Having loved everything I have ever read by Kate Furnivall I was delighted when Joanne Dickinson got in touch to ask if I might like a copy of Kate’s new novel Child of the Ruins. My enormous thanks to Kate for suggesting this and my huge thanks to Jo for sending me a copy of Child of the Ruins. I had hoped to read and review in time for publication, but there has been a bit too much life happening beyond my ability to deal with it of late! However, I’m delighted to share my review today.

Previously here on Linda’s Book Bag Kate and I stayed in together to chat about The Survivors and you can read my review of Kate’s The Betrayal here. My review of The Guardians is to be found here.

Published in hardback by Hodder & Stoughton on 7th November 2023, Child of the Ruins is available for purchase through the publisher links here.

Child of the Ruins

1948, Berlin. World War II has ended and there is supposed to be peace; but Russian troops have closed all access to the city. Roads, railway lines and waterways are blocked and two million people are trapped, relying on airlifts of food, water and medicine to survive. The sharp eyes of the Russian state police watch everything; no one can be trusted.

Anna and Ingrid are both searching for answers – and revenge – in the messy aftermath of war. They understand that survival comes only by knowing what to trade: food; medicine; heirlooms; secrets. Both are living in the shadows of a city where the line between right and wrong has become dangerously blurred.

But they cannot give up in the search for a lost child …

My Review of Child of the Ruins

1948 Berlin and the war is over…

Having long been a fan of Kate Furnivall’s writing, I anticipated an excellent read in Child of the Ruins, but I had rather forgotten what an evocative, vivid and spell-binding writer she is. Child of the Ruins thrums with authentic detail that gives the narrative such a filmic quality that it is like watching the events live, rather than merely reading about them. There’s a stark beauty to descriptions and every sense is catered for so that Child of the Ruins is immersive and affecting. 

The assiduous research that must have gone into the era and setting means that the narrative is sophisticated in its execution and brutal in its telling. At times I found the story almost overwhelming as Kate Furnivall gave me clear insight into the horrors of East Berlin. It took me some time to read this completely mesmerising and absorbing tale because, for all its horrors and authenticity, it felt painfully raw, emotional and realistic and I need to give myself a break to recover from the impact. Indeed, recent world events feel like a chilling reminder of man’s inhumanity to man that can be found in this brilliant book. 

Anna is a triumph. I have no idea if it was intended, but the fact her name is a palindrome made the plot all the more resonant, as if such events occur and recur time after time. Anna is rash and resilient, brave and foolhardy, compassionate and stubborn in a heady mix of compelling personality. Kate Furnivall made me cheer for her and weep for her, so powerful was the writing. Anna’s relationship with her mother is so sensitively portrayed and the psychological elements of the novel are written with humanity and understanding. I desperately wanted Anna to be reunited with Felix and Timur as I cared completely for Anna.

The plot is exciting and fast paced, but the real triumph of the story for me is the way in which the characters face moral dilemmas and the presentation of the concept that right and wrong are not clearly defined. Murder, theft and betrayal might actually be morally essential as well as reprehensible so that Child of the Ruins is thought-provoking, educational and multi-layered as well as thoroughly entertaining. Indeed, there are mature and philosophical themes about nature and nurture, national culture and identity, love and relationships and the underlying determination of humanity to survive that make Child of the Ruins a perfect read.

It’s difficult to express how much I loved this book. I found Child of the Ruins disturbing, absorbing, horrific, uplifting and totally wonderful. It really is historical fiction of the most perfect kind with love at its heart. Don’t miss it.

About Kate Furnivall

Kate Furnivall didn’t set out to be a writer. It sort of grabbed her by the throat when she discovered the story of her grandmother – a White Russian refugee who fled from the Bolsheviks down into China. That extraordinary tale inspired her first book, The Russian Concubine. From then on, she was hooked.

Kate is also the author of The White Pearl and The Italian Wife. Her books have been translated into more than twenty languages and have been on the New York Times Bestseller list.

You can follow Kate on Twitter @KateFurnivall, visit her website and find her on Facebook.