Don’t Let Them Win

To Find My Mother by Mary Wood is a powerful historical novel that consumed me from the start.

The novel follows a Czech Jewish girl through World War II and beyond. It is a heartbreaking and horrifying read as Mary Wood captures the atmosphere of terror with her words.

Two young girls are separated from their mothers who are thrown into the ghetto. Both girls are rescued by a stranger who places them on a farm for safety. However, both girls are determined to seek out their mothers, whatever the consequences. And what happens next is truly awful. The Nazis had black hearts as they carried out despicable acts.

It was understandable to wonder “why Elohim had abandoned them.” In the darkest times, it is all to easy to think we have been abandoned.

We see that bravery is not necessarily about feeling brave. “I don’t feel brave. I just feel compelled to do something about the injustice of it all.” Some could not stand idly by. They could not do nothing.

The reader travels from the ghetto to Theresienstadt. “Wondering… if Elohim was truly there, or if only hell existed.” Survival came with a slice of luck as cruelty was the order of the day.

War brings different moral codes as we witness people doing what they could in order to survive.

The Nazi ideology created monsters. Some were visible. Others lurked beneath the surface. All were present.

Love and a desire to be reunited kept a mother and her daughter searching for each other.

After the war, the action moves to Argentina, Britain and America. Caution is still the order of the day as prejudices and injustices did not necessarily end with the war.

To Find My Mother was a powerful, all-consuming read. It must be read in memory of the six million innocents who died and of those who survived.

I received a free copy via Rachel’s Random Resources. A favourable review was not required. All opinions are my own.

JULIA WILSON

To Find my Mother

A HARROWING AND YET UPLIFTING STORY OF SURVIVAL AND LOVE

Best friends Jana and Eva are carefree eight-year-olds in Prague-until Nazi occupation tears their lives apart.

As their mothers are taken away and the girls face the horrors of war, survival becomes all that matters

In Theresienstadt, two desperate women make unimaginable sacrifices to one day find their children.

But will love and hope be enough to help them reunite?

Purchase Link

https://bit.ly/4sSQos8

To Find My Mother will be on a Kindle Countdown deal of 99p from 1st – 8th June

Author Bio –

Mary was brought up in Leicestershire where her family settled when she was six months old, Mary now lives in Blackpool with her beloved husband Roy. Their children have long flown the nest and are living happily with their partners and have extended Mary and Roy’s happiness by giving them eight wonderful grandchildren, and umpteen great grandchildren, all of whom are a joy to them.

Mary began writing in the 1980’s but didn’t find success until she self-published on amazon in 2011. Soon after she was thrilled to be spotted by Pan Macmillan who have since published 24 of her books, including the bestselling Jam Factory Girls series. Her latest being ‘A Lasting Promise’ and ‘Her Hidden courage’.

Soon after being published by Pan Macmillan, Mary was approached by Sphere, a subsidiary of Little Brown Books. Joining them she wrote 12 novels under the pseudonym of Maggie Mason. Including the bestselling, The Half Penny Girls. Her latest Maggie Mason is: A Daughter’s Dream, with one more to come in 2027 yet, untitled.

Mary has now come full circle and is returning to publishing herself with the help of her son, James Wood, as she now cares for her beloved husband and needs to set her own, achievable deadlines, but remains ever grateful to both of her publishers and for all they did for her.

Social Media Links –

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