The Rabbit Girls

Did you think I’d be all about The Testaments today? Well I kind of am but before I disappear to devour that book, it’s my stop on The Rabbit Girls blog tour, a book I really want you to have on your radar.

I first heard about The Rabbit Girls when I read Lilac Girls last year and have been interested in them ever since. These remarkable women have such an incredible and heart wrenching story that I just needed to know more about them and so I jumped at the chance to be on this blog tour.

Berlin, 1989. As the wall between East and West falls, Miriam Winter cares for her dying father, Henryk. When he cries out for Frieda – and Miriam discovers an Auschwitz tattoo hidden under his watch strap – Henryk’s secret history begins to unravel.

Later Miriam finds an inmate uniform from the Ravensbrück women’s camp with dozens of letters to Henryk written by Frieda hidden in the seams. As she works through them she starts to piece together a love story that has been hidden away in Henryk’s heart for almost fifty years.

This is one of those beautiful and poignant books that just flows so smoothly. Part of me wanted to tear through the pages, part of me never wanted it to end. While I did work out the secrets quite early on I still really enjoyed letting it all unfold.

Anna Ellory writes beautifully, it is hard to believe this a debut, but you should note that in places it is a dark and uncomfortable read with some particularly upsetting scenes. What these women endured at that camp really is unimaginable but the friendships, loyalty and will to survive that they showed is awe-inspiring. The Rabbit Girls is ultimately a hopeful story of love, survival, strength and sacrifice.

The Rabbit Girls by Anna Ellory is out now in hardback and published by Lake Union. It is one that I would recommend particularly if you enjoy historical fiction. Thank you so much to ED PR for allowing me to be part of this blog tour.

Have you read The Rabbit Girls? I’d love to hear your thoughts.

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