NATIONAL BESTSELLER

Shortlisted for Best Crime Novel by the Crime Writers of Canada Award

Based on a true story, this powerful novel is set in Latvia’s capital during the horrific Rumbula massacre when 30,000 Jews were slaughtered over two days in 1941

When Miriam and her family are rounded up and forced to live in the Jewish ghetto in Riga, Miriam chooses to give up her children to the care of a Gentile friend who will hide them. A few weeks later, Miriam, along with thousands of other Jews, is marched to the execution pits in the Rumbula forest. Incredibly, she manages to escape the carnage when night falls. Through a series of dramatic events, she finds sanctuary in the countryside, managing to hide for three years and survive the war. Consumed by guilt, she is finally reunited with her daughter. But she has lost her son.

Thirty-five years later, Miriam’s granddaughter, Sarah, is living in Chicago with her family. Seeking to understand her maternal family history, Sarah tries desperately to ferret out Miriam’s secret. Miriam does not want to revisit the past, but through persistence Sarah eventually finds out enough to impel her to travel to Riga to search for her uncle. But it is the height of the Cold War and Riga is under Soviet control. Now Sarah’s quest for the truth may threaten her freedom when she comes face to face with the KGB.

Told in chapters that alternate between 1941 and 1976, this gripping novel delves into the trauma faced by survivors of genocide down through the generations.

SHELLY SANDERS is the author of Daughters of the Occupation (Harper, 2022), a Canadian bestseller for four weeks. The novel is inspired by the discovery of her Jewish roots as an adult, and by her grandmother’s family, many of whom were murdered during the Latvian Holocaust. Carol Memmott, of the Washington Post, says this “haunting novel refers not only to the victims of Latvia’s Holocaust but also to their descendants, who carry the trauma of their ancestors.”

Shelly is also the author of three Young Adult historical fiction novels (The Rachel Trilogy, Second Story Press); the first received a Starred Review in Booklist, and two of the three were named Notable Books for Teens from the Association of Jewish Libraries.

Follow Shelly on Twitter @shelly_sanders and on Instagram: fictionbyshellysanders

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“A gripping historical saga that skillfully addresses the trauma of the Holocaust.”
— Kirkus Reviews (starred review)

“The title of this haunting novel refers not only to the victims of Latvia’s Holocaust but also to their descendants, who carry the trauma of their ancestors.”
— Washington Post

“One of the most authentic and profound works of historical fiction I have ever read about World War II and the Holocaust.” — BookTrib