Reviewed by Emma Crowley
Germany, 1939: When Rosa Herzelfeld boards the SS St Louis, she doesn’t believe its promise of freedom. Surely there can be no escape from the Nazis, not even on the other side of the world. Besides, she knows that no matter how far she travels, there is no escaping her past…
When the ship is refused entry to Cuba, Rosa finds herself penniless and alone in England. Desperately trying to make this strange country home, the last thing she expects is to fall in love. But when she meets fellow refugee Peter, she is surprised by how quickly his gentle smile and warm brown eyes help her forget the horrors she left behind.
As their affection deepens, Rosa grows fearful. Should she tell Peter about the terrible decisions she was forced to make to survive in Germany, or simply pray he never finds out? Deep down, she begins to realise that she must tell him the truth…
But before she can, Rosa is sent to a remote internment camp on the Isle of Man. And when fate finally reunites her with Peter, her past is threatening to catch up with her. With time running out before her secret is revealed, Rosa must make an impossible choice…
Many thanks to Bookouture via NetGalley for my copy of The Girl with a Secret to review and to Sharon for having my review on the blog.
The Girl with a Secret is the second in The Emerald Sisters series by Kate Hewitt. Thankfully there were only a few brief months between publication of the first and second books as this is an interesting and captivating series where each book ends on a cliffhanger and I was quite impatient to know what was going to happen next. I am presuming there will be four books in the series given it is following four young women who meet onboard a ship travelling to Cuba but then circumstance means they are scattered to the four different countries. But now after reading this second instalment I am wondering will there be a fifth book given the way the first two have ended maybe an additional book will bring these cliffhangers together rather than rushing through things towards the end of a fourth book. This is pure surmising from me and perhaps me being a little bit greedy as I am really enjoying the series and reading about each girl’s journey and experiences.
This story can easily be read as a standalone as plenty of background information is dotted throughout where you can easily pick up on events from the previous book. I was a little apprehensive in starting this one because I really didn’t want a rehash of the first half of book one which detailed the girls journey on the SS ST.Louis as it left Germany bound for Cuba.I just didn’t want to be reading of the same details again although from a different characters perspective as I felt I knew enough about it already and I wanted the story to move forwards not backwards. So reading this section of the book, I was glad that things didn’t go overboard into needless detail but rather there was just the perfect amount to refresh readers minds if they needed it and to bring new readers up to speed with what had been going on. Anyway, book one had been still very much fresh in my mind given the brief but welcome gap between publication.
As before, the book opens with a brief prologue set in Paris in June 1946, the four young women, Sophie, Rosa, Hannah and Rachel had all agreed to meet in a café in Paris on a specific date following the conclusion of the war. The Emerald Sisters were to be reunited having not seen each other since that tumultuous voyage across the Atlantic. But circumstances have changed and all is not as it seems. All I can say regarding this meet up is that it stirs up a whole lot of questions for the reader and made me want to reach the end of the series immediately. If only that were possible.
This time around we follow Rosa aged 21 who comes from a privileged background but yet because of her Jewish religion (although her family do not practice) herself and her parents are forced to flee Germany in May 1939 thanks to the persecution, abuse and restrictions of opportunity imposed by Hitler and his Nazi’s. Rosa, Fritz and Elsa are among 1000 people given visas to start a new life away from Germany. They leave Hamburg on board the SS ST.Louis which will take them to Cuba and through her fathers connections and the money he had sent away from Germany they hope to establish a new life in America. In a way, it’s strange reading the same story from a different perspective as I felt I had already formed opinions about Rosa and her family without ever reading anything directly from their viewpoint. But over the course of the book my opinion of Rosa certainly changed and did so for the better so it shows writing a series like this does work and really helps provide a well-balanced angle and mindset.
Rosa’s family are not very close and its clear her mother Elsa loathes her and pretty much leaves her to her own devices whilst onboard the ship. Her father’s behaviour disgusts her as he is pompous, arrogant, self absorbed, irritating and difficult. He was a physician back in Germany and there are subtle hints as to what he engaged in that are dropped in every now and again and in turn they are explored in detail later on in the book. Rosa too hides secret and is racked with guilt and this becomes more apparent as we delve further into the story and learn more about her character. What went on in regards to her family up until the point they left Germany will have a significant forbearing on a major plot of the book and it makes you think how could they have been involved in this and then expect a better life some else without any repercussions? But I suppose unless you are physically and mentally in the situation yourself you really can’t make any judgements. Rosa forms a strong bond with the three young women she meets but their happiness at a new friendship and their hopes for the future are shattered as they are turned away from Cuba. But Sophie is lucky and before she departs she splits an emerald giving each person a shard and a promise is made to one day reunite. This emerald becomes a talisman, a beacon of light and hope amidst the dark times ahead.
As the much longed for freedom in America does not materialise and it is as if they have been sent on a wild goose chase and the promises that were made were not fulfilled. Rosa and her parents find themselves sent back across the ocean and they reach England. Separated from her friends she must forge ahead on her own at a time when her parents more than ever shirk their responsibilities and act like everything will just fall into their laps and they will be readily accepted. But Rosa knows this won’t be the case and from here on in she demonstrates her fortitude, tenacity, strength and bravery. This is when I thought the book really got going and it felt the same as with book one as in the later half was far stronger than the first. I really started to engage with Rosa and she came down to an ordinary level far from the dizzy heights she lived in in Germany. But the past will always have a way of coming back to haunt you if it has not been settled and Rosa harbours guilt and shame which she must try to get through in order to forge onwards in a positive light into the future.
The scenes set in England as Rosa and her parents struggle to adapt to their new life were real and vivid and although perhaps not the best word to use I did enjoy reading about their daily lives. You could sense the anxiety about being in a strange new country and having to be wary that they were German although Jewish. Not everything was handed to them on a plate and Rosa began to show her resourcefulness and her ability to adapt at a time when she was required to step up and provide as her parents remained stuck in the past clinging on to something that was no longer there. She was practical and resourceful and knuckled down to things that would have been way beneath her in her previous life. Through her work and her English classes, she meets Peter, himself having fled Germany too. I loved the subtleness of their friendship which had potential to develop into something more. It was never rushed or forced and the pacing of all this was excellent and I loved how things connected towards the end through circumstance, acceptance and understanding.
The outbreak of war leads to trials and tribulations for Rosa and her parents and it was interesting to see her past having an impact on her present. The chapters set on the Isle of Man were fascinating and again showed a different side to Rosa. One I wouldn’t have thought possible when we first meet her as she boards the ship. Again, there was lots in store for Rosa and without going into detail she finds herself doing work that is vital yet on first arriving in Britain she would never ever have thought possible given her background and situation.
The Girl with a Secret was an excellent read and really moved the series along very well. Again as with book one we were left on a cliffhanger and I really wanted it to continue on for several more chapters but I was prepared for it to end around the 80% mark as this had happened previously. Strong female characters are really coming to the fore and Rosa’s viewpoint of the overall story has only made me even more eager than I already was to discover what is in store for Hannah and Rachael. This book didn’t disappoint and once more my only wish is that it won’t be too long a wait before the next instalment.
No comments:
Post a Comment