This is a WOW book, a book that really grabbed my attention from the start. Yes it is another war story but it is a war story done well. It is a story of survival and the affects of war, of starting again, hope and so much more. This is an emotional, powerful and heart-breaking story with characters that will remain in your mind long after the story finishes.

I just couldn't put this book down once I started reading it. And although it is part of a series it is well and truly a standalone as well. It is a book I would highly recommend and think everyone should read it.

Thank you NetGalley and Bookouture for giving me the opportunity to read and review this book.

I love the way this story came together - and how the author has used facts to hang this story together. It was well written and the story of two girls told through all the horrors of the war. It was at times hard reading so don’t be surprised if it brings tears to your eyes.

I’m very happy to recommend it. Thank you NetGalley and bookouture and of course Anna Stuart for this advance copy and I voluntarily review it.

The War Orphan is another powerful and heart-wrenching Second World War novel from historical fiction author Anna Stuart and the third instalment of her ‘Women of War’ series. This is a really powerful story of survival, found family and hope, based on the true stories of the Windermere children.

The story is told through a third-person dual-POV narrative, sharing the stories of both Tasha and Alice, one of the adults running the programme in Windermere. The exploration of the trauma and grief experienced by Holocaust survivors is really hard hitting but incredibly powerful. It was also really interesting, yet completely heartbreaking, from a children’s psychology perspective to see the portrayal of the impact it had on the children who were too young remember life outside of the concentration camps. It was a difficult read to see the lasting impact it had on the children, with them suffering from traumatic flashbacks and even imitating the horrific behaviours they’d seen through their imaginative play and art because they don’t know anything else anymore.

As we’ve come to expect from Anna Stuart, the history was clearly meticulously researched. I found the historical notes section at the end of the book to be really fascinating as it went through the history behind the book, including the stories of all of the real individuals the characters had been based on.

Alice was a fantastic strong female protagonist who was compassionate, completely selfless and based on an incredible real woman. I loved the relationship she built with Tasha throughout the course of the story. Tasha was a feisty, strong-willed and stubborn character whose blossoming relationship with Georg was a beautiful read. We also get to meet a fantastic ensemble of children who come to Windermere with Tasha and Georg, all with their own stories.

This is part of the Women of War series but it works brilliantly as a standalone story too (although the entire series is a must-read for fans of the genre). I am highly anticipating the release of the fourth book ‘The Resistance Sisters’ which is due to be released on 19th August 2024.

Overall, The War Orphan is a really powerful and compelling story which is as equally heartwarming as it is heartbreaking at times. It is a must-read for historical fiction readers or anyone who wants to know more about the Windermere programme.

Rating:⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/5

I have posted an extended review on my blog www.yourschloe.co.uk

*Thank you to NetGalley, Anna Stuart and Bookouture.

While this was a "good" book, it felt like I'd read it before. There are so many similar holocaust themed books that are much better. That being said, try it for yourself and see what you think! It's definitely not bad.

Title: The War Orphan
Author: Anna Stuart @annastuartauthor
Summary: 1945, Auschwitz: I stumble out of the gates, tightly grasping the hands of two smaller children. Hunger swirls in my stomach and the barren landscape swims before my eyes. I can barely believe it. We’re free. We survived. But what happens now…
Sixteen-year-old Tasha Ancel turns to take one last look at the imposing place that stole her freedom and her childhood. She has no idea how she continued to live when so many others did not. For the first time in months, her heart beats with hope for her future and that of the smaller children who cling to her now. Tasha was torn from her mother’s arms by an SS guard days before the gates of Auschwitz opened. Now she only has a lock of her mother’s fiery hair. Desperate to be reunited, Tasha asks everyone she meets if they’ve seen a woman with flame-red hair. But with so many people trying to locate their loved ones in the chaotic aftermath of war finding her feels like an impossible task. Officially an orphan, Tasha is given the chance to start a new life in the Lake District in England. She knows her mother would want her to take the opportunity but she can’t bear the thought of leaving Poland without her. Tasha must make a heartbreaking decision: will she stay in war-ravaged Europe and cling on to the hope that the person she loves most in the world is alive, or take a long journey across the sea towards an uncertain future?
Review: The War Orphan tugs at the heartstrings from start to finish. The story is not only beautifully written but also deeply moving, capturing the resilience and courage of its characters amidst the backdrop of war. Stuart's vivid descriptions transport readers to another time and place, immersing them in the emotional journey of the protagonist.
While part of a series (Women of War), 'The War Orphan' stands tall as a standalone read, offering a complete and fulfilling narrative experience. Stuart skillfully weaves together themes of love, loss, and hope, leaving a lasting impact on readers long after the final page. @bookouture Copy provided by @netgalley in exchange for an honest review. #TheWarOrphan #NetGalley #historicalfiction #WWII

Well written and interesting read, focussing on the aftermath of WWII and the plight of the survivors looking for their families. Would highly recommend

Another great story based on WWII. I'm addicted to these stories of survival , resilience , hope and survivor guilt. It changes the way I look at my own life and the life of my descendants. We don't know how good we have it. Any book that makes me think this hard, makes me cry, is definitely a 5 star to me.
Thank you to Netgalley for allowing me this ARC in exchange for an honest opinion.

I was lucky enough to participate in a book tour for this book. I really enjoyed this one. I haven’t read many books that take place right after WWII. I feel a little clueless never thinking about what happened to all the children that survived the camps. This book truly opened my eyes to what the children went through, how they didn’t know anything different beyond what they experienced in the camps. The women who ran those orphanages during and after the war were truly special people.

I’ve liked all of Anna’s books that I’ve read, and I look forward to reading more. Thank you NetGalley and Bookouture for my ARC of this book.

This pulled at my heartstrings just as much as Midwife of Berlin :( It took me a while to get the three POV straight but I loved their separate personalities and getting to know them. While I didn't appreciate Tasha's downright mean comments, I did appreciate her development, the work that she did with Georg and how she stuck to her guns when it came to the relationship. I really liked learning about Alice's backstory too, and more about the efforts that went on after the end of WW2.
Anna Stuart really opens my eyes to the effects of the war on people especially after the fact. Midwife of Berlin showed the rise of communism, while this one showed another side of things. I need to go back and read Midwife of Auschwitz, see where this series all started. Stuart's backlist is definitely on my tbr
Link to review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/6370559024

This wasn't my favorite of the three books but I would encourage you to read it. Most WWII books end at the end of the war or shortly after. That is where this book begins and tells the story of Jewish children orphaned by the war. I find the post-war cleanup to be fascinating. The logistics/coordination/organization of it all is mind boggling. It was interesting to read about how some people stepped up to help with one piece of a very large puzzle.

It was heart wrenching reading this book. I read the two midwife books prior to this one and this book is an interesting additonal read. It's a harrowing story that will stay with me for a very long time. This is a beautifully written, heartbreaking and an interesting book, I learnt quite a bit about ww2 I did not know before. Highly recommend.

I should first thank the publisher for giving me a copy of the book through NetGalley.
I loved this story! I have read many books about people living through the Holocaust and how it affected their lives. But this is the first historical fiction book I have read that deals with life for the survivors after WWII. Using real and fictional characters, Sarah weaved a beautiful story of how hard it was for the survivors of the Holocaust who came out most often with no family, no home and no idea of where to turn. Of the heartache of wanting to find lost family members and hoping beyond hope they are found. It also tells of those who did everything they could to help the children to heal and have a normal happy life. The joy and sadness when two children were united with their parents, while the others were not. It is a story of sadness, hope, and the fact that despite the Nazi's desire to kill all the Jews, that the survivors went on to live and rebuild their lives, have their own families, and didn't give up. I would highly recommend this book.

The war orphan was a quick read it got my attention from the beginning and I could not put it down. I like that this book takes place after the war.

There wasn’t a huge connection with the other 2 books in this series as I had hoped. I like the author’s writing even though I didn’t find the main character as like-able as the previous books.

Once again, Anna Stuart has written a beautiful and heartbreaking book that honours the survivors of the Holocaust with such respect and sensitivity. She showed her extensive research of the people, places, and events with great respect. 
 
I haven't yet read a book by Anna Stuart that I haven't loved or that hasn't made me cry at least once, and this book is no exception. The stories of these young children, whose childhoods were disrupted by war and concentration camps, are truly heartbreaking. 
 
Based on true events, this book follows the story of two women: Alice, a Jewish child caregiver who escapes Germany to England and starts working for a war orphanage, and Tasha, a Jewish teen who survives months at Auschwitz, losing her sister and father and being separated from her mother. Their stories come together, and Alice starts to care for Jewish orphans that are brought to England, and Tasha is one of them. Alice is hoping to bring reunification to as many children as she can while providing a safe and loving place to recover from the war. Tasha, reluctant to start a new life in England, is holding on to the hope she will be reunited with her mother. 
 
These characters, and all of the others throughout the book, were written with such care and thoughtfulness. Tasha and Alice both endured so much and showed great development throughout the book. 
 
This story shows the heartbreak, trauma, and strength of the Holocaust survivors and reminds us that their nightmare didn't end when the war did. Years of displacement, looking for information about their loved ones, and the never-ending mental trauma. 
 
 Thank you Bookouture and Anna Stuart for this gifted copy in exchange for my honest review.

Having survived the horrors of Auschwitz, then living in limbo at Thereseienstadt, a number of Jewish children of all ages are offered a temporary home at Windermere in the Lake District – a real, and well-documented project – while efforts continue to trace their surviving families.

This book focuses on the fictional but very real story of sixteen-year-old Tasha – having been separated from her mother Lydia who was forced to join the death march, only days before the camp was liberated and the remaining children were released, she remains convinced that they will be reunited. Encouraged and supported by friend Georg, a fellow survivor, who has less belief in the possibility that her mother will have made it through, the decision to leave for the Lakes is a difficult one – she carries a lock of her mother’s shorn red hair in a handbag she refuses to be separated from, and worries that travelling to England will make it even more difficult for them to find each other.

Windermere’s mother figure is Alice – also a Jewish refugee, having left her family behind to an uncertain fate when she fled Germany before the atrocities began. She gives an extraordinary level of love and commitment to the damaged children in her care, as well as providing them with an education to help them find their way to a more settled future, while many of them continue to relive the horrors that they have seen and experienced. And she forges a particular bond with Tasha, sometimes awkward and difficult to handle, as she slowly begins to accept that her mother might be gone and that she needs to think about a rather different future.

I won’t tell their stories in any more detail, but they are intense and heartbreaking at times – and are told, particularly compellingly, from their own perspectives, with real insight into their emotional journeys. And there were so many moments throughout the book that moved me to tears, beautifully captured – the children terrified of taking showers on arrival because of their memories of the death of their families, their stealing food from the table because of their experience of starvation, their fears that the Nazis had come to find them when they saw German POWs working in the fields.

The author (rather bravely) makes Tasha difficult to like at times, with her flashes of anger and repeated rejection of the care and love so selflessly offered – but it’s important to remember the severe trauma she’s experienced. And every individual in this book is equally complex, and perfectly drawn – with Alice gaining a particular place in my heart by doing her utmost to take on the role of creating a family for the children who were mourning their own. There’s a particular focus on home, and the feelings and attachments that make it so – and a very special moment when the children use the word to describe Weir Courtney, the stately home they move to after Windermere, a real testament to those who sought to make them feel they belonged while providing them with hope for a better future.

The storytelling is quite wonderful, but supported by the author’s meticulous research (as always) – the historical notes that end the book are a fascinating postscript about the real people who were involved in the project, including Alice herself, Anna Freud, Dorothy Burlingham and Oskar Friedmann. Once again, the author has woven fact and compelling fiction, with particular power and emotional authenticity, creating a story that was perfectly paced, ultimately so uplifting, moved me deeply, and that I’ll find impossible to forget. The resilience of the damaged children, the hope that was never extinguished, and the compassion of those who cared for them – my goodness, it was just wonderful, one of those books that you experience rather than merely read, and I couldn’t recommend it more highly.

(Review also copied to Amazon UK, but link not yet available)

The War Orphan opens with Tasha and her mom in Auschwutz in January 1945. The Nazis are on the run and they are taking people out of the camps on death marches. Lydia Ancel, Tasha's mom is taken from the barracks and Tasha is torn from her. The children are locked in and the women are taken away, that is the last time Tasha sees her mom. The children are locked in and left with no food or water, left to die. A few days later, the camp is liberated and the children are taken to a displaced persons camp. Tasha has a friend in Georg, a young man that is a young adult, but when he hears about a transport to England for orphans, he not only lies about his age, but convinces Tasha to go to England. Even though, Tasha insists she isn't an orphan, but she goes with many of the other child refugees. They live by Lake Windermere and are cared for my Alice, a German Jew who fled Germany just before the war began. Alice is a single woman who loves the children like her own. previously, due to being a German Jew, looks after them all as if they were her own. Tasha is not happy. She is angry, she wants her mom and isn't ready to accept that her mom is dead. Georg wants to marry her, but until she knows if her mom is dead or alive, she can't move on.

This story grabbed me right from the beginning. My heart broke for the children who became orphans because of the war. Seeing the chaos, the displaced persons and how they were still treated was so hard to read about. The characters were so well drawn. The orphans themselves, the carers in England and the psychoanalysts who worked with the homes and were responsible for getting the funds and the homes for the children were all drawn from real people in history. Tasha's story was hard, but eventually, she comes to terms with things. Seeing life from the POV of the orphans gave me a new perspective of life after the war and the camps. I like learning new things when I read historical fiction and this shared the story of Windemere where orphans were brought after the war. I enjoyed reading the author's notes at the end where she shared which characters were based on real people and which homes as well. I have read several other books by Anna Stuart, and recommend any of her works. She does a lot of research and writes books that are well developed, interesting with relatable characters. This is a great story and I definitely recommend it to those who enjoy historical fiction.

The War Orphan by Anna Stuart

The author once again kept me hooked right from the beginning for the book. Anna Stuart is one of my favorite authors. I am never getting tired of her books.

The story was about a 16yo Tasha, who was survived in Auschwitz. She now has to make the decision of whether to start her new life in England or leave the country without her mother.

The book was full of tear. You might see hope and dream there, probably the only motivation to survive. I love the story setting, the characters and pace. Everything are just perfect in this book.

Many thanks to NetGalley, bookouture and the author for my copy.

Pub date: March 7, 2024

Such a good book! The War Orphan by Anna Stuart is part of the author’s Women of War series but it stands alone and you do not need to read the other books to read this one. This is a historical fiction taking place during World War II. I love history and stories that take place during this period but don’t read a ton of them because they can be heavy and draining. Yes this is heartbreaking, but it’s a fantastic novel and I highly recommend it.

Synopsis:

Sixteen-year-old Tasha Ancel turns to take one last look at the imposing place that stole her freedom and her childhood. She has no idea how she continued to live when so many others did not. For the first time in months, her heart beats with hope for her future and that of the smaller children who cling to her now.

Tasha was torn from her mother’s arms by an SS guard days before the gates of Auschwitz opened. Now she only has a lock of her mother’s fiery hair. Desperate to be reunited, Tasha asks everyone she meets if they’ve seen a woman with flame-red hair. But with so many people trying to locate their loved ones in the chaotic aftermath of war finding her feels like an impossible task.

Officially an orphan, Tasha is given the chance to start a new life in the Lake District in England. She knows her mother would want her to take the opportunity but she can’t bear the thought of leaving Poland without her.

Tasha must make a heartbreaking decision: will she stay in war-ravaged Europe and cling on to the hope that the person she loves most in the world is alive, or take a long journey across the sea towards an uncertain future?

Out now

The War Orphan is the third book of the Women of War collection. I thought Anna Stuart did amazingly to capture the emotions and understanding of Jewish children post war, that had experienced and seen things children should never see. Europe was a mess, the struggle to find and reunite families after the war was a massive task. The War Orphan interwinds the story of a teenager who is searching for her mother and Alice the compassionate caregiver. An unputdownable, gripping, captivating and emotional read. A novel of heartbreak and loss but also hope, love, growth and healing. 5 stars

I would like to thank Bookouture, NetGalley and the author for the opportunity to read this complimentary copy for an honest review. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

#TheWarOrphan #NetGalley