In 1942 Poland we meet Elzbieta, a 14 year old girl living in a crowded home just outside the walls of the Warsaw Ghetto. When Elzbieta befriends Sara, a nurse living in the apartment upstairs, she uncovers the truth of what lies inside the Ghetto and unable to turn a blind eye, she makes the brave decision to venture inside the Ghetto with Sara to help. It is there that she meets 16 year old Roman, rebellious by nature and intent on fighting the Nazis until his dying breath. His need tor vengeance endangers everyone in his life, but Elzbieta can’t bring herself to turn her back on him.

This book is a parallel story to the one told in The Things We Cannot Say and if you have not read that yet, please do yourself a favor and order it right now. It is one of my favorite books of all time and I can’t say enough good things. You don’t need to read that one in order to read this one, but on a scale of 1-10 it’s a 27, so you should.

Five heart wrenching stars to this one. If you love historical fiction, read this. If you need a good cry, read this. If you just love good books in general, read this. I haven’t had a good cry from a book in a while so I was definitely due for one and this book had me wrecked. I felt everything - sad, mad, happy, you name it. Please just read it, and have the tissues nearby.

I love Kelly Rimmer. She knows how to write a book that is going to crush and break you, but also make you feel inspired and hopeful. If you haven't read The Things We Cannot Say, you absolutely, 100% HAVE to read it. Her newest book, The Warsaw Orphan, is technically a sequel to that one, but can be read as a standalone. It comes out June 1st, so that gives you time to read The Things We Cannot Say (and also pick up another one of her amazing books that I loved, Before I Let You Go). 

Quick Synopsis:

Elzbieta just moved to Warsaw with her adoptive parents, Truda and Matuesz. The Nazis have occupied the city and her parents try everything in their power to keep her inside the apartment and away from the turmoil and horrors that occur everyday on the streets. As she starts to feel helpless, she befriends her neighbor Sara, a social worker and nurse. Once Elzbieta learns that Sara is going past the wall to help Jewish families, she finds her purpose. While in the ghetto she meets Roman, a courageous, angry young man who will do anything to protect his siblings and family. Their paths become entangled and they both struggle to survive through the terrible times. 

This one was told from the perspectives of both Elzbieta and Roman. While they went through different experiences, one of the main things they both learned was that your "family" doesn't only include those you are related to by blood. And as is a theme in a lot of WWII books, there were so many everyday people who became heroes during that time. This story was inspired by real-life heroines who saved thousands of Jewish children during the Holocaust. I love that Kelly travelled to Poland and did tons of research to make sure these stories were as authentic as possible. The Warsaw Orphan feels very timely, as they spoke a lot about how inaction against hatred and racism can be just as horrible as the crime itself. 

I highly recommend this one to my fellow historical fiction lovers. 5 huge stars from me!! Thank you @@kelrimmerwrites and @netgalley for the #arc! 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟

There definitely is an over abundance of historical fiction books out there that are written about World War II and the holocaust. This is one of the best ones I’ve read and should be on everyone’s TBR list! Special thanks to NetGalley and Harlequin Trade Publishing for a free electronic ARC of this novel in exchange for an honest review.

The author of this book, Kelly Rimmer, does a magnificent job of researching and writing this masterpiece. The story centers on two Polish teenagers - Elzbieta and Roman. Roman is Jewish and forced to live in the Warsaw ghetto with his family while Elzbieta is Christian and lives outside the ghetto with her adoptive parents. The hardships and injustices forced on the Jews spur Elzbieta to take action and she starts working with a group who is dedicated to rescuing as many Jewish children as they can. It is on one of her trips into the ghetto that she meets Roman and his family and develops a lasting bond with him. When tragedy strikes, Roman joins a resistance group and becomes involved in the ghetto uprising. The lives of these two teens takes very different paths during and after the war but it’s their lasting bond that perseveres.

The author of this book is an amazing storyteller and I was captivated from the very first page! Just when I would think things couldn’t get any worse for the main characters, the author would throw in a new dilemma for them to face. From start to finish this story is one of hope in the face of overwhelming devastation and a true testimony to the strength of the human spirit.

Kelly Rimmer’s eagerly anticipated novel, “The Warsaw Orphan,” is inspired by Irena Sendler (Kryzyzanowski), a real-life Polish nurse and heroine, who smuggled thousands of Jewish children out of the Warsaw Ghetto.

Meticulously researched and stuffed with heart-rendering emotion, this is more than a story about survival during Nazi-occupied Poland. It’s a call to arms. Not by taking up guns and ammunition, but to dig deep and find love, generosity, and kindness then openly and lavishly share it with others. We see how 14-year-old Elzbieta Rabinek, despite losing everyone dear to her, knew that courage was in her blood. She had inherited it at birth. She had learned it from the legacy of those she’d lost. Armed with that knowledge, she reached deep within and accessed it. Under disguise as a social worker’s aid, she gained access to the Warsaw Ghetto, saw the horror behind the walls and was impelled to give over 2000 children a chance at a better life. An orphan herself and searching for her place in this world, she helped give defenseless young people a second chance. We may not have the chance to be an inspiring humanitarian and save thousands of lives, but we have option of using the 86,400 seconds we are blessed with every day to share a smile, pay it forward with a coffee, offer a stressed mother a hand, or help an elderly person. Instead of fingering someone who carelessly cut us off, budged in line, or failed to be a decent human being, we could fight it with kindness.

“I need to believe that there is some hidden depth of grace within these men who torture us, because if there isn’t, then all hope is lost. And it’s not just lost for us, Roman, but for humanity, because even once all this is over, this evil could emerge from the souls of men again and again and again.”

Like Elzbieta, let’s fight against this evil in human nature so that hope for humanity isn’t lost. It has and will emerge, but if enough of us are fighting it, we can give hope and love room to blossom. Rimmer’s book reminds us to choose kindness.

I think the two things that I’ll remember most about this book, besides Rimmer’s message between the pages, are firstly, Rimmer’s juxtaposition of events throughout. For example, the Spring flowers and Elzbieta’s elation at riding the Ferris wheel in the square with the gunshot and silence and then bookended with the man working the ride audaciously uttering “Have a lovely day.” How? Secondly, I won’t forget the difference a timely hand up would have meant to the little girl in the alley and to Sarah’s child.

Rimmer’s rich characters and haunting setting take backseat to her ability to immerse the reader into the plot. The use of first person and alternating points of view added to this superb story. Rimmer wrote to my five senses: I smelled the sewer clothing on the steps, I heard the baby in the handbag, I saw the gaunt people, I fingered the soil under the apple tree and I tasted the state, stodgy birthday cake. I strongly urge you to purchase Rimmer’s historical fiction masterpiece come June 1, 2021.

Extreme gratitude to Kelly Rimmer, Graydon House, and NetGalley for the gift of my advance reading copy. I received it for free and was under no obligation to provide a review.

A survey published in 2020 shows that 63% of young adults in American grossly underestimate the horror and magnitude of the extermination of Jews by the Nazis during WWII. What’s even more shocking is the number of those surveyed who said they believed the Holocaust was a myth. This book will put those doubts to rest. A magnificently researched and well written piece of historical fiction, it should be mandatory reading in all American schools.
Set in Warsaw, Poland, this is the story of the Warsaw Uprising as told through the eyes of two teenagers, one who lived in the ghetto and took and active part in the ghetto uprising. The other who lived outside the ghetto walls but went inside and was instrumental in secretly escorting children out of the ghetto before they could be “relocated” and face certain death at the hands of the Nazis. Although fictionalized, the author based one of the main characters on an actual historical person who secretly and successfully removed thousands of children from the Warsaw ghetto. A tale of cruelty, sacrifice, uprising, greed, courage, and love, the story pulls no punches. It highlights the worst of humanity during the Nazi occupation, but also offers a glimpse into the best of humanity as it wrestles with everyday survival during the most trying of times. Highly recommended. Thanks to Netgalley for providing a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing this book in exchange for an honest review.
Historical fiction books about WWII are quite plentiful anymore and some are retelling of the same story that's already been told in better stories. This book differs in that it features two teenagers, one inside the Ghetto walls and one outside the walls.
This book is very well written and really develops the characters to show the true struggles they went through. It's hard to believe that these brave people could keep any positivity about what their future held.

A powerful and unforgettable story.
This one will stay with you and having you turning the pages as fast as you can !
I highly recommend this book!

This story, set in the harrowing time of the holocaust, is beautifully written, meticulously researched, This is based on a true story of a heroine who saved thousands of orphans during WWII; along with what happened to a couple of close families, Nd how they connected during this tumultuous time. I highly recommend you grab a copy after its release in late April.

The Warsaw Orphan is one of the hardest, most emotional, historical fiction books I’ve read to date. The characters are well written and you grow to love each of them in different ways. The life they lived and how they coped, fought, and dealt with the hand they were given was admirable. I will definitely recommend this book to friends and family.

This is another good book by Rimmer about Warsaw ghetto and the children . Her writing draws you in and makes you feel like you are there . It is a well written book

This is a powerful and emotional story about the Warsaw and Ghetto uprisings. We are witness to the cruelty and devastation of the war as well as the aftermath. An important aspect of the novel is the desperate attempts made to free the children from the ghetto by an extraordinary display of bravery as a young Elzbieta secretly joins the force. A romance develops between Elzbieta and Roman, a Jewish boy, determined to fight the Germans no matter what. Pain and tragedy on all sides as the years progress and the characters grow into their new lives. a powerful and well researched novel with another aspect of this devastating war is brought to life. #TheWarsawOrphan #KellyRimmer #NetGalley

Elzbieta lives in Warsaw during 1942 and experiences the war in a very tough way. She and her neighbor Sara become friends, and eventually she learns more about the role that Sara is playing in the war and it lights a fire in Elzbieta too. Before long, Elzbieta is joining Sara in entering the ghetto to assist in the smuggling of the Jewish children to safety. She connects with one family, and their older son Roman. That connection deepens quickly but many giant challenges are ahead of them as the war rages on.

This book is tough. The war resulted in many horrible conditions and treatment of people, and this story focuses primarily on children which can be very hard to read. I thought it was a very well written and I was easily transported to Warsaw and the tough conditions that the characters lived in.

From the horrors of the Warsaw Ghetto, to the uprising, to the communist regime, The Warsaw Orphan delves into a horrific period of history to bring us a well-researched, well-written novel. The book is a roller coaster of highs and lows as we read about some of the bravest acts, but also some of the most despicable.

The story does not hold back when describing what some people did to help free children from the ghetto. Elzbieta, a fourteen-year-old who has already seen too much pain and suffering, is unwavering in her determination to help the Jews caught behind the wall however she can. Her neighbor, Sara, works as a social worker, entering the ghetto day in, day out. Elzbieta will join her on these daily nightmares, doing what she can to help the children. It is in one of these ghetto homes that she will meet Roman as Sara try to convince his parents to let them help save his brother and baby sister.

With an effort to transport the people in the ghetto to work camps, it is closed to outsiders, leaving Sara and Elzbieta unable to help. However, the Jewish resistance is alive and well. The descriptions of the Uprising and its 28-day battle is unsettling. Poorly equipped and starving, Roman and his friends will face off against the highly trained Germans.

Throughout this novel, we will read of the pains, heartaches, suffering, despair and hope of Elzbieta and Roman. Even when the war finally ends and the Nazi occupation is over, the suffering does not as now Poland is in the hands of the Red army. There will be difficult decisions to be made. Kelly Rimmer has brought us a traumatizing, heart-wrenching novel. I received a copy of this book for an honest review.

What an incredible book! I read so many historical WW2 fiction and I can't believe that there can still be stories I haven't read. These authors amaze me. I loved reading this from 2 different view points, and learning about life in one of the Jewish ghettos. I actually didn't know too much about the revolts so to learn more of what happened was very eye opening.
Kelly Rimmer is becoming one of my favourite authors, I love everything she puts out!

Enjoyed this book! The beginning is slow and focuses on character development, but then things really pick up. This is a horrifying story about individuals living as Jews in a world where Jews are exterminated. Following two teens through life as they attempt to fight back and simply survive is a very heart wrenching trip. Well written, this book will stay with you!

Thank you to netgalley and the publishers on the chance to read this book in exchange for my honest review! Rimmer does it again folks! She has such a special talent for really connecting readers to her story. The characters are well developed and she completely pulled my heart strings. I am always a sucker for a good historical fiction and this one will absolutely be on some "best of 2021" lists!

"The Warsaw Orphan" by Kelly Rimmer
Release Date: 6.1.2021

Inspired by a true story of a young woman who saved thousands of Jewish children during World War II.

Elzbieta Rabinek sees the changes in her community in early 1942. She doesn't like the new presence of Nazi soldiers in her Warsaw neighborhood. She hates the curfews. While hiding her true identity, she becomes friendly with a nurse in her building, Sara.

Elzbieta uses Sara's credentials to enter the Warsaw ghetto, where she sees the deplorable conditions of the living conditions of her Jewish neighbors. Elzbieta helps many other families smuggle their children out of the ghetto.

She meets the Gorka family, who decides to allow Elzbieta to smuggle their newborn daughter out of the ghetto, moving her to safety. Their son, Roman, joins the Resistance group in the ghetto. Elzbieta and Roman become close, but his dedication to the Resistance puts Elzbieta and her family in danger. They leave for their safety, but Elzbieta hopes to find Roman after the war, but it seems impossible after the communist takeover by the Russians.

Wow! Just wow! I knew of the network of brave young women who smuggled children out of the ghetto. Ms. Rimmer just made their work come alive. I laughed and cried. The decision to send their children away, trusting strangers to care for their children, that could not be easy. This novel really brought the despair and heartbreak that was experienced to life. It was that well-researched and written.



Thank you to @NetGalley for the opportunity to read in exchange for my honest review.


#bookstagram #bookstagrammer #netgalley #netgalleyreads #2021bookreleases #harlequin #thewarsaworphan #kellyrimer #historicalfiction #2021historicalfiction #worldwar2fiction #worldwariifiction

I very much enjoy historical fiction and read a lot of novels set during the II World War. This one was not like many others, the focus was on live within Warsaw Getto walls, and terror that many had to live in before being deported to the extermination camps. Truly well written and researched book. The author writes about Poles living through Getto and Warsaw uprisings and its devastation, there is a mention of a heroine who had saved lives of many Jewish children.

The characters were very well developed and the ending surprised me. I recommend this book to anyone who enjoys historical fiction.

Thank you HARLEQUIN – Trade Publishing (U.S. & Canada) and NetGalley for this ARC.

Kelly Rimmer is an exceedingly talented author that I am constantly recommending to anyone who crosses my path. Her newest book is another excellent addition to WWII fiction and deals with the Polish invasion and subsequent communist takeover by the Russians in the aftermath of the Nazi defeat. This book is filled with anguish, hope, and love. It is such a moving tale, and I really loved all the characters and never wanted this well-written story to end!!

I have read other books about the extermination of the Warsaw ghetto by the Nazis during WWII but this novel gives a different view of it from two teenagers - one inside the ghetto and one outside who both fight against what is happening to the Jewish people. The main character is inspired by a real person who saved thousands of children from certain death. Even though I knew the basic story, this book was still a real page turner as I followed the lives of these two young people and hoped for a good outcome for both of them.

In the spring of 1942, fourteen year old Elzbieta is becoming aware of what is going on behind the walls of the ghetto. Up until then her main concerns were the city curfew and the Germans who patrolled the streets. When she becomes friends with Sara, a nurse who lives upstairs, she becomes part of a network of people who work with the children in the ghetto and try to help them escape. On one of her trips, she meets Roman. He lives with his parents, younger brother and a new baby. He and his brother are constantly trying to get food for his mother so that she can nurse the baby. When tragedy strikes his family and all is lost, Roman becomes part of the resistance group in the ghetto who plan to fight to take control from the Germans. Elzbieta and Roman become friends and there is a real possibility of love but his fervor for the rebellion in the ghetto puts Elzbieta and her family in danger and they need to flee. Will they be able to find each other again during the war or will the war and the fighting after the war with the Russian troops keep them apart forever?

This was a well written and well researched novel that was set during turbulent years in Warsaw. The two main characters were we written and I was cheering them both on throughout the story. Yes, there were tears as I read this novel but there was also a strong hope for peace and love for these two. If you enjoy WWII fiction, you definitely don't want to miss The Warsaw Orphan.

Thanks to the publisher for a copy of this book to read and review. All opinions are my own.