I’m not going to beat this book up as I’m not sure if it’s the translation…..
Publishers error
Or
The authors.

Far too much detail narrative at the beginning of this book which to be honest floated right over my head.

Then when we got to any dialogue it was very confusing. First it was “first person” then changed partway, then POV were fighting each other to be heard in my menial brain!

In the end, I had to part with this book.
It was a very volatile relationship between us!

Published by Amazon Crossing 2016. My copy was provided by Net Galley in exchange for a fair review.

The synopsis of this book sounded promising. It takes place in the final years of World War II when the Soviet Union and Germany are fighting for control of Finland. This is the backdrop for a romance between a woman nicknamed “Weird-Eye” ,who works as a midwife, and a war photographer who works for the SS.

Unfortunately the author seems to think her readers are deeply interested in the details of Finnish history at this time. Her book begins with a detailed timeline of events the significance of which was lost on me. When the narrative does get underway it becomes even more confusing – the narrative is written in the first person but it switches perspectives between different characters whose identity is not immediately obvious. Too confusing to be a pleasurable experience. Abandoned after 10%.

This was a very difficult book to read. The main characters are easy enough to know but the story is at times hard to follow. I had to keep going back and re-reading portions to keep myself current with the flow of the story. It doesn't flow as easily as I would have preferred. I appreciated the overall story and plot of the book but it took some effort to follow it all the way through.

I have been trying to read this book all year (literally) and have finally given up.
I thought I would be a good match for the book for various reasons:
1. I'm a doctor, and I've delivered many babies in rural and under-resourced places. I was taught obstetrics by midwives. I have a great respect for midwifery. I enjoy reading books about healthcare workers (not necessarily doctors).
2. I also am very fond of history, and although I try to read a wide variety of history topics, I come back to WW2 again and again.
3. I love reading books set in countries other than Britain and the USA - this book is set in Finland.

Ultimately, I think the book's biggest problem for me was not subject matter, but readability.
The story is told from the POV of "Weird Eye" (the midwife) and Johannes (the love interest; also a German soldier). Sometimes it is a third person narrative; others it is in the form of letters.
This was not the problem. The problem was that while Weird-Eye's bits were usually fairly interesting and sometimes readable, Johannes's chapters were... strange. I struggled to follow his train of thought, and I definitely did not feel the romance.

A lot of the plot felt haphazard. I struggled to keep up with the chronicity of events, which was unfortunate.

I don't know much about translation of literary works, but I can't help thinking that this problem lies with the translation, rather than the writing itself. Perhaps, if I could speak Finnish, I might have enjoyed it a lot more (which I suspect is the case, because with Flemish audiences the book has faired exceptionally well).

My native Afrikaans historically drew on Finnish; and it too can translate with difficulty. When I read this book, I could sense similarities between this and Afrikaans books that had difficult translations. It's not about the words of course. It's about the atmosphere they create.

One good thing about The Midwife is that it taught me a bit about Finland's history in WW2. I intend to read up more about that, and about Finland itself. Who knows, maybe I'll try this book again afterwards, and maybe it will help me to understand it better.

Thank you for the opportunity to read this book. Unfortunately, it was not for me and I was unable to finish it.

This was hard to get into and I couldn't get past the first few chapters.

I didn't connect with this book and didn't finish it. I won't leave a review anywhere. Thank you for the chance to read it though

Here's an article I wrote on this book, an interview with the author and editor at AmazonCrossing.
Porter Anderson
Editor-in-Chief
Publishing Perspectives

I certainly didn’t find this an easy read. The time scale is sometimes confusing, and its setting in an unfamiliar WWII theatre means having to follow events very closely, but overall it was worth the effort. At its heart is a love story between a disadvantaged Finnish woman and a German SS Officer. In no way a conventional romance, the feelings between them, although raw and often inarticulate, are very powerful and have a visceral and immediate effect on the reader. It’s a brutal and violent time and this is reflected in their relationship. I did find the book quite alien at times, (there’s an amazing amount of armpit sniffing that goes on – a Finnish habit?) and I didn’t always find it easy to relate to some of the characters, who seemed quite strange in their attitudes and behaviours, but the central narrative I did find compelling and I enjoyed the challenge of reading a work of foreign literature (the book was much praised in the author's native Finland) and having a glimpse into another culture.

This is a rough read. It is brutal given the main character Weird-eye's/Fraulein Schwester's history, her treatment by others, and what she is called upon to do to survive the war. There is a love story in that propels some of her choices, but it doesn't seem to overwhelm or provide shelter from the brutality of the story.

I struggled with this book but it’s not the fault of the author. Lapland, its language, people and history is unknown to me. The story dwells on a timeframe of WW II, so the customs are even more exaggerated and foreign to an outsider. About halfway thru I started shaping an image of the people, the fjords, the cold weather and the methods of midwifery that were detailed with clarity.
The story is presented from the viewpoint of a family member who has researched the history of her grandmother and grandfather’s involvement and death during the war.
Weird-Eye is a hard and determined single woman who has assumed the role of midwife “by the grace of God”. As the varying forces of war shift back and forth in Lapland, she volunteers to work at a prison camp in order to stay close to Johannes, a war photographer she finds herself strongly drawn to. No matter what, she remains determined, at all costs, to wait for him.
This isn’t a love story by any means. It’s a story that was quite possible during 1944-45 from the angle of a country and its people who are foreign to me. The bluntness, honesty and cold emotion used to describe events will shake you. If you’re interested in historical fiction but willing to step out of the comfort zone of accepted English habits, you may struggle while reading this, but when done you’ll be able to reflect and feel compassion for the characters.
(I received an advance copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an unbiased review. Thank you to Amazon Publishing and NetGalley for making it available.)