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raven_morgan's review against another edition
5.0
I’m a longtime fan of Kate Forsyth (I vividly remember stalking the bookstore shelves waiting for each Witches of Eileanan book to be released), and particularly loved her last two books, The Wild Girl and Bitter Greens, and was thus extremely happy to be asked to read and review The Beast’s Garden.
I will admit up front, I went into this book with a small sense of trepidation. I had very high hopes, based on how good The Wild Girl and Bitter Greens were, but I did wonder about the premise of The Beast’s Garden– namely, combining a version of the fairytale Beauty and the Beast (specifically, The Singing, Springing Lark) and Nazi Germany during World War II. It wasn’t that I wasn’t sure that Forsyth could pull off such a story, I wondered if anyone could pull it off.
And now that I’ve read the book, the question: did Forsyth manage to pull it off? The answer is a resounding hell yes.
It should be noted that this book isn’t going to be for every reader. There are scenes set in a concentration camp, and while Forsyth doesn’t linger overlong on any of the atrocities, neither does she shield the reader from the true horrors of of WWII and the Holocaust. If any of this is a trigger for you, this isn’t going to be the book for you. But please, if you haven’t done so, go and read all of Forsyth’s other books. They’re more than worth it.
In the role of “Beauty” we have Ava, a German girl who is training as a singer. In looks, Ava takes after her dead Spanish mother, while her two sisters are blue-eyed and blonde-haired, fitting the Aryan ideal. Ava and her family are not safe beneath Nazi rule. Ava’s own darker colouring puts her at potential risk of being declaimed as having Romani blood, and one of her sisters has a daughter who is possibly learning disabled. More, Ava’s family are close to a Jewish family, the Feidlers. After Ava’s mother died, Ava was practically raised by Mrs Feidler, and regards Rudi Feidler (an out gay man) as a brother. Ava and Rudi are both musicians, and both attend illicit jazz clubs together. To protect all of her blood and found family, Ava marries a Nazi officer, Leo von Lowenstein.
Leo, naturally is the “Beast” of the tale, and it is the romance between Leo and Ava which drives much of the novel. At first, Ava fears Leo, only knowing him as a Nazi officer. As she gets to know him, and see beneath the public mask he wears, she discovers that he is a lot more than he first appeared. Like her, he is fighting against Hitler’s rule, and is part of an underground resistance movement.
The story follows Leo and Ava as they both navigate Nazi Germany and the various plots to disrupt Nazi rule and attempt to assassinate Hitler. We also get to follow Rudi after he is arrested for “subversive activities” and deported to the concentration camp, Buchenwald. Yet another story thread is shown via Rudi’s sister Jutta, who evades arrest and lives in hiding from the Nazis.
On the surface, it is hard to see much hope in any story set in WWII Germany. Forsyth doesn’t shy from any of the horrors: we get to see the Jewish people suffering both in the camps and in hiding, as well as the German people starving as their country begins to bend and break beneath the weight of Nazi rule and the war. But in the darkness, there is light. Even while deathly afraid, Ava finds ways to fight. And in Buchenwald, Rudi plays illicit music, saves others where he can (and is saved in turn) and even finds love.
Forsyth skilfully weaves in many historical figures and events into the narrative, giving a real weight to a book that, in less talented hands, could easily have become little more than a fluffy romance between the Brave German Girl and Nazi With a Heart of Gold, or something extremely problematic. If you’re worried about either of these issues, let me put your worries to rest right here.
With The Beast’s Garden, Forsyth cements herself as one of the most talented authors writing historical fiction (with a good dash of fairytale retelling) in Australia today.
I will admit up front, I went into this book with a small sense of trepidation. I had very high hopes, based on how good The Wild Girl and Bitter Greens were, but I did wonder about the premise of The Beast’s Garden– namely, combining a version of the fairytale Beauty and the Beast (specifically, The Singing, Springing Lark) and Nazi Germany during World War II. It wasn’t that I wasn’t sure that Forsyth could pull off such a story, I wondered if anyone could pull it off.
And now that I’ve read the book, the question: did Forsyth manage to pull it off? The answer is a resounding hell yes.
It should be noted that this book isn’t going to be for every reader. There are scenes set in a concentration camp, and while Forsyth doesn’t linger overlong on any of the atrocities, neither does she shield the reader from the true horrors of of WWII and the Holocaust. If any of this is a trigger for you, this isn’t going to be the book for you. But please, if you haven’t done so, go and read all of Forsyth’s other books. They’re more than worth it.
In the role of “Beauty” we have Ava, a German girl who is training as a singer. In looks, Ava takes after her dead Spanish mother, while her two sisters are blue-eyed and blonde-haired, fitting the Aryan ideal. Ava and her family are not safe beneath Nazi rule. Ava’s own darker colouring puts her at potential risk of being declaimed as having Romani blood, and one of her sisters has a daughter who is possibly learning disabled. More, Ava’s family are close to a Jewish family, the Feidlers. After Ava’s mother died, Ava was practically raised by Mrs Feidler, and regards Rudi Feidler (an out gay man) as a brother. Ava and Rudi are both musicians, and both attend illicit jazz clubs together. To protect all of her blood and found family, Ava marries a Nazi officer, Leo von Lowenstein.
Leo, naturally is the “Beast” of the tale, and it is the romance between Leo and Ava which drives much of the novel. At first, Ava fears Leo, only knowing him as a Nazi officer. As she gets to know him, and see beneath the public mask he wears, she discovers that he is a lot more than he first appeared. Like her, he is fighting against Hitler’s rule, and is part of an underground resistance movement.
The story follows Leo and Ava as they both navigate Nazi Germany and the various plots to disrupt Nazi rule and attempt to assassinate Hitler. We also get to follow Rudi after he is arrested for “subversive activities” and deported to the concentration camp, Buchenwald. Yet another story thread is shown via Rudi’s sister Jutta, who evades arrest and lives in hiding from the Nazis.
On the surface, it is hard to see much hope in any story set in WWII Germany. Forsyth doesn’t shy from any of the horrors: we get to see the Jewish people suffering both in the camps and in hiding, as well as the German people starving as their country begins to bend and break beneath the weight of Nazi rule and the war. But in the darkness, there is light. Even while deathly afraid, Ava finds ways to fight. And in Buchenwald, Rudi plays illicit music, saves others where he can (and is saved in turn) and even finds love.
Forsyth skilfully weaves in many historical figures and events into the narrative, giving a real weight to a book that, in less talented hands, could easily have become little more than a fluffy romance between the Brave German Girl and Nazi With a Heart of Gold, or something extremely problematic. If you’re worried about either of these issues, let me put your worries to rest right here.
With The Beast’s Garden, Forsyth cements herself as one of the most talented authors writing historical fiction (with a good dash of fairytale retelling) in Australia today.
samstillreading's review against another edition
5.0
I know I can always rely on Kate Forsyth’s books for a fantastic story and a happy ending, plus The Beast’s Garden was on my list of books I’m looking forward to for the second half of 2015, so when Kate offered me a copy, it was an instant YES PLEASE! The Beast’s Garden is no exception to this – it has a cracking storyline, intrigue, romance and a finale that will blow your socks off. Oh, and there are some dreadfully sad moments too. But ultimately this book will leave you smiling at the power of love and friendship.
For those of you who like your fairy tales, The Beast’s Garden is a retelling of the Grimm brothers’ version of the Beauty and the Beast tale, The Singing, Springing Lark. Now, I’m not familiar with this tale but it was really, really difficult not to Google it during the course of The Beast’s Garden to see what happens! So for me, the majority of the storyline was a surprise (I can barely remember what happened in Beauty and the Beast, I think I’ve only seen the Disney film once…yes, sacrilege I know) but for those who are familiar with the tale, you will see some familiar motifs. The main difference is that this story is set in Nazi Germany in the lead up to and during World War II. I’ve read some great stories of WWII from the German point of view (The Undertaking by Audrey Magee is another one) and this book is no exception. It captures the spirit that there were a lot of innocent people caught up in a war that they didn’t really agree it.
The Beauty of this story is Ava, a talented singer who is good friends with a Jewish family. As the story opens on the Night of the Broken Glass, Ava runs to the aid of the Feidlers. She is stopped by a handsome young soldier but still goes to their aid. The Feidlers are like family to Ava, their son Rupert shares her birthday and they are both fans of jazz. But from this day on, life gets more difficult for the Feidlers. They are evicted from their home and Rupert is taken away to a camp called Buchenwald. Life in Berlin is getting dangerous and it’s only made worse when Ava’s father is arrested. To get him safely out of Germany, Ava must marry the handsome soldier – Leo von Lowenstein.
It’s not really a hardship for Ava at first – Leo is handsome and attentive and she’s fallen for him – but Ava desperately wants to help the resistance to thwart Hitler and ensure the Jewish people get to safety. She acts in a clandestine way, but it later turns out that Leo himself is a spy, part of a group trying to oust Hitler. It’s then that the pair fall even deeper in love with their shared goal. But as the war continues, things get worse for the main characters – can Ava save them all?
In the plot summary above, I’ve left out quite a bit of detail for two reasons – one, to coerce you into reading this fantastic story and two, because the story is crammed of excitement, plot twists and thriller-worthy action it would take a long time to describe (and ruin all the fun). Leo and Ava’s dangerous games are balanced with snippets of life of Rupert in Buchenwald where the suffering gives a sombre tone. It’s humbling and sorrowful to read about the kinds of things that happened to people simply because of their religion or political views. Jutta, Rupert’s sister, is part of a group of Jewish people trying to smuggle others out of the country and bring down Hitler. We also see the how Ava’s sister’s life is on the up and up in a relationship with a high ranking Nazi official – and then how it begins to unravel.
There are also many real life figures who appear on these pages, from Hitler himself to the Mitford sisters, Harro and Libertas Schulze-Boysen and Admiral Canaris. All the real life characters are treated with the respect (or distain in Hitler’s case) they deserve. Kate Forsyth’ excellent storytelling has made me research more into the role of the German resistance – it’s fascinating, and a little-told part of history for me. The fictional characters are brilliantly detailed and unforgettable. Ava and Leo’s romance is truly something out of a fairy tale – it’s a rush of passion, love and determination. The finale just demonstrates that even more – it’s wild and crazy but powered by love. I particularly enjoyed how each of the characters we had gotten to know through the course of the book got their own closure – so often you wonder what happened to a minor character but never find out, but it’s not the case here.
I read this book in great big batches – the storyline will carry you away and the characters are unforgettable. This is Kate Forsyth at her best – read it!
Thank you to Kate Forsyth and Random House for the eARC. My review is honest.
http://samstillreading.wordpress.com
For those of you who like your fairy tales, The Beast’s Garden is a retelling of the Grimm brothers’ version of the Beauty and the Beast tale, The Singing, Springing Lark. Now, I’m not familiar with this tale but it was really, really difficult not to Google it during the course of The Beast’s Garden to see what happens! So for me, the majority of the storyline was a surprise (I can barely remember what happened in Beauty and the Beast, I think I’ve only seen the Disney film once…yes, sacrilege I know) but for those who are familiar with the tale, you will see some familiar motifs. The main difference is that this story is set in Nazi Germany in the lead up to and during World War II. I’ve read some great stories of WWII from the German point of view (The Undertaking by Audrey Magee is another one) and this book is no exception. It captures the spirit that there were a lot of innocent people caught up in a war that they didn’t really agree it.
The Beauty of this story is Ava, a talented singer who is good friends with a Jewish family. As the story opens on the Night of the Broken Glass, Ava runs to the aid of the Feidlers. She is stopped by a handsome young soldier but still goes to their aid. The Feidlers are like family to Ava, their son Rupert shares her birthday and they are both fans of jazz. But from this day on, life gets more difficult for the Feidlers. They are evicted from their home and Rupert is taken away to a camp called Buchenwald. Life in Berlin is getting dangerous and it’s only made worse when Ava’s father is arrested. To get him safely out of Germany, Ava must marry the handsome soldier – Leo von Lowenstein.
It’s not really a hardship for Ava at first – Leo is handsome and attentive and she’s fallen for him – but Ava desperately wants to help the resistance to thwart Hitler and ensure the Jewish people get to safety. She acts in a clandestine way, but it later turns out that Leo himself is a spy, part of a group trying to oust Hitler. It’s then that the pair fall even deeper in love with their shared goal. But as the war continues, things get worse for the main characters – can Ava save them all?
In the plot summary above, I’ve left out quite a bit of detail for two reasons – one, to coerce you into reading this fantastic story and two, because the story is crammed of excitement, plot twists and thriller-worthy action it would take a long time to describe (and ruin all the fun). Leo and Ava’s dangerous games are balanced with snippets of life of Rupert in Buchenwald where the suffering gives a sombre tone. It’s humbling and sorrowful to read about the kinds of things that happened to people simply because of their religion or political views. Jutta, Rupert’s sister, is part of a group of Jewish people trying to smuggle others out of the country and bring down Hitler. We also see the how Ava’s sister’s life is on the up and up in a relationship with a high ranking Nazi official – and then how it begins to unravel.
There are also many real life figures who appear on these pages, from Hitler himself to the Mitford sisters, Harro and Libertas Schulze-Boysen and Admiral Canaris. All the real life characters are treated with the respect (or distain in Hitler’s case) they deserve. Kate Forsyth’ excellent storytelling has made me research more into the role of the German resistance – it’s fascinating, and a little-told part of history for me. The fictional characters are brilliantly detailed and unforgettable. Ava and Leo’s romance is truly something out of a fairy tale – it’s a rush of passion, love and determination. The finale just demonstrates that even more – it’s wild and crazy but powered by love. I particularly enjoyed how each of the characters we had gotten to know through the course of the book got their own closure – so often you wonder what happened to a minor character but never find out, but it’s not the case here.
I read this book in great big batches – the storyline will carry you away and the characters are unforgettable. This is Kate Forsyth at her best – read it!
Thank you to Kate Forsyth and Random House for the eARC. My review is honest.
http://samstillreading.wordpress.com
pizzamyheart's review against another edition
2.0
Well, that was disappointing. I've had this book on my to-read list since it was first announced. A retelling of Beauty and the Beast set in Nazi Germany? I was intrigued. It took nearly 2 years to find out a way to order it from Australia. My anticipation was high.
Unfortunately there were so many things wrong with this. First, the love at first sight was ridiculous. She loved her husband, but wouldn't trust him with anything. I understand times were tough, but some honesty would have been good for them. Many of their interactions were utterly ridiculous and to be completely frank I hated both of them. No, not fair, I tolerated Leo, but I kept wishing someone would drop a bomb on Ava and end it already.
I will give Kate Forsyth props on her research. The war was terrible, and she captured the unfair atrocities of the war. Many of the scenes were shocking, and heart wrenching. It was really the actions and personalities of the main characters (and main secondary characters) that compelled me to give this such a low rating.
Unfortunately there were so many things wrong with this. First, the love at first sight was ridiculous. She loved her husband, but wouldn't trust him with anything. I understand times were tough, but some honesty would have been good for them. Many of their interactions were utterly ridiculous and to be completely frank I hated both of them. No, not fair, I tolerated Leo, but I kept wishing someone would drop a bomb on Ava and end it already.
I will give Kate Forsyth props on her research. The war was terrible, and she captured the unfair atrocities of the war. Many of the scenes were shocking, and heart wrenching. It was really the actions and personalities of the main characters (and main secondary characters) that compelled me to give this such a low rating.
amerasuu's review against another edition
4.0
I raced through this book because I had to return it to the library! Absolutely loved it. The story kept me on the edge of my seat. Ava is an incredible heroine.
jacki_f's review against another edition
4.0
I was completely immersed in this saga about a German girl living in Berlin during World War 2 and her relationship with an Abwehr officer. If you enjoyed [b:The Nightingale|21853621|The Nightingale|Kristin Hannah|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1422580224s/21853621.jpg|41125521] or [b:The English Girl|18108586|The English Girl|Margaret Leroy|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1383885900s/18108586.jpg|25430995], this will be right up your street.
Ava is our heroine: half Spanish, half German, she is very much a non-Aryan beauty. Growing up her best friend is Rupert, the Jewish son of her mother's best friend. The book opens on Kristallnacht, the famous night in November 1938 when there was a co-ordinated attack on Jews across Germany. Two key things happen as a result of that night: Rupert and his family come to live with Ava's family and Ava meets a handsome Abwehr officer named Leo. Ava is sickened by the Nazi party and vows to resist in any way that she can.
Kate Forsyth has a doctorate in fairy tale studies (not quite what you expect when you make the enquiry "is there a doctor in the house"?), and she has based her plot on an early version of Grimm's "Beauty and the Beast" fairytale. Clearly I am too tainted by Disney because these parallels were lost on me and I don't think it added anything - if anything, it contributed to the ridiculous final sequence which is easily the weakest part of the book.
The book's strength however is the extensive research that the author has done and the way that she integrates so many real people and events into the plot. Through Ava, Rupert and Leo's stories she gives us a broad view of many facets of Germany during the war: the hardships suffered by everyday citizens, the resistance efforts from both Jews and Germans, the horrors of the Concentration Camps, the efforts to assassinate Hitler. I have read several books recently about the experience of being in London during the Blitz but I think this might be the first I've read about the experience of being in Berlin as it was bombed and destroyed.
Kate Forsyth has an unusual writing style which can veer between florid and familiar. I almost abandoned this book after the first chapter because I worried that everyone was going to speak like they were out of a Barbara Cartland novel. At other times she uses descriptors like "that silly back-and-fro dance one sometimes does when trying to pass someone in the street" which feel like they come from an email rather than being true to the style of the book. Nevertheless, the storyline is so strong that you (mostly) stop noticing the writing style as you get caught up in what is happening.
Incidentally, I'd advise you NOT to read the plot description on the book's cover or the synopsis above, both of which contain huge and disappointing spoilers.
Ava is our heroine: half Spanish, half German, she is very much a non-Aryan beauty. Growing up her best friend is Rupert, the Jewish son of her mother's best friend. The book opens on Kristallnacht, the famous night in November 1938 when there was a co-ordinated attack on Jews across Germany. Two key things happen as a result of that night: Rupert and his family come to live with Ava's family and Ava meets a handsome Abwehr officer named Leo. Ava is sickened by the Nazi party and vows to resist in any way that she can.
Kate Forsyth has a doctorate in fairy tale studies (not quite what you expect when you make the enquiry "is there a doctor in the house"?), and she has based her plot on an early version of Grimm's "Beauty and the Beast" fairytale. Clearly I am too tainted by Disney because these parallels were lost on me and I don't think it added anything - if anything, it contributed to the ridiculous final sequence which is easily the weakest part of the book.
The book's strength however is the extensive research that the author has done and the way that she integrates so many real people and events into the plot. Through Ava, Rupert and Leo's stories she gives us a broad view of many facets of Germany during the war: the hardships suffered by everyday citizens, the resistance efforts from both Jews and Germans, the horrors of the Concentration Camps, the efforts to assassinate Hitler. I have read several books recently about the experience of being in London during the Blitz but I think this might be the first I've read about the experience of being in Berlin as it was bombed and destroyed.
Kate Forsyth has an unusual writing style which can veer between florid and familiar. I almost abandoned this book after the first chapter because I worried that everyone was going to speak like they were out of a Barbara Cartland novel. At other times she uses descriptors like "that silly back-and-fro dance one sometimes does when trying to pass someone in the street" which feel like they come from an email rather than being true to the style of the book. Nevertheless, the storyline is so strong that you (mostly) stop noticing the writing style as you get caught up in what is happening.
Incidentally, I'd advise you NOT to read the plot description on the book's cover or the synopsis above, both of which contain huge and disappointing spoilers.
annaliesegabrielle's review
dark
emotional
hopeful
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
donutbob's review against another edition
2.0
I’ve read the author’s other books and enjoyed them, but this one I couldn’t finish. It dragged on and on and ON. So boring.
petrauusimaa's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5