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HQ The Echoes of Love.
‘A big, beautiful, epic tale of war, heartache, betrayal, courage and most of all, love. I can’t remember the last time I was so transported by a book . . . I can’t recommend The Echoes of Love more highly. This story is a classic of our time’ Louise Douglas, The Room in the Attic‘With the historical authenticity of Sebastian Faulks, the perfectly observed family relationships of Santa Montefiore, and the gut-wrenching twist of Jojo Moyes, The Echoes of Love is epic, enthralling and deeply emotional’ Iona Grey, Letters to the Lost ‘An unforgettable story of great love torn apart by war, of heroism and betrayal, passion and pure evil, all set against an idyllic Greek island backdrop. It’s a genuine masterpiece, a book to lose yourself in’ Gill Paul, The Secret Wife* * *Under the Cretan sun, in the summer of 1936, two young people fall in love… Eleni has been coming to Crete her entire life, swapping her English home for cherished sun-baked summers with her grandfather in his idyllic shoreside villa. When she arrives in 1936, she believes the long, hot weeks ahead will be no different to so many that have gone before.But someone else is visiting the island that year a young German man called Otto. And so begins a summer of innocence lost, and love discovered; one that is finite, but not the end.When, in 1941, the island falls to a Nazi invasion, Eleni and Otto meet there once more. But this time Eleni has returned to fight for her home, and Otto to occupy it. They are enemies, and their love is not only treacherous, but also dangerous. But will it destroy them, or prove strong enough to overcome the ravages of war?An epic tale of secrets, love, loyalty, family and how far you’d go to keep those you love safe, The Echoes of Love is an exquisite and deeply moving love letter to Crete – one that will move every reader to tears. * * *‘What a beautiful novel. So romantic, so epic, so tear-jerking’ Lorna Cook,The Forgotten Village‘I was completely spellbound. A beautiful, poignant love story with a clever twist, all set against the backdrop of war-torn Crete. It’s the best book I’ve read this year’ Kathleen McGurl, The Forgotten Secret
480 pages, Paperback
Published August 31, 2023
72 people are currently reading
366 people want to read
About the author
Jenny Ashcroft
12 books398 followersI am an author of both historical fiction under the name of Jenny Ashcroft, and high concept novels under the pseudonym Jennifer Ross. Having spent many years living, working and exploring in Australia and Asia, I now split my time between Australia and the UK. I have a degree from Oxford University in history, and have always been fascinated by the past—in particular the way that extraordinary events can transform the lives of normal people. My newest novel, Every Lifetime After, will publish in January 2026.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 78 reviews
September 22, 2023
This is a beautifully told story, it is heart-breaking as well and yes I cried, lots, set from 1936 onto World War 2 in Crete and then in 1974. Things are changing in Germany and throughout Europe but in 1936 in Crete two young people fall in love, what will become of them?
Eleni Adams has come to Crete every summer as long as she can remember to spend this time with her grandfather, leaving England behind, in her eighteenth year things seem even better when she meets a young German, Otto who is holidaying in the villa next door, there is a spark instantly, and the summer becomes even more exciting as the two of them sneak away as often as they can and love grows.
Otto and Eleni continue to write to each other and meet up one time in Paris, but war comes and life changes.
When Crete falls to the Nazis Eleni returns to do her bit for her country, both of them England and Crete and Otto is there as part of the Nazi invasion and soon they are together again, enemies who love each other, with danger all around them where will it end?
This is such a well-researched story, with fabulous characters and beautiful descriptions of Crete, so much love and so many secrets, I do highly recommend this one to any reader who loves historical fiction.
My thanks to the publisher for my copy to read and review.
Eleni Adams has come to Crete every summer as long as she can remember to spend this time with her grandfather, leaving England behind, in her eighteenth year things seem even better when she meets a young German, Otto who is holidaying in the villa next door, there is a spark instantly, and the summer becomes even more exciting as the two of them sneak away as often as they can and love grows.
Otto and Eleni continue to write to each other and meet up one time in Paris, but war comes and life changes.
When Crete falls to the Nazis Eleni returns to do her bit for her country, both of them England and Crete and Otto is there as part of the Nazi invasion and soon they are together again, enemies who love each other, with danger all around them where will it end?
This is such a well-researched story, with fabulous characters and beautiful descriptions of Crete, so much love and so many secrets, I do highly recommend this one to any reader who loves historical fiction.
My thanks to the publisher for my copy to read and review.
September 30, 2022
This was a beautiful love story that quickly captured my heart and I could not put the book down. I could not read the book fast enough, so absorbed I was in Eleni and Otto’s story. If I could have given it more than 5 stars, I most certainly would have done!
Heading to Crete in the summer of 1936, this book starts off quite uncomplicated. The second World War is on the horizon, but life remains innocent and free. This is personified by Eleni’s behaviour, despite her rather strained relationship with her father. Spending each summer with her grandfather, it is the summer of 1936 that changes her life forever.
Meeting Otto, Eleni is instantly drawn to this German young man. Despite differences in their language and families, the two cannot help but spend increasing time with each other, leading to a blossoming relationship. Of course, summer holidays have to end and this is heart-breaking for both Otto and Eleni. It is the first of many goodbyes and as war breaks out in Europe, their positions become compromised.
Ashcroft moves forward in time thanks to the journalist interviews taking place in 1976. This gives a rough outline of the section to follow and fills in the gaps, like a summary, before the narrative shows exactly what happened. As such, readers learn about how Eleni’s life changes after that glorious summer in Crete, eventually leading to her having a significant role in the resistance of an island she loves. It is at the peak of the war that Otto and Eleni’s paths cross, this time with the Nazi regime threatening everything they know.
This was such a fascinating and absorbing novel. I thought I had an idea of how Ashcroft would develop the story but I was wrong on each account. It is so cleverly written, particularly the asides, making the characters so vivid and believable. I felt like I was with Eleni and experienced the emotions she did: falling in love for the first time, the yearning from long-distance relationships, and the fear of being discovered. She is such a strong, likeable character that I could not help but be impressed by her strength and ambition to help others, especially when she is sent to Crete.
However, this book is not just about Eleni and through the letters between her and Otto, we find out more about his background and life in Germany. Otto’s character reflects the anguish of being forced to follow the Nazi regime and how even he became a victim of it. His love for Eleni is one of every woman’s dreams and I was desperate to see them go from strength to strength, even with the knowledge that such a relationship during the war would be difficult.
Even when it felt like nothing could prevent the events unfolding, I was thrilled by the change of direction in Ashcroft’s narrative. In this sense, I thought this made this book even more enjoyable and different to other books set during the war. Coupled with the sunny location, I felt transported to another world, although this climate truly juxtaposed with the horrors that took place on the island. Some of the scenes described were chilling and I could not imagine how Otto and Eleni managed to keep strong in such testing times.
This book made me laugh, it made me cry, and everything in between. It is my first read from Ashcroft and it definitely cannot be my last. I enjoyed it so much, I am quite sorry to have finished it, but it is definitely up there in my top reads of the year.
With thanks to HQ Digital and NetGalley for providing me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
Heading to Crete in the summer of 1936, this book starts off quite uncomplicated. The second World War is on the horizon, but life remains innocent and free. This is personified by Eleni’s behaviour, despite her rather strained relationship with her father. Spending each summer with her grandfather, it is the summer of 1936 that changes her life forever.
Meeting Otto, Eleni is instantly drawn to this German young man. Despite differences in their language and families, the two cannot help but spend increasing time with each other, leading to a blossoming relationship. Of course, summer holidays have to end and this is heart-breaking for both Otto and Eleni. It is the first of many goodbyes and as war breaks out in Europe, their positions become compromised.
Ashcroft moves forward in time thanks to the journalist interviews taking place in 1976. This gives a rough outline of the section to follow and fills in the gaps, like a summary, before the narrative shows exactly what happened. As such, readers learn about how Eleni’s life changes after that glorious summer in Crete, eventually leading to her having a significant role in the resistance of an island she loves. It is at the peak of the war that Otto and Eleni’s paths cross, this time with the Nazi regime threatening everything they know.
This was such a fascinating and absorbing novel. I thought I had an idea of how Ashcroft would develop the story but I was wrong on each account. It is so cleverly written, particularly the asides, making the characters so vivid and believable. I felt like I was with Eleni and experienced the emotions she did: falling in love for the first time, the yearning from long-distance relationships, and the fear of being discovered. She is such a strong, likeable character that I could not help but be impressed by her strength and ambition to help others, especially when she is sent to Crete.
However, this book is not just about Eleni and through the letters between her and Otto, we find out more about his background and life in Germany. Otto’s character reflects the anguish of being forced to follow the Nazi regime and how even he became a victim of it. His love for Eleni is one of every woman’s dreams and I was desperate to see them go from strength to strength, even with the knowledge that such a relationship during the war would be difficult.
Even when it felt like nothing could prevent the events unfolding, I was thrilled by the change of direction in Ashcroft’s narrative. In this sense, I thought this made this book even more enjoyable and different to other books set during the war. Coupled with the sunny location, I felt transported to another world, although this climate truly juxtaposed with the horrors that took place on the island. Some of the scenes described were chilling and I could not imagine how Otto and Eleni managed to keep strong in such testing times.
This book made me laugh, it made me cry, and everything in between. It is my first read from Ashcroft and it definitely cannot be my last. I enjoyed it so much, I am quite sorry to have finished it, but it is definitely up there in my top reads of the year.
With thanks to HQ Digital and NetGalley for providing me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
September 29, 2022
Did you know that flisvos is the Greek word for the sound of waves licking over pebbles at the seashore? Right from the start of this magical novel, you are immersed in the Cretan landscape, with its golden heat, the scent of wild thyme, goats grazing by the roadside, and the sparkling blue of the sea. Eleni is half Greek, half English, and spending the summer with her grandfather at a house on the coast, when she encounters Otto, a German man staying in the house next door, while taking an evening dip. The electricity between them is instant, and it intensifies over the succeeding weeks as they meet for clandestine swims, and grab every second they can together. But this will be no happy-ever-after love story. It’s 1936, and the reader knows what is coming three years down the line.
Each section of this novel is preceded by an extract from a research interview conducted at the BBC in 1974, between a researcher and someone known as “subject seventeen”. We are left guessing who seventeen might be, but they talk about the German invasion of Crete, foreshadowing what will happen in the second half of the novel.
The arrival of German forces is swift and life-changing for Cretans: there are the notorious reprisals – mass killings in revenge for any resistance – and new limits put on daily life. They are no longer allowed to swim in the sea, and are subject to a curfew, while food is commandeered for the occupying forces, forcing them to eat snails and foraged food.
One of the many things I like about this novel is that all the characters are nuanced, with good and bad on both sides. It’s a complex story of heroism and betrayal, passion and pure evil. I was immersed from the start in the story and characters, and the descriptions of the idyllic landscape left me yearning for a Greek island holiday.
It came as no surprise to read in the author’s note that Jenny Ashcroft has a Greek side to her family, and several of her relatives lived in Occupied Greece – some surviving the war while others didn’t. She has a strong emotional connection to the country, which she visited every summer as a child, and this comes across throughout the novel. It’s a story written from the heart, and it certainly touched my heart. I don’t often cry at novels, but this one broke me.
Each section of this novel is preceded by an extract from a research interview conducted at the BBC in 1974, between a researcher and someone known as “subject seventeen”. We are left guessing who seventeen might be, but they talk about the German invasion of Crete, foreshadowing what will happen in the second half of the novel.
The arrival of German forces is swift and life-changing for Cretans: there are the notorious reprisals – mass killings in revenge for any resistance – and new limits put on daily life. They are no longer allowed to swim in the sea, and are subject to a curfew, while food is commandeered for the occupying forces, forcing them to eat snails and foraged food.
One of the many things I like about this novel is that all the characters are nuanced, with good and bad on both sides. It’s a complex story of heroism and betrayal, passion and pure evil. I was immersed from the start in the story and characters, and the descriptions of the idyllic landscape left me yearning for a Greek island holiday.
It came as no surprise to read in the author’s note that Jenny Ashcroft has a Greek side to her family, and several of her relatives lived in Occupied Greece – some surviving the war while others didn’t. She has a strong emotional connection to the country, which she visited every summer as a child, and this comes across throughout the novel. It’s a story written from the heart, and it certainly touched my heart. I don’t often cry at novels, but this one broke me.
October 17, 2022
I really wish I could give this fabulous book more than five stars. This wonderful story was so emotional that at one time I actually gasped out loud. The characters were so interesting and as it was based on true stories made it all the more enjoyable. My thanks to Netgalley and the publishers for giving me the opportunity to read this book in return for an honest review.
August 8, 2022
Great story. Although it takes forever to actually get to the main plot to be interested in it.
The dialogue between the characters are a bit long for a novel in my experience.
I found this to be an interesting read however you would have to enjoy the historical aspects as well and have some patience to get to the plot as it does take a while.
The dialogue between the characters are a bit long for a novel in my experience.
I found this to be an interesting read however you would have to enjoy the historical aspects as well and have some patience to get to the plot as it does take a while.
August 29, 2023
Author Jenny Ashcroft’s novels have taken me to exotic locales, introducing me to characters and events that stay in my memory. Through her books I’ve journeyed to Bombay, Australia, and now, the isle of Crete. Echoes of Love begins in 1936, a summer of young love between Eleni, who is visiting her grandfather, and Otto, who is vacationing with his family from Germany. Whispers of war, fear of what is to come, makes it an unsettling time, but the star crossed lovers have faith that their love will have no end. This is a beautifully written story of enduring love during wartime, of honor and loyalty. I was completely enthralled by the characters and their stories; I felt as if I were walking alongside them, swimming in the sea, feeling all of their emotions—laughing with them, weeping for them, and caring about them.
August 28, 2022
“the smallest acts can change the course of lives”
this book alone makes me believe in soulmates 🫶✨
Firstly, I am a historical fiction lover, so naturally I adored this book, from beginning to end. I’m a sucker for WW2/WW1/ war novels so this was perfect for me.
The layout and actual plot was so wonderfully written it felt like a movie, and I am not exaggerating.
The main interview acted as a base plot line, running throughout the book, with two interconnecting sections - 1936, 1939-1945, (the past) and a final section at the end, 1975 (the present). The main plot line was the Second World War, in Crete Greece during the German invasion.
Eleni and Otto were perfectly written. Eleni, a greek-english ‘goddess’ who always stood to her word, loyal, head-strong, gorgeous and brave. Her personna was wonderful and I just loved reading her story. Otto was so charming, equally as brave and had the heart of lion. Their forbidden love story was simply beautiful. there were so many delicate and tender moments/quotes. (they each learnt one another’s home language 🥺)
I adored the chaos and calamity of all the greek characters, each connected to each other, it made it such an interesting read. Eleni’s grandfather along with Dimitri, Eleni and Marianne were probably my favourite characters. I felt like I knew them all by the end of the book, despite being fictional…!
this book just gave me a virtual hug, and made my heart warm, I’m adding it to the shelf of forever favourite reads. <3
this book alone makes me believe in soulmates 🫶✨
Firstly, I am a historical fiction lover, so naturally I adored this book, from beginning to end. I’m a sucker for WW2/WW1/ war novels so this was perfect for me.
The layout and actual plot was so wonderfully written it felt like a movie, and I am not exaggerating.
The main interview acted as a base plot line, running throughout the book, with two interconnecting sections - 1936, 1939-1945, (the past) and a final section at the end, 1975 (the present). The main plot line was the Second World War, in Crete Greece during the German invasion.
Eleni and Otto were perfectly written. Eleni, a greek-english ‘goddess’ who always stood to her word, loyal, head-strong, gorgeous and brave. Her personna was wonderful and I just loved reading her story. Otto was so charming, equally as brave and had the heart of lion. Their forbidden love story was simply beautiful. there were so many delicate and tender moments/quotes. (they each learnt one another’s home language 🥺)
I adored the chaos and calamity of all the greek characters, each connected to each other, it made it such an interesting read. Eleni’s grandfather along with Dimitri, Eleni and Marianne were probably my favourite characters. I felt like I knew them all by the end of the book, despite being fictional…!
this book just gave me a virtual hug, and made my heart warm, I’m adding it to the shelf of forever favourite reads. <3
December 22, 2022
A brilliant story. Made me cry.
October 19, 2022
You know how it goes. There are certain authors whose writing speaks to you, touches you, leaving its indelible mark. Jenny Ashcroft, for me, is one such author. I have read every book she has written and, without fail, each one has been five stars. Jenny has written tales that have not only taken me to such far off places as Egypt, Singapore and India but writes with such heartfelt, pure emotion that it stays with the reader long after turning the final page.
‘You make me feel, not alone.’
The Echoes of Love is another such novel. This one is especially poignant as it regales a tale very close to Jenny’s own heart and family. With such strong emotional connections (Jenny visited Crete each summer as a child) it is clearly evident throughout her tale. It’s a story written from her heart which ensured it touched mine. It is so cleverly written that not until the final few chapters does Jenny place down the final puzzle piece that ensures the tears will flow. With timelines before, during and after the war, each section is interconnected by an extract from a research interview conducted in 1974, between an interviewer and someone known only as “subject seventeen”. The reader is left guessing who ‘seventeen’ might be.
‘She didn't think about much at all.
She simply breathed.
It was her favourite breath of the year,
The breath that truly started summer for her.
The breath when her monochrome world shifted fully into colour, and her loneliness gave way to belonging.’
Jenny’s research on the historical aspects of life on Crete during Nazi occupation is incredible. As she does so well, period, place and people are accurately presented. There is a cast of characters that each bring something special that provides an overwhelming depth to this tale. It is, however, the two leads of Eleni and Otto, that are so moving. This is such a beautiful love story that I found myself at odds with my zeal to consume this book being in direct conflict with my desire to savour each word, thought and emotion.
‘In the space of a night, the summer ahead, so predictable, had .... pixelated, into unknowns: the endless possibilities.’
This truly complex story will immerse you to the life in Crete - the sun lavished fun days by the beach before the war and the terrible haunting days of the Nazi occupation during WWII. Herein lies you will read of atrocities from truly evil individuals, to the heroism of the resistance, to the final act of brutal betrayal. For an author to consistently provide five star ratings is something special - there most certainly is magic within each line with words floating off each page.
‘He hated what he'd become, what he did, but he wanted his life; the chance at a future that held none of this in it, where he built houses rather than threw grenades at them.’
Every read of Jenny’s has been for me such an evocative and sensory experience, filled with characters that speak to me on many levels; stories that draw you in and leave you sitting in reverie long after the final page has been turned. Once more I am in awe of how Jenny masterfully weaves a sense of time and place, heart and soul into her characters concerning the circumstances they find themselves in. The Echoes of Love will take you on such an unforgettable journey, you simply would not want to miss it.
‘We need to get to the other side’.
‘You think there'll be one?'
‘I do,’ she said. ‘I have to. And I want you there, with me…’
This review is based on a complimentary copy from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own. The quoted material may have changed in the final release.
‘You make me feel, not alone.’
The Echoes of Love is another such novel. This one is especially poignant as it regales a tale very close to Jenny’s own heart and family. With such strong emotional connections (Jenny visited Crete each summer as a child) it is clearly evident throughout her tale. It’s a story written from her heart which ensured it touched mine. It is so cleverly written that not until the final few chapters does Jenny place down the final puzzle piece that ensures the tears will flow. With timelines before, during and after the war, each section is interconnected by an extract from a research interview conducted in 1974, between an interviewer and someone known only as “subject seventeen”. The reader is left guessing who ‘seventeen’ might be.
‘She didn't think about much at all.
She simply breathed.
It was her favourite breath of the year,
The breath that truly started summer for her.
The breath when her monochrome world shifted fully into colour, and her loneliness gave way to belonging.’
Jenny’s research on the historical aspects of life on Crete during Nazi occupation is incredible. As she does so well, period, place and people are accurately presented. There is a cast of characters that each bring something special that provides an overwhelming depth to this tale. It is, however, the two leads of Eleni and Otto, that are so moving. This is such a beautiful love story that I found myself at odds with my zeal to consume this book being in direct conflict with my desire to savour each word, thought and emotion.
‘In the space of a night, the summer ahead, so predictable, had .... pixelated, into unknowns: the endless possibilities.’
This truly complex story will immerse you to the life in Crete - the sun lavished fun days by the beach before the war and the terrible haunting days of the Nazi occupation during WWII. Herein lies you will read of atrocities from truly evil individuals, to the heroism of the resistance, to the final act of brutal betrayal. For an author to consistently provide five star ratings is something special - there most certainly is magic within each line with words floating off each page.
‘He hated what he'd become, what he did, but he wanted his life; the chance at a future that held none of this in it, where he built houses rather than threw grenades at them.’
Every read of Jenny’s has been for me such an evocative and sensory experience, filled with characters that speak to me on many levels; stories that draw you in and leave you sitting in reverie long after the final page has been turned. Once more I am in awe of how Jenny masterfully weaves a sense of time and place, heart and soul into her characters concerning the circumstances they find themselves in. The Echoes of Love will take you on such an unforgettable journey, you simply would not want to miss it.
‘We need to get to the other side’.
‘You think there'll be one?'
‘I do,’ she said. ‘I have to. And I want you there, with me…’
This review is based on a complimentary copy from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own. The quoted material may have changed in the final release.
August 4, 2022
What a fascinating story and oh my, the ending really got to me, I had tears in my eyes, it was so gripping. It took me a long time to get into the story and although I was interested in keeping reading there was something about it that took me a while to get really involved. I found the dialogue was overly long at times, which I think slowed me from getting totally invested in the book. However, it did fill in a lot of back the story. The frequent swapping between characters' dialogue made it hard sometimes to know who was talking,
The historical aspects were fascinating and I enjoyed reading more about the life on Crete during the war years and the scene was well set. The characters were well written and I loved Eleni for her determination and sunny disposition, despite everything that life threw at her she remained optimistic. There is a wealth of characters in this book and they all brought a lot to the story, making a wonderful tapestry of people who made the story very interesting.
This is a fascinating love story, which brings the history of Crete to life. Despite me finding it hard to get into, the ending was so moving and the book is so well written that I would highly recommend reading it..
The historical aspects were fascinating and I enjoyed reading more about the life on Crete during the war years and the scene was well set. The characters were well written and I loved Eleni for her determination and sunny disposition, despite everything that life threw at her she remained optimistic. There is a wealth of characters in this book and they all brought a lot to the story, making a wonderful tapestry of people who made the story very interesting.
This is a fascinating love story, which brings the history of Crete to life. Despite me finding it hard to get into, the ending was so moving and the book is so well written that I would highly recommend reading it..
October 22, 2022
Eleni heads to Crete for what she thought was going to be just the same as all her other summers spent in Crete. But 1936 was certainly more than she could hope. A young German, Otto didn't know what to expect from their forced trip to Crete at the same time but love certainly wasn't high on his list.
Their summer was an epic tale of young love and their goodbyes where hard. Then the island falls to the Nazis in 1941. What they didn't expect was to have their love reignited during war time where they were both the enemy.
From family, secrets, loyalty, a game of trust, and pushing their limits of love while keeping those around them safe, this tale took me on an epic journey of wartime love, it's hope and it's heartache.
A wonderful read thanks @harpercollinsaustralia, @harlequinaus
Their summer was an epic tale of young love and their goodbyes where hard. Then the island falls to the Nazis in 1941. What they didn't expect was to have their love reignited during war time where they were both the enemy.
From family, secrets, loyalty, a game of trust, and pushing their limits of love while keeping those around them safe, this tale took me on an epic journey of wartime love, it's hope and it's heartache.
A wonderful read thanks @harpercollinsaustralia, @harlequinaus
September 2, 2024
Wow. New author to me and I devoured this book. Incredible research with personal knowledge, beautiful setting, it’s heartbreaking and yet uplifting. I loved it and am now seeking out all of this authors books
March 5, 2023
A love story based partly during the occupation of Crete in WW2. Loved the author’s note too.
December 23, 2023
Got to give this book 5 stars.
A story full of love, heartache, and tragedy 💔. A must read.
A story full of love, heartache, and tragedy 💔. A must read.
August 20, 2022
A very emotional & colourful story of love between Elani & Otto who meet in the Summer of 1936 unaware of the Pending War that will rise between their Countries & also involve those they love on Crete too. It's a story that although the characters for the main part are fictional , I learnt things about the War I'd never heard about before , & it shows how easily it is to be betrayed by someone you think of as a friend . It is a story that at times although largely about love also has you on the edge of your seat ,so I highly recommend it. #NetGalley, #GoodReads, #FB, #Instagram, #Amazon.co.uk, #
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March 14, 2024
Such a moving love story! 🥹🤧
Spanning 1936, through the war, to 1974.
Two people falling in love at the wrong time.
The relationship between Eleni & Otto was so compelling & pulled at the heart strings.
The author really immersed you in the sumptuous Cretan landscape, bringing the towns & villages to life. I was saddened at the historical element; not knowing what had happened in Crete during WW2. The radio interview interspersed throughout the chapters really had me guessing who #17 was.
What a plot twist! Beautiful & tragic.
Also you could tell the author had put a lot of heart into the novel which after reading the authors note you understand why. My first, but it won’t be my last, of Jenny Ashcroft’s books. 4.5 stars. 🥰
Spanning 1936, through the war, to 1974.
Two people falling in love at the wrong time.
The relationship between Eleni & Otto was so compelling & pulled at the heart strings.
The author really immersed you in the sumptuous Cretan landscape, bringing the towns & villages to life. I was saddened at the historical element; not knowing what had happened in Crete during WW2. The radio interview interspersed throughout the chapters really had me guessing who #17 was.
What a plot twist! Beautiful & tragic.
Also you could tell the author had put a lot of heart into the novel which after reading the authors note you understand why. My first, but it won’t be my last, of Jenny Ashcroft’s books. 4.5 stars. 🥰
October 2, 2024
A good quick book to read
December 21, 2024
ספר שמיד שאב אותי.
סיפורה של אלני המגיעה לבקר את סבה האהוב בכרתים בשנת 1936 ומתאהבת בתייר גרמני.
אלני שהיא בת לאם יוונייה מכרתים ואב אנגלי מוצאת עצמה במלחמת העולם השנייה כמי שיכולה לעזור לבעלות הברית כמי שמדברת יוונית מלידה ולכן נשלחה לכרתים.
לאחר פלישת הנאצים לאי נשארת אלני לעזור לבני עמה ומופתעת לגלות בין הכובשים את אותו התייר בו התאהבה לפני השנים.
המפגש, הזכרונות, הסכנה והאהבה חברו יחדיו לסיפור מרתק.
מומלץ!
סיפורה של אלני המגיעה לבקר את סבה האהוב בכרתים בשנת 1936 ומתאהבת בתייר גרמני.
אלני שהיא בת לאם יוונייה מכרתים ואב אנגלי מוצאת עצמה במלחמת העולם השנייה כמי שיכולה לעזור לבעלות הברית כמי שמדברת יוונית מלידה ולכן נשלחה לכרתים.
לאחר פלישת הנאצים לאי נשארת אלני לעזור לבני עמה ומופתעת לגלות בין הכובשים את אותו התייר בו התאהבה לפני השנים.
המפגש, הזכרונות, הסכנה והאהבה חברו יחדיו לסיפור מרתק.
מומלץ!
November 2, 2024
I’ve never been to Crete but I’ve certainly been to 1930’s and 1940’s Crete, so beautifully and descriptively written this book is. Jenny Ashcroft’s skill at her craft of putting you right there with her characters is admirable and I loved this book and would highly recommend it.
I was so invested in Eleni and Otto’s relationship I couldn’t wait to get the chance to pick the book up and continue reading each night.
All characters were believable, some not fictional at all, and a book produced with much research but with personal and familial links to the author.
We have so much to be thankful for and the story of the SOE operatives in Crete fully deserves to be told. Jenny Ashcroft has done them all proud with such an outstanding story.
I was so invested in Eleni and Otto’s relationship I couldn’t wait to get the chance to pick the book up and continue reading each night.
All characters were believable, some not fictional at all, and a book produced with much research but with personal and familial links to the author.
We have so much to be thankful for and the story of the SOE operatives in Crete fully deserves to be told. Jenny Ashcroft has done them all proud with such an outstanding story.
February 11, 2024
Beginning with a transcript in 1974 about Eleni Adams at Broadcasting House. It is an interesting way to start and leads back to the events in 1936, Crete, with the transcript intercepting the main story, giving extra insights. A dangerous time and not far off the cusp of war as Hitler is on the march and the likes of Punch Magazine depicting the road to war in satirical cartoons and trips through Italy with Mussolini in charge have to be made. The book is set between Portsmouth in the UK and Crete, a Greek island. There’s almost an innocence of how this time must have been, against the ensuing darkness that looms, with Hitler being more in the news reels and then an innocent kitten being around and the emotion surrounding that. The characters do enter war times and everything changes as he begins his invasions and what he thinks of the Jews and of Jazz and Swing music.
It, however, never loses sight of it being a war-time story of love and how things change and how it is remembered. Not everything where love is concerned is simple as the book slips through the three very different time eras with great fluidity.
The book is poignant with the reverberations of love and atrocities of war and what the German Nazis had created can be felt deeply and yet it has beautiful writing that has a truth, and yet a softness and not a coarseness surrounding all the events of the day and the people affected in so many different ways.
At the end is an author’s note about how the book was, in part inspired by her own family and about Crete and more… This is a book I highly recommend you lose yourself in.
It, however, never loses sight of it being a war-time story of love and how things change and how it is remembered. Not everything where love is concerned is simple as the book slips through the three very different time eras with great fluidity.
The book is poignant with the reverberations of love and atrocities of war and what the German Nazis had created can be felt deeply and yet it has beautiful writing that has a truth, and yet a softness and not a coarseness surrounding all the events of the day and the people affected in so many different ways.
At the end is an author’s note about how the book was, in part inspired by her own family and about Crete and more… This is a book I highly recommend you lose yourself in.
December 16, 2022
Crete, 1936. Eleni, who is half-English and half-Cretan, spends all her summers with her dead mother’s family on the island of Crete. She’s beautiful, fun, popular, and very happy, but so far untouched by love. Then Otto and his family arrive for a holiday in the villa next door, and the two fall head over heels in love.
The romance is beautifully drawn. Eleni, though she tries to play it cool, is too honest and too much in love to do so, and Otto – oh, Otto is head over heels in love. In that first year, they have to grasp every opportunity to meet in secret because Eleni is hidebound by the Cretan traditions and terrified her family will find out she has a boyfriend. Crete is a close-knit community where everyone knows everyone, and they all protect their own – take heed of this, it gets very, very important!
Otto and Eleni spend an idyllic summer snatching moments of bliss. The island and it’s inhabitants are so utterly beautifully drawn, it’s clear that to the author this is a very personal story. So much of the landscape resonated with me too, for the years I spent living in Cyprus, which also mean that the close-knit community, the ‘old-fashioned’ protectiveness resonated. Sunlit skies, clear turquoise seas, stunning sunrises and sunsets – Eleni and Otto forget the real world, but it’s there from the beginning, in Otto’s family, where his mother’s MS has to be hidden from the Nazi party, the family friend Marianne’s presence in the villa has to be kept secret because Marianne is a Jew, and Lotte, another guest, whose father is a senior Nazi, would be appalled to discover that his daughter was mingling in such company. Poor Lotte, who is in love with Otto, and whom no-one likes or trusts, and who as a reader you instinctively dislike too, because of her father’s affiliations.
But nothing is what it seems, and this is one of the many things this wonderful book proves. You don’t know who to trust. You cannot judge people by what they say or do in public. You take so much risks in being honest – it’s not only Eleni and Otto who are suppressing their real feelings. There’s not only a sense of a beautiful, idyllic romance in this section of the book, there’s a terrible sense of impending doom.
Because of course we know that WWII is about to happen and we know that Crete is going to be occupied and we know, no matter how much we hope otherwise, that loyalties are going to be tested. And we know that Otto and Eleni’s love can never, ever be. We know all that, and we turn the pages with a sense of hope and horror. It’s a hope though, that the author keeps stamping on, because the story is interspersed with the transcript of a post-war interview with a person (we don’t even know if they are a man or a woman) who was a traitor.
The occupation of Crete was long and horrific. The people resisted, and the reprisals were utterly inhumane, yet still they resisted. War is not black and white, good versus evil, as this story shows. There are no winners and no losers. War is fought by real people with real feelings with allegiances and loyalties that are constantly tested and stretched. Sometimes your feelings cannot be tamed. Love can’t be tamed, no matter how forbidden, ‘wrong’ or dangerous it is. And this is a love story – Eleni and Otto’s love story, but also the author’s love story with Crete and the people.
It’s a story of heroism, and the triumph of the human spirit – on every side. (And that’s a very difficult thing to do.) Otto is an officer in the German army. That makes him a Nazi. The enemy. A Nazi on paper, but not in his heart and soul. He’s still Otto. Parachuting into Crete, Otto wants his mission to fail, but he doesn’t want his men to die, not even the men whom he despises. They are men with families, and he doesn’t want to imagine those families bereft.
‘He hated what he’d become, and what he did, but he wanted his life; the chance at a future that held none of this in it, where he built houses rather than threw grenades at them.’
Years ago, at an Open University summer school, I attended a tutorial discussing resistance and collaboration in wartime. One woman insisted she’d ‘take her children into the hills and live off berries’ rather than co-operate with an occupier. Would she continue to resist if it put her children’s lives in danger, the lecturer asked, if she was starving? She insisted she would, and the more he questioned her, the more determined she was that she would. I could be wrong, she may well have been that courageous (or deluded, depending on your point of view) but for me, it was a real turning point in how I thought of collaboration and in understanding, in so much as anyone can understand who hasn’t been through it, of how torn and twisted you are likely to become, and how very, very desperate to survive. So reading about the strength of the Cretan resistance, of the price they all paid, made this book even more moving. Reading of Otto’s dilemma and the role he was expected play in reprisals – and Otto can’t have been so very unusual – made the story heart-breaking.
I won’t say what happens. This was a deeply emotional read for me, and a very rare full five stars for fiction. It put me through the emotional wringer. I hoped and despaired and hoped and despaired, and in the end sobbed my way through the last fifty or so pages. In a good way or a bad way? I’m not going to say. What I will say though is, though I’m not a huge fan of endings and epilogues which tie up every loose knot, in this case it was very necessary and very satisfying.
This is my first book by this author, but I’ll definitely be going back for more. Loved it.
I was given a copy of the book by the publisher in exchange for an honest review. All views and opinions are my own.
The romance is beautifully drawn. Eleni, though she tries to play it cool, is too honest and too much in love to do so, and Otto – oh, Otto is head over heels in love. In that first year, they have to grasp every opportunity to meet in secret because Eleni is hidebound by the Cretan traditions and terrified her family will find out she has a boyfriend. Crete is a close-knit community where everyone knows everyone, and they all protect their own – take heed of this, it gets very, very important!
Otto and Eleni spend an idyllic summer snatching moments of bliss. The island and it’s inhabitants are so utterly beautifully drawn, it’s clear that to the author this is a very personal story. So much of the landscape resonated with me too, for the years I spent living in Cyprus, which also mean that the close-knit community, the ‘old-fashioned’ protectiveness resonated. Sunlit skies, clear turquoise seas, stunning sunrises and sunsets – Eleni and Otto forget the real world, but it’s there from the beginning, in Otto’s family, where his mother’s MS has to be hidden from the Nazi party, the family friend Marianne’s presence in the villa has to be kept secret because Marianne is a Jew, and Lotte, another guest, whose father is a senior Nazi, would be appalled to discover that his daughter was mingling in such company. Poor Lotte, who is in love with Otto, and whom no-one likes or trusts, and who as a reader you instinctively dislike too, because of her father’s affiliations.
But nothing is what it seems, and this is one of the many things this wonderful book proves. You don’t know who to trust. You cannot judge people by what they say or do in public. You take so much risks in being honest – it’s not only Eleni and Otto who are suppressing their real feelings. There’s not only a sense of a beautiful, idyllic romance in this section of the book, there’s a terrible sense of impending doom.
Because of course we know that WWII is about to happen and we know that Crete is going to be occupied and we know, no matter how much we hope otherwise, that loyalties are going to be tested. And we know that Otto and Eleni’s love can never, ever be. We know all that, and we turn the pages with a sense of hope and horror. It’s a hope though, that the author keeps stamping on, because the story is interspersed with the transcript of a post-war interview with a person (we don’t even know if they are a man or a woman) who was a traitor.
The occupation of Crete was long and horrific. The people resisted, and the reprisals were utterly inhumane, yet still they resisted. War is not black and white, good versus evil, as this story shows. There are no winners and no losers. War is fought by real people with real feelings with allegiances and loyalties that are constantly tested and stretched. Sometimes your feelings cannot be tamed. Love can’t be tamed, no matter how forbidden, ‘wrong’ or dangerous it is. And this is a love story – Eleni and Otto’s love story, but also the author’s love story with Crete and the people.
It’s a story of heroism, and the triumph of the human spirit – on every side. (And that’s a very difficult thing to do.) Otto is an officer in the German army. That makes him a Nazi. The enemy. A Nazi on paper, but not in his heart and soul. He’s still Otto. Parachuting into Crete, Otto wants his mission to fail, but he doesn’t want his men to die, not even the men whom he despises. They are men with families, and he doesn’t want to imagine those families bereft.
‘He hated what he’d become, and what he did, but he wanted his life; the chance at a future that held none of this in it, where he built houses rather than threw grenades at them.’
Years ago, at an Open University summer school, I attended a tutorial discussing resistance and collaboration in wartime. One woman insisted she’d ‘take her children into the hills and live off berries’ rather than co-operate with an occupier. Would she continue to resist if it put her children’s lives in danger, the lecturer asked, if she was starving? She insisted she would, and the more he questioned her, the more determined she was that she would. I could be wrong, she may well have been that courageous (or deluded, depending on your point of view) but for me, it was a real turning point in how I thought of collaboration and in understanding, in so much as anyone can understand who hasn’t been through it, of how torn and twisted you are likely to become, and how very, very desperate to survive. So reading about the strength of the Cretan resistance, of the price they all paid, made this book even more moving. Reading of Otto’s dilemma and the role he was expected play in reprisals – and Otto can’t have been so very unusual – made the story heart-breaking.
I won’t say what happens. This was a deeply emotional read for me, and a very rare full five stars for fiction. It put me through the emotional wringer. I hoped and despaired and hoped and despaired, and in the end sobbed my way through the last fifty or so pages. In a good way or a bad way? I’m not going to say. What I will say though is, though I’m not a huge fan of endings and epilogues which tie up every loose knot, in this case it was very necessary and very satisfying.
This is my first book by this author, but I’ll definitely be going back for more. Loved it.
I was given a copy of the book by the publisher in exchange for an honest review. All views and opinions are my own.
July 8, 2024
A heartbreakingly beautiful book, set in Greece during the Second World War. An Anglo-Greek girl, Eleni, falls in love with Otto, a German, just before he is called up to fight for the Nazis. Do read this fabulous book - but have tissues at the ready!
March 30, 2024
BRILLIANT
This was such a wonderful book to read very sad at times but so interesting to hear about Crete involvement in W.W. 2
This was such a wonderful book to read very sad at times but so interesting to hear about Crete involvement in W.W. 2
May 3, 2024
Simply beautiful. What a read!! It made my heart flutter and throat close up from the emotions. Wow wow wow
February 23, 2023
An epic tale of secrets, love, loyalty, family and how far you’d go to keep those you love safe.
Under the Cretan sun, in the summer of 1936, two young people fall in love…
Eleni has been coming to Crete her entire life, swapping her English home for cherished sun-baked summers with her grandfather in his idyllic shoreside villa. When she arrives in 1936, she believes the long, hot weeks ahead will be no different to so many that have gone before.
But someone else is visiting the island that year too: a young German man called Otto. And so begins a summer of innocence lost, and love discovered; one that is finite, but not the end.
When, in 1941, the island falls to a Nazi invasion, Eleni and Otto meet there once more. But this time Eleni has returned to fight for her home, and Otto to occupy it. They are enemies, and their love is not only treacherous, but also dangerous. But will it destroy them, or prove strong enough to overcome the ravages of war?
The German Blitzkrieg campaign commenced in April 1941, and by June (with the conquest of Crete), Greece was defeated and occupied. The Greek government and royal family went into exile.Greece's territory was divided into occupation zones run by the Axis powers, including Athens, Thessaloniki and the strategic Aegean Islands. Other regions were given to Italy and Bulgaria. The occupation ruined the Greek economy and brought terrible hardships to the Greek civilian population.Few Greeks actively cooperated with the Nazis: most chose passive acceptance or active resistance. Active Greek resistance started immediately as many Greeks fled to the hills,birthing a partisan movement. Several resistance groups and Allied stay-behind parties operated in Crete after the Germans occupied the island in the Battle of Crete. SOE's operations involved figures such as Eddie Myers,Chris Woodhouse, Denys Hamson, John Mulgan, Nick Hammond, Peter Wand-Tetley, Mike Cumberlege, Conal O'Donnell, Richard O'Brian Mcnabb, Mark Ogilvie-Grant,Patrick Leigh Fermor, John Pendlebury, Michael Ward and Ronald Adolphus Haggar.Operation Harling, aka the Battle of Gorgopotamos, was an SOE mission,in cooperation with the Greek Resistance groups EDES and ELAS, which destroyed the heavily guarded Gorgopotamos viaduct in Central Greece on 25 November 1942. This was one of the first major sabotage acts in Axis-occupied Europe and the beginning of a permanent British involvement with the Greek Resistance.
Operation Animals was another SOE mission, in cooperation with the Greek Resistance groups ELAS, Zeus, EDES, PAO, and the USAAF,which took place 21 June-11 July 1943 and included an organized campaign of sabotage in Greece, to deceive the Axis Powers into believing that Greece was the target of an Allied amphibious landing, instead of Sicily. Despite the mission's success, Greek civilians suffered from mass reprisals.Maleme was the landing site for German paratroopers invading Crete in 1941.The paratroopers captured the airstrip, located just outside the town.Chania was bombed and most of the area's population was either executed or imprisoned due to resistance participation.
September 29, 2022
I got The Echoes of Love by Jenny Ashcroft for free from NetGalley for a fair and honest review.
The Echoes of Love by Jenny Ashcroft tells the story of how World War 2 affected both the Greek Island of Crete, as a whole as locals and people who are connected with the island.
Set around a love story between a German boy and a half Greek and English female.
There are many times when I have read love stories set to the backdrop of a conflict where the individuals are on both sides of the war. Which fall down on the emotional connection or the historical nature of the story.
This is absolutely not the case with Jenny Ashcroft’s novel, the way that she layers the story with a depth that I have rarely found in novels.
Firstly when the story starts in 1936 we are introduced to a range of characters who have individual characteristics, while some are more in depth than others, all of them have more than enough to help the story along.
In addition, there are many stories that are set around the conflicts that start in the preceding months before it starts. However in The Echoes of Love, it starts 3 years before the conflict starts as a whole and 5 years before the Island of Crete was invaded.
This allowed the writer to really build up a much better back story to the characters while allowing them to show that while the official start of the war in Europe was 1939, many people were having their lives altered and changed by events already.
For me there are many things I can go on to praise this novel from the way that Jenny Ashcroft built the tension in the story by allowing it to flow in such a way that each step was subtle enough that it was like a dripping tape rather than a gush of water.
The reason this worked was as I said earlier characters were allowed to develop in a way that they had a depth, which meant that as each character did what they did you never felt that it came out of the blue.
I have read a number of series which by the end of the book you knew that the writer had built this amount of characterisation in the story but rarely have I seen it done this well in a stand alone novel.
All this makes The Echoes of Love by Jenny Ashcroft a must read novel for people who love in depth character building.
The Echoes of Love by Jenny Ashcroft tells the story of how World War 2 affected both the Greek Island of Crete, as a whole as locals and people who are connected with the island.
Set around a love story between a German boy and a half Greek and English female.
There are many times when I have read love stories set to the backdrop of a conflict where the individuals are on both sides of the war. Which fall down on the emotional connection or the historical nature of the story.
This is absolutely not the case with Jenny Ashcroft’s novel, the way that she layers the story with a depth that I have rarely found in novels.
Firstly when the story starts in 1936 we are introduced to a range of characters who have individual characteristics, while some are more in depth than others, all of them have more than enough to help the story along.
In addition, there are many stories that are set around the conflicts that start in the preceding months before it starts. However in The Echoes of Love, it starts 3 years before the conflict starts as a whole and 5 years before the Island of Crete was invaded.
This allowed the writer to really build up a much better back story to the characters while allowing them to show that while the official start of the war in Europe was 1939, many people were having their lives altered and changed by events already.
For me there are many things I can go on to praise this novel from the way that Jenny Ashcroft built the tension in the story by allowing it to flow in such a way that each step was subtle enough that it was like a dripping tape rather than a gush of water.
The reason this worked was as I said earlier characters were allowed to develop in a way that they had a depth, which meant that as each character did what they did you never felt that it came out of the blue.
I have read a number of series which by the end of the book you knew that the writer had built this amount of characterisation in the story but rarely have I seen it done this well in a stand alone novel.
All this makes The Echoes of Love by Jenny Ashcroft a must read novel for people who love in depth character building.
November 6, 2022
I read this book in September as the summer was fading into autumn, but the descriptions of Crete transported me back to sunshine, balmy winds, and endless heat. Jenny has a gift for getting under the skin of a place so that the descriptions of the landscape add meaning to what is happening to the characters.
And what is happening, of course, is that Eleni and Otto are falling in love on the island - in the sea, by the rocks, in the town. The subtle depictions of each step on the way - the conversations, meetings and partings, glances and stolen moments - mean that the reader is invested in what will happen to Eleni and Otto as the threat of war gathers around them.
But this story is not just about Eleni and Otto's fate. A host of other characters bring out the complexity of the situation that Europe was facing. There is Marianne, the Jewish music student, Lotte, the daughter of SS-Oberst-Gruppenfuhrer Becker and Little Vassili, who has enlisted in the Greek army. Their stories intertwine with those of Eleni and Otto and deepen the reader's understanding of what happened before, during and after the war.
Interspersing the timeline set in 1936 are chapters that take the form of a transcript. These interviews take place in 1974 and add to the tension surrounding the growing question of whether Eleni and Otto (and their relationship) will survive the war. I enjoyed the tone of these interviews and how they contrasted with the heady romance depicted in the 1936 timeline. Another timeline also emerges - set in 1940 - and again gives complexity to the narrative in an intriguing way.
The sheer amount of research and work that has gone into this book was awe-inspiring, and it is fascinating to read at the back of the book how Jenny's own family stories and experiences have shaped the novel. The book covers some huge topics, yet manages to hold all the characters' stories together so skilfully. Without giving anything away, I found the concluding chapters very satisfying as they were true to the story but also to the realities of war.
This was a masterful, moving and epic story and I so enjoyed reading it.
And what is happening, of course, is that Eleni and Otto are falling in love on the island - in the sea, by the rocks, in the town. The subtle depictions of each step on the way - the conversations, meetings and partings, glances and stolen moments - mean that the reader is invested in what will happen to Eleni and Otto as the threat of war gathers around them.
But this story is not just about Eleni and Otto's fate. A host of other characters bring out the complexity of the situation that Europe was facing. There is Marianne, the Jewish music student, Lotte, the daughter of SS-Oberst-Gruppenfuhrer Becker and Little Vassili, who has enlisted in the Greek army. Their stories intertwine with those of Eleni and Otto and deepen the reader's understanding of what happened before, during and after the war.
Interspersing the timeline set in 1936 are chapters that take the form of a transcript. These interviews take place in 1974 and add to the tension surrounding the growing question of whether Eleni and Otto (and their relationship) will survive the war. I enjoyed the tone of these interviews and how they contrasted with the heady romance depicted in the 1936 timeline. Another timeline also emerges - set in 1940 - and again gives complexity to the narrative in an intriguing way.
The sheer amount of research and work that has gone into this book was awe-inspiring, and it is fascinating to read at the back of the book how Jenny's own family stories and experiences have shaped the novel. The book covers some huge topics, yet manages to hold all the characters' stories together so skilfully. Without giving anything away, I found the concluding chapters very satisfying as they were true to the story but also to the realities of war.
This was a masterful, moving and epic story and I so enjoyed reading it.
March 21, 2023
Aside from the unadulterated, pure enjoyment of being entertained by a gripping story, the real joy for many readers of well-researched historical fiction is to be transported to another time and place and learn chapters of history that may have previously been unfamiliar. This was certainly the case for this reviewer with Jenny Ashcroft’s The Echoes of Love, a love/war story predominantly set on the Greek Island of Crete between 1936 and 1943.
Every year throughout her life, nineteen-year-old half-Greek Eleni Adams has travelled to Crete from Portsmouth to spend the Summer with her much-loved grandfather, Yorgos. Everything changes for the bi-lingual Eleni in 1936 when she meets the dashing young Otto Linder, holidaying with his family from Berlin. Drawn to each other from the outset, the two are clearly destined for love. What could possibly stand in the way of a happy future together?
Of course, the answer is ‘war’. Within a few years Otto will be ‘the enemy’ back in Crete with the German occupying forces whilst Eleni has returned as an SOE undercover spy. Fate tests their passion to the extreme. Through the Battle of Crete and German reprisals against the resistant local population, Eleni and Otto must use all their wits if they hope to survive, let alone maintain their relationship.
Ashcroft knows her subject well. Coming from a Greek background through her father, many of her relatives lived through the Nazi occupation and not all of them survived. Her characters are both nuanced and sympathetic, a number of them based on her own grandmother and great-aunt and uncle.
Her emotional connection to the country she has visited since childhood is clear as she offers her well-crafted tale of family, bravery, forbidden love and betrayal. There is much more to The Echoes of Love than its cover would suggest. Readers should expect their heartstrings to be well-and-truly pulled, to be surprised by a number of clever twists and to be left in awe at the actions and fates of WWII heroes like our fictional protagonists. Bravo.
Every year throughout her life, nineteen-year-old half-Greek Eleni Adams has travelled to Crete from Portsmouth to spend the Summer with her much-loved grandfather, Yorgos. Everything changes for the bi-lingual Eleni in 1936 when she meets the dashing young Otto Linder, holidaying with his family from Berlin. Drawn to each other from the outset, the two are clearly destined for love. What could possibly stand in the way of a happy future together?
Of course, the answer is ‘war’. Within a few years Otto will be ‘the enemy’ back in Crete with the German occupying forces whilst Eleni has returned as an SOE undercover spy. Fate tests their passion to the extreme. Through the Battle of Crete and German reprisals against the resistant local population, Eleni and Otto must use all their wits if they hope to survive, let alone maintain their relationship.
Ashcroft knows her subject well. Coming from a Greek background through her father, many of her relatives lived through the Nazi occupation and not all of them survived. Her characters are both nuanced and sympathetic, a number of them based on her own grandmother and great-aunt and uncle.
Her emotional connection to the country she has visited since childhood is clear as she offers her well-crafted tale of family, bravery, forbidden love and betrayal. There is much more to The Echoes of Love than its cover would suggest. Readers should expect their heartstrings to be well-and-truly pulled, to be surprised by a number of clever twists and to be left in awe at the actions and fates of WWII heroes like our fictional protagonists. Bravo.
October 1, 2022
The story is mainly told by Eleni and Otto, two young people who meet on the Greek island of Crete in 1936. For a few short weeks, they start to spend time together and fall in love, despite knowing that their lives will be complicated by living in different countries.
Despite their best efforts to help their future selves by learning new languages, they are unable to continue their relationship and then the war starts.
Eleni is head hunted in 1940 to return to Crete to work with SOE, due to her linguistic talents, after spending her summers in Crete with her grandfather. Eleni is a brave young woman who helps the people of Crete stand up to the Nazi party. But what will happen when Otto, once the love of her life, arrives in Crete with the German Army?
The book moves backwards and forwards in time, so that we don’t find out for ages, why Eleni and Otto split up when he failed to meet her in Paris in 1938. Had he fallen out of love or did he have to marry Lotte, daughter of a high ranking official in the Nazi party?
After a week of struggling to read much, I picked up this book on my day off and found myself flying through the pages, desperate to know what would happen next for Eleni, Otto and their families. Jenny Ashcroft has brought the past to life, the beauty of Crete and the terror of the German occupation.
Although I’ve ready many historical fiction books recently, this is the first one set in Crete and it is heartbreaking to read about the impact of the war on the local people. Because of the nature of war, this was a heartbreaking read in places but also a reminder that we cannot pick who we fall in love with.
This is a beautifully written and emotional book, full of historical detail and a love story. I’m thrilled to have discovered a new author and plan to read her previous books too. Happy to recommend to readers of my reviews.
Despite their best efforts to help their future selves by learning new languages, they are unable to continue their relationship and then the war starts.
Eleni is head hunted in 1940 to return to Crete to work with SOE, due to her linguistic talents, after spending her summers in Crete with her grandfather. Eleni is a brave young woman who helps the people of Crete stand up to the Nazi party. But what will happen when Otto, once the love of her life, arrives in Crete with the German Army?
The book moves backwards and forwards in time, so that we don’t find out for ages, why Eleni and Otto split up when he failed to meet her in Paris in 1938. Had he fallen out of love or did he have to marry Lotte, daughter of a high ranking official in the Nazi party?
After a week of struggling to read much, I picked up this book on my day off and found myself flying through the pages, desperate to know what would happen next for Eleni, Otto and their families. Jenny Ashcroft has brought the past to life, the beauty of Crete and the terror of the German occupation.
Although I’ve ready many historical fiction books recently, this is the first one set in Crete and it is heartbreaking to read about the impact of the war on the local people. Because of the nature of war, this was a heartbreaking read in places but also a reminder that we cannot pick who we fall in love with.
This is a beautifully written and emotional book, full of historical detail and a love story. I’m thrilled to have discovered a new author and plan to read her previous books too. Happy to recommend to readers of my reviews.
October 24, 2022
Book Review
The Echoes of Love - Jenny Ashcroft
A historical romance that had my heart feeling extreme happiness and sadness in a world that had destruction painted all over it. The Echoes of Love is a book of family, loss, history and great love.
The Echoes of Love is a romance set on the idyllic island of Crete. It takes place prior to WWII, during Nazi occupation and after the war. Eleni enjoys time on Crete with her papou, swimming in the ocean and enjoying the beauty that the place has to offer. She meets Otto, a German man whose family is concerned for the health of his mother and sister. To make matters worse, the Nazis are looking to eradicate anyone they consider of ill health. Otto and Eleni's relationship is romantic, turbulent and challenged in ways which many could never imagine. Years pass and Crete is invaded by the Nazis. Eleni and Otto meet in the most horrific time in their lives.
Jenny Ashcroft's writing is poetic and her descriptions of the surroundings and events are delicate and reflective.
The novel presents an unbiased and realistic view of Nazi soldiers. In war, there is more than good and evil. There are soldiers with anger in their hearts and there are soldiers who are forced to fight. There are stories of people. Jenny Ashcroft's characters are well developed and their stories are crafted in such a way that readers gain a true sense of their conscience.
The Echoes of Love is a moving romance that is faced with unbearable loss, danger and tragedy. It's different perspective and atmospheric setting makes it a compelling WWII romance.
Thank you @jennyashcroftauthor @harlequinaus for #gifting me a copy to read and review. 💖
#theechoesoflove #jennyashcroft #bookstagram #bibliophile #ilovereading #historicalfiction #romancenovel #crete #nazioccupation #wwii #melaniehunterbooks #bookrecommendation #bookreviewer #bookreview
The Echoes of Love - Jenny Ashcroft
A historical romance that had my heart feeling extreme happiness and sadness in a world that had destruction painted all over it. The Echoes of Love is a book of family, loss, history and great love.
The Echoes of Love is a romance set on the idyllic island of Crete. It takes place prior to WWII, during Nazi occupation and after the war. Eleni enjoys time on Crete with her papou, swimming in the ocean and enjoying the beauty that the place has to offer. She meets Otto, a German man whose family is concerned for the health of his mother and sister. To make matters worse, the Nazis are looking to eradicate anyone they consider of ill health. Otto and Eleni's relationship is romantic, turbulent and challenged in ways which many could never imagine. Years pass and Crete is invaded by the Nazis. Eleni and Otto meet in the most horrific time in their lives.
Jenny Ashcroft's writing is poetic and her descriptions of the surroundings and events are delicate and reflective.
The novel presents an unbiased and realistic view of Nazi soldiers. In war, there is more than good and evil. There are soldiers with anger in their hearts and there are soldiers who are forced to fight. There are stories of people. Jenny Ashcroft's characters are well developed and their stories are crafted in such a way that readers gain a true sense of their conscience.
The Echoes of Love is a moving romance that is faced with unbearable loss, danger and tragedy. It's different perspective and atmospheric setting makes it a compelling WWII romance.
Thank you @jennyashcroftauthor @harlequinaus for #gifting me a copy to read and review. 💖
#theechoesoflove #jennyashcroft #bookstagram #bibliophile #ilovereading #historicalfiction #romancenovel #crete #nazioccupation #wwii #melaniehunterbooks #bookrecommendation #bookreviewer #bookreview
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