From Malice to Ashes: Forest of No Mercy
A WWII Novel Inspired by Actual Events
by Gary W. Toyn; Narrated by Matt Armstrong
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Pub Date Oct 01 2025 | Archive Date Dec 15 2025
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Description
A Haunting WWII Novel Inspired by Actual Events
Spanning Nazi-occupied Lithuania, Soviet labor camps, and the refugee corridors of wartime Europe, From Malice to Ashes follows three families torn apart by two brutal regimes.
Olek Kosmen, a young Jewish man hiding in a forest cabin, becomes an unwitting chronicler to one of the Holocaust’s earliest massacres in Lithuania’s Ponary Forest. Eventually captured, Olek is forced into the Nazi “Burning Brigade,” a unit of 80 men tasked with exhuming and incinerating the bodies of Ponary’s victims to erase the evidence of mass murder. Knowing they’ll be executed once they finish their grisly job, the prisoners’ only hope for survival lies in an audacious escape tunnel they are digging with their bare hands. As SS soldiers push them to complete the gruesome task and Soviet forces close in, the race to finish the tunnel tests the prisoners’ will to survive beyond human limits.
Meanwhile, Olek’s fiancée flees to neutral Sweden, while her parents are deported to Siberia, where they must survive one of Stalin’s harshest labor colonies. Their fates converge in a sweeping, true-to-history story of resistance, survival, and the will to reclaim family and truth.
From Malice to Ashes offers a powerful and meticulously researched portrait of moral courage amid unimaginable horror. For readers of Mark Sullivan and Kristin Hannah, this compelling and ultimately redemptive novel sheds light on a largely forgotten chapter of Holocaust history.
A Note From the Publisher
Our primary goals are to build early awareness and collect thoughtful reviews from engaged readers ahead of the October 1, 2025 release. We are running paid promotions, seeking trade and influencer reviews, and will follow up with NetGalley reviewers as part of our launch plan.
Advance Praise
"A searing, deeply human portrait of moral resistance in the face of annihilation...(an) intense novel of a Holocaust atrocity, told with immediacy and brutal honesty. --Editor's Pick - Booklife Reviews (Publisher's Weekly)
"A piercing and detailed look at a lesser-known aspect of the Second World War, shedding light on events largely unknown to Western audiences." -- Kirkus Reviews
"Toyn layers suspense in different ways — sometimes fast and urgent, sometimes claustrophobic and psychological.” — Historical Fiction Company
Marketing Plan
The marketing campaign for From Malice to Ashes: Forest of No Mercy combines targeted reviewer outreach, paid advertising, influencer engagement, and reader resources designed to generate both critical and grassroots support.
Reviewer Outreach: Direct outreach to trade reviewers, niche historical fiction reviewers, Holocaust studies reviewers, and Jewish-interest publications. The novel has already earned recognition from Kirkus Reviews and Booklife Reviews (Editor’s Pick), and is featured in Publishers Weekly’s Frankfurt Book Fair edition. Additional outreach includes academic and public librarians, book bloggers, and Goodreads reviewers with a focus on WWII and historical fiction.
Paid Advertising: Strategic use of Publishers Weekly, NetGalley promotions, Amazon ads, and targeted BookBub placements to reach historical fiction readers.
Influencer Engagement: Partnerships with historical fiction bookstagrammers, Jewish Book Council, and niche reading communities on Instagram, TikTok, and Facebook.
Book Club Support: A full reader’s guide with discussion questions, an author Q&A, and thematic essays will be distributed to book clubs and reading groups, both directly and through NetGalley.
Local & Regional Promotion: Outreach to Utah libraries, bookstores, and media highlighting Toyn as a local author featured in Publishers Weekly. Author talks, signings, and virtual events will extend reach to community and academic audiences.
Long-Tail Visibility: Ongoing digital presence through press kit materials, social media campaigns, and repurposing of industry recognition to sustain momentum leading into the October 2025 release.
Available Editions
| EDITION | Audiobook, Unabridged |
| ISBN | 9781736457665 |
| PRICE | $16.95 (USD) |
