The Berlin Girl by Mandy Robotham (Review by Katherin Burk)

5 stars

The Berlin Girl follows the life of British reporter, Georgie Young, in Berlin on the cusp of war in 1938. Bringing a unique perspective into the lives of journalists in a time where freedoms were being stripped and the narrative being controlled, this book will hook you in and will be hard to put down. I loved The Berlin Girl and feel that most historical fiction fans will too. If you are looking for a book that provides a unique perspective on life in Germany before the war, The Berlin Girl is worth the read.

If you have yet to read a Mandy Robotham book, you are missing out. Like The German Midwife, her latest novel transports the reader into the life of a young woman, living in challenging and unprecedented times. Though Georgie Young arrives in Berlin as a green reporter with little knowledge of how reporting in times of war works, she quickly picks up the courage to go beyond the surface. I enjoyed reading as she dived deep into discomfort to expose what was really happening behind the façade of peace in Germany.

With her colleague Max, and other journalists on the scene in Berlin, Georgie challenges the narratives being presented by the Nazi regimen and seeks to expose the cruelties and injustices being faced by Jews and vulnerable peoples. All while walking a fine line between being censored by the Nazis herself. Her kindness, compassion, and commitment to exposing the truth leads her to uncover unimaginable cruelties. Her efforts aiding in the exposure of the Nazi party to a world that does not yet know or believe that such horrors could exist.

I give The Berlin Girl five stars. I always love when a historical fiction novel teaches me something new, and The Berlin Girl did just that. I hope that you too will love the Berlin Girl as much as I have and if you do, I highly recommend checking out Mandy Robotham’s two previous novels, The German Midwife and The Secret Messenger.