The Dressmaker and the Hidden Soldier

by Doug Gold, Jared Turner (narrator), W.F. Howes Ltd. (publisher)

A prisoner of war's daring escape from a speeding train . . . a Greek resistance heroine's fateful decision to harbor the fugitive . . . and a young dressmaker's curiosity spark a chain of events that has consequences none of them could ever have imagined.

Peter Blunden, a New Zealand soldier captured in Crete, jumps from a train and escapes from his Nazi captors. He is taken into a safe house by Mrs. Tasoula, a dressmaker and a member of the Greek resistance movement.

She employs several young dressmakers including Thalia Christidou, who wonders why the door to a room off the living room is always locked. This arrangement works well for some time, but the Germans are everywhere and there is mounting concern that the men will be discovered.

Thalia sees them by accident, and soon Peter and Thalia become close. For a while the secret is safe. Thalia's feelings for Peter are growing, as are his for her, but both are certain that nothing can come of it so they keep their emotions in check.

But the Nazis are becoming suspicious of Mrs. Tasoula and local gossip suggests that she has something to hide—or is hiding someone.

What will Mrs Tasoula's fate be? What will become of Thalia and Peter?

Genres: Historical Fiction, Historical, Fiction, Audiobook

Audible Audio

Published September 12, 2023

About the author

Doug Gold has had a long and successful media career. With a business partner, he set up the More FM radio network and, later, was a founding partner of NRS Media, an international media company with offices in London, Atlanta, Toronto and Sydney. He has won numerous broadcasting awards and consulted to major media networks globally. He lives in Wellington, New Zealand, with his wife, Anemarie.

Reviews

[Lucy · Rating 2 out of 5]

Based on the real life story of Kiwi soldier Peter Blunden who takes refuge with a dressmaker, her son and her trainee in occupied Greece during the war. Sadly this novel seriously lags and feels like reading a collection of memories stapled together. There's very little action or any romance and even the time the dressmaker spends in prison and in concentration camps is in the last 1/4 of the book. There are better told works of fictionalised memoir about the war.

[Rachel Horwell · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really lovely audio book. Amazing story and amazing people. Interesting learning about what the war was like for every-day Greeks and the acts of kindness and bravery in such difficult times.
Beautiful to have a real life love story amongst such horror

[Fran Whiteman · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book isn’t action packed but it was great to hear this true story. I haven’t read a wartime story set in Greece before this one

[Caitlin Rose · Rating 4 out of 5]

Based on a true story this book is both lighthearted and harrowing. It was an easy read but for some of the more chilling chapters detailing the horrific conditions in Nazi prisons. Having set foot in the Heptapyrgion myself I was easily transported there and to the streets of Thessaloniki. I did not have to be transported into the shoes of a young girl wrestling with her heart and her common sense when it comes to loving a soldier from the other side of the world, but the author articulated Thalia’s struggle with an authenticity that did such a dilemma justice — particularly impressive since her character has the least historical documentary to rely on.
The pacing of the book reflects the uneven distribution of evidence, being slow and meticulous at times and then leaping months or years in a single page. This was jarring to read at times, so I think best to approach this book expecting it to be a hybrid of a biography/novel and have the ensuing quirks!

[Emma · Rating 4 out of 5]

Loved this. Make the movie!

[Julie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting read. Probably more so as NZ soldier involved .

[Jess · Rating 2 out of 5]

2.5 stars

Done, finished, the end!

I enjoyed this book for the first 20%, but as it went on the writing got to me and it started taking me out of the story.

It was a welcome change to see WWII written from a Greece point of view, though they're quite similar when it comes to the crux of it; Nazi soldiers, resistance, starvation, and camps. But it gave them a voice.

Interesting choice to have multiple mentions of New Zealand and the word Maori was bought up once. Everyone from and in New Zealand had English names...what's up with that? Not even a sprinkling of Te Reo, which would have been easy to do. The ship was Rangitata, but that doesn't count...as that was the ships actual name.

Appreciated the fact that this was based off a true story. I had to audiobook the last 50% while I read the physical book, I enjoyed the kiwi (with a little bit of Aussie twang here and there) accent.

[Hayley Wills · Rating 3 out of 5]

For Jess: This book is written by the same author as “The Note Through the Wire” … have you read that? Similar gist - based on the true story of a NZ soldier in Greece during WW2 who falls in love with a local dressmaker.

[Veronica Huntington · Rating 3 out of 5]

I liked this book but never fully managed to get so immersed in the story and characters which would have helped me love it.

[Dana Hilliam (dlight_reads) · Rating 4 out of 5]

This books was incredibly fast paced for a historical fiction, keeping me hooked on the ever changing and heart wrenching storyline.
I enjoyed reading from the different character perspectives, and felt Tasoula’s story was just as strong as the love story of Peter and Thalia.
A beautiful mix of fiction and non fiction.

[Karen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really lovely book set mostly in Greece during the war. Loved the NZ character and the NZ references

[Ineke · Rating 4 out of 5]

The radio here in NZ kept on talking about the book. They even gave away copies if you sent a message to the radio station. I bought it because it is a historical novel/memoir about a NZ soldier fighting in Greece during WWII. Doug Gold described horrific scenes of the way the Nazis mistreated the Greece people. I enjoyed reading the well-written book. Lots of drama.

[Laura · Rating 1 out of 5]

I read this because my mum said I’d like it… she was wrong

[Lesley · Rating 4 out of 5]

The opening chapters introduce the reader to key characters in The Dressmaker & The Hidden Soldiers with Thalia Christidou being offered work with dressmaker Tasoula Paschilidou .
War was raging in Europe and with Germans occupying Greece Thalia was grateful for the opportunity to work with Mrs Tasoula and soon settles in the the workroom with the other dressmakers .
Meanwhile a couple of prisoners of war, Peter Blunden and Patrick Minogue had jumped from a moving train, and with help from Greek Resistance members find their way to Thessaloniki,
and are soon housed in Mrs Tasoula's locked room .
Thalia was curious about the door which was always locked in one room of the house , and felt it held a secret but we are nearly a quarter through the book, until she finds what is behind the doo,r when she meets Peter.
There is a spark between the young couple but with Peter determined to get back to his regiment their is no chance to kindle the love .
Author Doug Gold has written a real page turner of wartime courage and romance which is based on the true story of New Zealand soldier Peter Blunden and apprentice dressmaker Thalia Christidou
This is a riveting read and I found the history around Nazi occupied Greece very interesting as many of war stories I have read previously have been based in France .The inclusion of the map outlining Peter's escape route is an asset as are the author's notes at the rear

[Susan McKone · Rating 4 out of 5]

The second book that I've read recently that is based in Greece during the second world war. This is a true story of Peter Blunden, a New Zealand Army man who found himself in Greece after escaping capture following battles in Crete. He and a fellow ANZAC find themselves in Salonika (Thessaloniki) in the refuge of a greek woman who was a resistance fighter. For 10 months he lives hidden (sometimes in plain sight) while efforts are made through tenuous links to get him out to Turkey. It is also a love story of Peter and Thalia, a young greek seamstress working for the resistance fighter and her son in her tailoring workshop. It is fast paced and easy to read - I did in a day - but it is also an awesome story of heroics in a part of the war that we don't know as much about.

[IE · Rating 3 out of 5]

Don’t read the back of the book! It gives everything away. I wish I hadn’t read the back as it mentions all the plot points, terrible! This book was special in that it’s the retelling of a true story of a New Zealand WWII soldier. But there are big gaps in the story timeline, there’s also no romance per say, everything is told matter of factly. Unfortunately the characters private thoughts are in quotes which I found frustrating, most of the book seemed to be someone telling someone what was going on, so it often didn’t feel like I was actually seeing it, and it seemed rudimentary for this genre. I do respect the author though, and I appreciate that he handled the real life story delicately and respectfully in the novel.

[Sunflower · Rating 4 out of 5]

The title gives away most of the basic plot, and I'm a sucker for escape stories so I grabbed this at the local library. I wasn't aware initially that it was based on a true story, and that the hidden soldier was a Kiwi, both of which made the book more interesting. I also didn't know much about the Nazi occupation of Greece, which again added to the interest for me.
As a person who has only lived in peaceful countries, I'm aware that it is a great privilege. It is difficult to imagine having to survive starvation, cold, incarceration and possible torture at the mercy (wrong word, really) of cruel people with no apparent empathy. And yet you know that this story must end on a positive note, and it does; including photographs of the two people of the title.

[Donna Satterlee · Rating 3 out of 5]

Main character is a New Zealand soldier who has escaped German captivity in Greek during World War II. Peter is taken in by a mother and son who are Greek resistance fighters who also run a dressmaking shop. The first half of the book is concentrated on hiding Peter and his discovery by one of the girl's working in the dressmaking shop. I found it very slow and had to continue to read with the hope that it would get better. It did to a degree, the end was predictable. I did not know until after I read the book that it was actually based on a true story. I was a little dissappointed as it felt like some of the stories were left incomplete.

[Carole · Rating 4 out of 5]

Based on the true story of Peter Blunden and Thalia Christidou, a NZ soldier and escaped POW in Europe in the Second World War, and a young dressmaker working for a women who is part of the resistance in Nazi occupied Greece. The romance aspect is certainly important, but not the main part of the story. Rather it is the humanity of those who risked everything to help Allied POWs and disrupt the Nazi occupation, and the terrible atrocities they faced should they be caught. I really enjoyed this fictionalised account of a true story of courage.

[Nikki · Rating 3 out of 5]

3/5 Stars

A fictionalised account of a real WW2 love story, between a man from NZ and a girl from Greece. The romance added an additional element to what, otherwise, may have been written off as “just another war story”.

Whilst it was interesting, it didn’t really grab me as some other WW1 and WW2 narratives have. If you’re interested in a different perspective, that of a New Zealander in the war, this would be an interesting read.

[Tash · Rating 5 out of 5]

I cried and cried tears of joy during the last 2 chapters. When it's a true story, it hits differently. The images I'm left with aren't images of war but of bravery and admiration for this incredible woman. As an Austalian with Greek family, I somehow felt like I knew these beautiful people. 5 stars 🌟 will be adding to my reread list.

[Michael · Rating 5 out of 5]

An excellent read. I could not put this book down. Recounts the story of Peter Blunden, a NZ soldier, hidden by Greeks in Salonika after escaping from a train taking POWs to Germany. During the course of being hidden he fell in love with one of the dressmakers employed by the lady who hid him. Highly recommended.

[Denise Long · Rating 5 out of 5]

To Doug Gold thank you for writing this wonderful story and again new history I have learnt from this book and how people suffered in Greece at the hands of Hitler. It is always good reading about real people and events as to us the readers it makes it so much more real and interesting. I thoroughly recommend this book to you all.

[Tracy Plane · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is an extraordinary story, based on true events. I agree with some of the other reviews regarding the pacing - parts of the story seem rushed, perhaps where the author didn’t have as much information from that period. Also agree it would make a great film!

[Nicole Lloyd · Rating 4 out of 5]

Based on a true story involving a New Zealand soldier, a Greek dressmaker and a resistance heroine. This biography come novel was both lighthearted and harrowing. A beautiful love story, interspersed with war time stories.

[Aryani Siti · Rating 5 out of 5]

An uplifting and heartbreaking true story follows New Zealand soldier Peter Blunden, Greek dressmaker Thalia Christidou, and resistance fighter Tasoula Paschilidou during WWII. As the Nazis close in, Peter escapes once more, Thalia faces betrayal, and Tasoula is sent to a concentration camp.

[Camilla Hikarda · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was such a lovely and easy book to read. Although the true life experiences of the characters throughout occupied Greece were at times hard to read, it was written well. It would make a great film.

[Kate · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this. I didn't find the pacing of the book an issue. As a Kiwi, I enjoyed the link to New Zealand. I found it really interesting that the characters were mostly real people and that the events were based on things that happened to those people.

[Angela Russell · Rating 3 out of 5]

The true story was interesting but the book was so slow and felt like nothing was really happening so I ended up skim reading a lot of it. I didn’t really feel a connection to any of the characters. I think it would have been better as a movie.

[Jo · Rating 2 out of 5]

The background story is amazing! The book, if well written, should be incredible.
Unfortunately, it has been very poorly written. I gained more information, more coherently put together, from a press reporters write-up that I discovered in Paperspast.