The Boy in the Attic by Imogen Matthews

Books

*AD-gifted: I received a copy of The Boy in the Attic in exchange for this post. Affiliate links are marked with a*

I have just finished reading a brilliant WWII historical fiction novel. You know it’s one of my favourite genres! *The Boy in the Attic by Imogen Matthews is one of those truly heartbreaking and emotional page-turners that you won’t want to put down. It is actually based on the author’s incredible family history, about a girl who risked everything, including her life, to save the man she loved. Heart-breaking and timely, this powerful tale will be loved by fans of The Tattooist of Auschwitz, The Nightingale and Fiona Valpy.

The Boy in the Attic by Imogen Matthews - Book Review

Book Description

Anna opened the letter with trembling hands. ‘My darling, if you’re reading this, I haven’t managed to unravel my parents’ secret. But you can. Will you finish the search for me, find out who they were, and who you really are?’

Nazi-occupied Holland, 1944. As soldiers patrol the streets, nursing student Ilse is only just surviving the terrible famine and increasingly violent German occupation. Though exhausted by her demanding work at a hospital far from home, she can’t help but notice Levi, the young man with the dark eyes watching the world silently from the abandoned house next door.

Then, early one morning, she finds him terrified and trembling with cold on the back doorstep. Levi’s Jewish family have been arrested and sent to a concentration camp, their likely fate all too clear. And now he needs her help.

So Ilse makes the most dangerous decision of her life, and takes Levi in. Hiding him away in her tiny attic room, he must remain concealed or risk almost certain death. But as the war worsens, keeping Levi a secret becomes ever more difficult, even as their mutual affection grows. And when a local German soldier becomes obsessed with Ilse, they fear their time – and luck – has run out…

London, present day. When Anna’s father dies, he leaves her a ticket to Amsterdam, a bent silver sixpence on a delicate silver chain, and a note begging her to complete the journey he was never able to. To the town where he was born, to find out once and for all who his parents were, and to discover their wartime fate.

What I Thought

I love the way the author brings the characters to life in both timelines. The Boy in the Attic is a dual-timeline story set in 1944-1945 and in the present day. It is one full of emotions whilst bringing you the brutal stark truth of Nazi-occupied Holland. Ilse wants to be a doctor, but her dreams are in tatters as all the universities are closed by the Germans. She has to fight for food on a daily basis for herself and her parents. Tulip bulbs are what they have to eat.

But she receives an invitation to go and help out at the sanatorium. It’s got to be better than her current situation, so off she goes. While working there Ilse moves in with her best friend Connie and is shocked at the amount of food they have to eat. The freedom they have, even to go out dancing! However, they must dance with Nazi officers. Ilse isn’t so sure. But then she understands why Connie is doing this and discovers her secret – a little boy in the attic.

In the present day, Anna finds a sixpence in her father’s things after his sudden death, Along with a name and address in the Netherlands. She decides to find out what this is all about and go on her father’s journey.

It was a very enjoyable read. I preferred Ilse’s story to Anna’s but overall I would highly recommend giving this one a go especially if you are a historical fiction fan!

Thanks for Bookouture and Netgalley for my copy.

Author Bio

Imogen Matthews writes novels based on true stories about the Netherlands during the German occupation in World War 2. Some stories she discovered by chance, others are based on her Dutch mother’s own experiences of hardship and survival during the Hunger Winter of 1944-45.

Her first novel, The Hidden Village, is set in the Veluwe woods, a beautiful part of Holland that Imogen has visited frequently over the past 30 years. It was in these woods that she discovered the story of the real hidden village which provided shelter in underground huts for Jews during WW2. Imogen retells the story of the hidden village with characters drawn from real life and from her imagination.

Within weeks of publication in 2017, The Hidden Village became an international bestseller, ranking at the top of a number of Amazon’s most-read book lists.

Following on from The Hidden Village comes Hidden in the Shadows, which has the pace of a thriller yet is also a love story. It tells the story of two young people who are brutally torn apart and must find a way to be together against all odds.

Imogen’s third WW2 novel, The Girl Across the Wire Fence, is set in Amersfoort, Netherlands, and is based on the unforgettable tale of two young lovers who risked everything to keep hope alive in the very depths of hell – the little known Dutch concentration camp called Kamp Amersfoort.

Imogen’s WW2 novels are published by Bookouture, a digital imprint of Hachette.

Learn more about Imogen’s story in this video: https://youtu.be/2YO0IWJSjj0

www.imogenmatthewsbooks.com

Facebook: @theHiddenVillagenovel

Twitter: @ImogenMatthews3Author email sign up: https://www.bookouture.com/imogen-matthews