The Girl with the Diary; The Prison Child and The Soldier's Letters by Shari J. Ryan

Books

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Earlier in the month, I share my review of The Doctor’s Daughter by Shari J.Ryan and today I’m back sharing with you the brilliant re-release of her trilogy of books The Last Words Series. This series of books sparked her devotion for retelling the stories about victims of the Holocaust. The three books are The Girl with the Diary; The Prison Child and The Soldier’s Letters.

I haven’t had time yet to read all three, so today I’m sharing with you my review of The Girl with the Diary and also a little about the next two books.

The Girl with the Diary; The Prison Child and The Soldier's Letters by Shari J. Ryan

Book Description – The Girl with the Diary

The worn leather-bound diary, tied with a red ribbon, has hidden the truth for seventy years. The spine crackles as she opens it, reading the long-forgotten words of her grandmother. “What if you never come back? What if you die trying?”

Nazi-occupied Prague,1942: Amelia is hiding in her closet when flashlights blind her and she’s captured by the SS. Out on the cobblestone street, her heart shatters as her mother is shot before her eyes. She is shoved onto a freight train with hundreds of others—hours pass as they travel in darkness.

Arriving in a concentration camp, Amelia fears for her life when she is led to a block by a soldier. He is her enemy, yet he secretly passes her a piece of bread; an act that saves her.

They are meant to despise one another, but Amelia and Charlie are powerfully drawn to each other. Amelia sees how Charlie risks everything to save prisoners from deportation—and she sees the kindness in his eyes.

Amongst so much tragedy, falling in love is a miracle. Yet, one day, Charlie utters those miraculous words. “I’m in love with you. To everyone else, we’re wrong, but what does that matter when nothing in this world is right?”

But under the all-seeing gaze of the guards and endless watchtowers, there is only so long they can keep their secret—and the very act of loving each other endangers their lives. Will they remain loyal to each other in the face of death? And when they finally say goodbye, will it be by choice or by force?

Fans of The Tattooist of Auschwitz, The Choice, and Orphan Train will be totally swept away by this World War Two heartbreaker which shows that, even in hell, love can bloom.

This book was previously published as Last Words.

What I Thought

Historical fiction set around WWII is my favourite genre to read. My dad was 10 when the war started and I used to love hearing his stories as a 10 year old during that time. The times when he and his sister used to hide in the back kitchen when they heard the sirens and planes overhead. But luckily down here in Cornwall, they were away from the bombings and the full truth of what was happening around the world. Reading stories like The Girl with the Diary gives you an awareness of what happened during these times.

The Girl with the Diary is a forbidden love story between a German soldier and a Jew. An old diary is given to Emma by her dying grandmother Amelia. Now begins the story of two love stories set in the past and the present, told through two different points of view, Emma and Amelia’s. I preferred reading the story from Amelia’s past, rather than the present day. But that’s just my preference.

It’s wonderfully written and unputdownable! it will make you cry, and also horrified. It’s one of the better WWII historical novels I’ve read and I can’t wait to read the next two.

Book Description – The Prison Child

How will we get by the guards? It seems impossible. Yet we will be dead by the end of the week if we don’t—my precious girl and I have nothing to lose by trying.

Nazi-occupied Czechoslovakia, 1943: In Theresienstadt concentration camp, a brown-eyed baby girl is born in darkness, surrounded by barbed wire. The innocent new-born has no hope of surviving—unless, by some kind of miracle, she is able to escape…

In New York, over a decade later, Annie listens to her mother and father’s urgent whispers on her twelfth birthday. “They’re going to find out that she doesn’t belong to us. She’ll be taken away.”

The little girl’s world crumbles. That day, her search for answers begins…

Everything in Annie’s life is a lie. As she grows older, she pieces together the fragments of her past. With a broken heart, she uncovers a story of bravery in the face of evil, hope amongst darkness, and forbidden love—the kind of love that takes immense courage.

Will the secret of who she really is come to light? And can she ever be reunited with her birth family—if they’re even alive?

Fans of The Tattooist of Auschwitz, The Choice, and Orphan Train will be utterly glued to this unforgettable tale. It may break your heart, but it will piece it back together…

This book was previously published as The Other Blue Sky.

Book Description – The Soldier’s Letters

“Survive for as long as you can, fight until you can’t fight any longer, and if this war ever ends, I want you to run as far from here as you can and never look back…”

Nazi-occupied Prague, 1941: On a foggy winter’s day, a solider called Charlie is ordered to murder an elderly Jewish woman. He refuses, but that doesn’t stop another Nazi shooting her. As the woman’s daughter cries out, “Mama, no, please don’t leave me!” Charlie knows that he is not a killer. He vows to save as many lives as he can.

In Theresienstadt concentration camp, he sees the same sapphire-eyed girl with beautiful auburn hair. Her name is Amelia. He escorts her to Block B and memorizes her prison number. They are meant to be enemies yet, in that instant, he falls in love.

Yet in such hell, love isn’t meant to exist and they are destined to be torn apart. Despite this, Charlie never stops looking for Amelia, writing letters to her and keeping them safe. But what are the chances of her surviving the war? Will the soldier’s letters remain unread forever?

Fans of The Tattooist of Auschwitz, The Choice, and Orphan Train will be absolutely gripped by this heart-wrenching World War Two page-turner––a story of forbidden love, and its power to survive the impossible.

This book was previously published as Unspoken Words.

Author Bio

Shari J. Ryan is a USA Today Bestselling Author of Women’s Fiction, WWII Fiction, and 20th Century Historical Fiction with a focus on the Holocaust and Pearl Harbor.

Shortly after graduation from Johnson & Wales with a bachelor’s degree in marketing, Shari began her career as a graphic artist and freelance writer. She then found her passion for writing books in 2012 after her second son was born. Shari has been slaying words ever since.

With two Rone Awards and over 125k books sold, Shari has hit the USA Today Bestseller List, the Amazon’s Top 100, Barnes & Noble’s Top Ten, and iBooks at number one. Some of Shari’s bestselling books include Last Words, The Other Blue Sky, Unspoken Words and A Heart of Time.

Shari, a lifelong Boston girl, is happily married to her personal hero and US Marine and they have two wonderful little boys. For more details about her books, visit: www.sharijryan.com