Sisters of War

Again our bookclub were divided in their opinions. Many loved this book and felt they learnt a lot about the situation in Kiev during WW2 as well as reading a well written interesting and involving storyline. Others felt it was more a cliched love story with a predictable ending. Average score was 6.5

It is so wrong to judge a book by its cover! Two young women strolling down an empty street, one of whom carries a bunch of flowers does not prepare you to be thrown in to Kiev during the Nazi occupation of the second world war. This book is fast paced, well written and full of heartache, loss and love.

The author puts the reader firmly amid the horror, starvation and the kindness of strangers during a terrible time for this beautiful city.

Loved this book. So will you!

The German occupation of Kiev is something that was covered in a few paragraphs of my World War II history course in school. "Sisters of War" tells the story of this time in a very personal way. The Smirnova family is the center of this recounting of the brutal realities of war for the citizens of Kiev. Natasha and Lisa are sisters who are close but who get torn apart by what they both see as what they need to do for survival. They lose their home, family members and the lives they have always known. They experience starvation and constant fear. Will they lose each other as well?
This book was well written and characters were well developed. Historically it was very well researched and true. The only criticism I have is that the ending felt too abrupt as if the author was simply tired of writing and simply wanted it to be over. It seemed too cliched and too tied up with a pretty little bow.
I would recommend it to a friend to read, though.

A gripping book from start to finish. Well thought out characters and a harrowing storyline, not at all what I was expecting when I picked up the book.

Sisters of War
Lana Kortchik
*****

The book opens in Kiev in September 1941. The Germans are advancing, the Red Army are retreating and occupation is imminent. Natasha and Lisa are the eponymous Sisters of War, living in a loving family home with parents, grandparents and siblings. When the German army arrive and take over both their city and their home, the reality of living in a war zone takes its toll on the whole family. They have to live with severe deprivation, loss of loved ones and uncertainty about the future. But the war has even more devastating effects when it creates divisiveness and undermines trust. Natasha and Lisa in particular face crises which test their relationship to the limit.

This is a very good story, very well told and I was hooked from the start. It is fast-paced and is written in an engaging way which makes it very easy to read. The characters are well developed and I found myself desperately hoping that they could muster the strength to get through all the trials and tribulations which they had to face. The book has an authenticity which convinced me that the author had done extensive research and I certainly learnt a lot about a part of history that I knew very little about. Having said that, there were plenty of times when I really wished the family had not been subjected to such heart-wrenching situations which I, as the reader, felt as though I lived through with them. I know that I would not have coped had I been in their shoes.

I don’t think I can find anything negative to say – high praise indeed!

I would thoroughly recommend this book to everyone and hope that you enjoy it as much as I did.

The cover of this book slightly threw me as I expected it to be twee love story, something i might have found in a women's magazine! it was in fact the opposite, a truly gripping and gritty account of the horrors suffered under Nazi rule in Ukraine. The story was authentic and moving and beautifully written.