The Singer Behind the Wire – ARC Book Review

Auschwitz, 1943. Ella tries to ignore the coughs and crying, the whispered prayers. Her eyelids grow heavier, but then a melody floats though the block as if on a breeze. Her lips open on a gasp, joy making her heart sing even as it shatters. She would know that voice anywhere…

Sitting bolt upright, Ella rubs at her eyes and concentrates on the music. Is she dreaming? She’d fallen for Luka’s voice the first time she heard him singing on the street corner near her house, with his kind smile and joyous laugh. He was her first love, and the pain of being torn apart still slices at her.

He’s alive. But even as hope swells in Ella’s heart, terror threatens to swallow it. Luka is Jewish. If he’s here, he’s in grave danger—even more than Ella faces for sneaking into the ghetto to see him back in Warsaw… But she will never regret it. They had fought every day for their love, even knowing where it might lead…

Despair tears at Ella as she battles to find the strength to keep going, to search for Luka even on the days when the bitter cold whips through the camp—the days when her body feels weaker than ever and her friends are lost to the cruel regime. At night, she listens desperately for the sound of Luka’s voice as he’s forced to perform. Knowing he’s still alive even if she can’t see him is the one thing that brings her peace.

Until one night when, as his first haunting notes reach her bunk, an angry shout splits the night sky, the music stops, and there is only resounding, terrifying silence…

A beautiful, heartbreaking yet hopeful story that will restore your faith in humanity and in the power of love to triumph over evil. Fans of The Tattooist of Auschwitz, The Nightingale and The Choice will be blown away by this gripping page-turner.

This is an emotional and heartbreaking historical novel, set during Holocaust and WWII.

Luka is Jewish but has a beautiful voice and is a singer. He sings by voicing out his feelings and emotions. Ella hears the voice–initially she was reluctant to find the source of voice but she finds Luka. She falls in love with him and it follows a forbidden love story. But then soon, both of them are transported to Auschwitz and they need to learn to survive so they can be together again.

This was beautifully written and is quiet emotional to read as well. The story is told in the POVs of both Ella and Luka, each detailing their horrific experiences in Auschwitz during their imprisonment. Ella was determined to meet Luka and Luka was determined to survive in the Holocaust. Of course, by reading through the harsh and bitter conditions that the prisoners suffered made the story a whole point realistic. The ending was great .

Overall this book is worth five stars.

Many thanks to Netgalley and Bookouture for the ARC. The review is based on my honest opinion only.