If you are looking for a World War II novel that is a tearjerker then I would suggest picking up this one. I can only imagine the horrible fear that the people of Norway felt when the Nazi's were in occupation duribg the war because when you think about it there was probably a lot of stress because the citizens of Norway were expected to cater to them and obey their rules. Overall this story was very impressive and i'm glad that I took the time to read it.

We are introduced to a young woman named Asta who is doing her best to take care of her father. However, she soon finds herself in trouble when a brief love affair leaves her with child. Due to the judgement from her neighbors she decided to leavr in search of a better life. However, her trip to a new home will come with a lot of twists and turns.

I particularly enjoy reading books where I actually learn something. This book opened by eyes to the realities of another side of life during WW2. Set in a beautiful part of the world and with truly beautiful love story this novel exceeded all expectations and I look forward to reading more if Eliza Graham's novels.

oh to be in the fjords of Norway right now... my memories of this country and this place is so vivid i had no choice but to be drawn in to this book on an instant. i could picture the time there in my own life and then to the book. but oh did we not have to suffer it through the occupation thank goodness. and it felt once again hard to picture a place so well known to me with evil there lurking through its beauty.
Eliza describes to us so well what happened and what happens to her characters when the Germans invaded their lives. how they reacted, the fears, the risks. they just had to live along side them! they've to live amongst that feeling of powerlessness and know everything you do has to be done to obey certain rules or knowing that you are the lesser ones even in your own homes.
but what happens when one of theirs enters your home and shows something different. this is what occurred in the Petterson family. how blurred the lies becomes. how much more at risk they become. because there is a war on, sides will always have to be drawn one way or another. wont they?
its shows you a whole different side and relations to what we usually see. and there must have been many a moment like these. where people are just people( but could they ever leave their sides behind?). and are they if they have to be from one country, side, regiment?
this book pulled me in. it compelled me to keep reading. i wouldn't have wanted to stop for anything so anxious was i to know what was to come for our characters.
i was worried for Asta and how she was forced to live this way. and then when she became more friendly with Max. and did i feel for Max too? but also i knew whatever happened between the pair of them the danger and consequences would always be for her and those she loved.
and what comes next for them both. oh my heart broke as the little thing they shared would also then feel the consequences.
this book covered so much. and i feel so lucky to get to read such a wonderful scope of time for the characters within it. and somehow Eliza, not for one minute made it feel long or a slog. it just managed to pack it all in.
this book was so insightful and had me wondering and overthinking all of my own. it will sit with me for such a long time to come.
i was emotional at certain points throughout but somehow feel lucky to have been so.
fab.
this book was fab.

Asta is a great representative of courage. The story made me ask myself the question of how I would have handled what happened and I still have no idea how to answer. My emotions were all over the place while reading. It's a sweet romance and not a sweet look on humanity.

Asta tries to survive the German occupation of her country while falling in love with one of the occupiers. With great resilience and in the face of everything and everyone, she manages to get by without losing her fighting spirit.
Asta is a great female character who faces adversity with courage. She is accompanied by other characters for whom I have not felt so much sympathy and with whose decisions I have not shared, although I have been able to understand them to a certain extent.
An emotional novel set in WW2 that brings together romance and historical fiction in a moving story.

Life in the Norwegian fjords changes rapidly for the Pettersen family when Germany invades and billets one of their men in the Pettersen home.

Author Eliza Graham shows how the civilians of this neutral country reacted to the German invasion and occupation. You’ll learn why Norway was invaded and what it was like to live alongside the German occupiers. The insecurity of occupied living, the acute awareness of powerlessness, and the struggle to make sense of and shape their present situation are ever present in this novel. Graham excels at showing the relationship between the occupier and the occupied.

“Sometimes it’s good to behave as we would do outside war and occupation.”

Lieutenant Max Brandt, who’s been posted in a civilian capacity as an engineer, soon became an integral part of Asta Pettersen’s family life. Max was able to show Asta his humanity and quickly the uncomfortable situation became comfortable … too comfortable. You’ll read about how things changed as the war progressed and put pressure on these two ‘friends’.

Graham allows readers to see Max for who he really is. I was in awe seeing how the two friends completed each other; Max experienced a temporary escape from the demands of his military life and provided a different lens for Asta to view her world. Asta received rations and aid, both at home and for her family. I’d never considered the give-and-take scenario of occupation.

If you are looking for a WW2 novel with a unique setting, fantastic emotional pull, unpredictable twists, and great characterization, this is one to put on your tbr list!

I was gifted this copy by Storm Publishing and NetGalley and was under no obligation to provide a review.

The Girl from the Fjords is not just another World War II novel. The first half of the book is set during the Nazi occupation of Norway but the second half covers the immediate post-war period and the consequences faced by the vanquished. The story begins in 1940 in a remote Norwegian coastal settlement, where Asta's older brother slips away to Scotland. Asta and her father despise the Nazis but cannot refuse when a German officer is billeted in their small home. Barriers are broken as they get to know one another. Max Brandt isn't a typical Nazi and has never served in combat due to an injury...he is a civil engineer.

My emotions were all over the place reading this book. On one hand, I felt that Asta deserved a bit of happiness with Max, but I knew the ugly reality she would face. And, although Max had never been an ardent Nazi, wasn't he still complicit? If he survived the war, why would he be shown any grace by the Allies? And then there is their daughter, who will be vilified even though she is an innocent. Although I expected the German occupation of Norway to be the most difficult part of this book, it was the second half that was soul-shattering. There were plot twists that I never anticipated, that left me gasping and wondering just how much emotional pain a person can withstand. The scope of this book is impressive, and Eliza Graham's writing has once again made me rethink some of my preconceived notions of history and humanity. If you are a WW II historical fiction fan, you won't want to miss this one.

My thanks to NetGalley and Storm Publishing for the opportunity to read the ARC. The review and all opinions are entirely my own.