I thought this was an amazing book, so beautifully written.
I struggle with intense historical fiction but this is written in a way that I lapped it up and couldn't stop reading it.
It was mostly sad, but fascinating, with love stories weaved in, unlikely love stories.
I really enjoyed it, I enjoyed the historical side and would recommend it.
5 starts from me ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐.
Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This was a really interesting read, though the plot took a long time to come together and the two timelines seemed a little confusing. Having visited Berlin recently, and reading about the construction of the wall, this book is totally believable. Elly is a brave, perhaps reckless, character, but her home life seems to fractured that maybe she thought she had nothing to lose.

The war years, and Lisette's, experience is harrowing - in more places than one! I found her hard to 'warm' to though as the story develops the extent of her PTSD is truly shocking. I was surprised by the revelation of how the liberators treated the women of the fallen army (Russian soldiers and German women) as this is something which I have never considered before.

Elly's life in West Berlin seemed to settle into a safe and natural rhythm quite quickly, and I was not convinced by this lack of conflict and challenge, but the book appears to be well-researched and I suspect that this is drawn from true life events. Perhaps the shock of the wall's erection so quickly, splitting communities, meant that anyone who made it over/under were welcomed and supported in response to their bravery.

This book does not shy away from uncomfortable subjects, so the Holocaust is not hidden away, despite it being less of an influence on this story, though the 'conspiratorial' characters who support the actions of the Nazis are in the novel to provide an alternative option for Lisette.

I found this read to be quite absorbing once I had got to know the characters and enjoyed the resolution at the end.

The Silence in Between completely blew me away - it’s not the kind of book I’d usually read, but I found myself completely captivated by the story. This is an emotionally powerful piece of historical fiction that really excels at putting you in the shoes of people living in 1940s and 1960s Berlin during these time periods.

The prologue quickly rewards the reader with a solid punch in the gut - it’s an emotionally heavy opening, and despite having read the blurb and knowing the gist of the story, it still hits hard. A real strength of The Silence In Between was the level of immersion and empathy achieved through its characters, as you can easily pick up the sense of uncertainty they were feeling about the world around them. Whether it's the men leaving for the frontlines of WWII, the fear surrounding the allies closing in on the city, or the immediate aftermath of Berlin being severed in two by the border, you can feel their anxieties and fears pouring out of the pages. In neither timeline do they have any idea if their loved ones are dead or alive, or how long their current predicaments are going to last.

I loved how the tension was kept up in both stories throughout the novel; even though the 1960s storyline will give you some initial clues as to what happens in the 1940s plot, there will still be turns and events that catch you out. Lisette’s character is particularly well crafted, as she actually feels like the same character in both timelines. As more details are revealed about Lisette’s upbringing, things start clicking into place in the 1960s plot and the full picture is slowly revealed. Although the book jumps back and forth between the two time periods, I found the story easy to follow and very well paced.

I enjoyed this historical novel which is set in the time after the Second World War when Berlin was separated into East and West German portions. The story mostly follows the family of Lisette who takes her baby son to hospital in the West German portion of Berlin for medical treatment. She leaves him there overnight and tragically this is the night that east and west Germany are separated by the Berlin Wall. That daughter Elly decides that she needs to reunite her family and find the way to cross the wall.
I’ve not read many novels set in this time period and found the story fascinating. I didn’t realise until the end of the novel that it was based on a true story. The story of the personal lives of people immediately affected by the forceful separation of the country into two portions really bought home the significance of the historical events.
The author has the ability to develop characters in a realistic way she describes them accurately and the way that they react to the stresses in their life are realistic.
The author has a beautiful flowing prose style which made the novel an immersive enjoyable read
I would think this would make a very good film and would hope that the rights to the story are taken up quickly
I would recommend the novel for lovers of historical novels if you like All the Light we can not see by Anthony Doerr or The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas by John Boyne then you would enjoy this novel

The author has a beautiful way of writing things. Some paragraphs boardering on the poetic.
I loved the idea for example of the character being able to identify different people by the different music they carry in their souls
This is the authors debut novel I for one will be keeping an eye on her as I’m sure her subsequent novels will be just as brilliant
I read an early copy of the novel on NetGalley UK. The book is published on the 20th of June 2024 by Random House UK, Transworld publishers.

This review will appear on NetGalley UK Goodreads and my book blog bionicSarahSbooks.WordPress.com.

After publication it will also appear on Amazon uk

A well-written and researched book that balances historical accuracy and fictional characters. Shocking events are detailed but accurately portrayed.

This is a beautiful debut novel. In 1961 Lisette takes her baby from East Berlin to West, for hospital treatment. She goes home to sleep for a few hours, and when she wakes she finds that the Berlin Wall has gone up and she is separated from her baby. The horror of this makes Lisette lose her voice completely and it is left to her teenage daughter, Elly, to try to work out how to get the baby back.
The story is told in dual timelines; the 1962 timeline is about the wall and the baby, but we also have the 1940s timeline where Lisette and her mother are surviving the war and the awful horror of what was done to women during the last days in Berlin, where the Russians took the East.
This is an often brutal read, but it is also a story about survival and hope. It’s clearly well researched and well-written. Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC.

This was a good read - particularly if you like historical fiction. I have read a lot of fiction relating to both world wars and the interwar period, but this was a bit different, which was refreshing. The addition of 1960s Berlin to the timeline added depth and interest to the novel.

The plot moves at a good pace, and it's hard reading in places, but it makes you want to keep reading.

Oh goodness, I nearly couldn't get past the prologue! My heart almost broke. The Silence In Between is the first book I have read about WW2, from the perspective of Berlin, the women who lived through those times and the rise & fall of the Berlin Wall. I found it both historically informative whilst following the lives of Lisette and Elly, who were captivating. Thoroughly enjoyed this book, thank you to NetGalley for the copy

Absolutely loved this book. Definitely up my street regarding the subject matter and found it very interesting. A very powerful read which definitely makes you think. A masterpiece in historical fiction

Undeniably a well written debut novel, however for some reason not one I could connect with and didn't grab me. I failed to feel anything for the characters and just didn't have the desire to keep picking my Kindle up to find out what happened.

I enjoyed reading this book - it was a lovely experience. Thank you to the writer, publisher, and NetGalley for allowing me to review this book.

A 5 star read for me. This novel took place in August 1961 when the Berlin Wall literally appeared overnight - a period of history I knew very little about.

The book is written from the perspective of Lisette - her baby has a heart defect and is in hospital in West Berlin - and her teenage daughter Elly who resolves to rescue him and return him to her mother with whom she has a difficult relationship.

We hear about Lisette’s backstory - her experiences during World War Two and the treatment of the civilian population after the fall of Berlin by Russian troops. Her trauma leads to the loss of her voice and her music.

Elly has inherited her musical talent but feels unloved by her mother and has never understood why. She hopes by returning Axel to her mother that she can repair their relationship.

Ella’s escape from the East facilitated by a Russian soldier and her encounters with activists in the West are powerfully told. The retelling of the war years is at times traumatic to read.

A fascinating story - one which will stay with me.

I thoroughly enjoyed this one. I'm fascinated by the Berlin Wall and this tale of a mother separated from her baby drew me in immediately.

The story is dual POV and dual timeline: we follow Lisette in 1940s Berlin during and after WWII, and her daughter Elly in 1960s Berlin just after the border between East and West Berlin has been closed and the Wall fortified. Elly has a troubled relationship with her mother so, in a bid to finally gain her love, she plans to somehow get over the Wall, rescue her brother and reunite the family.

This is a harrowing story, especially Lisette's, very tense and sad. I had to take a little break at one point. However, it's also hopeful, and Elly's determination to get her brother is really heartwarming. I'm not sure how believable some of that part was but I didn't care, it made for a great story. I enjoyed the family relationships and the way the two timelines came together towards the end and the mysteries of Lisette's character were revealed. Altogether it was a very satisfying story and neatly tied up which I like.

Even though this was in some ways more WWII fiction, I liked it as I hadn't heard about the things that happened in Berlin after the war ended. It made a change to get a German perspective. It also helped to put the Wall in context. I think the author did a great job with her subject and I look forward to seeing what she does next. Highly recommended.

I'd like to thank the publishers and Netgalley for kindly providing me with an advance copy of this book. All opinions are my own.

The way the life of German people during the WWII and the aftermath of the war in Germany was portrayed makes this book worth reading it. Josie Ferguson managed to give life and voice to the characters of the book.

This story in set in Berlin in the tumultuous German middle-third of the century. Lisette lives with her husband, 15 year-old daughter Elly and baby son Axel in gloomy east Berlin. Baby Axel is kept overnight in a hospital in the western sector of the city to investigate a puzzling medical condition when the border is sealed overnight without warning and Axel is stranded on the other side; all movement between the areas are stopped by the communist GDR state. The story of how and why Lisette seems to be estranged from her daughter Elly becomes gradually clear as the story progresses – as can be anticipated it is a bleak tale of human suffering and horror There is a thread of psychological disturbance in the family, certainly exacerbated, if not caused, by the trauma of the German people in the years from 1938 to 1961 which are covered in the story.
While the historical context is mostly sound and the writer’s research is competent, there are a few issues. It is unlikely that an adult leisure shoe would be termed a trainer in 1961 (the OED’s first reference for use was in 1968) and would a conventional middle-aged German mother say “OK” in 1940s Berlin? There are lots of cliches and it is odd even though music plays a central and influencing role in the lives of Lisette and Elly, the sense of the writing and narrative credibility can be a little curiously off-key and tone deaf at times. The writing is capable and the plot absorbing, but this is just a good and not outstanding work of fiction.

An emotional story told by mother and daughter, between 1945 and 1961 (as the Berlin Wall went up, separating the family from their baby son/brother). The subject does make it a tough read at times, especially as Berlin fell at the end of the war and the Russian soldiers raped German women. As a debut, it’s impressive - the characters are complex and well written, the story clearly well researched with little details that might seem implausible (like people wrapping towels around their heads in case the building collapses on them), but actually happened.

I’d say 4.5 stars overall rounded down only because the whole “hearing people’s music” thing wore thin after a while for me.

I received a free ARC copy of this via NetGalley and the publishers in return for an unbiased review.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book. Set in Germany during the Second World War and in the 1960s it gives us a fascinating insight into what life was like for the Germans during the war. I highly recommend it.

4.5* The Silence Between - Josie Ferguson. Epic debut. What an incredible read.

Set across 2 times lines we join Lisette and her family from the early years of WWII in their home in Berlin. A normal family who don’t believe the politics or hoop-la of the Nazis but cannot escape it either. As the war goes on, so the despair piles up for everyone but through the eyes of the characters that we grow to love, we get a visceral feeling of being with them. If some of these stories have been told before, the focus on the aftermath as the Russians take control in the Eastern zones of the city is less well accounted for in fiction and is harrowing.

Set alongside this is the night that Berlin is split in two and families are torn apart, not least Lisette, whose baby son is in hospital in the West. As the despair rises, the possible routes to a family reunion narrow and only a daring plan could bring solace.

A fantastic book. Equally heartbreaking and powerful. The various strands are beautifully intertwined and this book is deservedly shortlisted for Waterstones debut of the year.

Thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for an ARC.

The end of WW2 and the soviets occupy Berlin, raping and killing hundreds of thousands of German civilian women. A story unfolds of a rape by a high ranking officer and the long lasting trauma inflicted on the victim. The story then moves to 1961 with the building of the Berlin Wall and the devastating effect on the same family now living in a fractured city with their young child trapped in West Berlin. Both stories evolve, with the harrowing story of a young girl intent on crossing into the west to save her sibling and return him to the mother who no longer has the strength to overcome any further mental torture. Both dramatic periods in history unfold with terrifying clarity as the backdrop to a fictional tragedy . The author moves the story and survivors forward with a conclusion three decades later as the collapse of the wall takes place that has divided families and finally giving freedom for the people of East Berlin.. An unusual slant using a fictional family and events to highlight another side of historical events that cannot fail to bring home the horrendous actions and events of WW2 and the subsequent Berlin Wall. Many thanks to author, publisher and Netgalley for this provoking novel of the implications of ordinary people living through extraordinary monstrous periods of our history.

The Silence In Between is a most moving tale of a family divided by politics in Berlin. In 1961 Lisette has to leave her baby boy, Paul, behind in hospital. The following day she wakes up and the Wall in Berlin has been erected leaving her trapped in the East with her husband and teenage daughter Elly, unable to reach her son in the West.

The story is told in a dual time frame - 1961 in Elly's voice and the horrific years during WW2 in Lisette's. The research required for this story, based on real life, is exemplary. The characterisations of the main characters, including Lisette's mother and husband, is excellent. The Silence In Between is a wonderful read and deserves to be very successful.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Random House UK/Transworld/Doubleday for the opportunity to read and review this book.