tattooist of Auschwitz, the book tells such an important story and the historical notes at the end make the story extremely powerful; however, I find the writing so simplistic that it prevents me from feeling fully immersed in the story and distracts from my enjoyment. I rounded up to 5 stars for The Tattooist; this time around I’m going to round down.

Thank you very much to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for the advanced reader’s copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

Thank you to Net Galley for the opportunity to read and review this book. I am an avid reader of World War II historical fiction so I was thrilled to be able to read this book focusing on a group of women who were held in a Japanese POW camp for over three years. The story focused on the group of women who included Dutch nuns, Australian nurses and English citizens and how they formed friendships and fought the harsh conditions that they were subjected to.. I thought that this was a well researched book based on the notes about the real people in the afterword, the only difficulty that I had with this book was that there were many different characters and at times I could not keep track of who was who. I would highly recommend this book to anyone who enjoys reading historical fiction.

I read this book in a day. I think this book is one of the best books I have ever read about the human spirit. It was so different than the usual WW2 fiction. There were a lot of characters and I was able to connect with them all. I cried. I felt their spirit. Highly recommend. 5 stars

I was excited to read this because I read the The Tattooist of Auschwitz and I loved it. And this tells about a different war involving Japanese people. Different from the Nazis I used to read. So I said… hmmm…. This seems interesting. But I felt bored. I couldn’t connect with the characters. There were TOO many characters. It was a mess. I couldn’t feel that emotion I’m supposed to feel. For me, it was poorly written.

Thanks to NetGalley and St Martin’s Press for providing me an ARC in exchange of an honest review.

A lot of people have read books about the concentration camps in Germany and treatment of the prisoners. Equally important is how the Japanese dealt with their prisoner. This novel is based on real events and actual people. It’s amazing how many survived by sheer determination and how they created their own support system to help each other. The nurses were a big part of helping the prisoners survive. Used to working as a group and taking instructions from their supervisors they had their own little support system within the group. Of course, this closeness makes it harder on them if one of them dies. This book will touch you emotionally. I cried near the end. So many people endured the hardship and starvation with courage only to succumb shortly prior to the end of the war and rescue of the remaining people left in the camp. Besides the nurses there were many other people that gave it their best effort to help others. Their endurance of all the hardships and cruel treatment is hard to visualize somebody been able to survive. I highly recommend this book.

Singapore February 1942
English musician Norah Chambers sends her 8 year old daughter off on a ship desperate to save her from the Japanese army . Norah, who stays behind to care for her husband and ailing parents, knows she may never see her precious child again.
As Singapore falls, Norah, her husband, and her sister leave aboard the Vyner Brooke merchant ship along with many Australian Army nurses and countless others.
Two days later, the ship is bombed, leaving survivors to jump overboard. After surviving 24 hours in the sea, the Japanese captured them, separated men from the women, and brought them to POW camps.

This book is a true account of these POW women and their bravery during the worst of times. How they formed a deep and loving sisterhood in the depths of despair while starving and being tortured and what they did to keep their spirits up.

I loved how Morris tells us what happened to each of the survivors in her notes at the end of the book.

Thank you to netgally and St. Martin's Press for the arc in return for a voluntary, honest review .

I found Sisters Under the Rising Sun to be an amazing and inspirational book! Based on a true story , I found the resilience of the characters, the way they all rose to the occasion, and their sheer courage in facing and surviving the unthinkable to be simply amazing, particularly since they were young and many were children. I've loved all of Heather Morris's books, and this one is the best yet!

I received a copy of this book from NetGalley. I have read several Heather Morris Books. This one takes place during World War II. It focuses around two sisters, Norah and Ena. They end up while in route to an Island run by the Japanese soldiers. They are separated from their husbands. They are put together with women who are Nuns and nurses. For over three years they are moved around different locations on the Island. The sisters along with the other women try and find a way to survive the horrible conditons on the Island. They are also taking care of a little girl named June who was separated from her parents. They find ways to keep alive and going. Even starting a choral group of singers Imitating instruments. As in her other historical fiction books, Heather Morris bases her book on real life people. I found this to be a very good read turning the kindle pages and rooting for the women in the book. I would give this book a 4.5.

In the midst of World War II, an English musician, Norah Chambers, places her eight-year-old daughter Sally on a ship leaving Singapore, desperate to keep her safe from the Japanese army as they move down through the Pacific. Norah remains to care for her husband and elderly parents, knowing she may never see her child again.

Sister Nesta James, a Welsh Australian nurse, has enlisted to tend to Allied troops. But as Singapore falls to the Japanese she joins the terrified cargo of people, including the heartbroken Norah, crammed aboard the Vyner Brooke merchant ship. Only two days later, they are bombarded from the air off the coast of Indonesia, and in a matter of hours, the Vyner Brooke lies broken on the seabed. After surviving a brutal 24 hours in the sea, Nesta and Norah reach the beaches of a remote island, only to be captured by the Japanese and held in one of their notorious POW camps. The camps are places of starvation and brutality, where disease runs rampant. Sisters in arms, Norah and Nesta fight side by side every day, helping whoever they can, and discovering in themselves and each other extraordinary reserves of courage, resourcefulness and determination.

Sisters under the Rising Sun is a story of women in war: a novel of sisterhood, bravery and friendship in the darkest of circumstances, I love the writing of Heather Morris so I am always on the lookout for any of her books about little known women in history. Besides Nesta and Nora, there are other unforgettable characters in the book, each with their part to play in survival. I appreciated the author telling about the history of these real life women after WWII ends. Be prepared to get out your Kleenex on this one. Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for granting my request to read this amazing story of these women and nurses.

This was a very interesting read, of a group of women, British, Dutch, Australian and one North American who were imprisoned by the Japanese during WWII.
On the 12th of February 1942, Vyner Brooke was one of the last ships carrying evacuees to leave Singapore. It sailed south with 181 passengers embarked, most of them women and children. Among the passengers were the last 65 Australian nurses in Singapore.
But soon after leaving, their ship was hit by the Japanese air force and sunk. Quite a few made it to shore, on a remote Island. Soon they were taken by the Japanese to POW camps. Women and males separated, and they were held prisoners for three and a half years. The Nurses were quite a sisterhood and looked after everyone in their camp.
This is full of true characters, who will amaze you with their resilience to survive. It was a hard and brutal time where most of the time they were starving. But they organized themselves so that they had the best chance at survival. The group also prepared music recitals and other activities, to try and lift their spirits.
This was a very well written book, with an amazing cast of Characters, and makes you wonder if you could survive as they did.
I would like to thank NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for a copy of this book.

Synopsis (from Netgalley, the provider of the book to review)
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A phenomenal novel of resilience and survival by the bestselling author of The Tattooist of Auschwitz, Heather Morris.

Amid World War II, an English musician, Norah Chambers, places her eight-year-old daughter Sally on a ship leaving Singapore, desperate to keep her safe from the Japanese army as they move down through the Pacific. Norah remains to care for her husband and elderly parents, knowing she may never see her child again.

Sister Nesta James, a Welsh Australian nurse, has enlisted to tend to the Allied troops. But as Singapore falls to the Japanese she joins the terrified cargo of people, including the heartbroken Norah, crammed aboard the Vyner Brooke merchant ship. Only two days later, they are bombarded from the air off the coast of Indonesia, and in a matter of hours, the Vyner Brooke lies broken on the seabed.

After surviving a brutal 24 hours in the sea, Nesta and Norah reach the beaches of a remote island, only to be captured by the Japanese and held in one of their notorious POW camps. The camps are places of starvation and brutality, where disease runs rampant. Sisters in arms, Norah and Nesta fight side by side every day, helping whoever they can, and discovering in themselves and each other extraordinary reserves of courage, resourcefulness, and determination.

Sisters under the Rising Sun is a story of women in war: a novel of sisterhood, bravery and friendship in the darkest of circumstances, from the multimillion-copy bestselling author of The Tattooist of Auschwitz, Cilka's Journey and Three Sisters.

The plot of this book reminds me a lot of the movie “Paradise Road” - there are so many similarities. Those parallels aside, this book is nonetheless excellent – strong writing, attention to history and characters that you give a darn about. Great for individual readers and book clubs alike --- and check out the movie as Glenn Close, Cate Blanchett, Jennifer Ehle, and Frances McDormand are stellar, as always, in it…it will only enhance the reading of this novel as you see what women went through and survived: we are strong than we think!
#shortbutsweetreviews

I've read several other Heather Morris books and when I saw this was available on NetGalley in exchange for an honest review I couldn't wait to get started. I've read quite a few books about World War II in Europe, but none about the South Pacific. I had no idea there were POW camps full of civilian women. The story mostly follows two sisters and a group of Australian nurses who are trying to escape Singapore. Their ship is sunk and they are forced into a POW camp by Japanese soldiers. They experience many heartbreaking cases of abuse but try to make the best of their situation. The story is based on a true one and includes a follow-up of what happens to some of the ladies after they are rescued.

Everything I have ever read by Heather Morris is always a treat and of the highest quality, and this book was no different. What sets her apart is her breathtaking prose, her excellent characterization, and the quality of her historical accuracy. Combine that with two incredible women struggling for survival amidst a POW camp and you are swept away yet glued to your seat! Absolutely wonderful! Both Norah and Nesta are wonderful heroines that show that courage can be found in all of us. I recommend all of her books, but I believe this one is my favorite and her best yet! TEN STARS!

Sisters of the Rising Sun is the story of Dutch, British, and Australian women and nurses who were captured when their boat was torpedoed by the Japanese in 1942. They had left Singapore and were imprisoned in the jungles of Indonesia for three and a half years. Many died of malnutrition and disease as they were beaten, tortured, and starved. The bond between the British women and Australian nurses was amazing and the things they did for each other were responsible for about 1/3coming home. They all went above and beyond their call of duty. The strength and resilience of these women are celebrated. The Japanese responsible for the reprehensible behavior were later punished as war criminals. The book is based on true people.
The first part of the book was a little slow and repetitive; however the last part of the book redeemed the author.

I have read many stories about the struggle, strengths, resiliencey of men and women during WWII with the nazi's but never anything about the role the Japanese played when they got involved with the War.

Sisters Under the Rising Sun, by Heather Morris, is the story of shipwrecked nurses who become POW's in a Japanese camp. I lived with these women as they go through deplorable conditions, starvation, and the atrocities the endured.

The story based on true events is engrossing and an eye opener. I love Heather Morris's books and l loved this one. Its a definite recommend

Thank you St. Martin's Press and Netgalley. All thoughts are my own in my review
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The truly amazing story of a band of women who became sisters of the heart in the Pacific as prisoners of the Japanese. Of all the stories recently published about women prisoners during WWII, this is one of the best, and most memorable.

A fantastic book, from start to finish! I appreciate Morris bringing this history to life. What strong women these nurses, nuns, and Dutch women were!!!