Initially, "The Silence In Between" by Josie Ferguson took some time to capture my interest, but by the 25% mark, I was completely hooked. Josie Ferguson expertly brings the characters and the story to life, making me feel as though I was right there in the room with them.

The novel is an incredibly powerful and moving story, shedding light on the realities of being a female in East Berlin. These narratives have largely gone untold before, and I applaud Josie for her extensive research and dedication in bringing these stories into this compelling tale. The authenticity and depth she achieves make the book not only engaging but also enlightening.

One of the highlights of the book is the author's note at the end, where Josie shares her inspiration and research process. It provided valuable context and made me appreciate the story even more.

However, my only frustration with the book was the constant focus on the music that Elly hears for each person. While I understand that it played a part in Elly's identity and background, I felt that it occasionally detracted from the overarching story and disrupted the narrative flow.

Overall, "The Silence In Between" is a remarkable read that brings untold stories to light in a powerful way. Despite my minor critique, I highly recommend this book for its compelling characters and evocative storytelling.

A thought provoking book that should be in all school libraries. It is written over two time lines - WW2 in Germany and the building of the Berlin Wall in 1961. The story deals with the uncomfortable theme of the rape of many German women by Russian soldiers at the end of the war. It then moves forward to the building of the Berlin Wall literally overnight leaving a small baby in a hospital in the west while his mother goes home to the east to rest and collect clean clothes and nappies little knowing that she would not be able to return. This part of the book is seen through the eyes of the mother and of her daughter who vows to rescue her brother and get him across the wall. Beautifully told and at times heartbreaking especially as these stories actually happened but are not widely known. Thank you Netgalley for an advance copy.

A duel timeline historical fiction story about one family’s journey in Berlin during the Second World War and the construction of the Berlin Wall.
A story about courage and hope.
Thank you to NetGalley and Random House UK, Transworld Publishing for my e-copy in exchange for an honest review.

What a beautiful, heartbreaking, thought provoking story.
I wasn’t sure this would be my cup of tea but I loved it!

I shall never forget this book. It had a huge impact on me and I have learnt so much. Its authenticity is compelling, and how much it hurts to know the sadness and suffering of the Germans. The imagery is vivid and spiced with superb metaphors. What an amazing insight, especially in this war-torn world and so close to the eightieth anniversary of the D-Day Landings.

One of the most intriguing aspects of the novel is how the author, Josie Ferguson, weaves in the concept of Elly judging people’s emotions and reactions through musical pieces. It's a unique and fascinating approach I’ve never encountered before in a book, adding a layer of depth and complexity to the narrative.

I’m old enough to recall the Berlin Wall going up in 1961 and knowing many were shot if they tried to scale it. I was too young to understand why it was divided, but it shook the world. By 1989 I knew more when the wall was taken down. I knew a German girl who flew out to Germany that night to be reunited with relatives in East Berlin.

I always wondered what the war was like for the German people. In the post-war years in Britain, it was bad enough. I knew Germany surrendered to the Soviets, but I didn’t know about their barbarous acts. The end of the book shocked me to the core. It was extremely tense.

Thank you to Random House UK and NetGalley.

Two mothers, two daughters. Their fears, losses and traumas. Their fractured relationships in war-time and post-war Berlin both before and after the Wall.

Compelling, powerful, incredibly moving and ‘human.’

Highly recommend.

What a phenomenal book, I couldn’t put it down and read it in one day. There has obviously been a huge amount of research done to ensure the detail of the time is correct and true stories have been included but none of the research ever bogs it down, it just feels totally authentic and genuinely tense, often reading like a thriller.

The story is set in Berlin and surrounds two women, Lisette and her daughter Elly. It opens in 1961 – Lisette has just had her second child, Axel, and has to leave him in hospital overnight for tests while she returns home to collect some more clothes and rest. During that night the border between East and West Berlin is suddenly closed and she is trapped in the East while Axel remains in the West, out of her reach. Her relationship with her 15 year old daughter is strained and becomes more so as Lisette struggles to cope. The story then splits between learning about Lisette’s experiences in wartime Berlin and especially after it falls to the Russians in 1945, and Elly’s decision in the 60s to attempt to cross the Berlin Wall and bring her brother back. Another generation of women, Lisette’s mother, also features heavily in both time periods.

Women are very much the centre of this story and it’s such a fascinating look at wartime. So often the history of war is told about the men who fought, and while that is obviously so important it is essential that we also look at what happens to the civilians left behind. The horrors of the experiences, physical and mental, in this novel are very much based on historical fact, and it’s not limited to the time and place of Berlin in World War II but is something that happens in wars everywhere and at all times. It’s horrifying and thought provoking and is one of the best books I have read on the subject.

All of the characters are wholly believable and can be very frustrating in their behaviour but the flashbacks really explain why people are acting as they do and all of them gain sympathy for their own unique experience, with a real sense of how terrifying life must have been (in both periods). Sympathy for the characters is always placed in context too – during the World War II sections, the action centres very much around the Germans struggling to survive but there is an awareness of what is happening to the Jews and many are actively choosing not to see. Choices are made over whether to be part of the regime or just try to survive and it’s not simplified, and nor is the Allied bombing that is attempting to destroy an evil regime but will target civilians in the process. Similarly, when the Russians arrive they are brutal and frightening but also hitting back at their own horrific experiences of war and the women are actively being used for vengeance.

So this book never attempts to tell a simple, one sided story and it’s all the better for it, a fascinating, tense, beautifully written and evocative novel. I really can’t recommend it highly enough.

Thanks to Netgalley and Random House for an advance copy in return for an honest review.

Fascinating and gripping historical novel. It shows the huge impact war can have on ordinary people by following one German family through World War Two and the Cold War. Some parts were difficult to read, but it shows the horrific reality of war in an honest way. It has left me with a lot of food for thought. Highly recommend.

This is a beautiful historical fiction read, set during both the Second World War and in Berlin during the 1960's when the Berlin Wall was constructed. It is well written, depicting the strength of two women, Elly and Lisette, What an emotional, thought provoking and beautiful read this is. An amazing debut novel by Josie Ferguson which I am sure will be enjoyed by lovers of historical fiction. Thanks to Net Galley for my ARC.

Wow, wow, wow! This book is just incredible!

Thank you so much to Josie Ferguson and the publisher for providing me with an eARC of this book for an honest review.

Honestly, this book was just everything! I couldn't put it down, and whilst I wanted to read it every given minute, I just didn't want it to ever end.

The stories that are woven together, from the dual perspective of mother and daughter characters is done brilliantly, but the themes that the book covers is spectacular, and done in such a heart felt and pure way. Heartbreak, loss, trauma, love, family, angst... this book has it all! It takes you on an emotional rollercoaster and throws everything at you on its journey. I didn't think historical fiction would be for me, but how this book has changed my mind completely. Its not often you find a book that pulls at your heart strings and stitches you back up again and that is how you know it is special!

The fact this is Josie's debut novel is also mind blowing! It deserves every ounce of success.

Read this book! You will not be left disappointed!

A gripping historical novel set in Berlin during two time periods - the Second World War and around 1961, when the Berlin Wall was erected. The main focus is the gruelling and often harrowing experiences of the women protagonists and how these have shaped them into the people that they are. Moving between the two time periods allows us to better understand the characters once we understand their own personal history. I highly recommend this book for its female perspective on Nazi Germany and the GDR.

Set across two different times, war time and 1961 when the Berlin Wall went up this story seamlessly moved between both timelines.

I’ve read many books about WW2, about the British, Jewish, American and more. But this is the first book I’ve read about Germans in and beyond WW2. I think it’s very easy to not think about Germany not needing air raid shelters, being bombed, rationing. Yet they had the same hardships many others had. The women, especially when the Russians arrived went through hell. I feel I was very ignorant to wartime life in Germany and I’ve been educated reading this book. It has moved me so much and I don’t think I’ll ever forget it.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publishers for the ARC in return for my honest and unbiased opinion.

Wow, what an exceptional book this is. I did not want it to finish because I knew I would miss it so much. If you are a lover of historical fiction like me, then this is a must read!!

Set across two timelines: at the end of the Second World War and in the months following the Berlin Wall going up in 1961, we follow Lisette and her family through the experiences that shape her as a teenager in 1945 and then again in 1961 as she gets separated from her baby son when the wall goes up. I was so nervous at some points in the 1961 section! The story and the way it unfolds is truly gripping and once you start, it is so hard to put it down!

I cannot tell you how wonderful this book is. Historical fiction is my favourite genre and this is a gem! The amount of research that has gone into ensuring that this fictional story is set within historical facts is clear from the beginning and I also enjoyed reading the author’s note at the end of the book, which gives some further detail and references. It also shows that there is never a good or a bad side in war: you always get kind and evil on both sides and war leaves so many different kinds of scars. I loved all the main characters and I know this book will become one of my top reads of the year.

Whilst I was lucky enough to read this as an ARC ahead of the publication date, I will be ordering my very own copy to keep because it is up there with my all time favourites and I want to have a physical copy on my bookshelf! I cannot believe this is a debut by the author and I hope we see many more books from her in the future!

An unusual World War II story. Lisette and her family are Berliners. They're not really supporters of Hitler but neither do they actively object to his policies, thinking it nothing to do with them. As the war drags on though, it certainly does impact them. Lisette's father is conscripted and they see the harsh treatment meted out to Jews who haven't managed to escape the city.

In 1961, musician Elly sees music in people. Everyone has different music, happy or sad, strident or soft. Her life is greatly impacted by the erection of the Berlin Wall. When the wall is closed, her baby brother is in hospital in West Berlin, she and the rest of her family are in East Berlin. She hatches a daring plan to unite their family. A gripping story that make you feel for all victims of war.

I am a great lover of historical fiction based on fact and this book covers it well. Based in Berlin from 1938 just before WW2 and going though to 1961 when the Berlin Wall went up.
Lisette is a very young women at the start of the war and has to endure losing her father and best friend to the German army. Her and her mother like many during this time suffer the derivatives of rationing of food along with the devastation of the bombing.
By 1945 the Russions envelope Berlin and rape their way through all of the women.
The result is a daughter, Elly,
In 1961, having married the return of her best friend, their newborn son becomes sick and is taken to West Berlin for treatment. Unfortunately the Berlin Wall goes up overnight leaving baby Axel on the western side. Elly takes it into her head to get him back. A very exciting end.
Well worth the read.

A gripping historical fiction read set against the backdrop of Berlin's division in 1961. The story follows Lisette, who becomes separated from her newborn son by the sudden erection of the Berlin Wall and her daughter Elly, who decides to try and find her baby brother and bring him home

The Silence In Between is a powerful debut, a worthy 5⭐️ read- particularly recommended for fans of historical fiction

I was disapponted at the start of this book when it went back from 1961 to 1944. I read a lot of war fiction and had hoped that this book was about post war experiences. I am so glad that I stuck with it. The writing is excellent, the sense of place, time and anguish is very well wrought and I just whizzed through the book. It's a brlliant story, very evocative and a bit 'edge of the seat' in a couple of places. The back and forward chapters worked well as they were in blocks rather than every alternate chapter. Five stars. An amazing debut.

This moving historical novel tells the story of Lisette and her daughter Elly, and the baby boy who is lost to both of them.

The sudden partitioning of Berlin into East and West not only divides a city and its people overnight, it also separates Lisette from her newborn son, who stays in the hospital in West Berlin, while his mother is unexpectedly trapped across the wall in East Berlin after returning home, having expected to leave him there only for an overnight stay.

Meanwhile, the split in the city echoes the rift between the mother and daughter who remain in the East. While Elly seeks solace in music, her mother is unable to do so. But Elly has a plan...

This is a touching story that brings vividly to life the impact of the division of Berlin on the lives of its inhabitants. Through Lisette and Elly, the suffering of a people is given a face that is universally recognisable.

The familiar emotions of loss, grief, and longing show how closely we are connected as humans, however divided we are by political beliefs and systems. Well worth reading, it gets 3.5 stars.

One of my favourite genres is psychological thriller, another is social history fact or fiction.
Although I was a little apprehensive regarding the setting of this book, I found it spellbinding, educational and in parts shocking. It covered some of the hidden horrors of war, and did it in a way that was explicit but not sensational.
This book worked on a number of levels, the characters were interesting and well written. The setting was unusual and risky for an English language audience but worked and gave a number of alternatives to the plot.
Historically the book fits in with what I know of the time and the area, and any questions regarding accuracy were answered in the author's note to the book.
Although the events of the book were frequently not pleasant I thought that the book was brilliant.
Well done to the author for all of the clearly had work that had been put into the story, and for the courage to tell this story.
I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

I recently read "The Silence In Between" by Josie Ferguson, and I was incredibly moved by this historical fiction novel. Set on 13th August 1931, the story revolves around the sudden closure of the border between East and West Berlin. It's an impressive debut work of historical fiction that I truly enjoyed. The plot was captivating and well-developed, and the author managed to create a perfect ambiance that made the entire reading experience immersive. The well-crafted characters made it easy to connect with their emotions and struggles. If I had to describe this book in a few words, I would say it's powerful, painful, and beautiful. I'm grateful to the publisher for providing access to this ARC, and I'm definitely planning to order my own copy when it's released. This novel has become one of my favorite books of the year so far.