There's not many novels set during the cold even less set in East Germany. But the Berlin Apartment captures that period after the war beautiful. As well as show casing the hardships in Berlin on both sides of the wall after the wall went up.

The Berlin Apartment begins in 1961 in Berlin. Although the city was divided, citizens traveled freely between East and West Berlin. Lise Bauer lives in East Berlin, but when she decides she wants to be a doctor, has to travel to West Berlin to go to University to pursue her dream. There, she meets Uli Neumann another student and they fall in love. He proposes to her and their plan is to get married and for her to apply to become a West Berlin citizen. They consummate their relationship and unbeknownst to either of them, she becomes pregnant. Before the week is out, East Berlin closes the border and Lise is stuck. Assuming that this is just temporary, they wait until she is able to leave. That doesn't happen. When she realizes she is pregnant, they become desperate for her to get to West Berlin to marry Uli. Uli and his friends put together an elaborate plan to get her out as well as other friends and relatives, but before it happens, she has the baby. Lise's brother is a member of the Stasi and although he keeps her and her child safe, he is a true believer and wants her to marry a friend of the family and settle into life in East Berlin. As time marches on, they must also move on with their lives.

Wow, this was an emotional story. The building of the Berlin Wall destroyed families as they tore them apart, unable to see each other for decades. It was 27 years between the building and the tearing down of the Berlin Wall. Even then, the city didn't reunite for another year. Many families were separated just taking a trip to visit someone or go to the store. When the original barbed wire wall was erected, people were jumping out of windows trying to get to freedom. Lise was distraught, but eventually accepted that she was trapped and tried to make the best of it. Uli, had to do the same. Although many people identified this as a romance, but it is not. It is a story of enduring love, sacrifice and moving on. It really brought the plight of the people to light and I was heartbroken for them. I recommend this book to those who enjoy historical fiction, but need something besides war stories.

Oh man, where do I even start.
This follows a fictional story of a couple who is torn apart during the very real historical event, of the Berlin Wall.
My heart was broken in so many moments listening to the heartache as they tried to get back together.
I cried many times, and this story was incredibly well written and beautiful.
There were parts that I didn’t like, and some tropes that I absolutely hate in a story, it almost made me lower my rating. However the overall story was just so beautiful I had to give it 4 stars.
My first historical fiction on the Berlin Wall, and definately won’t be my last!



Thank you NetGalley for allowing me to read this ARC in exchange for my honest review.

There’s is always something about WWII set books that will always intrigued me. The author does a strong job of creating a tense atmosphere, weaving historical detail with suspenseful plot twists. The characters are well-developed, especially in the context of their moral and emotional dilemmas during the war. Overall, an engaging read for fans of historical fiction with a blend of mystery and emotional depth.

The Berlin Apartment immerses readers into mid-century Berlin, where families face new challenges as they struggle to rebuild after WW2. The novel excavates history little known in the USA: the rise and fall of the Berlin Wall. An ensemble of remarkable characters (Lise, Paul, Uli, Jurgen, and Inge) are driven by friendship, love, duty, dreams and tough choices. Each is trying to figure out how to forge a life of freedom rather than blind obedience to an authoritarian government. Does love conquer all? This is a wonderful love story with well-researched historical details. Highly recommended!

I have read many books about World War II, but very little about 1960s in Germany. The Berlin Apartment by Bryn Turnbull is a sad and frightening introduction to the history of how the Berlin Wall divided a city and its people. Through the eyes of the main and the secondary characters, the challenges of the time and place come to life. It is this picture of the Cold War Berlin that will stay with me.

Read my complete review at http://www.memoriesfrombooks.com/2024/11/the-berlin-apartment.html

Reviewed from NetGalley and a publisher’s blog tour.

I love Bryn Turnbull's writing, normally, but I can't for the life of me get into this book. I think this is a product of having read too many similar books set during WWII. I love the cover of this book and look forward to reading more from Turbull, but I just can't finish this one.

Bryn Turnbull is a local author to me, so I was so thrilled when I received an ARC of her newest release, The Berlin Apartment!

This book had me hooked right from the beginning. I haven’t felt so fully immersed in a book in a long time! It was so well researched, and I am so grateful to be setting this book down after finishing and feeling like I genuinely learned more than I knew previously about the Berlin Wall. I feel like I never truly thought about the impact the wall had on families and their day to day lives. I left having a whole new perspective - thank you Bryn!

A young couple, Lise and Uli,

“ Berlin 1961: When Uli Neumann proposes to Lise Bauer, she has every reason to accept. He offers her love, respect, and a life beyond the strict bounds of the East German society in which she was raised — which she longs to leave more than anything. But only two short days after their engagement, Lise and Uli are torn violently apart when barbed wire is rolled across Berlin, splitting the city into two hostile halves: capitalist West Berlin, an island of western influence isolated far beyond the iron curtain; and the socialist East, a country determined to control its citizens by any means necessary.

Soon, Uli and his friends in West Berlin hatch a plan to get Lise and her unborn child out of East Germany, but as distance and suspicion bleed into their lives and as weeks turn to months, how long can true love survive in the divided city?”

Wow! I laughed, I cried, I loved this story. So much truth and so much we need to remember in well written novels like this.

I was delighted to receive an ARC of the Berlin Apartment because I found the premise so interesting. I learned about the Berlin Wall in school, and, despite reading a ton of historical fiction set during WWII, I have never read anything like this. Reading about life on both sides of the wall was fascinating. A really solid read with a unique premise. I highly recommend.

This book had me hooked from the first chapter. I knew very little about the Berlin Wall when I started reading this, and did some basic Google searches to get an idea of the history before I fully delved into the story.

BT captures the heartache and loss that the Berlin Wall caused in a way that has you grieving for the characters on all sides. It really put into perspective how complicated and strained people's relationships had become, and having no choice but to just... Move on with life in the best way you can. It's devastating to see how the characters' lives unfolded over the years, suffering from the repercussions in various degrees due to an event out of their control.

While this is a love story, I want to point out that this was more than just a romance. This book covered love and loss from all aspects- friendship, family, and new bonds created simply by having one goal in common- to bring loved ones home.

This book also demonstrates the true power of forgiveness, and how forgiving someone, above all, is healing for you personally, and how it grants yourself peace to move on with your life, in whatever that may entail. I think each of the characters had to find forgiveness for one reason or another, and watching that growth through the years, within due time, proved that love will find its way again.

Thank you, Netgalley and HQ Fiction, the the arc! I thoroughly enjoyed this book and look forward to future publications from both HQ Fiction and Bryn Turnbull.

Two lovers torn apart by the construction of the Berlin wall in 1961 fight for years to finally get reunited. This was great on audio and perfect for fans of Mandy Robotham's The Berlin girl. I love learning more about how the lives of citizens in East and West Berlin were so vastly different during this time period and Canadian historical fiction writer, Bryn Turnbull does a great job with this. Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an early digital copy in exchange for my honest review!

East and West Germany citizens being free to move back in forth between countries until one day you cannot. Part historical fiction and part love story. From the beginning of being able to cross the border, to the building of the wall, what people will do for the people they love and finally the wall coming down. I enjoyed this book.

Thank you #NetGalley, #Harlequin Trade Publishing, #BrynTurnbull, and #TheBerlinApartment for the advance copy for my honest review.

This was one of my favorite historical fiction novels from this year! A unique time period, including romance, loss, and historical context, I just couldn’t put it down. From the beginning to end I was hooked, heartbroken, and anxious to see what happened. An absolutely fantastic novel. Even weeks later I’m thinking back to it.

I voluntarily reviewed a complimentary copy of this book, received from the publisher and author through NetGalley. However, all thoughts and views reflected are strictly my own opinions.

As much as I love to read historical fiction that takes place during the World Wars, I’ve found myself seeking out more stories that are set outside of those years. That’s part of what drew me to Bryn Turnbull’s latest novel, The Berlin Apartment. I really appreciated getting a fictional viewpoint of what life would have been like in Berlin as the Berlin Wall was being constructed.

Here’s the book’s description:

Berlin 1961: When Uli Neumann proposes to Lise Bauer, she has every reason to accept. He offers her love, respect, and a life beyond the strict bounds of the East German society in which she was raised — which she longs to leave more than anything. But only two short days after their engagement, Lise and Uli are torn violently apart when barbed wire is rolled across Berlin, splitting the city into two hostile halves: capitalist West Berlin, an island of western influence isolated far beyond the iron curtain; and the socialist East, a country determined to control its citizens by any means necessary.

Soon, Uli and his friends in West Berlin hatch a plan to get Lise and her unborn child out of East Germany, but as distance and suspicion bleed into their lives and as weeks turn to months, how long can true love survive in the divided city?

I really didn’t know a ton about East and West Berlin and why the city was separated. I’ve seen pieces of the Wall at various museums and knew it came down in 1989 - in my lifetime though, as a two year old, I had other things on my mind. Snacks, probably. I always love approaching a time in history via fiction first, especially these days when authors do so much research to get the facts and the feel of the story as accurate as possible.

Turnbull did such a good job of getting the feeling right that I actually had to set the book aside for a few days. I just couldn’t handle reading as a couple was separated by a wall and for what? A city that couldn’t figure out how to come together after the war? It was incredibly devastating and I was not in an emotional headspace to feel all I was supposed to for Lise and Uli. I eventually came back to it - on audiobook once the book was released - and felt mentally prepared to find out if the pair would ever be reunited.

The book spans from the weekend before the city was divided in 1961 to an epilogue that took place on November 9, 1989, the night the wall came down. On the one hand, I appreciated seeing how times changed during that span and the time it took for the border to be removed. On the other hand, that’s a long time for a novel. I just couldn’t help but feel the pace was a little off and it meant the last portion of the novel felt quicker than the first portion and I don’t think that made for a good flow.

Even with that pacing issue, the end of the novel was immensely satisfying. I think part of that was due to the characters Turnbull created and how much I cared for them. The situation Lise and Uli found themselves in was so heartbreaking and was made even more so by thinking about how many real people had their lives completely ripped apart when the border was erected.

While The Berlin Apartment didn’t blow me away, I remain a fan of Bryn Turnbull and the way she can tell compelling historical stories. I look forward to her next novel - and meeting her in the fall when she comes to a library near me!

*An egalley of this novel was provided by the publisher, HTP Books, via NetGalley in exchange for review consideration. All opinions are honest and my own.*

I am left absolutely heartbroken! 😭 I had to DNF at 72% because I just could not handle anymore. I can guess that Lise and Uli probably get their HEA at the end of this but sadly it’s not enough for me to keep reading. I understand that it’s naive of me to want this story to be all romance and fairytales when it’s a historical fiction and will stick to reality. I just felt to emotional and furious about Uli starting a relationship with Ignes and Lise having to be controlled by her brother. This book had me in a chokehold up until those parts and I haven’t stopped crying. I don’t know how I will ever recover from the injustice.

I do recommend this story to others but I hope they are aware that it CAN/WILL leave you heartbroken.

Thank you to the author, the publisher, and NetGalley for this e-ARC.

I want to like this one but I struggle getting into it. It was a bit too slow. It might be a case of just not the book for me and my mood.

The Berlin Apartment is a well written romantic historical fiction about the Berlin Wall. I love historical fiction and this one didn’t disappoint. The story is about how the Berlin Wall divided a nation, divided families and a young newly engaged couple.

Lise and Uli are engaged and get separated overnight by the wall. Uli and his friends devise a plan to get Lise and other people out of East Berlin. Will they be successful? How long can true love survive as weeks turn into months? There is a bit of romance in the story but the book is more about the hardships people endured because of the wall being put up. It also shows how trusts were broken even amongst family members.

I really enjoyed this story and would recommend it especially to lovers of historical fiction. Thanks to NetGalley and Harlequin Trade Publishing for an advance copy of this book.

In 1961 Berlin, Uli proposes to his girlfriend Lise. She accepts, but doesn’t take the ring, as she wants to tell her father and brother later, together. Lise lives in East Germany, but studies in West Berlin, where Uli lives. Before she can tell her father she’s engaged, the country begins putting up barbed wire, then eventually, a heavily guarded, concrete barrier, separating Uli and Lise. At first, I was really drawn to this story. I have not read any fiction set during this time period in Germany so I was really intrigued, and I do love a historical fiction/romance. But ultimately I didn’t care for the latter part of the book. I also felt some of the dialogue between the characters didn’t feel right for this time period.

The Berlin Apartment
By: Bryn Turnbull
Review Score: 4 Stars

Boogie’s Bulletpoints
•Historical Fiction
•Berlin
•Cold War

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The Berlin Apartment was kindly provided as an ARC by NetGalley and Harlequin Trade Publishing. Thank you for allowing me to enjoy this wonderful book!

I was so excited to read this book! I love books about Berlin during the Cold War, and this one was no exception. Turnbull does such an amazing job of making you feel what these people went through, and how hard it was to live in a divided city.

It was a bit of a slow start for me, but once I became more immersed in the story, it flew by! I really could feel every conflicting emotion these characters felt.

I really enjoyed this book, and I think any historical fiction lover would enjoy it too!