The Scent of a Storm
by Annette Oppenlander
GENRE: Historical Fiction
BLURB:
A heart-wrenching love story for the ages – inspired by true events
Eastern Prussia, 1944: Young lovers Annie and Werner are separated from each other when he is drafted into Hitler’s Volkssturm. While the SS orders Werner to remove the dead bodies of frozen refugees from Königsberg’s streets, Annie discovers she is pregnant. As she urgently awaits Werner’s return, rumors of the advancing Red Army mount and with it, alarming reports of what they do to women. Running for their lives, Annie and her mother embark on a life-threatening journey west. Even before they can escape by boat, Annie makes a horrifying mistake, one that will haunt her forever. Werner, arrested and imprisoned in a Russian gulag, manages to escape after four months of cruelty and returns home. But his and Annie’s farms lie abandoned—the love of his life and his own family have vanished…
East Berlin, 1989: On the evening of November 9, when the borders between East and West Berlin open for the first time in nearly thirty years—a day which ultimately heralds Germany’s reunification—Annie watches a correspondent on West TV who reminds her of her childhood sweetheart Werner, the man she has thought dead for 45 years. Together with her daughter Emma, Annie sets out on a search...
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Excerpt:
Somewhere beyond the forest, thunder rolls. The sun has disappeared behind hazy clouds and a gust of wind travels between the trunks, rippling the pond’s surface.
Werner’s gaze travels upward, a frown on his forehead. “We better go, before this thing hits.”
As an answer I pull on my clothes in silence and climb on my bike. We take off at breakneck speed across the uneven forest floor that turns dark instantly with pelting raindrops. Every so often Werner slows down to let me catch up. His bike is much larger than mine and he can fly like a swallow hunting bugs.
When we pull away from the stand of trees, the wind hits us like a wall. The sky has turned charcoal and the clouds are so low, they seem to press down on me. My ears are filled with the roar of thunder, the wind, and the smacking sounds of tires on wet ground. Water fills my eyes, nose, and mouth. It runs down my bare arms, soaking into my clothes and shoes.
The path is no more than a blur. A flash of lightening cuts the sky into ragged brightness. My thoughts wander to the story I heard years ago about a boy being killed by lightning. Out here on the open fields, wet and tall on our bikes, we’re lightning rods. Anxiety creeps up my spine. If it weren’t for me, Werner would be home already. Instead, he goes slowly to keep an eye—
The ground rushes up to me, cold muddy water hitting my face and neck. Pain shoots up my wrist into the elbow and then further up into my shoulder. The world lies on its side, the bike still between my legs. Blood colors the mud, gaudy and bright against the leaden sky.
“Annie?” Werner appears by my side and carefully lifts away the bicycle.
I try to sit, but my wrist screams.
My Review:
The Scent of a Storm is a truly remarkable story about the journey of two young lovers, Annie and Werner during wartime. Their journey follows them from 1944 at the start of the war all the way through to 1989 when the wall between East and West Berlin came down.
The writing was so impeccably written and so vivid it was like being an eyewitness to their journey. The Scent of a Storm is a fiction story but it has truth between its pages. The characters seemed like real people, not just some character out of a book. Once I picked up The Scent of a Storm and read that first word I was pulled into its depths and the world around me disappeared.
There was more than one occasion when The Scent of a Storm had me in tears. Annie and Werner’s story was heart-wrenching, to say the least. But there were other stories that tore my heart in two as well. There were some very sad, sad moments throughout.
I always enjoy reading Annette Oppenlander’s books. I don’t think I have ever read one that I didn’t like. Annette Oppenlander is one of my favorite authors I am always on the lookout for her next book.
The Scent of a Storm is told from both Annie and Werner’s points of view. Part of the book is Annie’s story and the other part is Werner’s story. The Scent of a Storm was a dark and heart-wrenching story but there were some happy and warm times too.
And as always I highly recommend The Scent of a Storm for all fans of historical fiction. I would also like to recommend that you check out all of Annette Oppenlander’s books. Trust me you won’t be disappointed in any of her books.
AUTHOR Bio and Links:
Annette Oppenlander is an award-winning writer, literary coach and educator. As a bestselling historical novelist, Oppenlander is known for her authentic characters and stories based on true events, coming alive in well-researched settings. Having lived in Germany the first half of her life and the second half in various parts in the U.S., Oppenlander inspires readers by illuminating story questions as relevant today as they were in the past.
Oppenlander’s bestselling true WWII story, Surviving the Fatherland, received multiple nominations/awards. The recently translated German version received the silver Skoutz Award 2020. Uniquely, Oppenlander weaves actual historical figures and events into her plots, giving readers a flavor of true history while enjoying a good story.
Oppenlander shares her knowledge through writing workshops at colleges, libraries, festivals and schools. She also offers vivid presentations and author visits. The mother of fraternal twins and a son, she recently returned to her home, Solingen, Germany where she lives with her husband.
Contact
Pinterest ~ Instagram ~ Blog ~ Amazon ~ Email
Nominations/Awards for Surviving the Fatherland
2017 National Indie Excellence Award
2017 Winner Chill with a Book Readers’ Award
2017 Kindle Book Awards Finalist
2017 Discovered Diamond Historical Novel
2018 Indie B.R.A.G. Award
2018 Readers’ Favorite Book Award—Bronze
2019 Global eBook Award—Gold
2020 Skoutz Award—Silver (Germany)
IWIC Hall of Fame Novel
4 comments:
Thanks for reading and reviewing! I will be around today, in case anybody has questions. All the best! Annette
Sounds like a very interesting book.
Great excerpt! Annette your book sounds like a great, "hold you captive" book and I am looking forward to reading it! Thanks Avid Readers for sharing your review! Have a spectacular holiday season!
This book sounds like a great read.
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