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lottie1803's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
Graphic: Suicide attempt, Child death, Confinement, Death, Deportation, Drug abuse, Slavery, Violence, War, Antisemitism, Body horror, Physical abuse, Pregnancy, Religious bigotry, Sexual content, Adult/minor relationship, Blood, Grief, Medical content, Forced institutionalization, Genocide, Gore, Murder, Sexual harassment, Torture, Bullying, Police brutality, Sexual assault, Rape, and Sexual violence
teigancollins's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
4.5
Graphic: Sexual violence, Antisemitism, Confinement, Death, Genocide, War, Slavery, and Torture
tinytrashqueen's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.0
Graphic: Torture, Suicide attempt, Racism, Panic attacks/disorders, Murder, Grief, Gore, Antisemitism, Child abuse, Confinement, Death of parent, Fire/Fire injury, Violence, Injury/Injury detail, Emotional abuse, Death, Medical trauma, Blood, Misogyny, Miscarriage, Kidnapping, Infertility, Hate crime, Genocide, Forced institutionalization, Child death, Medical content, Body horror, Pregnancy, Terminal illness, Sexual violence, Religious bigotry, Police brutality, and Physical abuse
Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Drug abuse, and Rape
bookish_bobbie's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
Graphic: Emotional abuse, Medical trauma, Rape, Forced institutionalization, Medical content, Sexual assault, and War
Moderate: Pregnancy, Injury/Injury detail, Blood, and Death
Minor: Addiction, Antisemitism, Confinement, and Miscarriage
bandysbooks's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
Cilka's Journey was brutal, more brutal than The Tattooist of Auschwitz if you can believe it. While the Tattooist centers on love and keeping hope alive, Cilka's Journey is more about the absolute depths humans will go to to survive atrocities. It is not at all an easy read, particularly as a woman, but understanding this type of history is necessary.
Possible Spoiler for The Tattooist & Cilka's Journey
Cilka is the victim of extreme sexual abuse and repeated rapes. In Auschwitz, she uses her beauty and wits to form a relationship with two high-ranking Nazis in the camps. She is derided by other prisoners for sleeping with the enemy, but in reality her choice is to be passed around and raped by all of the guards or to allow one or two of them to think she has a special relationship with them....and only have to tolerate one person raping her in trade for her safety and occasional favors for friends. She survives Auschwitz, but then is accused by the Russians of being a whore for the Nazis. She is then transported to a Russian Gulag in Siberia where she is to be punished. Again, she is faced with the choice of being raped by many guards, likely in violent manners or to accept rape by a single guard if she can form a relationship with him. She chooses the later and tricks a guard into falling in love with her. In all of these instances, it is clearly horrific for her, but the choice is black and white....accept violent gang rapes by whatever guard wants to have her or form a relationship with a single evil person and tolerate rape by him to ensure protection for oneself and ones friends. In looking into the historical person named Cilka, there were prisoner accounts that were quite mixed. Many people hated her for what they perceive as the choices she made, but many more talked about how she used her power over the Nazis and Russian guards to get extra food, medicine, and favorable treatment for some of the other prisoners. No one can be judged for the decisions that they have to make in these extraordinarily horrific circumstances and though you may think you'd never willingly sleep with an enemy, victims of rape who protect themselves in this way should not be judged. What Cilka survived is remarkable.
After finishing this book, I felt so many emotions that I don't know if I can adequately survive them. I never considered that there could be a worse thing than surviving a Nazi concentration camp...but this story makes it clear that the end of the Nazis wasn't a neat and tidy end for all of their victims. As with most historical fiction, I learned a bit more about a subject that I thought I was fairly well-versed in.
All in all, this story is one of the hardest I've had to read, but it's also necessary. Sexual violence is unfortunately used over and over again as a tool of war. We must not keep silent about it. We must fight back against it and share these stories of brave, tough women who make it through.
Graphic: Torture, Racial slurs, Rape, Child death, Confinement, Injury/Injury detail, Medical content, Medical trauma, Murder, Police brutality, Pregnancy, Sexual assault, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Genocide, Grief, Hate crime, Physical abuse, Toxic relationship, Antisemitism, Child abuse, Death, Sexual violence, Slavery, Violence, and War
Extra Important: I've included every single trigger warning for sexual violence that is possible. Please, take them seriously. This book touches on a lot of horrific things, but is especially heavy on rape and sexual violence. If it is in anyway triggering for you, know that violent rape is actually portrayed on page.kablitt's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.25
Graphic: Antisemitism, Confinement, Gore, Grief, Gun violence, Infertility, Injury/Injury detail, Medical content, Medical trauma, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual harassment, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide attempt, and Violence
kelly_e's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.25
Author: Heather Morris
Series: The Tattooist of Auschwitz, #2
Genre: Historical Fiction
Rating: 3.25
Pub Date: October 1 2019
T H R E E β’ W O R D S
Heartbreaking β’ Triumphant β’ Well Researched
π S Y N O P S I S
At the age of sixteen, Cilka was sent to Auschwitz-Birkenau concentration camp. While there she catches the eye of one of the commandants and is given special living arrangements to ensure she's available to him as needed. Upon liberation, Cilka is charged with collaboration for sleeping with the enemy, and is sentenced to fifteen years in Siberian prison camp. Based on a true story, it is a story of survival and determination, of friendship and love in the face of such atrocities.
π T H O U G H T S
Having met Cilka in The Tattooist of Auschwitz, a book I absolutely loved, I couldn't wait to get my hands on a copy of this book. It may have been my expectations but I felt a bit let down. I'll start out by saying Heather Morris' research of the Siberian Gulags was extremely well done. This is an aspect of WWII that I knew very little about, and I appreciate learning about it. Cilka's character is truly a strong and inspiring woman, her courage and determination in the face of such horrific circumstances are what makes this book emotional. However, I did feel myself questioning what was fiction and what wasn't, because throughout this book fact and fiction are weaved together.
With that said, the subject matter was compelling, but I felt as though the author faltered in the execution. There just wasn't anything that stood out for me. And at time it even felt as though the author was looking to add shock value. While I normally enjoy alternating timeline narratives, this one wasn't as strong for me.
Overall, Cilka's Journey was an unsettling and difficult read due to content, and I wanted to love it, but it ended up just being okay for me. This is a follow up to The Tattooist of Auschwitz however it could just as easily be read as a standalone.
π R E C O M M E N D β’ T O
β’ WWII historical fiction fans
β’ readers looking to learn about post-WWII camps
π F A V O U R I T E β’ Q U O T E S
"'Hannah,' Olga says sharply, 'finding a little hope in the darkness is not a weakness.'"
Graphic: Antisemitism, Genocide, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, and Violence
Moderate: Child death, Confinement, Death, Grief, and Medical trauma
Minor: Addiction and Pregnancy
stillbirthbexwalsh's review against another edition
- 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? Yes
4.5
Moderate: Confinement, Death, Grief, Medical content, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Pregnancy, Rape, and Sexual assault
Minor: Suicidal thoughts
bexh's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
Graphic: Antisemitism, Blood, Body horror, Child death, Confinement, Death, Death of parent, Excrement, Forced institutionalization, Genocide, Gore, Grief, Hate crime, Medical content, Medical trauma, Misogyny, Murder, Physical abuse, Police brutality, Pregnancy, Racism, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual harassment, Sexual violence, Torture, Violence, Xenophobia, and Vomit
tdowner's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
Cilka's Journery, like The Tatooist, are fictional but based on real people and real events. Cilka was a survivor of Auschwitz-Berkenau, and was imprisoned in Siberia. Some of the people she met in the book are real, some are compilations of people and some are fictional. Likewise, the specific events are a mix of fact and extrapolation. In the Afterword, Morris explains where she filled in missing details. Her books are the result of personal interviews and research, and are a well written mix.
Moderate: Antisemitism, Confinement, Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, and Rape