Emma's Review: The Winter Child by Carly Schabowski

Reviewed by Emma Crowley

Poland, 1943: Every day, Irena is terrified as she serves the Nazis who drink in her town’s hotel. But with war raging, she has little choice if she is to support her family. She just prays she won’t catch the eye of any of the officers who have invaded her country. If she does, the consequences are unthinkable…

More than anyone she fears Richter, a member of the Gestapo with a reputation as frightening as his vicious smile. Each time she glimpses him across the room, her blood runs cold. But her family must eat, and so she must face her fears each day.

But when Irena is told she must serve Richter personally, she knows she will no longer be able to hide. Trembling, she approaches his table. And when his cold gaze finally settles on her, she realizes that her fate has already been sealed.

When Irena’s worst fears come true and she bears a child, her baby is a small glimmer of hope in an otherwise dark world. But when the baby is taken from her one winter night, she swears that she will stop at nothing to avenge her child’s life…

But is Irena prepared for revenge to cost her everything? And even if she is, will she recover from the truth she is about to uncover?

Book Links: Kindle or Paperback

Emma's Review: Return to the Irish Boarding House by Sandy Taylor

Reviewed by Emma Crowley 

Dublin, 1956. When Mary Kate Ryan loses the love of her life, she’s not sure how she can keep going. Feeling completely lost, she allows her friend Moira Kent to persuade her to re-open the Boarding House for Single Ladies where she made so many memories and created a safe place for women who needed it. Now it’s Mary Kate who needs to start over…

As Mary Kate sits by the large bay window, with her little dog Guinness by her feet, she watches the residents of the house coming and going and realises there are others who need her help. Can Mary Kate and Moira uncover the mystery surrounding their new guest? And can they provide a home for two orphan sisters with nowhere to go?

Soon Mary Kate breathes new life into the boarding house and learns that family can be formed in all sorts of ways. Clever, kind Moira is like the sister she never had and Moira’s sweet, adopted ten-year-old daughter Abby means the world to both of them. And being back in Merrion Square brings Mary Kate the kind of laughter and joy that she never dreamed she’d experience again.

But when a devastating secret about Abby’s birth mother begins to unravel, it threatens to destroy the happiness of her patchwork family. Mary Kate must gather her strength to protect the future of the boarding house – and to stop darling Abby being taken from them.

Can Mary Kate keep the friends who have become her family safe? Or will her new-found happiness be torn apart?

Book Link: Kindle 

Emma's Review: Courage for The Home Front Girls by Susanna Bavin

Reviewed by Emma Crowley

By day, Betty works cheerfully with her best friend Sally, now the manager of the salvage depot. By night, they both do their bit for the war effort as Auxiliary Fire Service girls. But Betty wishes she could do more.

So when Samuel, a kind and gentle young bookseller, needs help sorting out novels to entertain the boys overseas, Betty volunteers. Anything for the troops! There might be a flashy, handsome stranger who keeps seeking her out at the depot, but she can’t help enjoying Samuel’s quiet humour as they work together during the blackouts.

But when the worst night-time air raid they’ve ever seen strikes, Sally’s home is destroyed. Even worse, any of Sally’s treasured possessions that did survive the blast are stolen by looters. Desperate to help her friend, Betty could never have expected the guilt when she uncovers what really happened… Was it all her fault?

Despite Samuel’s best efforts, Betty can’t forgive herself. Determined to set things right, Betty sets off to catch the thief, leaving Samuel in the dark. And then the sirens begin, warning of another bombing raid. Can Betty find the strength to finish what she started, despite the threat to everything she holds dear? Or will the smoke clear on heartbreak for the home front girls?

Book Links: Kindle or Paperback

Bank Holiday Weekend Giveaway: Win a bundle of Bookish Goodies

As it's a bank holiday weekend and the start of my week off work I've decided to celebrate with a giveaway for this bundle of goodies. Sadly my reading and blogging mojo is still very much absent but I'm hoping that a relaxing week may recharge my batteries and I'll finally be able to get back into the swing of things but thankfully Emma is holding the fort with her fabulous reviews.

Emma's Review: The Berlin Wife's Vow by Marion Kummerow

Reviewed by Emma Crowley 

Berlin, 1944. Edith Falkenstein weeps with joy when the crowds of brave women protesting on Rosenstrasse manage to save their Jewish relatives, including her husband Julius, from deportation to the camps.

Julius once believed abiding by the rules would shield him and his wife. But now he knows better: there is no such thing as mercy from the Nazis, and they must do all they can to save others. Their apartment, long stripped of its luxurious furnishings, might offer little protection from the frigid winter air, but it has become a place of secret shelter—though it puts all their lives at risk.

As bombs rain a thunder of devastation on the city and Soviet soldiers close in from the east, the Nazis have only become more desperate, and more deadly. For the inhabitants, their only option is to flee. But when another raid leaves Julius critically injured, Edith realises he is far too frail to make the perilous journey. She closes her eyes and prays for a miracle.

The final days of the war are here, but there is no cause for celebration in Berlin, where death lingers on every corner. Their love has been the source of their strength and survival all these long years, but will either of them live to see the end?

Book Links: Kindle or Paperback