The Warsaw Sisters By Amanda Barratt

The Warsaw Sisters

by Amanda Barratt

Publisher: Revell

ISBN: 9780800741716

I've read one story by the author and I remember it being very powerful. As soon as I saw this one, I knew I had to read it. Whew! This one will feel like you've been sucker punched while rooting desperately for the sisters! I received this book for review from the publisher.

Summary:

A richly rendered portrait of courage, sacrifice, and resilience 

On a golden August morning in 1939, sisters Antonina and Helena Dąbrowska send their father off to defend Poland against the looming threat of German invasion. The next day, the first bombs fall on Warsaw, decimating their beloved city and shattering the world of their youth.

When Antonina's beloved Marek is forced behind ghetto walls, along with the rest of Warsaw's Jewish population, Antonina knows she cannot stand by and soon becomes a key figure in a daring network of women risking their lives to shelter Jewish children. Meanwhile, Helena finds herself drawn into the ranks of Poland's secret army, joining the fight to free her homeland from occupation. 

But the secrets both are forced to keep threaten to tear them apart--and the cost of resistance may prove greater than either ever imagined.

My Review:

The Warsaw Sisters was an incredibly heavy story to read. In many of the WWII stories we read, there are moments of lightness, victory, and even a bit of romance. If you're looking for a "light" read, this story is NOT it. If you want to get into the trenches and live vicariously through fictional characters who are trying to survive the annihilation of an entire country, this story is absolutely for you.

I'll tell you, you have flickering moments of lightness, but it felt like a blink and it was gone. Any victory was very short lived. As for romance, I don't think I could say that it was really in the story. There were glimpses of love and growing feelings, but always just seemed out of reach for the sisters.

We're carried (rather quickly in the beginning) from the start of Warsaw becoming occupied by the Germans in 1939, and within just a couple of years the girls we meet at the start are no longer the same innocent young women. Their lives and the world around them have been devastated and you will feel every bit of it with them. The author is certainly gifted in that area!

Antonina and Helena were truly just your average twin sisters who were the apple of their father's and aunt's eyes. Then, war. Both sisters, over time, have to make heart wrenching decisions. It was so compelling to live through their fictional lives, wondering to myself what I might do in those situations. Like them, one doesn't know until they're faced with it.

A heart-wrenchingly powerful story that was written to help us never forget what happened to millions of innocent people! This story will absolutely move you.

To me, there wasn't an incredibly strong faith thread in the story - more so towards the very end. The family was Catholic and it was mentioned they went to church on Sundays. While both sisters struggled (and understandably so) Antonina, I think, questioned God the most. They would remember things their father said to them, and Antonina (maybe Helena) spoke to a priest once who really encouraged her.

SPOILER BELOW:

Antonina also sleeps with a man she had fallen in love with (and he loves her) before the war in a moment of desperation.

About the Author:

Amanda Barratt is the bestselling author of numerous historical novels and novellas, including The White Rose Resists (a 2021 Christy Award winner) and Within These Walls of Sorrow. She is passionate about illuminating oft-forgotten facets of history through a fictional narrative. Amanda lives in Michigan. Learn more at AmandaBarratt.net.