A story of both strength and depravity, this is a fictionalised account of the women who spent the latter years of the Second World War in Japanese POW camps in the most appalling conditions imaginable. Heather Morris has taken the stories of several of the women and researched their stories and lives through the eyes of their surviving relatives - several were Australian army nurses and others also compassionate and determined women who survived their capture and the brutality of the Japanese guards, and made sure that as many of their fellow internees as possible survived their ordeal. Of course many didn’t survive, and their stories are even more harrowing. The cast of characters in the book is realistically described, from the nurses, to the Japanese translator Ah Fat, to the missionary Margaret, all of whom are brought to life in the story. The writing style felt a little sentimental at times, somewhat at odds with the devastating subject matter, but this is still a book to savour and reflect upon in our troubled 21st century world.

This is a sad but inspiring story of a group of women in the POW camps in south east Asia under the control of the Japanese during the Second World War. Novels such as Nevil Shute's 'A Town like Alice' touch on the story of these camps but I have never read an account that gives so much detail of this horrific episode in human history. Japanese occupation is not talked about in the UK in my experience. I had a neighbour as a child who could be sharp spoken and I remember being told, in tones of dread, that they had been a prisoner of the Japanese but no details were given.
It is important that this story is told, from the chaos and suddenness of the Japanese invasion of Singapore to the rescue four long years later after peace had been declared. What these women endured and the bravery of the Australian nurses in facing the many challenges of their situation is worth recording.
I found the book difficult to read. Although the story is told in an upbeat way, the hardship and the cruelty are overwhelming. I admire Heather Morris for having the strength to delve into these difficult stories and to research the background to the novel so thoroughly. It was also helpful in a complex and constantly changing situation to have the focus on a few strong characters.
I would have liked more background on the historical context of the Japanese invasion and the pressures being brought to bear on the commandants of the prison camps but perhaps this is an angle that will take more time to surface, there is so much pain on both sides, given the final ending of the war with the bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki.
Congratulations to Heather for researching these accounts and turning them into a story. As many others have done, I honour the work of the Australian nurses, and the courage and bravery of those imprisoned with them. The story is a tribute to those who hold onto hope in the face of fear and defeat.

A beautiful story of resilience and bravery. Very simply written which is both a positive and a criticism.

Thanks to netgalley and the publishers for arc
I have read all of this author’s previous books and they are not a light, easy , read. What they are is gripping, gritty, tear jearking and most unfortunately very true and that I think is what makes them the hardest but also most powerful and yet painful books to read
This book follows women who are interred by the Japanese in the terrible conditions of the jungle, these were Australian nurses British women and Dutch women and nuns and children all thrown together in disgusting camps and made to live of very little food and water whilst the Japanese soldiers ate everything they wanted and drank clean water freely
But this group of women weren’t going to be browbeaten by no food,rats,filthy squalor they would rise above it and sing it cost nothing and they had someone who could read music Norah and she made up a small choir of women with the right range of abilities and they sang for the rest one evening. It went down a storm even camp commandant came out and clapped. So we will do more said choir but only if we get more food, we are too weak to sing.so he does give them a little more food and the concerts continue keeping spirits up.
But it will take more that unfortunately the camp they have moved it is rife with rats and mosquitoes women, their friends are dying around them they know that they won’t all survive unfortunately and fairly soon they are burying their friends which is heartbreaking when will this war end when will they be rescued?

Based on the lives of Japanese prisoners of war during World War II, Sisters Under The Rising Sun, is a remarkable story of internees held in Indonesia. Separated from their loved ones as they try to flee Singapore, women form a close bond to survive to see their families again. With a group of women made up of different nationalities and backgrounds, Heather Morris tells a tale of the internees’ survival, desperation and hope.

Having finished it, I’m still not sure what to make of this book. For me, it seems different to Heather Morris’s other work, and I think maybe the prisoner of war element that set it apart. I feel like I’ve missed something and feel slightly disconnected from the characters, who I found quite naive at times. I can’t tell if this was done on purpose or not.

I found story itself, with the characters trying to create a microcosm of society in the camp, unnerving. Especially as the war progresses and they are shifted around with no knowledge of what will happen next.

Either way, I found the story fascinating and I do think it’s worth a read. I just wish I felt more connected to it. I would definitely recommend if you enjoy the author’s other books.

Sisters of the Rising Sun is the untold story of WWII in the South Pacific. At the beginning the author has a note telling you what you are about to read. At the end of the book the author details each of the real life women, which makes what I just read so much more powerful. This is a story everyone should read to learn about what happened so it does not happen again.

I found this a really interesting book for me as we don't hear much about the war in the Asia so I wanted to read this book and learn more about it. This book supplied this.

However it wasnt until I got about a third of the way into the book that I felt engaged with the story, the first part felt more like a history text. I would recommend going past that as the last two thirds is so much better.

I was given an advance copy by netgalley and the publishers but the review is entirely my own.

My first book by this author and it was interesting to read about the women who were held prisoner by the Japanese. I was interested to read what these women had endured but the story itself I found hard to empathise with. The only parts of the book that I felt totally engaged with were when the musical sections were described, then I felt totally absorbed. For much of the story I felt one step removed - and I am not sure why..
Many thanks to Netgalley/Heather Morris/Bonnier Books UK for a digital copy of this title. All opinions expressed are my own.

I’ve read and and enjoyed all the author’s books and this was no exception. Well written and a beautiful story. Highly recommended

This is a great read for fans of historical fiction. It is always feels a bit uncomfortable to say that I enjoyed a true retelling of someone else’s difficult history but I would be lying if I didn’t admit to reading this book. Heather Morris manages to retell these difficult stories in such a way that does justice to the real people behind the story but also makes the story very accessible to readers and she has managed to do it so well with this one too. This story is amazing in every way. I didn’t know anything about the women that were held by the Japanese but I certainly do now. What the women went through and how they survived is truly astonishing and this story deserves to be told because if it’s not told it can’t be remembered.

Sisters under the Rising Sun by Heather Morris
A truly captivating novel set in a Japanese prisoner of war camp during ww2.
Musician Norah puts her 8 year old daughter Sally on a ship out of Singapore .
Norah & nurse Nests end up in a POW camp , where as often described conditions are barbaric.
Norah uses her musical art to establish a voice orchestra to help with moral and to give them hope to carry on day by day.
This book shows the bravery these women showed at a terrible time in history.

It's 1942 and the Japanese are invading Singapore. Two sisters, Norah and Ena, are fleeing for safety, with Norah's unwell husband John. A group of Australian nurses, including Sister Nesta James, are aboard the same ship as them, the HMS Vyner Brooke. As they flee, the ship is hit by the Japanese and some of the passengers manage to get ashore to an Indonesian island where they are held in a POW camp for the duration of the war. The novel tells the story of their suffering and efforts to do what they can to survive.

First of all, this was certainly very readable and the fact that the characters are based on real people only made it more interesting. The women whose story is told were absolutely remarkable and it's a fascinating period of history, and an important one to remember. Often the work and suffering of women during wartime can be overlooked and this book helps us remember the strength they so often showed and the absolute heroism of the nurses especially. It's told in the present tense and that gives it a more immediate sense of how the characters are feeling which adds to the intensity.

However, there were certain things that I was less keen on. The dialogue is often very stilted - too many references to 'my darling sister', for example, when Norah and Ena speak to each other, which doesn't ring true as a reflection of how people speak and gives it the feel of Brief Encounter. The suffering of the women and the horror of the situation is obviously central, but it sometimes felt this was skipped over a bit - the poor women used as 'companions' to the Japanese officers, the massacre of some survivors, the horrific amount of death in the final camp were all covered in the telling, but the story moved on from the repercussions very quickly. It also felt slightly sanitised in that there is virtually no disagreement between any of the inmates (which seems highly unlikely in such a situation for over 3 years) and when there is the situation tends to be resolved quickly and easily, usually by one of the key characters. The choice to focus so much on just a few characters actually harms the story a little to me - a wider range of different personalities would have been more interesting (as in the TV series Tenko which told a similar story).

The basics of the plot are taken from the stories of the ancestors of those involved and I found their contributions at the end very interesting. However, because the stories told are not first person experience but to some extent a certain amount of family mythology too, I can't help but feel that this would impact on the telling - the past is often told through a certain lens, such as the lack of argument, the complete unity, etc. Also, because they are real people and real families, it may make the author less inclined to give the characters any faults and that makes them less three dimensional.

In the end though, it's exactly what it says, a work of fiction based on a horrific period of history and the people who were caught up in it and who very much deserve to be remembered.

3.5 stars rounded up to 4.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the advance copy in return for an honest review.
#SistersundertheRisingSun #NetGalley

Sisters under the Rising Sun is a beautifully written novel about lesser known (but no less tragic) events of horror and brutality during WW2.

Singapore. Talented English musician Norah Chambers puts her young daughter Sally on a ship to safety as the country begins to surrender to the Japanese. Days later, she, her husband and Sister join another ship the Vyner Brooke hoping to join Sally.

Nesta, a Welsh Australian Nurse has enlisted to help the Allied troops, but the Island where she has been stationed has been overrun by the Japanese. She too finds herself on the Vyner Brooke with many of her colleagues.

Tragedy strikes at sea, and the Vyner Brooke is sunk. The survivors manage to get themselves on to the beaches of a remote island only to be captured and taken to the first of many Japanese POW camps.

The brutality of the Nazi work and death camps is well documented, but equally as harrowing is the treatment of those who fled their countries prior to the Japanese invasion only to end up Japanese POW.

These camps are places of starvation and brutality that we are familiar with, but set against the blistering sun, rather than the freezing backdrop of Europe. Disease runs rife, but the Nurses have nothing to treat their patients with.

There are no 'experiments' here, no medicines, no equipment, nothing even to bury the dead with when they succumb to their illnesses.

But even under these circumstances the captives find hope and joy amongst the horror. After a camp newspaper, and Christmas concert, the decision is made to have a more permanent musical arrangement and Norah creates a 'Voice Orchestra'.

As months turn into years, those who have survived thus far wonder if the war will ever end, and it does, will they ever see their families again?

Sisters under the Rising Sun is an extraordinary tale of survival against the most horrific of conditions. At times a harrowing read, but a necessary one. The authors notes at the end are especially important to understand the impact of this period of history.

An amazing story of amazing women displaying bravery, solidarity and determination to survive in a Japanese prisoner of war camp.
A hard read at times but this story will make you laugh and cry.
Heather Morris doesn't hide the hardship these women suffered and allows you to see them as real people, with real emotions.

Fabulous read.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publishers for allowing me to read Sisters under the Rising Sun.

What an absolutely stunning and heart rending read. I have read the other books written by Heather Morris about Auschwitz and thoroughly enjoyed (if that's the right word) them. This book is written in the same way and has much the same effect. In this book her subject is the experience of female prisoners in Japanese prisoner of war camps. Numerous tissues still needed but you finish the book feeling you have had a historically accurate and meticulously researched experience.
Although it is a work of fiction it is based very definitely in facts and those are always my favourite sort of books and the best way I feel to learn about history in a non academic way. Heather's books always pluck at the heartstrings often revealing the atrocities ordinary people suffered in the name of war. Atrocities the majority of readers will hopefully only ever know about through books like this. It is extremely important that these experiences are never forgotten so they are not repeated. Thank you Heather for making them accessible and memorable in the least painful way. Recommended to everyone as a must read.
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read an advance copy. All opinions are my own.

The book begins in Singapore 1942- boats carrying British , Australian and Dutch are being bombed by the Japanese as they try to make their escape from war. The boats are sunk and those who survive and swim to safety are held captive in camps moved from place to place on the islands of Sumatra. This is based on the true story's and told by relatives of the women in the book. This was a story I have never heard before and was amazed by the strength and resilience of the nurses , nuns and other women in camp . The books follows them over the 3 years and 7 months they are held as prisoners of war and some of the ways they were treated were horrific to say the least, but the hope and unity resonated through the pages. They used music to get through some of the torturous times and became like family and you can really sense this too. I really enjoyed this book and learnt a lot of history about a time and war I hadn't known about before. I will be recommending this to others and looking out for others. I also really enjoyed The Tattooist of Auschwitz which is also by this author.

I was really interested to read Heather Morris' next novel as I am a huge fan of her previous novels.

Heather Morris is a master at the heart wrenching stories and this is no different.

It is a really good read and it is paced perfectly. It's one I'd definitely recommend.

Many thanks to the author, publisher and NetGalley for gifting me this arc in exchange for an honest, unbiased review.

I really wanted to love this book but I did struggle with it until about the last 20%.

For me, the chapters seemed too long. In most chapters it frequently switched between different characters/situations that to me would be the natural chapter break and I found that very confusing. I’d often not know which character I was reading about.

I also struggled with the dialogue between characters - it didn’t feel natural and it wasn’t until near the end that I felt any emotion for them.

Many thanks to #NetGalley for a copy of the book in exchange for an honest review.

I loved The tattooist of Auschwitz so hate to give such a poor review of this book but it could have been written by a different author as far as I feel. The story based on real experiences bet told in a sickly sweet way and lacking almost any guts.

Another very moving book from Heather Morris. These books should be compulsory reading for students at school. This book is the first I have read telling the stories of female prisoners of war, held by the Japanese. I've read or heard the stories of men held captive by the Japanese and many years ago watched the TV series Tenko. This book tells the true story of a group of women and a group of Australian nurses who were held in Indonesia by the Japanese for 3 years and 7 months in appalling conditions. It is very wel, written and had me in tears many times, but also feeling great admiration for those such as Nesta and Norah.
I highly recommend this book.