Beyond the Shadow of Night

Two childhood friends’ lives are torn in separate directions by events of the Second World War only to be reunited years later. The years of suffering and shame haunt them throughout their lives in this beautifully written novel. Alternating between present-day and flashbacks, this story and its characters will touch you and make you question guilt, forgiveness, cruelty and friendship. I received this book for free in exchange for and honest review. I was pleasantly surprised by how much I liked it. Highly recommend!!! #BeyondTheShadowOfNight #NetGalley

Set in the Ukraine in 1923 and leading to World War 2, this is a harrowing account of a period in time which so many people try to forget. The book is well written and describes in detail the horrors of POW camps. A bit drawn out in places and difficult to read due to the content. My thanks to Net Galley for my ARC.

Beyond the Shadow of Night tells the story of two Ukrainian friends and their different experiences during the Second World War. It switches from the early 2000's to the war years and the point of view of Mikhail and Asher. I'm very torn about this book, I really enjoyed the story during the war years, I found them riveting and I was dying to find out what would happen next. However, the chapters set during the present, I found them a struggle to read and not very enjoyable. The ending was also a let down and didn't really make sense. I feel that this book had a lot of wasted potential.

I love these kind of stories, so thought provoking and powerful. It was missing the huge punch but I did enjoy.

I enjoyed reading this book, it was historical and I learned a lot. It was emotional linking the past with the present. At times it was harrowing but the writer wrote about the concentration camps truthfully. It was sad at times but I still enjoyed reading it. I hope to read more books by this author.

A very moving story where you feel you are apart of it. The past meets modern world. The details of the POW camps are really awful and the gassing of the jews in detail.

The story of consequences for the choices we make in order to survive. This story changes between the “now” and the “then” beginning in the 1920s but primarily during WWII. I loved this book.

Thanks to netgalley for an early copy in return for an honest review
Emotional love and loss of a book great characters a very interesting story highly enjoyable.

Set during the Second World War in Europe this is about two boys, Asher and Mykhail, born days apart on a Ukrainian farm. They are born in 1923 and are teenagers when the war starts. Asher’s family is Jewish and end up in Warsaw and finally in Treblinka concentration camp where all except Asher dies. Mykhail get drafted into the Red Army and when the army surrenders to the Germans he is put in a concentration camp but ends up working for the Germans and later moved to Treblinka where his job is running the machines that exterminate the Jews and other undesirable.
Both survive and eventually meet up in the US where they end up sharing their stories but with different degrees of truth.
The book is very well written and keeps you totally captivated from beginning to end.
I received this book from NetGalley in exchange for my unbiased review. I will definitely recommend this book and happily award it 5 stars. If you are interested in the Second World War this is a must read book!

A difficult book to get into, although I stuck with it to the end. I am not sure if the characters are meant to be likable, but if not, then the author achieved this. Born in WWII Ukraine, Mykhail and Asher are friends on the family farm. But the war takes them in different directions...from the Warsaw Ghetto to the Russian Front...changing both of them irreparably.

Ray Kingfisher beautifully delivers a story that spans the lifetime of two friends, born brothers but soon to be torn apart, as they are pulled through eight decades and several countries along seemingly divergent paths. It contemplates the multifaceted nature of man, the true meaning of free will and of friendship, and the eventual triumph - or defeat- of man by circumstances.

Two friends lives are torn apart by war. They are torn in separate directions. This is the story of what happened to each of them and how they found eachother years later.

I would like to thank netgalley and the publisher for providing me with a copy free of charge. This is my honest and unbiased opinion of it.

This was a very intense and enjoyable read. It blended historical fiction with literary fiction perfectly. Will recommend for purchase for libraries and classrooms.

One of my new favorite books! This author has such a way with words the pages flew by in no time! I can’t wait to see the next work by this author! This was such a joy to read!

In 2014 Boston, 92-year-old Henry Budge, a retired, widowed history professor and WWII veteran, wants to attend the 70th D-Day ceremonies in France. But when he gets shot in the street doing a good Samaritan deed, and ends up in hospital and in rehab, his family vehemently opposes his travel plans.

In 1944 Henry is parachuted behind enemy lines and, after being injured, is cared for by a young Frenchwoman, Élodie, a resistance fighter. Henry falls in love with Élodie and not only assists her in resistance operations but also, evading German troops and taking great risks, they escort groups of young Jewish children across the Pyrenees to safety in Spain. Henry also gambles on being charged with desertion. Hence, Henry is so adamant about going to France that even though the doctors forbid him to fly, he decides to cross the Atlantic by ship. Booking sea and train passages and hotels secretly from his laptop, he steals away from his hospital’s convalescence room.

In the reader’s guide, Norman Gautreau indicates that he conceived the idea for this novel from several sources, particularly the true story of Bernard Jordan, an 89-year-old British veteran who escaped from a nursing home to attend the 70th commemoration of the D-Day landings, in which he’d taken part. The novel is superbly written, and although there are frequent time shifts between the present day and the war years, and even flashbacks within them, the interesting plot keeps the story moving forward. Some real-life people appear in the story, such as the Catalan cellist Pablo Casals and former President Obama, making his speech at Omaha Beach during the 2014 D-Day ceremonies. Moonlight plays a significant role in the narrative. Gautreau’s haunting images of the simultaneous shining of moonlight on the different theaters of the war and the “reflection from the dark side” are awe-inspiring.

This review appeared in the HNR Issue 88 (May 2019)

Harrowing story, heartfelt and powerful. I enjoyed this story and everything that came with it. I'd definitely read something by Ray Kingfisher again.

Thanks to Ray Kingfisher and NetGalley for giving me the opportunity to read his book Beyond The Shadow Of Night, I was looking forward to reading his new book as I really enjoyed his two previous books Rosa's Gold and The Sugar Men.

The story starts in the Ukraine in 1923, when two baby boys are born called Mykhail and Asher.
They live on a farm, they grew up together with their families and became best friends.
The story is about what happens to them during WW II, it describes the horror of the war, how they both had to make difficult choices to survive, and how what they did during the war effected both of them as older adults.

One fought in the Russian Army and one being Jewish had his home taken away from him and they both ended up being sent to the horrible concentration camp called Treblinka.

The story alternates between 1939 and the early 2000's in the United States.
Years after the war had ended, the men are reunited in the USA due to a article in a newspaper and become friends again. One has changed his name to cover up what he did to survive the war, he's a harsh man who decided to never see his parents again, he wasn't a great husband and he was a controlling father.
The other lives alone, he never married, he can't get over losing his first love and turns to alcohol to cope with his horrible experiences that still haunt him from WW II and his loneliness as an adult.

I really enjoyed The Shadow Of Night, it's about how hard life was during WW II, choices people had to make to survive and how decisions they made at the time still effected them years later, secrets they kept, how they started over in a new country and how one man tried to hide the story of his past. I gave the book four stars and look forward to reading more books by Ray Kingfisher.