While the Berlin Wall was falling Miriam is nursing her dying father Henryk when she comes across a deep family secret that could tear her life apart. She learns the stories of the Rabbit Girls who were kept in prisoner camps by the German army and used for the most horrific experiments. Will the stories of these brave but damaged girls give Miriam the strength that she needs to leave her abusing husband and find the friends and freedom she deserves.

Harrowing and uncomfortable reading along the way, this story is told in two parts, Miriam’s story and the story of true love in a world where live just wasn’t enough.

Miriam Winter is caring for her dying father Henryk and she still feels very guilty that she didn’t see her mother Emilie prior to her death. Her husband Axel is controlling, he stopped her from visiting her parents for years and he physically abuses her. Miriam discovers an Auschwitz tattoo hidden by her father’s watch strap, a secret he’s been keeping for decades, Miriam starts questioning things about her childhood and her relationship with her parents.

Henryk keeps calling for a woman called Frieda, Miriam starts looking for clues about her father’s past, she finds an old uniform from Ravensbruck women’s camp in her mother’s wardrobe, and hidden in concealed pockets are letters written by the mysterious woman. Miriam’s not sure if Frieda was a guard, or a prisoner at the camp and when were her parents married?

The letters reveal what happened at Ravensbruck, barbaric and experimental surgery was performed on young women and they were called the ‘Rabbit Girls.' Fifty years later Miriam's trying to put the story together, it’s one of terrible suffering, friendship, hope, love and survival.

I received a copy of The Rabbit Girls by Anna Ellory from NetGalley and Amazon Publishing UK in exchange for an honest review, I started this book on a previous occasion and I couldn’t get into the story. This time I persevered, I wish the narrative concentrated more on the Rabbit Girls and what happened at Ravensbruck, less about Miriam's troubled marriage and three stars from me.

This book was so different from other WWII novels I have read, and I thoroughly enjoyed it. Taking place in both present-day and the past, it takes you through the journey of a man, his greatest love, and their experiences at concentration camps, while simultaneously taking you through his last breaths, as an old, dying man. His daughter Miriam has limited time to piece together her father, mother, and fathers lovers past before he passes away. All while she battles her own demons.
Unputdownable. I really enjoyed this.

Thank you to NetGalley for a copy in exchange for my honest review.

This is a well written and emotional story of love, forgiveness, survival and resiliency. Miriam's journey of discovery is carefully plotted, unfolding for the reader as it does for her. A good read.

An amazing story told in the two timelines of the Berlin Wall coming down and Auschwitz in the second world war. The rabbit girls, who were used for experimentation by the Nazi's, was a fascinating story and although not an easy read one well worth doing

I expected to like this story more than I actually did. This is because I found the story moved too slowly. Granted, the stories were harrowing but I think a focus on what happened during the war would’ve been better. I wasn’t so keen on Miriam’s relationship with her husband, preferring instead the dramatic revealing of Frieda and Henrick’s experiences. I agree with other readers that I was disappointed that the book’s title related to only a small part of the actual story. I was disappointed not to read more about the Rabbit Girls.

This was an amazing read.
I’m probably one of the last to read this.

I listened to this on Audio and the two narrators were great.

The chapters alternate between two main people, each narrator taking on each persons voice.

I wasn’t expecting the author to be interviewed after the audio book and I didn’t realise this was based on historical event with the author inventing a personal slant on it. So wonderfully done.

It was emotional. It was enthralling so much so I had to put my Bluetooth headphones on whilst doing chores or cooking. I didn’t want to wait to see the outcome.

It wasn’t until the last few chapters I had a hint of what maybe.
And even so, it still brought a lump to my throat.

I’m so glad I finally got to this book

What an emotionally charged beautifully written book. In a time of horror we see such strength within the characters and their struggle to survive. The mistakes of Henryk and Frieda I have to admit really ticked me off, but I would never ever want such suffering to come to anyone. EVER. It is sick what the Nazi's did. The book is amazing! The beginning part of the book was a little too descriptive for me. I didn't really want to read two paragraphs about someone twisting their fingers and scrubbing their hands. I just wanted to really get into the book. But then as I read I realized the importance of why it was so descriptive. I guess. Still could have been less for me.
Berlin, 1989. As the wall between East and West falls, Miriam Winter cares for her dying father, Henryk. When he cries out for someone named Frieda—and Miriam discovers an Auschwitz tattoo hidden under his watch strap—Henryk’s secret history begins to unravel.

Searching for more clues of her father’s past, Miriam finds an inmate uniform from the Ravensbrück women’s camp concealed among her mother’s things. Within its seams are dozens of letters to Henryk written by Frieda. The letters reveal the disturbing truth about the ‘Rabbit Girls’, young women experimented on at the camp. And amid their tales of sacrifice and endurance, Miriam pieces together a love story that has been hidden away in Henryk’s heart for almost fifty years.

Inspired by these extraordinary women, Miriam strives to break through the walls she has built around herself. Because even in the darkest of times, hope can survive. #TheRabbitGirls #NetGalley

Thank you Netgalley for this ARC of The Rabbit Girls by Anna Ellory.

The Berlin wall has just come down, and while Miriam observes this miracle occur, she is also watching her father slowly deteriorate. But as her father phases in and out of consciousness, he begins to say a name that Miriam has never heard before, Frieda. Who is Frieda, and what kind of secrets has her father been keeping all of these years.

Ok, first off, I did really enjoy this book. Accounts of the Holocaust will never cease to humble and horrify me, and I always learn more about all that occurred. This was no exception. I enjoyed the dual narrative, watching this story slowly unfold, and uncovering long held secrets.

But, dang, it moved slow. It was slow and somewhat inconsistent. Miriam in particular drove me a bit bonkers. I am NOT victim blaming, but I just felt like her character was never clear. She would be dogged and aggressive one minute, and then a barely there wilting flower the next. But you know what, who am I to judge? I have never been the victim of such abuse as she experienced.

However, the story itself probably could have lost a fourth of it's weight and been just as much, if not more, powerful.

The Rabbit Girls by Anna Ellory was a beautifully written book. However, I found it was a very slow beginning and I nearly gave up on it several times and it did take me a long time to finally finish it. The Rabbit Girls is a World War 2 historical fiction and tells a story of a young girl called Miriam who goes to care for her dying father called Henryk, who lives in Berlin in the days following the fall of the wall which has divided the city since the 1960s. Whilst caring for her father, Miriam comes across a tattoo that is hidden under her fathers watch strap and wants to find out more information about it. Especially as her dad has never spoken about his past.
Miriam discovers old letters hidden in her late mother's wardrobe. Whilst reading them Miriam discovers their past that they have never spoken about. Miriam wants to learn more about the tattoo on her father's arm and is afraid to ask him as it will bring up some sad memories of his childhood in Jewish camps. You will find out more about Miriam's parents and about her marriage to an abusive husband.

This book was a very hard read However, I am so glad I stuck with it and I would recommend it. But, stick with it. Oh, you may need tissues.....I did!

Big Thank you to Netgalley and Amazon Publishing UK for supplying a copy of this novel in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you Netgalley for the review copy of this book.

Why did I leave this book until now to read? It was a very emotional journey into a hideous world but the characters drew me in from page 1. Would recommend to all who are interested in this period in our history.
Have bought a copy for my library as I feel it is a book everyone should read.

I have seen very mixed reviews for The Rabbit Girls by Anna Ellory and felt the time had come to make up my own mind. Set in two significant timelines, 1989 as the Berlin Wall falls, and World War II , the book is narrated by Miriam Winter, a young woman who is caring for her dying father. While delirious he keeps calling out for Frieda, a name unfamiliar to Miriam, and when she notices a tattoo on his forearm she begins to wonder about the secrets from the past he has hidden for so long. While searching for clues she finds a woman's uniform belonging to an inmate of Ravensbruck Concentration Camp, and on further examination she finds the letters that were hidden by being sewn into its seams and in concealed pockets. These letters are written to her father and signed by the mysterious Frieda, and form the basis of Miriam's quest to understand her father's past.
Alongside this story is a parallel one involving Miriam's abusive and gas lighting husband and her struggles to escape from his control. These are two very dark and hefty plot lines, and in trying to successfully manage both Ellory may have bitten off a little more than she could chew. I also found the title confusing, as while the Rabbit Girls ( a group of Polish women who were the subjects of horrific medical experimentation) are discussed in Frieda's letters in the book, they are peripheral to the main characters.
Overall a good book that takes on a little too much.
I read a review copy courtesy of NetGalley and the publisher, all opinions are my own.

Really loved this book, really compelling read and thoroughly enjoyed such an interesting story. Would highly recommmend.

I enjoy historical fiction and this book was divided into 3 parts, Henryk, his daughter Miriam and letters written to Henryk by someone named Frieda. The sections with Miriam weren't as strong as the sections with the letters from Miriam describing her time in the concentration camp nor Henryk's telling of his life prior to the war. I thought the story was pretty good but found that i wished the Miriam would stand up for herself more and that she wouldn't let her husband take advantage of her.

Trigger warnings for sexual assault, self-harm, violence, childbirth, miscarriage, domestic abuse.
Despite its misleading title, suggesting a focus on a group of women who were actually only in the background in this story, this was a compelling read. Henryk falls foul of the Nazi regime for his writing and his political stance. Frieda, the student he has fallen in love with while trying to escape discovery, is arrested with him and the story offers glimpses into both their lives fighting for survival within separate concentration camps over the next year.
Miriam’s life, and her discovery of her father’s story while bearing witness to his dying, adds a layer of complexity to this book. The story of her marriage and the erosion of normality from her life is heartbreaking, but eventually events give rise to some optimism about her future.
Overall, this was a book that will stay with me. The trauma from this dark period of history continues to resound decades later, and fiction that reminds us how closely evil lurks is increasingly important in the world today.
My thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Usually, I preface these reviews with the intro about how I only read three chapters being interrupted by my mum… yada yada. But today’s review is part of a #BlogTour for Anna Ellory and I’ve decided to take a slight detour – so, if you’re ready for the emotional rollercoaster, sitting comfortably etc, I’ll begin.

Storytime: (If you’re not interested and want to just read my review, feel free to return at the **)

Five or six years ago, I was an ad-hoc daytime companion for a lady named Erna. She had dementia, was bedridden, amongst a long list of other ailments. She couldn’t watch television for more than five minutes without changing the channel a hundred times, unable to concentrate on anything, distracted or irritated. She hated having a pillow under her knee, but the nurse insisted. She’d try and trick you into moving the pillow, but you had to stand firm against her wily fragility. And she would scream or cry if left alone for more than two minutes, even if she’d asked you to make her a tea or fetch the paper.

But I sat with her, for hours, days, because I loved her husband, John Kidson, like an adopted granddad. And if he needed me to sit with Erna whilst he went to the rugby, Tescos or any other reason – I would be there for them.

At around one o’clock, the nurses would come. They’d always politely suggest I go have something to eat or leave the room so Erna could be bathed, changed and everything else. In my young and selfish mind, I was really glad I wasn’t the one who actually had to care for Erna. That I could walk away.

Stories about anyone in this position always make me uncomfortable, because books are an escape for me. A separate world from my own which is – hopefully – slightly less tragic than the Brexit hellscape we’re currently living in.

But with Rabbit Girls… I didn’t feel I could put it down. Not just but because I’d agreed to do this blog (I was actually two-thirds of the way through it when I was asked) but because the writing begged to be read. The story deserved to be told. And I’d agreed, whether consciously or not, to keep my promise and find out how it ended.

** The Review.

Speaking of hellscapes… In half the story, the Berlin wall has fallen and in the other half, the Holocaust plagues our charming and compassionate characters as they’re tortured, experimented on and systematically destroyed. Both stories are intertwined by family, hope in the darkest of times and rebellion. Miriam Winter is caring for her dying father, Henryk, when she discovers an Auschwitz tattoo under his watch strap. Miriam, needing to understand more about her father’s past, discovers an inmate’s uniform which has letters smuggled within it.

What you should expect before going into this is:

You’re going to cry. A lot. Have tissues etc prepared.
You’re going to question yourself, whether you’re a good person. Whether, like me, you’re selfishly hiding from cruel realities others have suffered.
You’re going to be in awe of the writing. It’s incredible, there’s no denying that.
Anna Ellory is a master (with a Masters) craftswoman of literary fiction, historical realities, and intriguing characters and narratives. It feels authentic, and it hurts. I cannot recommend it highly enough.

And I’m really excited to say this, to Anna’s face (potentially in an aggressive-loving-kinda-way) next week when I see her.

100/10 would recommend. Thank you for letting me be part of your Blog Tour!

This is a great historical book but the title of this book is very misleading. I would have liked more focus on the real Rabbit Girls but did enjoy reading the letters from
Frieda but found it hard to believe that at that age living in Germany, Miriam didn’t know anyone who had been in the holocaust since many would still have been alive at that point. I also despised the character of Axel and how much control he had over her.

The Rabbit Girls is a tough historical fiction novel that is not a easy read. There are some tough topics and a lot going on in this story. The story is well written but is a slow read.

I really expected to like this book a lot but there were so many unrealistic things going on that I just kept noticing. I found it hard to focus- the supposedly main characters were skimmed over. On top of that, it was uncomfortable reading so I couldn’t give it more than 2 1/2 stars. Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for allowing me to read and review this book.

To be honest I found this story very disappointing. I am a big fan of historical fiction but found this plot very weak. The characters weren't very likeable or believable. My biggest issue was with the title itself. The story had very little to do with the tragic Rabbit Girls and really shouldn't be used to promote the book.