Having read the brilliant, Last Train to Freedom, I couldn't wait to read this sequel, and I was not to be disappointed.
Last Train to Freedom ended with Polish Jewish refugee, Zofia, having found love with Haru, a Japanese businessman she met on the thrilling train ride across Siberia.
But their happiness in Kobe is short-lived, when WWII reaches the Pacific, and after Haru is drafted into the army, Zofia is deported to Shanghai as a refugee. There, she has found employment by American shipping owner, Theo Carter, as a teacher to his two small children.
On
the journey to Shanghai, Zofia meets Hilly, a 13-year-old Austrian girl
who's been left to fend for herself. She feels responsible for the
young girl, and takes her under her wing. But Hilly finds the changed
circumstances hard to accept, challenging Zofia and all the other adults
around her all the time.
But when Japan attacks Pearl Harbor, Shanghai loses its status as the Japanese army closes in, with more and more restrictions for residents, both Chinese and foreign.
Theo sends his wife and children to Manila on one of the last ships that leave the beleaguered city, but he is keen to save the business he's built up over a decade. He asks Zofia to teach him Japanese, and soon, they become two like-minded souls stuck in the war machinery. And they're not the only ones...
Meanwhile, Zofia's husband, Haru, learns what it means to be in the Imperial Japanese Army – where force is not only reserved to the enemy, but also those under your command. He has two choices: to join in and stay alive, or to be on the receiving end of his superiors’ torture, until death.
With no knowledge of where her husband is, Zofia is forced to make connections to people she meets along the way, in order to survive.
But will she make it out of Shanghai alive? And what about Haru, Theo, Hilly, and her other acquaintances? Well, read the novel to find out! You won't regret it.
Unlike the fast-paced Last Train to Freedom, The Enemy's Wife is slower in pace, but with as many sub-plots, dangers, and intrigues. We meet an array of characters, some of whom turn out to be friends, and others who seek to take advantage of those threatened by the Japanese.
Throughout the novel, Zofia stays true to character – an intelligent, no-nonsense woman with a quick reaction to changing circumstances. She has experienced loss before, but it still hurts when she loses those close to her. Her humanity is unwavering, yet paired with a strong sense of reality. In times of war, many things are out of your control.
Theo grows as a person through the plot, as his endurance is tested to the limit. He comes across as superficial early on, focused on business and money, and he has to learn fast how to compromise. You feel for everything he's going through, though.
Haru's harrowing experience is heartbreaking, but it goes a long way to explaining just how the Japanese army operated. It makes for truly sobering reading.
As always, Ms Swift excels in her historical research. She re-created wartime Shanghai and China in painstaking detail. The different areas of the bustling city are well described, and we get a strong sense of 'being there' throughout, as we witness its change from busy international hub to occupied territory. The status quo of everyone and everything changes, irrevocably. Something several characters find hard to come to terms with.
The author's depiction of the frequent abuse of opium in the Japanese army is eye-opening to the point of horrifying, as is the force used against any prisoners, which Ms Swift hints at, rather than shows. Still, this is a movie about a brutal war, and we see its effects clearly.
The Enemy's Wife is a compelling story of war, changing loyalties, trust, friendship, and survival. The characters are realistic, with all their flaws, fears, and – dare they? – dreams of a brighter future. But at the end of the day, everyone is caught in the cogs of a mighty war machine, and they have to do the often unthinkable to get through it alive. Some don't make it...
A sobering, at times heart-rending tale, brilliantly written, and well worth reading. This is the kind of novel that stays with you for a long time, that wants you to read up more about the history behind it, and the many casualties – on all sides – along the way.
Make sure to read Last Train to Freedom first, to get Zofia's backstory in full. You won't regret it.
Highly recommended.
~~~
Blurb:
'A fast-paced, beautifully written, and moving story. Refreshing to read a book set in a different theatre of war. Wartime Shanghai jumped off the page'
CLARE FLYNN
A poignant story of the impossible choices we make in the shadow of war, for fans of Daisy Wood and Marius Gabriel.
1941. When Zofia’s beloved husband Haru is conscripted into the Imperial Japanese Army, she is left to navigate Japanese-occupied Shanghai alone.
Far from home and surrounded by a country at war, Zofia finds unexpected comfort in a bond with Hilly, a spirited young refugee escaping Nazi-occupied Austria.
As violence tightens its grip on the city, they seek shelter with Theo, Zofia’s American employer. But with every passing day, the horrors of war and Haru’s absence begin to reshape Zofia’s world – and her heart.
Can she still love someone who has become the enemy?
Readers love The Enemy's Wife:
'A gorgeous novel that will truly pull at your heartstrings'
~ CARLY SCHABOWSKI
'I loved The Enemy’s Wife – a gripping, fast-paced and evocative story about the Japanese occupation of Shanghai during WW2 – and really rooted for the brave and selfless central character, Zofia. Highly recommended'
~ ANN BENNETT
'Such an emotional and moving read, grounded in immaculate research that never overshadows the heart of the story'
~ SUZANNE FORTIN
Buy Links:
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Audio
~~~
About the Author:
Deborah used to be a costume designer for the BBC, before becoming a writer. Now she lives in an old English school house in a village full of 17th Century houses, near the glorious Lake District. Deborah has an award-winning historical fiction blog at her website www.deborahswift.com.
Deborah loves to write about how extraordinary events in history have transformed the lives of ordinary people, and how the events of the past can live on in her books and still resonate today.
Her WW2 novel Past Encounters was a BookViral Award winner, and The Poison Keeper was a winner of the Wishing Shelf Book of the Decade.
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