Fiction Women World War

Istanbul, 2001. Maya Duran is a single mother struggling to balance a demanding job at Istanbul University with the challenges of raising a teenage son. Her worries increase when she is tasked with looking after the enigmatic Maximilian Wagner, an elderly German-born Harvard professor visiting the city at the university’s invitation. Although he is distant at first, Maya gradually learns of the tragic circumstances that brought him to Istanbul 60 years before, and the dark realities that continue to haunt him.

Cancer stole everything from Ceelie - her peace of mind, her self-image, perhaps even her 23-year marriage to her college sweetheart, Nate. Without the support of Darlene, her quirky elderly friend, she may not have been able to endure so much loss. So when Darlene’s own prognosis turns dire, Ceelie can’t refuse her seemingly impossible request - to find a WWII paratrooper named Cal, the father who disappeared when Darlene was an infant, leaving a lifetime of desolation in his wake.

1930: As raids and violent arrests sweep through their Crimean village, two families are forced to make desperate choices in order to keep themselves - and their hope - alive. The Pfeiffers get out as quickly as they can, braving a last-minute escape in the dead of night. Their friends the Scholzes are less lucky. Captured and transported to labour camps in the icy Far North, the future seems a bleak, dark nightmare for the couple and their three children.

On the windswept shores of an East German island, Bettina Heilstrom struggles to build a life from the ashes. World War II has ended, and her country is torn apart. Longing for a family, she marries Werner, an older bureaucrat who adores her. But after joining the fledgling secret police, he is drawn deep into its dark mission and becomes a dangerous man.

Simones Leben verändert sich dramatisch, als ihr Mann Henry sie verlässt und kurz darauf ihre geliebte Mutter Anna stirbt. In ihrem Nachlass findet Simone ein seltsames Kästchen mit wunderschönen Stoffstücken. Getrieben von dem Wunsch, herauszufinden, was es mit den prachtvollen Stoffen auf sich hat, begibt sie sich auf die Suche nach dem Geheimnis ihrer Mutter.

Ukraine, 1923. On a small farm, two boys are born within days of each other, both Ukrainian, one Jewish. Mykhail and Asher grow up inseparable, together finding friendship, adventure and escape from the harshness of Russian rule. But after Asher’s family flees to Warsaw, their worlds are torn to shreds by the Second World War. The war brings cruelty to both boys. Although Asher finds love in Warsaw, the city is far from the haven his family sought; meanwhile Mykhail becomes a victim of the bitter struggle for Ukraine. But worse follows, in the shape of the Treblinka death camp.

1943: Europe is at war - but neutral Ireland is isolated from the storm. In a sleepy coastal village south of Dublin, eighteen-year-old Aileen Sweeney meets soldier Niall O’Rourke at a dance, and the spark between them soon ignites a powerful love. But when Niall makes a life-changing and contentious decision, Aileen’s hopes and dreams fall apart. In an instant Niall is transformed from dashing suitor to social outcast, and the fallout leaves each of them navigating the consequences alone. Putting her innocence behind her, Aileen must make her own tough choices.

Gegen alle Widerstände wird Mimi Reventlow Fotografin, und findet nicht nur ihre Freiheit, sondern auch die Liebe... Minna Reventlow, genannt Mimi, war schon immer anders als die Frauen ihrer Zeit. Es ist das Jahr 1911 und während andere Frauen sich um Familie und Haushalt kümmern, hat Mimi ihren großen Traum wahr gemacht.

Norway, 1940. Nazis pour into Oslo, a shroud of dread looms over the city, and eighteen-year-old Ingrid Solberg fears the worst. Under German rule, harsh rationing and the exorbitant cost of medicine threaten the lives of many, including Ingrid’s mother. And when Ingrid meets a young SS officer, she’s forced to make a desperate choice. Seventy years later, after the death of Ingrid in her adopted country of Canada, her son, Arnold, finds a disturbing letter in her belongings. He embarks on a journey to Oslo to understand his family’s history....

1914. Working in a bustling café on London's Shaftesbury Avenue, Joyce Taylor dreams of opening her own restaurant. But when the man she loves enlists in the war and a surprise request comes through from her dying grandmother, Joyce's life gets turned upside down. Struggling to keep the café afloat with her new found responsibilities, it's not long before Joyce starts to feel the pressure might be all too much. Luckily, her supportive friends Annie and Rose are on hand to help.

March 1942. As the war continues, wedding bells are ringing for the factory girls. Sarah is happily settling into married life, whilst Fran is busy planning her upcoming wedding. Meanwhile, Beth hasn’t heard from her husband, Bob, since he returned to the navy, and she’s starting to fear the worst. And new friend Viola is still recovering from a nasty accident. Life on the home front can be challenging, but the factory girls can get through anything.

Daring aviators take the skies by storm in this historical romance filled with unconventional women - and the men strong enough to love them.

Life for Elsie is difficult as she struggles to cope with her alcoholic mother. Caring for her siblings and working long hours at Swift's jam factory in London’s Bermondsey is exhausting. Thankfully her lifelong friendship with Dot helps to smooth over life’s rough edges. When Elsie and Dot meet Millie Swift, they are nervous to be in the presence of the bosses’ daughter. Over time, they are surprised to feel so drawn to her, but should two East End girls be socialising in such circles?

The Tree of Heaven follows the fortunes of the Harrison family as the children grow up in the shadow of the First World War and Dorothy's brothers go off to the trenches, while she becomes involved with the suffrage movement, and later joins a version of the Women's Social and Political Union.

Orkney, 1940. Five hundred Italian prisoners-of-war arrive to fortify these remote and windswept islands. Resentful islanders are fearful of the enemy in their midst, but not orphaned twin sisters Dorothy and Constance. Already outcasts, they volunteer to nurse all prisoners who are injured or fall sick. Soon Dorothy befriends Cesare, an artist swept up by the machine of war and almost broken by the horrors he has witnessed. She is entranced by his plan to build an Italian chapel from war scrap and sea debris, and something beautiful begins to blossom.

North London, 1916. When Olivia Bone and Lieutenant Lucas Black shared a passionate kiss one summer's evening, it seemed as if their love might finally have a chance to bloom. But their brief happiness is cut short when Lucas is sent to fight on the front line, leaving Livvie uncertain if she'll ever see him again. And after a chance encounter with one of Lucas's old flames, Livvie is left doubting whether an ex-factory girl like her will ever fit into his world - and wondering if she would be better off protecting her heart.

France, 1943. Forced to flee war ravaged Poland, Sara and her parents are offered refuge in a beautiful but dilapidated house in the French Alps. It seems the perfect hideaway, despite haunting traces of the previous occupants who left in haste. But shadows soon fall over Sara's blissful summer and her blossoming romance with local villager Alain. As the Nazis close in, the family is forced to make a harrowing choice that could drive them apart forever, while Sara's own bid for freedom risks several lives.

As the Second World War ends, Sophie Daniels quits the WAAF with nowhere to go. She wanders around the country searching for a place where she can settle, living in bedsits, barns and small guesthouses in the meantime. Eventually she finds Badgers Brook, where she meets and befriends nine-year-old Bertie, neglected and running wild. The neighbours warm to her, the place is welcoming and Sophie knows she has found her home. Friendly local Ryan Treweather is a welcome distraction - and potentially more - if she can just trust him with one big guilty secret.

When Valerie de Vere Cole, the niece of Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain, makes her deep curtsey to the King and Queen of England, she knows she’s part of a world about to end. The daughter of a debt-ridden father and a neglectful mother, Valerie sees firsthand that war is imminent. Nevertheless, Valerie reinvents herself as a carefree and glittering young society woman, befriending other debutantes from England’s aristocracy as well as the vivacious Eunice Kennedy, daughter of the US Ambassador.

1941. The Blitz rages over London. And even in Cornwall, the war is being fought. When Violet loses her sister in the Blitz, she must take her nieces to safety in Cornwall. On the coast, she meets carefree chorus girl Eva, who is also running from the dangers of London. But Porthcurno hides a secret military base, and soon Violet and Eva realise there’s a battle to fight in Cornwall, too. Together with local Hazel, who works on the base, they must come together to help the war effort. But will their friendship be enough to keep them safe?