Fabulous dual timeline read! Ms. Raey has dug deep in her research and crafted a superb authentic story. The smallest details are historically accurate. I moved to the city of Berlin quite a few years ago, and remnants of DDR times were all around me. One of my previous superiors (former Stasi) had not picked up on the fact that the Stasi ways were no longer the norm (but fortunately faded into oblivion after his Stasi past came to light.) Fascinated by this new city I lived in, I read a lot of historical fiction about this era. This book provides information that is new to me, which makes it interesting and worth reading. Initially, it has the depressing mood that seems pervasive in books dealing with DDR times and the incredible injustices done, but that dissipates as the story picks up speed and before long you find yourself wanting to read non-stop. I very much enjoy the cryptographer angle, the switch between the two settings, and the in-depth characters with real life emotions. The story and relationships are complex and clearly show the effects of war on the lives of subsequent generations. Wonderful life lesson at the end, “If I’ve learned anything this week…..it’s to let the past go. It may feel uncomfortable, perhaps unnecessary, or….be the most vital aspect of healing: forgive and move forward. The Berlin Letters is a historical fiction lover’s dream and leaves you wanting more. Fortunately, the author has several suggestions for more research at the end. I will definitely check out more of Katherine Raey’s books.


I received a complimentary copy of this book from Harper Muse through NetGalley. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

The Berlin Letters
by Katherine Reay
Pub Date: 05 Mar 2024

From the time she was a young girl, Luisa Voekler has loved solving puzzles and cracking codes. Brilliant and logical, she’s a natural to quickly climb the career ladder at the CIA. But while her coworkers have moved on to thrilling Cold War assignments—especially in the exhilarating era of the late 1980s—Luisa’s work remains stuck in the past decoding messages from World War II.

Journalist Haris Voekler grew up a proud East Berliner. But as his eyes open to the realities of postwar East Germany, he realizes that the Soviet promises of a better future are not coming to fruition. After the Berlin Wall goes up, Haris finds himself separated from his young daughter and all alone after his wife dies. There’s only one way to reach his family—by sending coded letters to his father-in-law who lives on the other side of the Iron Curtain.

When Luisa Voekler discovers a secret cache of letters written by the father she has long presumed dead, she learns the truth about her grandfather’s work, her father’s identity, and why she has never progressed in her career. With little more than a rudimentary plan and hope, she journeys to Berlin and risks everything to free her father and get him out of East Berlin alive.

As Luisa and Haris take turns telling their stories, events speed toward one of the twentieth century’s most dramatic moments—the fall of the Berlin Wall and that night’s promise of freedom, truth, and reconciliation for those who have lived, for twenty-eight years, behind the bleak shadow of the Iron Curtain’s most iconic symbol.

This was an absolute masterpiece of a novel!!! So we'll written and researched. I loved the split perspective of Luisa and Harris through every chapter. The story of love and forgiveness was powerful in this novel told in the years leading up to the fall of the Berlin wall. An excellent historical fiction novel that I would highly recommend!!!!

Although Katherine Reay’s “The Berlin Letters” shares many plot features of her book “A Shadow in Moscow:” the death of the protagonist’s mother, the wish to bring her father to America, life under a totalitarian regime, this book, which takes place in both Arlington, Virginia and East Berlin, Germany during the 1980s, is about a young woman’s quest to clear her father’s name and by doing so, clear her own.

Luisa Voekler’s father, Haris, lives behind the Iron Curtain. Luisa was taken to America as a three-year old by her maternal grandparents, Walther and Gertrude. The backstory of Haris’s family is not revealed until the second half of the book. This information is essential to understand both his character and motivations.

Reay explains how people can react to situations until they’re forced to stop: a bone is broken, a major illness is contracted, or like Haris, a person is jailed.

“I’ve rested in this cell for the past four months berating and consoling myself. The berating is justified – I was an idiot.”

As Luisa steps behind the Iron Curtain to rescue her father from a Stasi prison, she realizes she must “forgive and move forward.”

The nightmare quality of Luisa’s ordeal as she searches for her father against the eventful tearing down of the Berlin Wall is as chilling as a Hitchcock thriller and as engrossing as an Anais Nin tale.

Thank you to NetGalley and Harper Muse for this ARC.

Katherine Reay is quickly becoming one of my top favorite historical fiction writers. Her stories are original and compelling and descriptive, I can easily imagine myself right next to the main characters as they engage in espionage and intrigue. The relationships between the characters are deep and meaningful, as is this fascinating story of a talented woman who finds a cache of letters that appear to be from her father years ago when the Berlin Wall was built. This was one of the most thrilling, deeply affecting stories I have read in a long time, and I will not soon forget it. I will be recommending this book to everyone I meet - especially those who love a good historical fiction novel. They won't be able to put it down! Ten stars!!!

Great Author, Great Story, Loved it more than her others. A great book for a lazy weekend afternoon for an escape. Thanks

Meticulously researched, fascinating and absolutely unputdownable. I loved everything about this book!

Luisa grew up thinking that both her parents had died in a car accident when she was three. Until one day she comes across a piece of information that makes her question everything she knows about her family. Did her beloved Opa keep secrets from her? Is her father alive?

This book will keep you on your toes from the beginning until the very last page. Told in dual timeline from the perspective of Luisa and her father Haris, it’s a gripping Cold War adventure novel but also a poignant story of a family divided by the Berlin Wall. It’s about solving riddles and defying the system but also about understanding, acceptance and perseverance.

Luisa and Haris were both wonderful characters and a delight to read. The way the family history was interwoven in the history of Berlin and Cold War in general was exquisite. There were plenty of historical references and details, all relevant to the story and enriching it in the best way possible. The little romance subplot was just a cherry on top.

I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own. Thank you so much NetGalley and Harper Muse, it was a treat!