Reviews - The Women in the Castle

1k reviews for:

The Women in the Castle

Jessica Shattuck

3.72 AVERAGE

ajahde's review against another edition

4.0

dark emotional reflective sad slow-paced

Plot or Character Driven: Character

Strong character development: Yes

Loveable characters: Complicated

Diverse cast of characters: No

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

tmathews0330's review against another edition

4.0

A very character driven book, the women whose stories are told are fascinating and multi-dimensional, yet the full immersion into who they are and their world never feels complete.

joypouros's review against another edition

4.0

reflective sad medium-paced

Plot or Character Driven: A mix

Strong character development: Yes

Loveable characters: Complicated

The book is WW2 historical fiction, but with an emphasis on the end of the war.

I felt the book didn't live up to its premise, in that Marianne only finds two other women, and they aren't at the castle all that long. While the focus of the book was the end of the war, I wish we knew more about the assassination attempt.

I also didn't love the format of the book, with it's constant back and forth flashbacks and changes in perspective. I understand why it was done that way for this story, but it just isn't my favorite.

What the book does well is focus on where the stories usually stop. What was it like in post-war Germany, where every new friend you meet you are unsure if they were a nazi or not, and how much does it matter to you?

The story ultimately follows three women who survived WW2. One is an avid resister, and assumes but is constantly disappointed when others don't share her convictions or don't match her intensity. It's about how they all choose to move on, to do what is best for their children and what they can live with.

Content Warnings

curlyjessreads's review against another edition

4.0

This was a historical fiction about WWII, but even more so about the aftermath of WWII for the German people. So definitely don't just write this off if you're WWII overloaded! It follows three women whose husbands had a hand in the assassination attempt on Hitler. Marianne promised her husband, and best friend, that she would look after the wives of anything were to happen, so with that promise pushing her on she attempts to locate the others in the aftermath of the war, but just because they opposed the Nazis, doesn't mean they will have it easy in the years after the war. The rebuilding will take its toll on everyone!
I really enjoyed the different perspective of rebuilding lives after the war (and we even get to see many years later). I struggled a bit reading it, but I think that was more a result of my life circumstances at the time. As time has passed I've realized it's one of those books that sticks with you. We had some pretty good discussions during our book club meeting too!

sylda's review against another edition

3.5

challenging emotional reflective sad medium-paced

Plot or Character Driven: Character

Strong character development: Yes

Loveable characters: Complicated

Diverse cast of characters: No

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

colleengeedrumm's review against another edition

4.0

Another WW2 story set amongst three women and their families. Great story telling and lesson learning. The audio was well done and entertainable. Kept me going until the end.