Review - Lilac Girls by Martha Hall Kelly
By Carmen, 26 March 2019
My Copy of the Book
Year Published: 2017
Genre: Historical Fiction
Blurb:
New York socialite Caroline Ferriday has her hands full with her post at the French consulate and a new love on the horizon. But Caroline’s world is forever changed when Hitler’s army invades Poland in September 1939—and then sets its sights on France.
An ocean away from Caroline, Kasia Kuzmerick, a Polish teenager, senses her carefree youth disappearing as she is drawn deeper into her role as courier for the underground resistance movement. In a tense atmosphere of watchful eyes and suspecting neighbors, one false move can have dire consequences.
For the ambitious young German doctor, Herta Oberheuser, an ad for a government medical position seems her ticket out of a desolate life. Once hired, though, she finds herself trapped in a male-dominated realm of Nazi secrets and power.
The lives of these three women are set on a collision course when the unthinkable happens and Kasia is sent to Ravensbrück, the notorious Nazi concentration camp for women. Their stories cross continents—from New York to Paris, Germany, and Poland—as Caroline and Kasia strive to bring justice to those whom history has forgotten.
About the Author:
Martha is a native New Englander who lives in Connecticut and Martha's Vineyard. She worked as an advertising copywriter for many years, raised three wonderful children who are now mostly out of the nest and Lilac Girls is her first novel. She has been hard at work on the prequel to Lilac Girls, Lost Roses, which features Caroline's mother Eliza Ferriday and her fight to save a group of Russian women, former aristocrats who lost everything in the Russian Revolution. Lost Roses publishes April 2, 2019.
Connect with the Author:
Facebook: Martha Hall Kelly Facebook
Twitter: Martha Hall Kelly Twitter
Author Website: Martha Hall Kelly Author Website
Buy the Book:
Amazon: Amazon Purchase Link
My Take on the Book:
The first two things I’m going to say – this book is heartbreaking and devastating; but it was most certainly worth the read! What I knew about WW2 and the concentration camps up until before this book was more than enough – and then I read this book. Be warned, this book revolves around the Holocaust, so it is very likely that those that enjoy historical fiction haven’t read a book like this before – but give it a try.
I ended up giving this leisurely book a four star rating; and it was one that really moved me.
Last Word:
Even though this book devastated me – I still want to get my hands on the next upcoming book – Lost Roses; and it will most likely have a similar effect that this one did.
Enjoy,
Carmen