Tag Archives: War

The Light After the War, by Anita Abriel

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The above synopsis is provided by the publisher, and can be found here.

Overall, the synopsis is misleading. I did expect a romance based on it’s description, but I also expected other elements too due to the narrative about the two main characters, Vera and Edith, fleeing Budapest during WW2. (Really Vera is the main character and Edith is her best friend that supports her throughout the story…but in some chapters, Edith is barely seen.)
Vera’s time during the war is expressed in flashbacks, and is limited throughout the novel. They are very short flashbacks. Most of the story revolves around Vera and Edith’s hunt to find love and make a home.
In the second half, I started counting Vera’s flashbacks; she has three flashbacks after 50% of the novel. And these flashbacks sometimes have little significance; for example one is her shortly recounting the time she saw a ballet.

I am not sure what exactly the plot was supposed to be, but the story is set during 1946-1950 and centers around Vera who is a 19 year-old that has escaped Nazi-Germany with her friend Edith. It bounced around starting with one path but then would abandon the path it was on and begin another: from romance to grieving back to romance to culture/society back to romance to family back to romance, so the direction and where it was headed was obscure for me.
I kept reading hoping the story would evolve, but there were no huge climatic plot elements. The characters were underdeveloped with little to no penetrating depth in the dialogue, and much of what happens to the girls is filled with happy coincidences.

If you like light romances set during WW2 with romanticized dialogue then you will enjoy this novel very much. The romance is very much stylized like an old fashioned cookie-cutter romance.

The other cover for the book that you might see depending on the region you live in.
Author, Anita Abriel. Visit her book’s page on Simon and Schuster.

Visit Anita Abriel’s website or follow her on Goodreads.

More about this:
There is a rich history for Budapest, especially during and after WW2. (Though it wasn’t strongly presented in this novel.)
Below is a picture of “Shoes on the Danube”, a memorial to the Holocaust victims who were brought to the edge of the Danube river, told to remove their shoes, and then shot.

Read about Holocaust victims murdered at the Danube.

Read about the Death March from Budapest and the Budapest Ghetto.

I received an advance copy of The Light After the War from the publisher through Edelweiss. Opinions are my own.

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Run Me to Earth, by Paul Yoon

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This story primarily focuses on the effects of warfare on innocent civilians living in a war-torn society. While the beginning starts off in a 1969 Laos town with bombs dropping like rain and airplanes swarming over like flies, this is a minimal part of the story. The results after the war are the central emphasis.

It begins with three teenage orphans Alisak, Prany, and Noi who scavenge supplies and help a farmhouse-turned-medical facility in exchange for money, shelter, and food. They risk going into the dangerous apocalyptic-like town of Phonsavan with bombs dropping all around to find medical care and pick up hurt civilians while befriending a doctor at the facility named Vang. However, this setting only lasts for the first 28% of the book (on a Kindle). With the four seeking to leave, they are then separated while on their way to be rescued. It is at this point where the story really begins. 

The remainder of the book sheds light on what happened to Alisak, Prany, Noi, and Vang after being separated. Some of them were released after being imprisoned by communists and reeducated for seven years, though it does not recount their time or reeducation in prison. Other characters were rescued only to experience a sensation of loneliness and separation, while some did not make it. The suffering ensued by each reflects the dejected nature of post-traumatic stress that civilians experience when growing up in a battle zone.

There are no chapters; it is divided into parts by character. The first part (the first 28% mentioned above) is told from Alisak’s point of view. It then goes through four other characters viewpoints in sections detailing what occurred after being separated. 

The setting was different, and I enjoyed the premise. I did not feel connected with Alisak or Auntie, but I really enjoyed Prany, Noi, and Khit. Since it jumps right into the story from the start, the beginning first two parts of Alisak and Auntie felt slightly disjointed as I was trying to piece a few things together. Overall, I really liked the novel though it was not an expeditious page turner for me. Nevertheless, it is an important story that speaks volumes. Many thanks to Netgalley, Paul Yoon, and Simon & Schuster for this ARC.  Visit Paul Yoon’s blog to learn more.

More on this topic:
President Barack Obama Visits Laos
Communism in Laos
Laos during the Vietnam War

Location of Laos.

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