The Flight of Swallows is a fantastic WWII story. For all of his adult life  Jurgen has kept his past a secret from his family.  Only when dementia starts to set in does he finally reveal the heartbreaking story of his childhood.  If you are a WWII historical fiction fan you will love this emotional book. Thanks to the author Lily Graham, publisher Bookouture, and  NetGalley for providing a copy of this book in exchange for a honest review.

I absolutely loved this book; it was beautifully written being heart-breaking and heart-warming in equal parts.  Told from two time perspectives, we start the story in 1995 in Northern Sweden.  Jurgen is an old man suffering from worsening dementia, and his granddaughter Ingrid visits him daily.  When one day he calls her Asta, Ingrid realises that there are things about her grandfather’s past that he’s never spoken about.  The story then moves on to Hamburg, Germany in 1933 where we meet Jurgen as a young boy, and his twin sister, Asta.  The author then takes us on a heart-breaking and frightening story of what it was like to be a Jew living in Germany under Hitler’s power.

Whilst it seems strange to say I loved this book, it’s the only thing I can say!  I didn’t love what happened, how people were treated or the sadness that came from the pages.  However, I did love how beautifully the story was told, the sense of loyalty and love between many of the characters and how it keeps in our memory something which should never be allowed to happen again.  We all know the history of the Holocaust, but the author has done an astounding job in researching what it was like to be a German Jew at this time.  I’ve read many fiction books on this subject, but this book has definitely taught me many things as the story has moved on.

Old man Jurgen has obviously kept his past hidden from his family.  We don’t get to find out what happens to him until the story moves back to his childhood, and we only return to the later years when his story has been told.  I loved his character, both old and young.  As a young boy and then man, the love for his twin sister, Asta was obvious and so understanding.  It was really interesting to see how, for the majority, Jurgen had to be the ‘grown up’ of the two twins, with Asta behaving more like the child she really was.  The stories of Jewish people being referred to as inferior, not allowed to hold positions of power and being taken away to camps is nothing new, but I had no idea all this started to happen before the War began.  The book was so realistically written, that at times I wondered whether I was actually reading a true story.

I did initially wonder where the storyline was heading, with the start of the book beginning in Sweden.  The pace of these first few chapters was slower, building up the mystery as to what Jurgen’s story was. By the time the storyline had moved back to pre-war Germany, I was completely hooked.  The author has done a fabulous job in capturing what it must have been like at the time, and as I read, I could feel the tension and how frightening it must have been.  The suspense which filled the pages kept me on the edge of my seat and had my heart beating so fast with the anticipation of it all.  The chapter endings were written perfectly with so many cliff-hangers that it was impossible to put down!!

It was an absolutely amazing book, one which I was completely captivated by.  Full of emotions and sadness, but also with lots of love, family and friendships.  This book will stay with you for such a long time after you’ve finished reading it.  For people of the Jewish community who paid such a big price, this book is a fitting tribute to them.  Would highly recommend!!

How would you feel if you were stopped on your way home from school and told never to return to your home because someone had taken your parents and were out, at that very moment, hunting you down? Lily Graham expertly explores this possibility in her five-star historical fiction novel, ‘The Flight of Swallows,’ to be published January 12, 2021. 

Set in Hamburg in the eve of World War Two, this novel focuses on the power of family, the need for belonging and the lengths we will go for the ones we love. For a few years, the Jews in Hamburg have been nervously anticipating Hitler’s next move. As more laws are signed, more freedoms are lost for the Jewish people. For the Schwalbe family, the day in 1938 that changes their lives forever begins like any regular day for two working parents and their 16-year-old twins. While at work, Mr. Schwalbe is asked to produce his documents to verify that he’s made the necessary changes. In addition to having a ‘J’ stamped on their passports, Jews have been forced to add new middle names to their documents, Sara, for females and Israel, for males. When he resists handing over their passports to the authorities and producing his documents, both he and his wife are arrested and taken to Dachau work camp. They never get to say goodbye to their children. Owing their life to the canal boatman, Asta and Jurgen escape and head for their aunt’s home in northern Sweden. Your heart will be pounding and, with tears in your eyes, you’ll be frantically flipping pages in an effort to find out if the twins make it to safety. 

The second timeline, set in Northern Sweden in the mid-1990s, is about a granddaughter who lovingly provides care for her cantankerous elderly grandfather who has isolated himself in a cabin in a remote hamlet. Graham’s writing evokes the gamut of emotions and you’ll be smiling at some of the one-liners Ingrid’s grandpa comes up with: “You don’t have to look after me – I have underpants older than you.” Told to leave countless times, she pushes through the protective wall he’s built to discover who he really is underneath his gruff exterior. Keep the tissues handy, you’ll need them by the end of chapter 3! 

By far the absolute best book I’ve read this year! Lily Graham’s writing will entrance you from the first page and keep you absorbed in the twins’ plight until the very last page. I devoured it in one sitting. Not only has she done extensive research making this a historical fiction masterpiece, but she’s also managed to craft exceptional characters in a heart-pounding and suspenseful read. I love it when author’s titles make me pause. The Flight of Swallows; Is it about birds? Is it a surname? How does it relate to the plot? You’ll have to read this masterfully written account to find out. I love to learn as I read and, although I was familiar with the Nuremberg Laws and Kristallnacht, I appreciated learning more about how they affected the Jews throughout Europe. I also learned about the Kindertransport and the Elsinore Sewing Club. This book will stay with me for a long time and I don't think I'll ever look at my toaster again without thinking about Esther!

Please keep writing, Lily Graham, the world needs more of your books! 

A heartfelt thank you to Lily Graham, Bookouture and NetGalley for this amazing advance copy in exchange for an honest review.