Shadows of Berlin A Novel

Reminding us that history is made up of infinite individual choices, Shadows of Berlin is a masterful story of survival and redemption. --Pam Jenoff, New York Times bestselling author of The Woman with the Blue Star

A captivating novel of a Berlin girl on the run from the guilt of her past and the boy from Brooklyn who loves her

1955 in New York City: the city of instant coffee, bagels at Katz's Deli, ultra-modern TVs. But in the Perlman's walk-up in Chelsea, the past is as close as the present. Rachel came to Manhattan in a wave of displaced Jews who managed to survive the horrors of war. Her Uncle Fritz fleeing with her, Rachel hoped to find freedom from her pain in New York and in the arms of her new American husband, Aaron.

But this child of Berlin and daughter of an artist cannot seem to outrun her guilt in the role of American housewife, not until she can shed the ghosts of her past. And when Uncle Fritz discovers, in a dreary midtown pawn shop, the most shocking portrait that her mother had ever painted, Rachel's memories begin to terrorize her, forcing her to face the choices she made to stay alive?choices that might be her undoing.

From the cafes of war-torn Germany to the frantic drumbeat of 1950's Manhattan, Shadows of Berlin dramatically explores survival, redemption and the way we learn to love and forgive across impossible divides.

A tribute to resilience and starting over. This is heart-wrenching and memorable. --Publishers Weekly, STARRED review

1955 in New York City, the city of progress, of instant coffee, the Brooklyn Dodgers, bagels and bialys at Katz's Deli. But in a 3rd floor walk up in Chelsea, in the Perlman residence, the past is as close as the present. Rachel Perlman, a child of Berlin and an artist, bearing the legacy of her mother's talent, arrives in New York as part of the wave of Jewish Displaced persons who managed to survive the brutalities of the war. Accompanied by her only relative, her Uncle Fritz, Rachel hopes to find asylum from her pain in the States and in the arms of her new American husband. But despite her efforts, Rachel is unable to live the "normal" life of an American housewife, not until she can shake the ghosts of her past or the tremendous guilt that weighs down on her, triggered by a horrific secret, a choice she was forced to make in order to stay alive during the war. Then Rachel's Uncle Fritz discovers, in a dreary pawn shop, a lost painting of Rachel's mother, and Rachel's life is turned upside down. When the painting goes missing, Rachel's memories begin to terrorize her-- igniting a chain reaction that will force Rachel to face her own betrayal and her own "crime" of survival.