The Survivors by Kate Furnivall

• Paperback: 448 pages
• Publisher: Simon & Schuster UK (29 Nov. 2018)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1471172309
• ISBN-13: 978-1471172304

 

 

 

 

 

 

Synopsis

Germany, 1945. Klara Janowska and her daughter Alicja have walked for weeks to get to Graufeld Displaced Persons camp. In the cramped, dirty, dangerous conditions they, along with 3,200 others, are the lucky ones. They have survived and will do anything to find a way back home.

But when Klara recognises a man in the camp from her past, a deadly game of cat and mouse begins.

He knows exactly what she did during the war to save her daughter.

She knows his real identity.

What will be the price of silence? And will either make it out of the camp alive?

 

Review

I have been a fan of Kate Furnivall since I read The Russian Concubine nearly ten years ago, so I was very excited to be given the chance to review her latest book The Survivors. In 1945, the end of the Second World War, at a time when many found themselves homeless with nowhere to go, they went to the camps for Displaced Persons, which is where the majority of this book is set. Klara and her daughter, Alicja, find themselves in Graufeld Camp for displaced persons  in Germany,  a soulless, and grey place, with little hope.  Klara’s aim is to get passage to England to see her mothers family, but when she sees Oskar Sholz, a man from her past, she realises that in order to survive she must kill him.

The Survivors is narrated by Klara, her daughter Alicja and camp administrator and friend to Klara, Davide Bouvier.  Klara and ten year old have had a hard journey to the camp, starving from lack of food, being robbed and having to sleep in the cold of the forest.  Their story highlights the place many found themselves is after the war, with no home, no food, no family and no money to start over again.  Daivide Bouvier has also had a difficult war; his family in France were murdered by the Nazi’s and he was a prisoner of war.  There is a wonderful supporting cast of characters, including Izak who hid in a wardrobe for a lot of the war and whose parents where sent to the gas chamber leaving him an orphan.  Oskar Scholz is the villain, Klara’s nemesis and it is their game of cat and mouse that adds a tension and an air of suspense to the story.

Kate Furnivall’s writing really brings the characters and setting to life.  Graufeld, literally translates as ‘Grey Field’ which is a very appropriate description of the living conditions of the camp.  There is no colour there, and the bleakness of the camp mirrors the dejection of those living there.  Kate captures the feeling and emotions of the period, the war might have ended but its legacy still effects those caught up in the aftermath.  As with her previous books, Kate includes lot of historical detail and really captures the landscape of the bombed cities, the feelings of those left behind a the general atmosphere of the period.

The Survivors is a fabulous read, full of tension, thrills, historical detail and even a touch of romance. Kate Furnivall’s writing is seamless and makes this such an enjoyable book to read.  Her attention to detail and understanding of her characters and their emotions makes them jump out of the page and into your hearts and she really captures the zeitgeist of post war Germany. Full of emotion, this another outstanding read from Kate Furnivall.