Book Review of
The Forest of Vanishing Stars
After being stolen from her wealthy German parents and raised in the unforgiving wilderness of eastern Europe, a young woman finds herself alone in 1941 after her kidnapper dies. Her solitary existence is interrupted, however, when she happens upon a group of Jews fleeing the Nazi terror. Stunned to learn what’s happening in the outside world, she vows to teach the group all she can about surviving in the forest—and in turn, they teach her some surprising lessons about opening her heart after years of isolation. But when she is betrayed and escapes into a German-occupied village, her past and present come together in a shocking collision that could change everything.
Inspired by incredible true stories of survival against staggering odds, and suffused with the journey-from-the-wilderness elements that made Where the Crawdads Sing a worldwide phenomenon, The Forest of Vanishing Stars is a heart-wrenching and suspenseful novel from the #1 internationally bestselling author whose writing has been hailed as “sweeping and magnificent” (Fiona Davis, New York Times bestselling author), “immersive and evocative” (Publishers Weekly), and “gripping” (Tampa Bay Times).
Lynn's Review
The Forest of Vanishing Stars by Kristin Harmel was the first book I read after my backlist books challenge was over. I have been looking forward to reading this book for months, but since it was published in 2021 I couldn’t read it until my backlist books challenge was over.
The Forest of Vanishing Stars by Kristin Harmel is the story of a group of Jews who escaped the ghettos and spent time living and hiding in the forests during WWII. I had heard a little bit about this, but I don’t think I have ever read a book that focused on this group of people. After reading this historical fiction I am looking for nonfiction books on this topic.
I love Kristin Harmel’s writing. I have read multiple WWII books by her and loved them all. She draws you into the story in a way that not many authors do. You can tell that she has a passion to share the stories of WWII before they are forgotten.
This book was a five star read for me, but I will say that there are some PG-13 scenes that I could have done without. So I guess that makes it more of a four and a half star book for me instead of a full five stars. I don’t mind saying what happened, but I don’t need a detailed description. Besides that I loved The Forest of Vanishing Stars.