Very readable story of the young German women selected to taste Hitler's food before he ate. Focusing on the main character, a young wife from Berlin who had fled there to live with her in-laws after her husband went to war. The unlikely friendships,and rivalry amongst these 12 women makes addictive reading and the snippets based on fact about Hitler's likes, dislikes and habits add an extra dimension. When Rosa's husband is declared 'missing' she is devastated but becomes aware of one of the German officers and is gradually seduced by him. Their secret affair is passionate but fated from the start. The attempt on Hitlers life and approaching threat of invasion are the nail in the coffin of their relationship.
Insightful and inspired by true life, this is an excellent story well told

An emotional read, powerful and informative. An interesting story, giving insight into what went on behind closed doors .My thanks to Net Galley, the publisher and the author for allowing me to read an advance copy in exchange for an honest review.

A compelling book about an unusual subject. It was well-written, with interesting characters, and I would thoroughly recommend it.

A fascinating historical novel that made me think and feel. The characters were well drawn and some of them drew quite a bit of sympathy.

Towards the latter years of WW2 Hitler was becoming increasingly paranoid and even though he was hiding himself away in the Wolfsshanze in East Prussia, the fear of being poisoned was never very far from his mind. In this fictional account ten women are chosen to act as food tasters and so protect Hitler from poison.

Rosa has recently moved from the city to live with her parents-in-law in a supposedly safer environment but soon after her arrival she is chosen to be one of Hitler's food tasters and Rosa realises that she has merely swapped one danger for another far more insidious threat. The SS collect Rosa from her home in a rural community and take her, and others, to Hitler's lair where they are given high quality vegetarian meals as Hitler didn't eat meat, but sumptuous and plentiful though the food was, Rosa couldn't begin to relax enough to appreciate the food on offer.

This is far more than the story about the food on Hitler's table, it's about the horrors of war and the absolute terror of living life with no idea if each day was to be your last. Rosa's somewhat troubled relationship with the other taster women, who see her as a city girl, and Rosa's very real fear for the life of her soldier husband makes the story all the more poignant.

The Women at Hitler's Table is inspired by the true story of Margot Wölk, who was the only survivor of the 15 original women who were chosen as food tasters. Margot only revealed her story, and her horrific wartime experiences, when she was 95 years old. This fictional account is a fitting tribute to her courage and fortitude, and of the immense pressure that the taster women faced on a daily basis

So lucky to be able to read this advance copy based on the true story of the women who had to taste hitlers food in case his enemies were trying to poison him.
It's a through provoking and disturbing story but one which I feel needs to be heard .
Thoroughly Recommended

Thanks to netgalley for an early copy in return for an honest review
Not read anything by this Author before and can highly recommend
A horrific account of events that were very real hard going in parts due to to its intensity but I really enjoyed it and can recommend

This was originally published in Italian as Le Assaggiatrici and is also available as At The Wolf’s Table. Whatever you call it, it’s excellent. And bleak. Rosa’s husband is away fighting on the Eastern Front. After Berlin is bombed and her mother dies, Rosa goes to live with her husband’s parents in East Prussia. And then, as Hitler’s paranoia builds and he is convinced he is going to be poisoned, she is ordered to become one of his ten food tasters.
Despite being set in Germany late on in the war (and almost in Hitler’s presence) this is, like all the best stories, simply about people and how they behave: they are cruel and kind, suffer and make friends, stick their neck out for someone and put themselves first, betray and are betrayed. These things are magnified in wartime, the consequences more brutal. The subject matter means that this is not always an easy read, but the writing (and translation) is good and the story compelling.

A shocking story based on real events.
It is 1943 and Hitler is hiding away from his enemies . He employs 10 women to taste his food and keep him safe. He is scared he will be poisoned and these women will die first if he is.
Rosa is one of these women and this is her story. Her parents are dead and maybe her brother to. Her husband is away fighting and she is fighting to - for her life. Can she survive?

In Germany during WWII, Hitler was afraid someone would try to poison his food to kill him. So, a group of 10 women are ‘recruited’ to be food tasters. They eat the same meals as Hitler, only one hour before, they are watched to see if any thing untoward happens…..

This is the tale of those women, based on the memories of a woman that was actually there, was one of these tasters. It is their stories, of their lives, families and the effects this war had on them all.

Well written and incredibly thought provoking - just how far would you go to keep those close to you safe, to save your own life?

Thank you to the publishers, the author and NetGalley for the opportunity to read this for free. This is my honest and unbiased review.

Wow! Fantastic read. Based on the true story of Hitler's food tasters, Rosa has to find a way to survive. Emotional, challenging and steeped in history. A must read for anyone with an interest in WW2.

The Women at Hitler's Table isn't your usual WW2 story, and I've never read one quite like this. The writing became unpleasant to read- but in a good way, in a way that it made me uncomfortable and almost anxious on behalf of Rosa.

I enjoyed the concept of the story and the writing was beautiful, however I thought the end was a little lacking in that it didn't do the rest of the story justice. The time lapse was a little confusing, and I had hoped for more at the ending but found it a little rushed and anticlimactic, which is a shame because I really enjoyed Parts 1 and 2.

What a fantastically written book so throughout this story will stay with me for a long time it so beautiful and the characters are brilliant. Highly recommend this book.

The title was all I needed to know before wanting to read this book. I’ve read a lot of WWII fiction (and non-fiction) and wasn’t aware that this happened. However, the book was extremely slow and I didn’t really care for the main character. Such a shame, I really wanted to love this book.

Rosa lives with her husband's parents as she waits for him to return from the war. Without warning she is chosen to join other women from the town to work as food tasters for Hitler. They will eat the same meals as him then wait an hour to see if they have been poisoned. Common circumstances lead the women to become friends or enemies, dependant on the SS guards and officers who command their lives and their work.

This is a tricky one to review. It's very good and fascinating to read a different perspective of WW2. However Rosa is not always a likeable character and while she's interesting I'm not always sure I want her to survive. The structure of the narration twists around as well so sometimes you're in a dream or present day or a flashback and it's not always clear - you have to keep your wits about you. Definitely worth reading though.

This is a powerful book that will stay with me for quite some time. I was completely unaware of the food tasters and reading about them in this novel was an interesting history lesson. It was a heart-breaking tale and distressing to know that it was based on real life. I can’t say that I actually ‘enjoyed’ the story as I found it upsetting, but my 5 star rating is based on the wonderful ability of the writer to portray the events in a beautifully detailed and evocative manner.

I cannot express how much i enjoyed reading 'The Women at Hitler's Table'. I knew Hitler was afraid of being poisoned, but never knew that he had food tasters. A very gripping read from start to finish. Based on a true story, this was a very emotional read and one that was well written. It is one of those books that i hope to read again one day. Recommended.

My thanks to Netgalley and the Publishers for my copy. This is my honest review, which i have voluntarily given.

*Waiting for Amazon to publish my review*

An interesting book based on true story and for someone who likes WW2 based stories. Definitely a very different angle and one I hadn’t heard of- food tasters for Hitler. The writing is a bit confusing at times but most of the book is easy reading with some interesting characters from all sides. I somehow felt guilty for reading this but equally wanted to get to the end. Thanks to the author and NetGalley.

A fascinating story of the Second World War told from the perspective of women who never mentioned afterwards what they had been required to do.
Rosa has moved from Berlin to East Prussia to live with her husbands parents whilst they wait for news of him from the front. She is enlisted to be a taster for Hitler against the wishes of her in laws and herself .. The Furhrer is paranoid that someone is trying to poison him so has a team of women food tasters brought to his hideout towards the last few years of the war. She finds herself to be one of an assortment of women ,Rosa the sophisticated Berliner who has fancy clothes ,Leni a young innocent peasant girl, Heike and Beate friends and.mothers who leave their children each day not knowing if they will return The women are bussed in every morning and returned home each evening , they are fed well but are too terrified that the food may be poisoned to appreciate or enjoy it. The SS guard their every move whilst they are on duty but despite this the women form friendships .
A story of female relationships ,survival and hope with the sinister backdrop of Hitler’s Germany and all that entailed The story illustrates how war affects everyone, not just those with the belief they are right . It shows that not all Germans were Nazis or even approved of them but many turned a blind eye to survive themselves and how they lived with that knowledge for the rest of their lives.

A story of Hitler’s power over ordinary Germans – in this case a group of ten women randomly picked from the surrounding area to Hitler’s forest retreat. Some support Hitler, some don’t; but they all face the same fate – to be daily testers of Hitler’s meals to see if they can be safely eaten by their Leader himself.

The narrator, Rosa tells of her lonely life and isolation after her husband goes off to the front. The author has an uncanny ability to get into the mind of this woman, faced with possible painful death every day. The group try to bond, but it is far from a social event. It’s haunting, and brings to my mind the isolation and future fate of the ‘comfort women’ of China, left with shame and fear added to the psychological and physical damage.

But these ‘tasters’ were abused by their own countrymen – their lack of power and inability to change their circumstances leading to total isolation and shame within their own country, and for years after the war was over – fearing being seen as collaborators! Fascinating story, very sobering. The afterword is poignant.