In the newest novel from internationally-bestselling author Ronald. H. Balson, Liam and Catherine come to the aid of an old friend and are drawn into a property dispute in Tuscany that unearths long-buried secrets An old friend calls Catherine Lockhart and Liam Taggart to his famous Italian restaurant to enlist their help. His aunt is being evicted from her home in the Tuscan hills by a powerful … hills by a powerful corporation claiming they own the deeds, even though she can produce her own set of deeds to her land. Catherine and Liam’s only clue is a bound handwritten manuscript, entirely in German, and hidden in its pages is a story long-forgotten…
Ada Baumgarten was born in Berlin in 1918, at the end of the war. The daughter of an accomplished first-chair violinist in the prestigious Berlin Philharmonic, and herself a violin prodigy, Ada’s life was full of the rich culture of Berlin’s interwar society. She formed a deep attachment to her childhood friend Kurt, but they were torn apart by the growing unrest as her Jewish family came under suspicion. As the tides of history turned, it was her extraordinary talent that would carry her through an unraveling society turned to war, and make her a target even as it saved her, allowing her to move to Bologna–though Italy was not the haven her family had hoped, and further heartache awaited.
What became of Ada? How is she connected to the conflicting land deeds of a small Italian villa? As they dig through the layers of lies, corruption, and human evil, Catherine and Liam uncover an unfinished story of heart, redemption, and hope–the ending of which is yet to be written.
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Wonderful characters bring the reality of how the changes in Germany produced the Holocaust.
Interesting approach – basically having a book within a book. The lawyer and her detective husband have to read an autobiography of a Jewish German girl during World War II to determine how to save an elderly woman from being evicted from her small winery in Tuscan Italy. Unfortunately, the whole approach seemed really contrived. The autobiographical portion seemed like something written in third person and then converted to first person. The situation where the elderly lady should have been able to help but wouldn’t until they completely read the book made no sense. The fact that no one thought to scan the book or just skip to the end to reach the conclusion made no sense. I felt like the lawyer and her husband’s characters were not very well developed. Maybe that happened in early books in the series, or maybe the author thought that might take away from the main story. The main present-day story line was well-written and engaging. It definitely did a good job of pulling you along. The last 30-50 pages definitely had me hooked. I couldn’t put it down until I finished.
The story moves between time periods. Each one is compelling and had me turning the pages to see how the past and present were connected. Like most WWll stories there are bittersweet moments as well as tear jerkers. It’s a story about tragedy, family and the good and bad of humanity.
I fell in love with Ronald Balson’s writing with his first book, Once We Were Brothers. Since then I have read every book and they do not disappoint. The fifth book in the Liam and Catherine series has the story moving back and forth from 2017 to WWII and Ada’s history. While you are thrown into a difficult situation with Gabi who has land with a winery in Italy, you also get to read about Ada’s struggles during the time of Nazi occupation. And her strength and resilience is absolutely amazing. You have to read the story to appreciate Ada.
Liam and Catherine are a couple who work well together to help people who need their skills…legal and private investigation. And their efforts reward you with twists and turns, background history, and a sense of compassion.
Thank you to NetGalley and the author, Ronald Balson, for an ARC in exchange for my honest review. I can’t wait for a 6th book in this series.
Best book I’ve read this year…couldn’t put it down. Strongly recommend.
Had informative historical information
Exceptional research as always from Balson
Well written as usual. Can’t wait for Balson’s next Liam Taggart and Catherine Lockhart novel!
Loved the entire book.
The Girl from Berlin by Ronald H Balson is the fourth in a series featuring Liam Taggart and Catherine Lockhart husband and wife legal/private investigative team who have been hired by the owner of their favorite Italian restaurant in Chicago to investigate a property matter involving his aunt and her villa/vineyard in Italy. This book was a complete surprise to me since I was unaware of this series, which is a shame. This book centered on an autobiography written while its author was interned in a concentration camp during World War II. She had smuggled it out and as Liam and Catherine read it, both the horror of the Holocaust and the reality of Gabrielle’s ownership became abundantly clear.
Ada Baumgarten has been a violin virtuoso in Berlin when it became clear that it was not a healthy place for Jews to live. She was a second-generation concert violinist and her father’s friend and Berlin Symphony conductor managed to obtain for her a temporary job in Bologna, Italy, where things were safer for Jews. There she made a name for herself and lived happily for many years. After several years there her father managed to sell their home in Berlin and smuggle the cash to Bologna in his violin case, which was totally illegal at the time and eventually the Gestapo figured it out and arrested him eventually leading to his death in the concentration camp. Ada and her mother used the money to buy a villa and small vineyard in the country where her mother becomes a farmer. Twists and turns abound. As with any Holocaust novel, there is plenty of heartbreak, as well.
I am a lover of mysteries, cozies and more hard-core. The Girl from Berlin was a wonderful read, from start to finish. Mostly cerebral but with a fair dose of violence. It is a motivator to go back and read the other books in the series. Balson has a way with words, and with characters. Catherine and Liam are both low key but powerful characters. The peripheral characters had depth and held my interest. I loved the way to autobiography took us into the past and yet was so pertinent to the present. The plot was powerful and intricate. Well worth the time. I highly recommend this book. You will not be sorry if you give it a try.
I was given a free ARC of this book in exchange for a fair and honest review. #netgalley #thegirllfromberlin
Ron Balson never disappoints with his rich, historical thrillers. Woven with research and detail, The Girl from Berlin is not to be missed.
Ron Balson’s masterful historical novel The Girl from Berlin illustrates how crimes buried in the past can reverberate across future generations. In this story, the powerhouse duo of attorney Catherine Lockhart and investigator Liam Taggart must travel to Italy to solve a mystery that somehow ties an elderly women in Tuscany who is about to lose her beloved vineyard, with a Jewish violin prodigy in 1930’s Berlin during Hitler’s rise. This is a fascinating, fast-paced dual-narrative that I could not put down. It is a heart-wrenching story of survival, hope and, ultimately, redemption that is sure to thrill current fans of Balson’s novels and create many new ones!
Lindas Book Obsession Review of “The Girl From Berlin” by Ronald H. Balson St. Martin’s Press, Oct. 2, 2018
Ronald H. Balson, Author or “The Girl From Berlin”, has written an intense, edgy, captivating, intriguing, suspenseful, page turning and riveting novel. This is the fifth Liam Taggart and Catherine Lockhart novel, but can be read as a stand only. The Genres for this novel are Fiction, Suspense , Mystery with some Historical History Background.
The author describes some of his colorful characters as complex and complicated. Catherine and Liam are asked to do a favor for a friend, and check out his Aunt’s claim of property disputes in Italy. The Aunt will lose her home and land if something isn’t done. There is a legal question of deeds, contracts and dates of land ownership. When there is in adequate information, loss books of information , attempted arson and a dead body, this is becoming a dangerous quest.
Upon further investigation, Catherine and Liam realize this goes back to Germany and a young girl by the name of Ada Baumgarten , an accomplished first chair violinist in Berlin. There is a journal in their possession that shows that Ada was Jewish, and the timing is around Hitler’s uprising, and World War Two. How does this affect the aunt’s property in Italy? Who are the big corporations fighting to evict her, and why? How does this become an international matter?
I loved everything about the story, and especially was touched by Ada’s story. I highly recommend this novel to readers that enjoy a suspenseful mystery. I received an ARC from NetGalley for my honest review.
Even this is not the first book in the series, it didn’t felt like I was missing something for complete reading experience. I love to read this kind of books and it kept my attention until I finished it. The story gives us insight of the life during 1930’s and present time. Both life stories Ada’s and Gabi’s entwine seamlessly and it is such a beautifully and heartbreaking when we discover the connection between them.
Both storyline and characters are well built and I liked them.
We travel from present-day Italy and back to the 1930’s during Hitler’s regime in Germany.
In Nazi Germany, we are introduced to Ada as she masterfully plays her violin solos. In Italy we come across a land dispute that may or may not have Ada Baumgaurten, famous violinist in the Berlin Philharmonic, involved.
The land dispute has Liam and Catherine flying to Italy to the beautiful villa of Senora Vincenzo, aunt of a close friend in Chicago.
Catherine has the task of trying to dispute the fact that Senora does own the land and the home she is living in contrary to the Italian attorneys who say she is not the owner. The claim the Italian attorneys had seemed pretty suspicious.
We also gets a glimpse into beautiful Tuscany – its food, its people, and its landscapes.
I enjoyed the back and forth from the 1930’s to 2017. The connection between the two time periods set in Germany at the beginning of WWII then moving to present-day Italy was a manuscript that Ada had written about her life and the life of a famous violinist. Senora Ada Vincenzo insisted that Catherine read the manuscript for the background because she just couldn’t bring herself to tell the details.
THE GIRL FROM BERLIN is a very absorbing dual-timeline that will immediately capture your interest with detailed descriptions of the characters and events.
Mr. Balson has written another beautiful, well researched book that opens up our eyes to the life the European people were living at that time to today’s lifestyle in Italy. The present-day story line has secrets being revealed about Ada’s and Senora Vincenzo’s claim on the land.
Historical fiction fans, opera fans, and fans of Mr. Balson’s books definitely will not be disappointed in his newest beauty.
THE GIRL FROM BERLIN is outstanding, unforgettable, and well written.
Magnificent, marvelous, heart wrenching, and should be given high praise are perfect descriptions of THE GIRL FROM BERLIN. 5/5
This book was given to me as an ARC by the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. . All opinions are my own.