Gisela must hold on to hope and love despite all odds in the midst of a war-torn country.
Gisela Cramer is an American living in eastern Germany with her cousin Ella Reinhardt. When the Red Army invades, they must leave their home to escape to safety in Berlin.
However, Ella is a nurse and refuses to leave, sending her young daughters with Gisela. During their journey, Gisela meets Mitch Edwards, an escaped British POW. She pretends she is his wife in order to preserve his safety among other Germans, especially one wounded German soldier, Kurt, who has suspicions about Mitch's identity. Kurt also has feelings for Gisela and tries to uncover the truth about her "marriage."
Their journey to Gisela's mother in Berlin is riddled with tragedy and hardship, but they strive to keep Ella's daughters safe so they can reunite with their mother. During the journey Gisela and Mitch begin to develop feelings for one another beyond friendship. They reach Berlin, but their struggles are far from over. Gisela and Mitch must learn to live for the day and find hope in the darkest of circumstances.
In this moving, historically accurate portrayal of WWII Germany, the characters learn that, even with destruction all around them, some things last forever.
Gisela Cramer is an American living in eastern Germany with her cousin Ella Reinhardt. When the Red Army invades, they must leave their home to escape to safety in Berlin.
However, Ella is a nurse and refuses to leave, sending her young daughters with Gisela. During their journey, Gisela meets Mitch Edwards, an escaped British POW. She pretends she is his wife in order to preserve his safety among other Germans, especially one wounded German soldier, Kurt, who has suspicions about Mitch's identity. Kurt also has feelings for Gisela and tries to uncover the truth about her "marriage."
Their journey to Gisela's mother in Berlin is riddled with tragedy and hardship, but they strive to keep Ella's daughters safe so they can reunite with their mother. During the journey Gisela and Mitch begin to develop feelings for one another beyond friendship. They reach Berlin, but their struggles are far from over. Gisela and Mitch must learn to live for the day and find hope in the darkest of circumstances.
In this moving, historically accurate portrayal of WWII Germany, the characters learn that, even with destruction all around them, some things last forever.
I GIVE THIS BOOK: 4.5 Stars
MY THOUGHTS:
Daisies Are Forever is the second book by Liz Tolsma. I read her first book, Snow on the Tulips, not too long ago and enjoyed it. However, I enjoyed Daisies Are Forever so much more than her first book. While it wasn't an unputdownable book, it was one that I would think about when I wasn't reading it - which is always a good sign :)
Once again the historical details were beautifully describe and I felt transported to WWII Germany, which was a scary place to be for sure! I can't even imagine having to live in such conditions and hope I never have to endure it.
I felt a connection with the characters in the story immediately, they were believable and well-written. Though I personally think certain characters could have been eliminated from the story and it wouldn't have made a difference, as they didn't seem to add anything at all except unnecessary drama.
Once again I noticed some errors, not grammatical but story-wise, and that was annoying. I can't say what the one error was, as that could be a possible spoiler. The one I can mention is there's a character that is missing part of his arm (so at least his hand) and a couple times it says "his hands" plural. While that not a huge deal, it did get confusing since I would then think "didn't he lose one of his hands? Why is it saying hands?".
There's an epilogue, but the ending of the final chapter (which then leads into the epilogue) was very abrupt. I didn't like the way it didn't give details of how things came to be the way they were and how everything was wrapped up within a page and a half.
I still would recommend Daisies Are Forever, as I felt it was a very enjoyable book and is one I might even read again. If you love WWII fiction, I'm sure you'd enjoy this one.
I received a complimentary copy of this book to review. I was asked to give my honest opinion of the book - which I have done.
Once again the historical details were beautifully describe and I felt transported to WWII Germany, which was a scary place to be for sure! I can't even imagine having to live in such conditions and hope I never have to endure it.
I felt a connection with the characters in the story immediately, they were believable and well-written. Though I personally think certain characters could have been eliminated from the story and it wouldn't have made a difference, as they didn't seem to add anything at all except unnecessary drama.
Once again I noticed some errors, not grammatical but story-wise, and that was annoying. I can't say what the one error was, as that could be a possible spoiler. The one I can mention is there's a character that is missing part of his arm (so at least his hand) and a couple times it says "his hands" plural. While that not a huge deal, it did get confusing since I would then think "didn't he lose one of his hands? Why is it saying hands?".
There's an epilogue, but the ending of the final chapter (which then leads into the epilogue) was very abrupt. I didn't like the way it didn't give details of how things came to be the way they were and how everything was wrapped up within a page and a half.
I still would recommend Daisies Are Forever, as I felt it was a very enjoyable book and is one I might even read again. If you love WWII fiction, I'm sure you'd enjoy this one.
I received a complimentary copy of this book to review. I was asked to give my honest opinion of the book - which I have done.
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BOOK DETAILS:
Paperback: 352 pages
Published: Thomas Nelson (May 6, 2014)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 1401689124
ISBN-13: 978-1401689124
Product Dimensions: 8.3 x 5.4 x 1 inches
Available to purchase: Amazon (Paperback) | Amazon (Kindle)
ABOUT THE AUTHOR:
New York Times best-selling author Liz Tolsma is the author of Daisies are Forever, Snow on the Tulips, and the contributing author of A Log Cabin Christmas. When not busy putting words to paper, Liz enjoys reading, walking, working in her large perennial garden, kayaking, and camping. She lives in Wisconsin with her husband and children, all adopted internationally.
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