TITLE: Last Words
AUTHOR: Shari J. Ryan
GENRE: Romance
PUBLICATION: October 9th, 2017\
LAST WORDS: is a contemporary romance standalone novel by Shari J. Ryan where non fiction meets fiction, and the lines in between are blurred by forbidden love.
The book has dual plot lines which transition from Amelia’s life written in diary format which follows her from her captivity in 1942 within the confines of a nazi prison camp to present day surrounding her granddaughter Emma.
Thirty one year old Emma is a freelance designer, in a relationship neither her mother or grandmother approve of. But a little bit of meddling from her Grams sees her finally ending her relationship and walking down a whole new path, to a man that is right for her.
Emma's grandmother has lived 92 years on this earth (It's seventy-four years longer than I expected to live) but her health is deteriorating and is hospitalized, in a confused state she starts calling out for a man named Charlie Crane, who no one has heard of before. Amelia begs Emma to look for her special book which she discovers in a small wooden box hidden under her Grams bed. It's then that Emma is given the greatest gift of all time of reading her grandma's most treasured diary. A race against time to uncover who Charlie actually was to her Grandmother ensues.
We know little of Gram's history, mainly just that she survived the Holocaust. But her story stopped there.
Once upon a time… Amelia had the best childhood growing up within a loving family, two doting parents and an older brother , life was for the living, until that was all taken away in the blink of an eye, Nazi intruders take to the streets going from house to house removing patrons, in this case it was Amelia, her brother and father, her mother was killed right in front of her eyes.
Thrown onto a train packed to the rafters to a destination unknown, upon arrival men and boys one way woman and children the other.
An unlikely forbidden friendship between a Nazi soldier and Amelia ensues, he offers her what little scraps of food he can share, protection when he can, kind words when he's able to. A relationship blossoms within the dark confines of a prison camp.
We're a secret that no one would understand or accept.
Survival of the fittest, the toughest ensues. Amelia wrote down all her memories in a diary but never uttered a word to her children or granddaughter about her early life. It was a forbidden topic never to be spoken about.
MY THOUGHTS: I struggled writing up this review, gathering my thoughts trying to hone into my feelings won't do justice to every emotion I felt whilst reading this.
Powerful, Passionate and Perfectly Perfect.
This book took me on such a profound unexpected heartfelt journey, not being an overly emotional person this book hit me right in the feels, I cried, I sighed, I struggled to read some parts, I wanted to crawl into the book and hug Amelia, what an amazing, strong, character, I loved her story,and I loved Emma's journey alongside hers. This book will always lay claim to a part of my heart, I am so glad I read this story, what amazing journey I went on reading this.
Last Words, where Non-Fiction meets Fiction, and the lines in between are blurred by forbidden love.
Amelia - 1942:
The inside of my closet held the last bit of my freedom before I was torn from my home and shoved onto a dark train.
Our destination was even darker. “Women and children to the right. Men to the left,” they shouted at us.
Everything was taken from me, leaving only the smoke filled air, piercing screams, and soul-burning cries.
I was slowly starved and weakened to the bone, but there was a man—a Nazi—who brought me extra food. He called himself a prisoner too, but he scared me, and I wondered if he was the enemy I should fear the most.
Emma - Current Day:
My grandmother hid her past in an old diary under her bed. The tattered, brown leather book sat there for years until she asked me to find it and read her unspoken words. Now, her stories and secrets are consuming every moment of my life.
She’s dying ... and asking for a man no one in our family has ever heard of.
I never imagined a hand-written book could change my entire life, but it has. It opened my eyes to a new beginning, and I learned that love is not the unsaid word my grandmother has refused to speak. It’s an action—it’s longevity, taboo and sometimes forbidden. Do we fight for what’s wrong, or do we spend our lives searching for what’s right?
Last words were never spoken because love doesn’t stop until a heart is no longer beating.
Amelia - 1942:
The inside of my closet held the last bit of my freedom before I was torn from my home and shoved onto a dark train.
Our destination was even darker. “Women and children to the right. Men to the left,” they shouted at us.
Everything was taken from me, leaving only the smoke filled air, piercing screams, and soul-burning cries.
I was slowly starved and weakened to the bone, but there was a man—a Nazi—who brought me extra food. He called himself a prisoner too, but he scared me, and I wondered if he was the enemy I should fear the most.
Emma - Current Day:
My grandmother hid her past in an old diary under her bed. The tattered, brown leather book sat there for years until she asked me to find it and read her unspoken words. Now, her stories and secrets are consuming every moment of my life.
She’s dying ... and asking for a man no one in our family has ever heard of.
I never imagined a hand-written book could change my entire life, but it has. It opened my eyes to a new beginning, and I learned that love is not the unsaid word my grandmother has refused to speak. It’s an action—it’s longevity, taboo and sometimes forbidden. Do we fight for what’s wrong, or do we spend our lives searching for what’s right?
Last words were never spoken because love doesn’t stop until a heart is no longer beating.
