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The Silence In Between
Imagine waking up and a wall has divided your city in two. Imagine that on the other side is your new-born baby...
This is what happens to Lisette. Overnight, on 13 August 1961, the border between East and West Berlin has closed, slicing the city - and the world - in two. With the streets in chaos and armed guards ordered to shoot anyone who tries to cross, her situation is desperate.
Lisette's teenage daughter, Elly, has always struggled to understand the distance between herself and her mother. Both have lived for music, but while Elly hears notes surrounding every person she meets, for her mother - once a talented pianist - the music has gone silent.
Perhaps Elly can do something to bridge the gap between them. What begins as the flicker of an idea turns into a daring plan to escape East Berlin, find her baby brother, and bring him home....
This is what happens to Lisette. Overnight, on 13 August 1961, the border between East and West Berlin has closed, slicing the city - and the world - in two. With the streets in chaos and armed guards ordered to shoot anyone who tries to cross, her situation is desperate.
Lisette's teenage daughter, Elly, has always struggled to understand the distance between herself and her mother. Both have lived for music, but while Elly hears notes surrounding every person she meets, for her mother - once a talented pianist - the music has gone silent.
Perhaps Elly can do something to bridge the gap between them. What begins as the flicker of an idea turns into a daring plan to escape East Berlin, find her baby brother, and bring him home....
352 pages, Hardcover
Published June 20, 2024
308 people are currently reading
10457 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 550 reviews
April 3, 2024
Here’s another book that perfectly demonstrates why I love debuts so much - I’ve now discovered a beautiful new writer to look out for.
I thought this story was absolutely stunning - emotional, harrowing, hopeful and tender. I knew so little about the Berlin Wall and the horrific assaults against the women of Berlin after WW2, so this truly opened my eyes to another terrifying time in history. But it’s also a story of the strength and resilience of women, and the lengths they will go to protect their families. Goodness, and the music that runs through the novel added something really special - I love the idea of every person we meet having their own song or sound.
This is just a truly compelling and moving novel with two incredible female characters I won’t forget in a hurry - a must read for any historical fiction fans.
I thought this story was absolutely stunning - emotional, harrowing, hopeful and tender. I knew so little about the Berlin Wall and the horrific assaults against the women of Berlin after WW2, so this truly opened my eyes to another terrifying time in history. But it’s also a story of the strength and resilience of women, and the lengths they will go to protect their families. Goodness, and the music that runs through the novel added something really special - I love the idea of every person we meet having their own song or sound.
This is just a truly compelling and moving novel with two incredible female characters I won’t forget in a hurry - a must read for any historical fiction fans.
June 16, 2024
“And we are guilty. We did nothing. And in doing nothing, we gave our consent."
📖 Historical fiction
👩👦 Dual point of view
🇩🇪 Split timeline - Berlin, WW2 & 1961
🎹 Passion for music and the piano
🩷 Mother and daughter relationships
Being permanently separated from our loved ones is most people's worst nightmare. Imagine then, being separated from your young, ill baby as the borders close and the Berlin Wall is constructed.
Josie Ferguson's debut is an emotive read that left me in pieces. In 1961 we enter a divided Berlin through the dual perspectives of mother and daughter, Lisette and Elly. They're a family in turmoil, and we flashback to another difficult time, WWII, and Lisette and her mother's experiences during the war. It was fascinating to gradually see why the women, their relationships, and Berlin itself, came to be how they are in the 1960s. The impetus of the story may be the separation from baby boy Axel, but it's the mother-daughter relationships that took centre stage for me.
People undergo horrific experiences (check the trigger warnings), so go in knowing it won't always be a comfortable read. I felt I learnt so much that I wasn't aware of before. The narrative is fuelled with complicated emotions, warring thoughts, and love of, and clashes with, family. Lisette discusses the complicated, collective guilt she and German citizens feel both during and after WWII. Elly's feelings of inherited guilt and frustration with that guilt expound on this.
Seeing the fear and wariness in East Berlin compared to the activism and freedom of speech in West Berlin was striking, and I could really feel the divide of the city, as well as the air of hope of the next generation. I've never read a historical fiction about this time period before and Ferguson's writing made me feel I was really experiencing it.
A passion for music and the piano run through Lisette and Elly. Lisette's loss of voice and enforced silence were so much more expressive because of this. I also found it really interesting how they would hear that each person had an individual song. Look out for how the book title links in!
📖 Historical fiction
👩👦 Dual point of view
🇩🇪 Split timeline - Berlin, WW2 & 1961
🎹 Passion for music and the piano
🩷 Mother and daughter relationships
Being permanently separated from our loved ones is most people's worst nightmare. Imagine then, being separated from your young, ill baby as the borders close and the Berlin Wall is constructed.
Josie Ferguson's debut is an emotive read that left me in pieces. In 1961 we enter a divided Berlin through the dual perspectives of mother and daughter, Lisette and Elly. They're a family in turmoil, and we flashback to another difficult time, WWII, and Lisette and her mother's experiences during the war. It was fascinating to gradually see why the women, their relationships, and Berlin itself, came to be how they are in the 1960s. The impetus of the story may be the separation from baby boy Axel, but it's the mother-daughter relationships that took centre stage for me.
People undergo horrific experiences (check the trigger warnings), so go in knowing it won't always be a comfortable read. I felt I learnt so much that I wasn't aware of before. The narrative is fuelled with complicated emotions, warring thoughts, and love of, and clashes with, family. Lisette discusses the complicated, collective guilt she and German citizens feel both during and after WWII. Elly's feelings of inherited guilt and frustration with that guilt expound on this.
Seeing the fear and wariness in East Berlin compared to the activism and freedom of speech in West Berlin was striking, and I could really feel the divide of the city, as well as the air of hope of the next generation. I've never read a historical fiction about this time period before and Ferguson's writing made me feel I was really experiencing it.
A passion for music and the piano run through Lisette and Elly. Lisette's loss of voice and enforced silence were so much more expressive because of this. I also found it really interesting how they would hear that each person had an individual song. Look out for how the book title links in!
June 23, 2024
I love historical fiction, especially books which are set around real life events that I can go and read up about afterwards. The book is a dual timeline story which revolves around the Berlin Wall. Initially the story begins in 1961 when Lisette finds herself separated from her baby boy when the Wall is put up overnight. Her son is ill in a hospital in West Berlin and she is stuck in East Berlin having gone home for some rest. The storyline then takes us backwards and forwards from 1961 to the Second World War, following Lisette's story in the earlier years and her daughter Elly's story in 1961.
This was a truly amazing book! I thought it was only going to be set around the time that the Wall went up and what happened after that, I didn't realise it would jump back in time to the War also. The switch between the two times however was done perfectly and there was no confusion as to where you were in their stories. Their stories though were captivating, heart-breaking and took you right into the fear and uncertainty of what was happening. The characters were so well written and I equally loved Lisette and Elly's stories in the different times.
The author has put a huge amount of research into this cleverly written book and as I read I was looking up little bits and pieces to see if some of these things really happened. I'm glad to say a lot of the book was factually correct, but this did add to the sadness I felt as I read to know that so many people went through this. This was an absolutely brilliant book, full of emotion, and which will stay with you long after you have finished it.
This was a truly amazing book! I thought it was only going to be set around the time that the Wall went up and what happened after that, I didn't realise it would jump back in time to the War also. The switch between the two times however was done perfectly and there was no confusion as to where you were in their stories. Their stories though were captivating, heart-breaking and took you right into the fear and uncertainty of what was happening. The characters were so well written and I equally loved Lisette and Elly's stories in the different times.
The author has put a huge amount of research into this cleverly written book and as I read I was looking up little bits and pieces to see if some of these things really happened. I'm glad to say a lot of the book was factually correct, but this did add to the sadness I felt as I read to know that so many people went through this. This was an absolutely brilliant book, full of emotion, and which will stay with you long after you have finished it.
July 14, 2024
This bloody book has shredded me..
It is harrowing but beautiful, the writing is excellent with characters I loved.
The narrative is built around actual events that took place in Berlin, before during and after the second World War..
Even though I had to set the book aside for 4 or 5 days because I was so distressed by what I was reading I never once had any notion of not finishing it.
5 * Excellent
It is harrowing but beautiful, the writing is excellent with characters I loved.
The narrative is built around actual events that took place in Berlin, before during and after the second World War..
Even though I had to set the book aside for 4 or 5 days because I was so distressed by what I was reading I never once had any notion of not finishing it.
5 * Excellent
May 23, 2024
Painful, incredible, and so so beautiful
August 20, 2025
3.5 / Mother and daughter, Lisette and Elly’s story starts with the abrupt and shocking closure of the border between East and West Berlin. We learn more of their lives mostly through flashbacks and alternating timelines, while the ever-present separation from son and baby brother, Axel, in a hospital that they cannot reach or even telephone looms large.
Elly’s trusting instinct she relies on due to her synethesia, helps her to create a plan to bring her brother home. While I did find the repetition of the music she heard in people a little overdone, I found the concept clever. Mother and daughter struggles are present and there are untold layers to their distant relationship revealed. I found some parts a little hard to fully believe and Elly came across as older than her 15 years, which probably didn’t help.
The narration in my audiobook by Rosina Aichner is wonderful, but I admit it was sometimes hard to differentiate between Lisette and Elly’s voices if you forgot the intro in each chapter. To be honest this book took me some time to get into. In Part 2 it came together, gave me pause and made me think back on everything Lizette had been through, which left her with selective muteness at least once and I found her story rather poignant.
Can you imagine how devastating it would be if you were living only streets away from being saved from the traumas of imprisonment and occupation in your city? The end of any war risks the escalation of shocking war crimes and the city of Berlin and so many of its women did not escape them after WWII.
A very well researched and compelling debut, showcasing a different side of the traumas of war on civilian women. It is definitely worth the read. For the most part, I enjoyed it and if you like books that are all tied up with a bow at the end then this will probably be rated higher for you.
Below are a few of my favourites
“What I need is a piano, so I can fold myself into its music, forget just for a moment that my baby is sick. But the music that once sat inside me, was taken from me a long time ago, and I can never get it back.”
“Everyone’s song will change forever with today’s news and though I know it’s only my imagination that creates the sound of their music, I still find the cacophony of panic deafening.”
“He didn’t talk about his fears, but his body revealed everything he was trying to hide.”
“Stories of atrocities were trickling in to Berlin, following us around like shadows. It would have been easier to ignore them, but I couldn’t. Others – through fear, ignorance or sheer selfishness – chose to look at the sun so the shadows fell behind them, unseen but still present.”
Marked up to 4 ⭐️
3.5 ⭐️ Audiobook read by Rosina Aich
Elly’s trusting instinct she relies on due to her synethesia, helps her to create a plan to bring her brother home. While I did find the repetition of the music she heard in people a little overdone, I found the concept clever. Mother and daughter struggles are present and there are untold layers to their distant relationship revealed. I found some parts a little hard to fully believe and Elly came across as older than her 15 years, which probably didn’t help.
The narration in my audiobook by Rosina Aichner is wonderful, but I admit it was sometimes hard to differentiate between Lisette and Elly’s voices if you forgot the intro in each chapter. To be honest this book took me some time to get into. In Part 2 it came together, gave me pause and made me think back on everything Lizette had been through, which left her with selective muteness at least once and I found her story rather poignant.
Can you imagine how devastating it would be if you were living only streets away from being saved from the traumas of imprisonment and occupation in your city? The end of any war risks the escalation of shocking war crimes and the city of Berlin and so many of its women did not escape them after WWII.
A very well researched and compelling debut, showcasing a different side of the traumas of war on civilian women. It is definitely worth the read. For the most part, I enjoyed it and if you like books that are all tied up with a bow at the end then this will probably be rated higher for you.
Below are a few of my favourites
“What I need is a piano, so I can fold myself into its music, forget just for a moment that my baby is sick. But the music that once sat inside me, was taken from me a long time ago, and I can never get it back.”
“Everyone’s song will change forever with today’s news and though I know it’s only my imagination that creates the sound of their music, I still find the cacophony of panic deafening.”
“He didn’t talk about his fears, but his body revealed everything he was trying to hide.”
“Stories of atrocities were trickling in to Berlin, following us around like shadows. It would have been easier to ignore them, but I couldn’t. Others – through fear, ignorance or sheer selfishness – chose to look at the sun so the shadows fell behind them, unseen but still present.”
Marked up to 4 ⭐️
3.5 ⭐️ Audiobook read by Rosina Aich
July 3, 2024
Music is not in the notes, but in the silence in between.
April 10, 2024
I rarely use the word powerful but it fits for this. Would never have picked this up had I not been assigned it for work but was captivated by it.
It's a dual-narrative, told from the perspective of Lisette, and her daughter Elly. Lisette's story was mostly set in war-time Berlin. I've never believed "All Germans bad" but seeing the perspective of war from German civilians was eye-opening. I felt sympathy for all the characters, and admired the strength and quiet courage many of them bore. Elly's story was in restrictive East Germany as the Berlin Wall was built. Elly was determined to reunited her family with her baby brother in the West.
The writing was well paced and there were times I was very reluctant to put it down. Elly's part particularly was like a thriller in places.
Just waiting for others to read it so we can chat about it!
It's a dual-narrative, told from the perspective of Lisette, and her daughter Elly. Lisette's story was mostly set in war-time Berlin. I've never believed "All Germans bad" but seeing the perspective of war from German civilians was eye-opening. I felt sympathy for all the characters, and admired the strength and quiet courage many of them bore. Elly's story was in restrictive East Germany as the Berlin Wall was built. Elly was determined to reunited her family with her baby brother in the West.
The writing was well paced and there were times I was very reluctant to put it down. Elly's part particularly was like a thriller in places.
Just waiting for others to read it so we can chat about it!
January 6, 2025
What in the Anthony Doerr fanfiction was this book? Ok, that was a joke, except that not really. The silence in between started off with an interesting setting in Berlin during the 60s; as the Wall is erected, the Lange family finds itself separated from their newborn baby Axel in East Berlin. Elly, the teenage daughter, decides to take it on herself to go and save her younger brother on the other side of the Wall. Sounds like a fun/intriguing plot, amirite?
Except that 50% of the book is actually an annoying parallel timeline of Elly’s mother’s life during WWII. Less than thrilling, if you ask me, and this is basically because we know next nothing about her, besides the fact that she has an insufferable lack of sense of self-preservation, plays the piano and hates the Reich (as every main character in a WWII book, so holier-than-thou ofc *eyeroll*).
Elly is a similarly flat character. The most remarkable thing about her is that she can hear people’s “song” when she sees them. And believe me, you won’t forget this because throughout the 300 pages we are constantly reminded of her gift, to the point of being annoying. I don’t want to spoil anything, but the way she gets so lucky with several deus ex machina(s) in her sloppy escape plan irked me immensely. The amount of plot armor and lucky plot twists in this book is unbelievable, and I think this hurts the narration and makes the story less gripping. This is especially true for Elly, but also for and Andrei, who has as much personality as a tub of plain low-fat Greek yogurt and is basically just a convenient plot device to get her on the other side of the Wall.
Last complaint is that, well, this feels like a very generic War book. If you swapped around the setting to 70s Cambodia or 50s Korea I probably would not have noticed. Even the last chapter, which should have given more depth to the Cold War setting, the politics, the differences between the East and the West, felt rushed, with almost no mention of the “friends” Elly left in West Berlin etc. (plot escamotage? Hmm!)
I’m sad to give this 2 stars as it’s the author’s first book, and the setup definitely had potential, but the lack of characterization really did the story a disservice. I felt like the WWII storyline could have been three chapters of flashback and the rest of the book could have been more focused on Elly’s life in the East. But alas, that did not happen. Ending on a happier note (pun intended), I think this book was a quick and light read if you want to learn more about post WWII Germany and not take it too seriously.
Except that 50% of the book is actually an annoying parallel timeline of Elly’s mother’s life during WWII. Less than thrilling, if you ask me, and this is basically because we know next nothing about her, besides the fact that she has an insufferable lack of sense of self-preservation, plays the piano and hates the Reich (as every main character in a WWII book, so holier-than-thou ofc *eyeroll*).
Elly is a similarly flat character. The most remarkable thing about her is that she can hear people’s “song” when she sees them. And believe me, you won’t forget this because throughout the 300 pages we are constantly reminded of her gift, to the point of being annoying. I don’t want to spoil anything, but the way she gets so lucky with several deus ex machina(s) in her sloppy escape plan irked me immensely. The amount of plot armor and lucky plot twists in this book is unbelievable, and I think this hurts the narration and makes the story less gripping. This is especially true for Elly, but also for and Andrei, who has as much personality as a tub of plain low-fat Greek yogurt and is basically just a convenient plot device to get her on the other side of the Wall.
Last complaint is that, well, this feels like a very generic War book. If you swapped around the setting to 70s Cambodia or 50s Korea I probably would not have noticed. Even the last chapter, which should have given more depth to the Cold War setting, the politics, the differences between the East and the West, felt rushed, with almost no mention of the “friends” Elly left in West Berlin etc. (plot escamotage? Hmm!)
I’m sad to give this 2 stars as it’s the author’s first book, and the setup definitely had potential, but the lack of characterization really did the story a disservice. I felt like the WWII storyline could have been three chapters of flashback and the rest of the book could have been more focused on Elly’s life in the East. But alas, that did not happen. Ending on a happier note (pun intended), I think this book was a quick and light read if you want to learn more about post WWII Germany and not take it too seriously.
December 4, 2024
DNF at 18% read. I already knew what was going to happen in the book. And I hate historical fiction whose characters have modern attitudes and behaviors eg teenage girls wanting to save up to get their own place, and 8 year olds rolling their eyes when being told what to do. Plus, why are all German WW2 main characters somehow always the only non-Jew hating people in Germany. Pffft.
July 17, 2024
Beautifully written book that is heart-breaking and thought provoking. One of the best books I have read this year. I really really can’t fault it.
March 18, 2024
I have many thoughts about this book. The recurring gimmick that Elly experiences people’s “music” when she interacts them was ridiculous at first but later grew to be absolutely exhausting. I couldn’t help but groan in the latter half of the book.
The book itself is not badly written at all. But I can’t help but feel the subject matter could have been approached in a more interesting way. Maybe I’m an idiot but I found it quite confusing having two teenage girls narrating from the first person, and the chapters switching between them without any regularity.
My biggest issue is that I think it’s regrettable that the author didn’t make any effort to read the autobiography of Sigrid Paul, whose experiences closely mirror that of Lisette. You might think I’m being unreasonable since I’m basically expecting an author to learn German so she can read a German woman’s experiences of living in divided Berlin when your baby is stuck in the other half—but given this is 50% of the plot I don’t think that’s unreasonable at all. This also confirms that she has done no first hand research into the topic and is reliant on historians doing the leg work for her.
Thanks to Doubleday for an advance copy
The book itself is not badly written at all. But I can’t help but feel the subject matter could have been approached in a more interesting way. Maybe I’m an idiot but I found it quite confusing having two teenage girls narrating from the first person, and the chapters switching between them without any regularity.
My biggest issue is that I think it’s regrettable that the author didn’t make any effort to read the autobiography of Sigrid Paul, whose experiences closely mirror that of Lisette. You might think I’m being unreasonable since I’m basically expecting an author to learn German so she can read a German woman’s experiences of living in divided Berlin when your baby is stuck in the other half—but given this is 50% of the plot I don’t think that’s unreasonable at all. This also confirms that she has done no first hand research into the topic and is reliant on historians doing the leg work for her.
Thanks to Doubleday for an advance copy
August 4, 2024
I loved the idea behind this book, and thought the shifting timelines were really effective. But something didn't quite work - I just didn't feel anything at all for the characters, and found I genuinely didn't care how this ended.
August 23, 2024
“Mozart said that music is not in the notes but in the silence in between. I think that’s where our souls are - hidden in that silence.” ♥️
“It’s just a shell now and it’s difficult to remember what is was like when it was a home.”
“It’s just a shell now and it’s difficult to remember what is was like when it was a home.”
August 8, 2024
One thing is definitely certain: when walls are built, people will always find a way over or under them, until they are able to demolish them and go through them. “The Silence in Between” by Josie Ferguson is a literary proof of that. Starting in August 1961, this book tells the story of Lisette, a young mother residing in East Berlin, separated overnight from her sick baby Axel, who is hospitalised in West Berlin, when the borders are suddenly closed. Elly, Lisette’s 15 year old daughter, is struggling to understand the distance her mother keeps from her since the day she was born, and in her effort to bridge the gap between them, she decides to escape East Berlin, find her brother in the west, and come back with him to reunite with their parents. The story is told as a 1st person narration by either Elly or Lisette, in 2 different storylines, covering the period just before the WWII, the defeat of Germany and the occupation by Russians and the Allies, until the fall of the Berlin wall in 1989. The writing is lyrical and poetic. The world the writer has built is so confined that truly feels suffocating and claustrophobic. It is a story of the past echoing in the present and the end feels like a warm hug of a mother while the piano plays a beautiful melody. Nevertheless, there are some narrative clichés that I didn’t particularly like and this is why this book scored a 3.5/5 for me. Still, it is a book definitely worth reading and the historical aspect of it is very well researched and amazingly educational.
This is a book about the history of Germany. About the events preceding the Holocaust, WWII and the division of the country. Racism, hatred and persecution. The consequences of war in people’s lives. The feeling of not been safe, the trauma you try to forget and move on, the human despair, the memories that can physically knock you to the floor. The fact that during wartime, hope can sometimes make you suffer. The war brutality and the death of innocent civilians. The idea that when people are desperate they can do terrible things. It is also a story about the perspectives of women during war. It’s effects on women’s lives. The use of rape as a weapon of war and of female bodies as vessels of entertainment. The denial of being violated and the fact that the body that can heal but never forget. The aftermath of war and the bittersweet taste of freedom. The inability to know how you can rebuild your life. It is a book about our reactions to historical events. The choice to be ignorant in order to deny responsibility, to be present but unaware. The potential of evil and goodness that both lie within us all. The fact that not all Germans agreed with what happened and not all soldiers fighting for Hitler were Nazis. About power that is intoxicating. It is also a story about the will to live and experience everything. First loves and first kisses. The heartache you can experience from romantic love. The impatience and impulsivity of young people, their desire to escape and the promises of return. The love for music and its grace that act as a lifesaver. A book about family relationships and dynamics. About mother child separation. The mother’s feeling that when tou lose a child your soul is leaving you and the fact that you can’t pull yourself together when your children are in danger. The effect of the lack of maternal love. How it is to be unwanted, to have a strong sense of not belonging and feel that your family is so close but yet completely unreachable. Family secrets that reside in dark corners. Finally though, this is a story about facing the past and telling the truth, restoring whatever can be restored with honesty.
Why should you read “The Silence in Between”?
Because you will like the idea that each one of us has a tune inside, a personal music melody, that surrounds them, merging with that of other people to create complex symphonies.
Because you will acknowledge how one man’s madness and the complicity of others can rip a nation apart and bring the whole world into their knees.
Because you will realise that evil demands most of the times little of us, to remain silent and do nothing, and on that demand there are people that would prefer to die rather than being part of a despicable plan.
Because you will understand that some war wounds can never heal, and Germans carry a national shame irrespective of when they have been born related to the war crimes their ancestors have committed.
Because you will learn about how women experience war and read the true sufferings of females in Germany under the Russian occupation towards the end of WWII.
Because you will feel sorry about the fact that we do not have the power to erase our memories and wipe out our traumatic past.
Because you will feel how it is to be an unwanted child, risking everything for parental approval and spending your life doing everything you can in order to be loved.
Favorite quotes:
“I was desperate to become an adult, and what defines you as an adult more than being desired as one?”.
“Even a promise forgotten is a promise made”.
“Mozart said that music is not in the notes but in the silence in between. I think that's where our souls are – hidden in that silence”.
This is a book about the history of Germany. About the events preceding the Holocaust, WWII and the division of the country. Racism, hatred and persecution. The consequences of war in people’s lives. The feeling of not been safe, the trauma you try to forget and move on, the human despair, the memories that can physically knock you to the floor. The fact that during wartime, hope can sometimes make you suffer. The war brutality and the death of innocent civilians. The idea that when people are desperate they can do terrible things. It is also a story about the perspectives of women during war. It’s effects on women’s lives. The use of rape as a weapon of war and of female bodies as vessels of entertainment. The denial of being violated and the fact that the body that can heal but never forget. The aftermath of war and the bittersweet taste of freedom. The inability to know how you can rebuild your life. It is a book about our reactions to historical events. The choice to be ignorant in order to deny responsibility, to be present but unaware. The potential of evil and goodness that both lie within us all. The fact that not all Germans agreed with what happened and not all soldiers fighting for Hitler were Nazis. About power that is intoxicating. It is also a story about the will to live and experience everything. First loves and first kisses. The heartache you can experience from romantic love. The impatience and impulsivity of young people, their desire to escape and the promises of return. The love for music and its grace that act as a lifesaver. A book about family relationships and dynamics. About mother child separation. The mother’s feeling that when tou lose a child your soul is leaving you and the fact that you can’t pull yourself together when your children are in danger. The effect of the lack of maternal love. How it is to be unwanted, to have a strong sense of not belonging and feel that your family is so close but yet completely unreachable. Family secrets that reside in dark corners. Finally though, this is a story about facing the past and telling the truth, restoring whatever can be restored with honesty.
Why should you read “The Silence in Between”?
Because you will like the idea that each one of us has a tune inside, a personal music melody, that surrounds them, merging with that of other people to create complex symphonies.
Because you will acknowledge how one man’s madness and the complicity of others can rip a nation apart and bring the whole world into their knees.
Because you will realise that evil demands most of the times little of us, to remain silent and do nothing, and on that demand there are people that would prefer to die rather than being part of a despicable plan.
Because you will understand that some war wounds can never heal, and Germans carry a national shame irrespective of when they have been born related to the war crimes their ancestors have committed.
Because you will learn about how women experience war and read the true sufferings of females in Germany under the Russian occupation towards the end of WWII.
Because you will feel sorry about the fact that we do not have the power to erase our memories and wipe out our traumatic past.
Because you will feel how it is to be an unwanted child, risking everything for parental approval and spending your life doing everything you can in order to be loved.
Favorite quotes:
“I was desperate to become an adult, and what defines you as an adult more than being desired as one?”.
“Even a promise forgotten is a promise made”.
“Mozart said that music is not in the notes but in the silence in between. I think that's where our souls are – hidden in that silence”.
August 19, 2025
Emotional, so powerful, so well-written⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
July 12, 2024
"Evil demanded little of me - it merely asked me to remain silent, to do nothing. And I complied."
Imagine waking up one morning to discover there is a wall separating your city. You are on one side, and your sick baby is in hospital on the other side. You can’t reach him because guards patrol the wall day and night and shoot anyone who tries to cross. That is the heartbreaking reality facing Lisette when she wakes up on August 13th, 1961 to find the Berlin Wall now completely separates east and west Berlin. She is in the east, whilst her sick baby boy is in hospital in the west. What would you do? If you’re Lisette’s daughter, Ely, then you start concocting a plan to cross the border and rescue your little brother. But can she succeed where so many others have failed?
Powerful, poignant, haunting, courageous, and mesmerising, The Silence in Between is an extraordinary debut. Having the opportunity to read breathtaking books that feel like a watershed moment, such as this one, is one of the biggest privileges of being a book blogger. A story of family, love, loss, fear and hope, the story is set across dual timelines: the end of World War II and the months following the construction of the Berlin Wall. Exquisitely written and rich with historic detail, this is a book you live, not simply read. The fact that all of the things that happen on these pages are taken from real moments in history makes it all the more moving, compelling and terrifying. It is a master-class in bringing history to life, Josie Ferguson’s meticulous research immerses you in the story completely and I tried to soak in every word as the story washed over me.
"Like so many, I chose to be ignorant of the events that were unfolding. I was like a small girl plugging my ears with my finger tips and singing loudly to drown out the voices of truth. I was present, yet stupidly unaware."
It is a challenge to write about a significant period in history and Ms. Ferguson decided to write about two of them, but she excels. There is an overwhelming sense of malevolence and an undercurrent of fear hints at danger lurking in every corner in both timelines. There’s feelings of isolation as you don’t know who you can trust or who might betray you, and we see how circumstances can lead ordinary people to do desperate and despicable things to survive. It was hard to read at times, especially when addressing the brutality German women were subjected to by the Russians in the aftermath of World War II. But while she writes with honesty, it is never graphic or gruesome, only showing us what is needed to understand the characters. Unbearably human and heart-rending, it explores the worst of humanity but also gives us a glimpse of hope; that this too shall pass and better times will come.
"Everyone's songs will change for ever with today's news, and though I know it's only my imagination that creates the sound of their music, I still find the cacophony of their panic deafening."
Ms. Ferguson explores a variety of themes in this book. The three most recurring themes are trauma, mother/daughter relationships, and music. These allowed us to forge a very real connection with the characters despite them living in extraordinary times. The mother/daughter bond is explored most obviously through Lisette and Ely, who narrate the story. They have always had a difficult and distant relationship that Ely struggled to understand. And while they seem very different on the surface, they are actually quite alike and are both strong, determined and gutsy women who will go to great lengths for those they love. The two also share a love of music, which is a topic woven through every facet of the story. Lisette used to play piano while Ely hears music personal to everyone she meets. This was a beautiful addition to the story and I was fascinated by the idea that we all carry our own theme tune that tells people more about us than words ever could. Sadly this shared love only tears them apart even more as Lisette has stopped playing the piano for reasons unknown and doesn’t like Ely to talk about her gift. The reasons for all of this are revealed slowly, as secrets in Lisette’s past are revealed and we explore the curse of generational trauma.
Atmospheric, emotional, tense, and unflinching, The Silence in Between is an unmissable and unforgettable debut that I can’t recommend highly enough. This will be in my top books of the year and is a contender for my overall favourite book of 2024. Josie Ferguson is a talent to watch and I can’t wait to see what she writes next.
Imagine waking up one morning to discover there is a wall separating your city. You are on one side, and your sick baby is in hospital on the other side. You can’t reach him because guards patrol the wall day and night and shoot anyone who tries to cross. That is the heartbreaking reality facing Lisette when she wakes up on August 13th, 1961 to find the Berlin Wall now completely separates east and west Berlin. She is in the east, whilst her sick baby boy is in hospital in the west. What would you do? If you’re Lisette’s daughter, Ely, then you start concocting a plan to cross the border and rescue your little brother. But can she succeed where so many others have failed?
Powerful, poignant, haunting, courageous, and mesmerising, The Silence in Between is an extraordinary debut. Having the opportunity to read breathtaking books that feel like a watershed moment, such as this one, is one of the biggest privileges of being a book blogger. A story of family, love, loss, fear and hope, the story is set across dual timelines: the end of World War II and the months following the construction of the Berlin Wall. Exquisitely written and rich with historic detail, this is a book you live, not simply read. The fact that all of the things that happen on these pages are taken from real moments in history makes it all the more moving, compelling and terrifying. It is a master-class in bringing history to life, Josie Ferguson’s meticulous research immerses you in the story completely and I tried to soak in every word as the story washed over me.
"Like so many, I chose to be ignorant of the events that were unfolding. I was like a small girl plugging my ears with my finger tips and singing loudly to drown out the voices of truth. I was present, yet stupidly unaware."
It is a challenge to write about a significant period in history and Ms. Ferguson decided to write about two of them, but she excels. There is an overwhelming sense of malevolence and an undercurrent of fear hints at danger lurking in every corner in both timelines. There’s feelings of isolation as you don’t know who you can trust or who might betray you, and we see how circumstances can lead ordinary people to do desperate and despicable things to survive. It was hard to read at times, especially when addressing the brutality German women were subjected to by the Russians in the aftermath of World War II. But while she writes with honesty, it is never graphic or gruesome, only showing us what is needed to understand the characters. Unbearably human and heart-rending, it explores the worst of humanity but also gives us a glimpse of hope; that this too shall pass and better times will come.
"Everyone's songs will change for ever with today's news, and though I know it's only my imagination that creates the sound of their music, I still find the cacophony of their panic deafening."
Ms. Ferguson explores a variety of themes in this book. The three most recurring themes are trauma, mother/daughter relationships, and music. These allowed us to forge a very real connection with the characters despite them living in extraordinary times. The mother/daughter bond is explored most obviously through Lisette and Ely, who narrate the story. They have always had a difficult and distant relationship that Ely struggled to understand. And while they seem very different on the surface, they are actually quite alike and are both strong, determined and gutsy women who will go to great lengths for those they love. The two also share a love of music, which is a topic woven through every facet of the story. Lisette used to play piano while Ely hears music personal to everyone she meets. This was a beautiful addition to the story and I was fascinated by the idea that we all carry our own theme tune that tells people more about us than words ever could. Sadly this shared love only tears them apart even more as Lisette has stopped playing the piano for reasons unknown and doesn’t like Ely to talk about her gift. The reasons for all of this are revealed slowly, as secrets in Lisette’s past are revealed and we explore the curse of generational trauma.
Atmospheric, emotional, tense, and unflinching, The Silence in Between is an unmissable and unforgettable debut that I can’t recommend highly enough. This will be in my top books of the year and is a contender for my overall favourite book of 2024. Josie Ferguson is a talent to watch and I can’t wait to see what she writes next.
July 16, 2024
I was chatting with a friend recently who said she was teaching about the Berlin Wall in school (which I appreciate may sound like a weird conversation for two friends to have) and I realised I knew very little about it. I studied history A Level but looking back it feels like it was very much good guys versus bad guys (The Germans being the bad guys). Of course, this is much too simplistic - so many German people were innocent and suffered but I don’t remember learning that side of it.
In the Silence in Between we meet Lisette in 1961 who has travelled to West Berlin to take her sick baby for treatment. She is persuaded to go home and rest, but overnight, the Berlin wall was erected and there was no way for her to get her son back. Her older daughter Elly, who has always had a distant relationship with her mother, takes it upon herself to try and find a way to get her baby brother back.
A good portion of the book is told during the war years as a young Lisette sees her father and best friend Julius sent to war. She witnesses the terrible treatment of the Jews and although isn’t directly involved she feels complicit because she chooses to ignore what happens. She suffers through Allied bombings of the city and the lack of food. And then when the war is finally over, she and the other women who are left behind suffer at the hands of the Russian’s who take Berlin for their own.
A heart-breaking story which I am so glad I read. It made me aware of a lot that happened that I didn’t know and as all good historical fiction should, it made me do my own research - around the Berlin Wall in particular. The Silence in Between is based on true events and it feels unbelievable that a wall in the middle of a country could be erected and enforced overnight.
A fantastic piece of historical fiction - one that I think will stay with me for some time.
With thanks to Eloise at Doubleday for my gifted proof. The Silence in Between is out now and has been shortlisted for the Waterstones Debut Fiction Prize for 2024.
In the Silence in Between we meet Lisette in 1961 who has travelled to West Berlin to take her sick baby for treatment. She is persuaded to go home and rest, but overnight, the Berlin wall was erected and there was no way for her to get her son back. Her older daughter Elly, who has always had a distant relationship with her mother, takes it upon herself to try and find a way to get her baby brother back.
A good portion of the book is told during the war years as a young Lisette sees her father and best friend Julius sent to war. She witnesses the terrible treatment of the Jews and although isn’t directly involved she feels complicit because she chooses to ignore what happens. She suffers through Allied bombings of the city and the lack of food. And then when the war is finally over, she and the other women who are left behind suffer at the hands of the Russian’s who take Berlin for their own.
A heart-breaking story which I am so glad I read. It made me aware of a lot that happened that I didn’t know and as all good historical fiction should, it made me do my own research - around the Berlin Wall in particular. The Silence in Between is based on true events and it feels unbelievable that a wall in the middle of a country could be erected and enforced overnight.
A fantastic piece of historical fiction - one that I think will stay with me for some time.
With thanks to Eloise at Doubleday for my gifted proof. The Silence in Between is out now and has been shortlisted for the Waterstones Debut Fiction Prize for 2024.
March 11, 2024
A piece of historical fiction set in Berlin during both the Second World War, and after the city was partitioned during the 1960s. It begins as the border is closed with no warning overnight, and baby Axel is in hospital on the West side, leaving his bereft mother Lisette with no way of returning to fetch him.
The story beautifully captures the way that everyday lives are shattered by the consequences of war, and how often women and children pay the price. Reading a wartime history from the viewpoint of German women was fascinating for me, as Lisette feels guilty for turning a blind eye to the atrocities that were unfolding towards Jewish people, despite disliking the activities of the Nazi party.
The sections set during East Berlin showed the continued hostility of the German people to the Russian, against which backdrop Elly, the daughter, becomes slowly involved with a young soldier. It is almost incomprehensible now to think that a city was physically divided, and families were split apart.
We see the long term effects of wartime trauma on both Lisette, her mother, and her husband, and the way in which mother/daughter relationships can repeat, as both women feel unloved and unsupported. But there is also the ability to heal and break these patterns, and in Elly, we have a young woman of bravery and determination.
A thought provoking, ultimately kind, and beautifully researched debut for Josie Ferguson, and one to look out for if you enjoy wartime fiction.
The story beautifully captures the way that everyday lives are shattered by the consequences of war, and how often women and children pay the price. Reading a wartime history from the viewpoint of German women was fascinating for me, as Lisette feels guilty for turning a blind eye to the atrocities that were unfolding towards Jewish people, despite disliking the activities of the Nazi party.
The sections set during East Berlin showed the continued hostility of the German people to the Russian, against which backdrop Elly, the daughter, becomes slowly involved with a young soldier. It is almost incomprehensible now to think that a city was physically divided, and families were split apart.
We see the long term effects of wartime trauma on both Lisette, her mother, and her husband, and the way in which mother/daughter relationships can repeat, as both women feel unloved and unsupported. But there is also the ability to heal and break these patterns, and in Elly, we have a young woman of bravery and determination.
A thought provoking, ultimately kind, and beautifully researched debut for Josie Ferguson, and one to look out for if you enjoy wartime fiction.
July 5, 2024
The most exquisite read, the story is in 3 parts and told from both the mother and daughter’s story yet, it comes together beautifully.
I was unaware of what the German women endured during the Second World War. The atrocities that took place from 1939 were unimaginable yet Josie Ferguson seems to capture this by way of understanding all women whilst remembering the Holocaust.
I fell in love with each and every one of the characters and at times had joyful tears amid the sadness that envelopes the family.
This book will stay with me for a long time. 💛
I was unaware of what the German women endured during the Second World War. The atrocities that took place from 1939 were unimaginable yet Josie Ferguson seems to capture this by way of understanding all women whilst remembering the Holocaust.
I fell in love with each and every one of the characters and at times had joyful tears amid the sadness that envelopes the family.
This book will stay with me for a long time. 💛
October 7, 2024
This started off well. A woman has to leave her baby in hospital while they run some tests. she returns home, fall asleep and the Berlin border is closed while she sleeps. She is in the east, her baby in the west. I was enjoying the premise and recommended it to a fellow bookworm who happened to be traveling to Berlin.
Unfortunately, for me, the book went down hill quite rapidly. I found the writing clunky, the two time lines annoying and by the second half of the book Elly and feeling the music of other people just got on my nerves.
Not for me.
Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC.
Unfortunately, for me, the book went down hill quite rapidly. I found the writing clunky, the two time lines annoying and by the second half of the book Elly and feeling the music of other people just got on my nerves.
Not for me.
Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC.
June 7, 2024
A duel timeline historical fiction story about one family’s journey in Berlin during the Second World War and the construction of the Berlin Wall.
A story about courage and hope.
Thank you to NetGalley and Random House UK, Transworld Publishing for my e-copy in exchange for an honest review.
A story about courage and hope.
Thank you to NetGalley and Random House UK, Transworld Publishing for my e-copy in exchange for an honest review.
December 8, 2024
Really interesting concept but the dialogue was so badly written as to be almost unreadable. I didn’t care about the characters at all. It was so consciously LOOK I AM MAKING A POINT ABOUT COLLECTIVE GUILT that I cringed as I read those passages. A shame, as it could have been a really good book.
May 18, 2025
The Silence in Between is a powerful, moving, completely heartbreaking debut that took me completely by surprise. It’s outside of my usual genre, but after meeting the wonderful author Josie herself and finding out a little bit more about it, I’m so glad I stepped out of my comfort zone. This is a story that will stay with me for a long time.
Told through a dual POV and timelines of Elly and Lisette, these two lives are separated by decades, yet linked by grief, courage, and the silence that history so often leaves behind.
This book doesn't shy away from emotional depth. There were moments that were genuinely hard to read, not because of the writing, which is beautiful, but because of the raw, honest way it confronts pain, trauma, loss, and resilience. It shines a light on a part of history that isn’t often talked about, making it all the more impactful and thought-provoking.
Told through a dual POV and timelines of Elly and Lisette, these two lives are separated by decades, yet linked by grief, courage, and the silence that history so often leaves behind.
This book doesn't shy away from emotional depth. There were moments that were genuinely hard to read, not because of the writing, which is beautiful, but because of the raw, honest way it confronts pain, trauma, loss, and resilience. It shines a light on a part of history that isn’t often talked about, making it all the more impactful and thought-provoking.
July 24, 2025
I read this as my book club hosted a special bookclub with the author in attendance, as it’s not a book I would have usually picked up. But I have nothing but praise for it, it was so well crafted and researched, while being very emotionally charged. I love reading books when I learn new information and I certainly did here, I had no idea about the lives of Berlin women during the war and its aftermath, and found it fascinating and heartbreaking.
As someone who has been to Berlin many times, this was also a love story to the city.
So much resonance and through lines with what continues to happen to women and innocents in war today, from Ukraine to Gaza.
Read it.
As someone who has been to Berlin many times, this was also a love story to the city.
So much resonance and through lines with what continues to happen to women and innocents in war today, from Ukraine to Gaza.
Read it.
March 30, 2025
Realised how little I knew about the Berlin Wall and Berlin after WW2 in general. Very interesting and had me hooked! Very different to anything I’ve ever read before, the author has obviously done a lot of research, like crazy this stuff actually happened…
September 23, 2025
I loved this book. The human impact of the closing of the wall in Berlin, layered over the trauma and aftermath of the Second World War, is told through the lens of Lisette and her family. I loved the writing and raced through it.
September 21, 2025
The book is written so well with the timeline alternating between WW2 and the Berlin Wall. Powerful read, showing the resilience and strength of women during the war. Moving, harrowing, and emotional - recommend!!!
Also liked how the daughter connected each person she met with music.
Also liked how the daughter connected each person she met with music.
July 20, 2025
Historical Fiction at its best. Similarly to All The Light We Cannot See, I am interested in hearing the stories of Germans during WW2 which our history books often leave out. I loved the movement between the 40s and 60s and the Berlin perspective. Learned a great deal about history, particularly the Rape of Berlin in 1945 and the secret movements under the wall. All too tragically, I draw parallels with these events in today’s world.
‘Stories of atrocities were trickling into Berlin, following us around like shadows’. It would have been easier to ignore them but I couldn’t. Others - through fear, ignorance or sheer selfishness - chose to look at the sun so the shadows fell behind them, unseen but still present’.
‘Stories of atrocities were trickling into Berlin, following us around like shadows’. It would have been easier to ignore them but I couldn’t. Others - through fear, ignorance or sheer selfishness - chose to look at the sun so the shadows fell behind them, unseen but still present’.
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