⭐️⭐️⭐️ (3 out of 5 stars)

In Berlin is an emotional and thought-provoking story about two women whose lives intersect in unexpected and powerful ways. Anna is a young software engineer whose life changes in an instant when she suffers a spinal stroke, leaving her paralyzed. As she faces the overwhelming challenge of adjusting to a new reality, she meets Batul, a Syrian refugee working as a hospital janitor. Their friendship becomes the heart of the book, and easily the most compelling part of the story.

Silberstein clearly put a lot of care and research into portraying Anna’s condition, and the sections about her physical and mental recovery were incredibly moving. Her internal struggles, feeling like a burden, questioning her worth, felt very raw and real. Batul’s chapters, which I wasn’t sure about at first, ended up adding so much depth. Her perspective on faith, loss, and resilience brought a quiet strength to the story.

That said, while I appreciated the emotional weight of the book and its exploration of identity, disability, and cross-cultural connection, it didn’t always fully land for me. The dialogue sometimes felt overly intellectual, and Anna’s character could be frustrating in the way she approached Batul’s background. I also felt a little disconnected from the ending, it left some character arcs feeling a bit unfinished.

Overall, In Berlin is a thoughtful, character-driven novel with important themes and heartfelt moments. I’m glad I read it, even if I didn’t fully connect with everything. If you’re into quiet literary fiction with complex characters and a slower pace, this might be one to check out.

A big thank you to NetGalley and Liu Book Group for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

A novel about love, resilience, humanity and kindness. The story brings together two different, but equally strong and focused women due to circumstance, and follows the gentle and natural progression of their relationship. There is beauty and tenderness in this story told with care and understanding of disabilities and expectations. It’s an emotional journey with lingering feelings of satisfaction and hope.
Thank you to Liu Book Group for the advanced digital copy via NetGalley, in exchange for my honest opinion of this poignant love story.

This book is very dense. With all of the topics discussed and talking points, sometimes you could sense all of the juggling the wtiter had to do while bringing this book together. Still a great read and folk should definitely check it out.

I really enjoyed reading this book. It was satisfying to see a lot of disparate threads woven together so well, and it was clearly well planned and researched. It kept a consistently engaging pace throughout, so though it tackled hard topics it was still an easy read. Though I enjoyed it, it felt like something was missing, and I think I would have liked having more descriptions of the characters thoughts and feelings, and more detail/time spent at the big plot points - several you only learn happened when they are referenced in the future.

Overall, I would definitely recommend people check this book out - I gave it 3.5 stars.

I had huge hopes for the book. It started out great, and up until the last quarter, it was going well. The author was juggling a lot of topics smoothly, until it all combined into a mess by the end. The ending ruined the novel. It took away the progress and kind of made the story feel meaningless. Even though the ending was realistic, the epilogue/last chapter’s time skip and the sudden foray into science fiction ruined the story’s groundedness, making it even more unsatisfying. I have never experienced a tone shift like that in a novel before.

The characters don't have much chemistry, but you could feel it increasing, and when it felt like it was improving, the author put a stop to it. It felt like the queer character here is used as a token. She is written as shallow and one dimensional. There isn't much character development. The other lead also isn’t properly fleshed out. Even though the author did a fair bit of research and integrated many topics well, there is a fair share of stereotypes in the book. From the stereotype of the strong, cold, career oriented woman who is depicted as not caring for her partner, to several others.

The novelist favours a traditionalist narrative. This wasn't apparent at first, but as the novel goes on, it becomes clear where the book is headed, and the story becomes predictable. Even then, I hoped the author wouldn't take the easy way out and do something creative but that wasn't the case here.

Well written literary fiction with good romance is one of my favourite genres to read and this book had the potential to become one of the best l had read all year, but ultimately, it fell short. Though there were plenty of genuinely enjoyable moments and the writing flowed well at times, I finished the book feeling disappointed.

In one moment Anna is a thriving, young woman. In the next, she is finding her life altered due to a spinal stroke.

Batul is a determined medical student in Syria, whose education is cut short. Due to rising conflicts, she has to leave Syria and start all over in Germany.

Both Anna and Batul have encountered unimaginable setbacks, yet this is how their paths cross...in a hospital. One is the patient and one is the caretaker. It's a story of vulnerability and cultural awareness.

While I appreciated the spotlight on spinal injuries and the overwhelming emphasis on what a patient CAN do, it was incredibly heavy-handed on the medical piece. The large amount of medical explanations meant that the story and characters got lost in the process. Some of the plot pieces felt rushed <i>(especially in the final quarter of the book)</I> and roughly formed. It's a story that should evoke emotion, but I felt a little short-changed.

Thank you to Liu Book Group for the advanced digital copy via NetGalley, in exchange for an honest review. These opinions are entirely my own.

I found In Berlin to be a compelling, empathetic exploration of friendship, identity, and survival. Silberstein’s prose is thoughtful and immersive, and I rooted for both women through their triumphs and setbacks. If you’re drawn to literary fiction that tackles disability, immigration, and unconventional love with emotional honesty, this one’s for you.

Although I wanted to enjoy this book, unfortunately I don't believe it is for me. Whilst I was intrigued to get into this story, I found myself not being fully immersed, and I was struggling to pay attention to anything being said, causing me to feel lost.

This is absolutely not me saying this is a bad book - there has clearly been a lot of thought and research that has gone into this, however it just isn't something I was able to sink my teeth into.

I want to thank NetGalley and the publisher for giving me the opportunity to read this book.

In Berlin follows Anna, a software engineer, after suffering a rare spinal stroke leaving her paralyzed. The story follows Anna's recovery and the developing relationship with Syrian refugee, Batul, a janitor at the hospital.

I felt this story had so much potential but it fell short. The love story aspect felt very rushed and sudden but then also swept under the rug - I would have loved for this to have been developed further. The book tackles heavy themes following the Arab Springs but again I feel like they are underdeveloped and could have added many more layers to the story. The writing focused too much on explaining minor sections like getting over the metro bridge?

I also wish this had a better cover, it does it no service.

I'm afraid this book didn't interest me as much as I wanted it to. This led to me being unable to finish it. I got about halfway through the book but found that I couldn't invest myself in the characters or in the plot.

I throughout enjoyed this novel as I appreciated the layered and dense construction of the characters and their backgrounds, threading many different (maybe too many sometimes) political and cultural topics. In particular, the efforts put by the author in writing a as-much-as-possible faithful description of Anna and Batul's life and struggles with paralysis and moral believes, respectively, is really evident.

Although it might sound contradictory, some of the most interesting elements of the narrative are also the ones that actually prevented me for giving this book a full four star rating. I liked them in strictly stylistic and technical terms, as I can recognize the skills needed for their set up, but I still couldn't enjoy them from a personal point of view, as I believe they impaired the development of the narration and of the characters themselves. One of these is the actual evolution of Anna: despite her trying, she doesn't really seem able to understand Batul after all, which doesn't seem something understandable to me on the long term but just a growing depiction of selfishness.

I debated whether the right rating for this book could be and I can't be sure that I won't change it in the future. The dissatisfaction with some of the choices is strictly personal: I still believe that this book is really worth reading and I still would recommend it.

Thank you NetGalley for giving me the opportunity to read this fantastic book in advance.

«In Berlin» follows the life of Anna, a 24-year-old who’s living her life at its fullest. Her career as a software engineer looks brighter than ever and she can’t be happier with how her life is turning out to be right now. Until one day, out of the blue, she suffers a spinal stroke that leaves her paralyzed. From that point on, her life stops and she must focus on one goal only: regain her mobility and her Independence.

Along her way, full of desconsiderate doctors and nurses who aren’t able to look past her condition, she meets Batul, a young Syrian-immigrant who’s working as a janitor in the hospital while she tries to get admitted into Medicine. She’s one of the few people at hospital who sees Anna as a person, not only a patient, who cares about her wellbeing and tries to make her life easier and better. But Anna’s not the only one with problems: Batul’s struggling with her German and part of her family and friends are still in Aleppo since only her parents, brother and her could escape Syria during the Arab Spring.

«In Berlin» is an amazing story about hardships, friendship, cultural shock and love. Through Anna, who had everything in life and loses it all of a sudden, and Batul, who started from zero in a foreign country and is fighting to find her place, the reader discovers how wonderful life can be —even in the darkest of times— when you surround yourself with loving and brave people.

The only thing that made me give the book less stars is the fact that its rhythm is a bit erratic; sometimes it flows really well, at the beginning it’s so interesting you can’t stop reading, but close to the final chapters, it changes its tone and the plot feels a bit surreal. Even with that, the story is a must-read and I won’t stop recommending it.

In Berlin by Eric Silberstein is a deeply atmospheric and intellectually provocative novel that lingers long after the final page. Set against the backdrop of a city burdened by history and pulsing with reinvention, the story follows a man reckoning with memory, morality, and identity in post-Holocaust Berlin.

Silberstein crafts a thoughtful, layered narrative that merges the personal with the political, exploring themes of guilt, displacement, and the search for meaning in a fractured world. The prose is crisp and deliberate, often poetic, and the pacing is meditative rather than action-driven — a fitting rhythm for a book more interested in ideas than plot twists.

What stands out most is the emotional restraint paired with philosophical depth. The novel asks big questions without offering easy answers. It might not be for every reader — those looking for conventional storytelling or fast-paced drama may find it slow — but for readers who appreciate reflective, morally complex fiction, In Berlin is a rewarding experience.

Recommended for fans of postmodern literary fiction and readers drawn to narratives of post-war memory and moral ambiguity.

This book tries to tackle a lot of stuff, and while I think it's kind of disjointed about it and doesn't ever actually come to "a point", that's kind of the draw of literary novels like this? I really liked both of the main characters and their differing perspectives throughout the novel.

romantic and deeply insightful work. very literary and discusses some very well-written, well-rounded, interesting characters. 5 stars. tysm for the arc.

This is my first book from this author, and I enjoyed it so much that I immediately added his previous novel to my Want to Read shelf. From the very beginning, I was struck by this novel's unusual juxtaposition of characters, setting, and events. The two main characters, both female, are Batul, a Syrian refugee in Germany, and Anna, a software engineer who suffers a spinal stroke in the early pages of the novel. It's this injury, which leaves Anna almost completely paralyzed, that initially brings the two together in a chance meeting at the hospital. Their story is influenced by their very different cultural backgrounds, their overlapping interests in science and medicine, and by their needs for companionship and mutual assistance. This well-written novel is prompted in me a strong emotional response, engaging my heart as well as my mind with its compelling story of human suffering and resilience. Highly recommended!

This just wasn't for me. It certainly tried to tackle many present-day topics - disability, AI, immigration, etc.
But I found it to be a bit all over the place and an odd pairing of characters.
Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for access to this eARC.

The setting: Anna Werner is an independent young woman. She is a software engineer, and enjoys running. One day, on her commute home, she suffers a spinal stroke and becomes a tetrapelegiac [quadrapelegiac]. Hospitalized and devastated, she befriends Batul al-Jaberi, a Syrian immigrant/refugee who had dreams of becoming a medical student/physician and is now working as a janitor in the hospital.

The intersection and weave of their two stories was very interesting. Anna is gay. Batul is a devout Muslim whose culture does not recognize homosexuality. Batul's backstory--her family, the demonstrations and protests in Syria, and information on Assad's regime was quite engrossing. The friendship between Anna and Batul is initially tentative but a real bond develops between them. No spoiler, but things become complicated when Batul's childhood friend re-emerges after years imprisoned in Syria [and he shows up in Berlin].

New words:
axolotl --an amphibian
cezve -- small long-handled pot with a pouring lip designed specifically to make Turkish coffee; traditionally made of brass or copper
wudu --Islamic cleansing ritual

I will not be able to do this book justice. Suffice it to say, Anna and Batul "...were two people who became entangled due to proximity and loneliness." Their story is multilayered--as is this book.

Hardships, friendships, resilience, hope. A clash of cultures and norms.

I enjoyed this book and found it very thought-provoking--consider how both cultures and disabilities define us; and how mind can work over matter.

I particularly liked Batul and the other aides that assisted Anna [people with heart[].

My biggest complaint is the last 5% of the book where there was such a huge [time] leap. I would have liked for the narrative here to have been more fully developed; there were gaps that needed filling in.

3.5 but rounding up.

⭐️ 4/5

This one surprised me. In Berlin is emotional, intimate, and beautifully written. Anna’s journey through sudden paralysis is raw and unflinching. Her rehab, her anger, her resilience… it all felt so real. And then there’s Batul, a Syrian immigrant whose quiet strength balances out Anna’s chaos in the best way.

Their relationship is messy and complicated and so human. I do wish the ending had a little more breathing room, but overall this story was powerful and deeply moving. Not a light read, but absolutely worth it.

Thank you Liu Book Group for providing this book for review consideration via NetGalley!

Wow! Beautiful and tragic. Traditional and modern. Tenacity and calm. In Berlin has it all. Anna experiences a rare spinal stroke resulting in being dependent on others for even her basic needs. Then Batul comes into her life. A refugee from Aleppo, Syria who arrived to Berlin via Turkey after the Arab Spring. Both women have their ambitions but restricted because of their circumstances.

Thank you so much, NetGalley and the publisher, for an advanced copy. This book will stay with me for a long time.