A piercing and detailed look at a lesser-known aspect of the Second World War.
Toyn offers a historical novel that grapples with the horrors of life in occupied Lithuania in the 1940s.
As the story opens, it’s 1941, and the residents of Soviet-occupied Lithuania are receiving news that the German army is going to invade. University student Leva Koslowski and her younger brother, Al, decide to flee the country, because although Soviet control had been horrible, the Germans are rumored to be much worse. The pair head to Sweden, but Leva’s boyfriend, Olek, stays behind in Lithuania. So do Leva’s parents, Zeneta and Matis, who have a cabin in the woods in Ponary where they allow Olek to stay. Soon, Zeneta and Matis attempt to leave, as well, but are caught and arrested by Soviet border guards. Before long, the Germans begin mass executions in the woods. Olek manages to help an injured Jewish boy in hiding, and it’s not long before Olek himself is in trouble. Al makes it to the United States and joins the war effort as quickly as he can; soon, he’s back in Europe with Allied forces. Meanwhile, Zeneta is struggling for her life, along with other Lithuanians whom the Soviets have shipped to Siberia. Toyn’s narrative is based on true events—most notably, the horrors of the Ponary Massacre—and it’s at its strongest when describing, without embellishment, unthinkable events. For instance, as German power waned, prisoners were forced to dig up and systematically burn corpses to cover up the fact that there were mass graves in the Ponary forest. This included the placement of thermite grenades to ensure that the fire “burned hot enough to incinerate the bodies”; the resulting blazes would then burn “for three days or until a heap of ashes remained.” The dialogue isn’t always as sharp, as characters sometimes unnecessarily narrate their actions with statements such as “I have a gift for each of you.” Overall, though, the work succeeds in its author’s aim to shed light on “events largely unknown to Western audiences.”
A piercing and detailed look at a lesser-known aspect of the Second World War.Pub Date: Sept. 26, 2025
ISBN: N/A
Page Count: 454
Publisher: N/A
Review Posted Online: July 30, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 15, 2025
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
BOOK REVIEW
Have tissues ready as you read this. A small package will do.
A love story about a life of second chances.
In Nassau, in the Bahamas, casino detective Vincent LaPorta grills Alfie Logan, who’d come up a winner three times in a row at the roulette table and walked away with $2 million. “How did you do it?” asks the detective. Alfie calmly denies cheating. You wired all the money to a Gianna Rule, LaPorta says. Why? To explain, Alfie produces a composition book with the words “For the Boss, to Be Read Upon My Death” written on the cover. Read this for answers, Alfie suggests, calling it a love story. His mother had passed along to him a strange trait: He can say “Twice!” and go back to a specific time and place to have a do-over. But it only works once for any particular moment, and then he must live with the new consequences. He can only do this for himself and can’t prevent anyone from dying. Alfie regularly uses his power—failing to impress a girl the first time, he finds out more about her, goes back in time, and presto! She likes him. The premise is of course not credible—LaPorta doesn’t buy it either—but it’s intriguing. Most people would probably love to go back and unsay something. The story’s focus is on Alfie’s love for Gianna and whether it’s requited, unrequited, or both. In any case, he’s obsessed with her. He’s a good man, though, an intelligent person with ordinary human failings and a solid moral compass. Albom writes in a warm, easy style that transports the reader to a world of second chances and what-ifs, where spirituality lies close to the surface but never intrudes on the story. Though a cynic will call it sappy, anyone who is sick to their core from the daily news will enjoy this escape from reality.
Have tissues ready as you read this. A small package will do.Pub Date: Oct. 7, 2025
ISBN: 9780062406682
Page Count: 320
Publisher: Harper/HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: July 18, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 2025
SEEN & HEARD
SEEN & HEARD
SEEN & HEARD
With captivating dialogue, angst-y characters, and a couple of steamy sex scenes, Hoover has done it again.
After being released from prison, a young woman tries to reconnect with her 5-year-old daughter despite having killed the girl’s father.
Kenna didn’t even know she was pregnant until after she was sent to prison for murdering her boyfriend, Scotty. When her baby girl, Diem, was born, she was forced to give custody to Scotty’s parents. Now that she’s been released, Kenna is intent on getting to know her daughter, but Scotty’s parents won’t give her a chance to tell them what really happened the night their son died. Instead, they file a restraining order preventing Kenna from so much as introducing herself to Diem. Handsome, self-assured Ledger, who was Scotty’s best friend, is another key adult in Diem’s life. He’s helping her grandparents raise her, and he too blames Kenna for Scotty’s death. Even so, there’s something about her that haunts him. Kenna feels the pull, too, and seems to be seeking Ledger out despite his judgmental behavior. As Ledger gets to know Kenna and acknowledges his attraction to her, he begins to wonder if maybe he and Scotty’s parents have judged her unfairly. Even so, Ledger is afraid that if he surrenders to his feelings, Scotty’s parents will kick him out of Diem’s life. As Kenna and Ledger continue to mourn for Scotty, they also grieve the future they cannot have with each other. Told alternatively from Kenna’s and Ledger’s perspectives, the story explores the myriad ways in which snap judgments based on partial information can derail people’s lives. Built on a foundation of death and grief, this story has an undercurrent of sadness. As usual, however, the author has created compelling characters who are magnetic and sympathetic enough to pull readers in. In addition to grief, the novel also deftly explores complex issues such as guilt, self-doubt, redemption, and forgiveness.
With captivating dialogue, angst-y characters, and a couple of steamy sex scenes, Hoover has done it again.Pub Date: Jan. 18, 2022
ISBN: 978-1-5420-2560-7
Page Count: 335
Publisher: Montlake Romance
Review Posted Online: Oct. 12, 2021
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 1, 2021
SEEN & HEARD
BOOK TO SCREEN
BOOK TO SCREEN
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