“A woman held captive finally escapes – But can she ever really get away?”
- Book: Dear Child
- Location: Bavaria
- Author: Romy Hausmann
I am usually quite an unemotional person when it comes to reading books or watching films, which I know are completely fictional. However, this is the third or fourth book in as many weeks, where I have almost been moved to tears and have felt super invested in the characters and highly emotional about the storyline. I think I need a short break from stories of abuse, after all, how many tissues can a girl get through!! Definitely another 5 star rating and a place on my ‘favourites’ shelf for this one!
Having said that, I wouldn’t have missed the chance to read this one for the world. A book which drew me in completely, left me desperate to escape its clutches yet needing to know that things were going to turn out okay in the end, and then spat me out when it was done with me, leaving me a shaken wreck!
The translation of this book from its native German into English, is skilled and totally seamless, making the dialogue and narrative authentic, moving, rich in atmosphere, totally immersive and very fluid.
This is a dark and downright scary story, told in short, meaningful chapters, from three different perspectives and through three pairs of eyes; those of Matthias who is Lena’s father, Hannah who is Lena’s daughter, and Lena (Jasmine) herself. Eventually Jasmine is telling parts of her story to Lena, whom she never even knew! A little unconventional maybe, but it worked really well and all those connections become clear almost as soon as you begin reading!
Looking back, my reading journey actually moves along at a fair pace, a nice way of saying that I just couldn’t turn the pages fast enough! From its explosive, scene-setting prologue, which drew me in immediately; through the multi-layered, well constructed and intense storyline, with an added thriller element which only heightened the suspense; to an ending which has just a hint of future promise, but unfortunately, with no silver lining in sight for this cloud just yet!
A study rich in human behaviour, there are so many social and moral issues touched upon to varying degrees and with so many subtle twists and turns, both in the storyline itself, and also in the psyche and mental well-being of the characters. The darker side of love and obsession and the trauma of minds bent and twisted beyond recognition. My overall feeling whilst reading underwent several gut wrenching changes; from gripping to disturbing, compelling to desperate, suspenseful with just a faint glimmer of humanity and light at the end of the tunnel, but all with that over-riding sense of outrage and of being completely emotionally drained and yes – heartbroken!
The narrative and dialogue, which dealt with so many difficult issues, was written with great authority, excellent perception and total confidence. The attention to detail was equally as impressive, with many subtle nuances in the narrative and dialogue, which kept me on my toes. Hannah may have been prone to flights of fancy and a vivid imagination, and with such highly charged narrative, it was sometimes almost impossible to detect whether much of what she was saying, was fiction, fact, or fact as she believed it to be. The writing was skilled, observationally astute, visually descriptive and, so it seemed to me, totally intuitive.
I was truly invested in all the characters and relationships, and was captivated by author Romy Hausmann’s exploration of the individual psychology behind each traumatic event:-
That first and fatal mistake in judgement by one fickle girl, who thinks that she can manipulate a more seasoned and experienced male adversary, only to find to her cost that she can’t, despite the fact that she does try above and beyond most normal people’s endurances to then meet the demands and expectations of both him and her young family.
The angst and total desolation of the family of a missing person, for whom there can be no closure without knowing what happened to their loved one, be it good or bad.
The total mental horror and physical destruction of a person abducted and forced to take another’s name and live their life, then to discover that you are only one in a long line of previous ‘another’s’! The lifelong horrors and feelings of misplaced guilt may never really heal, and whilst therapy may help with the PTSD, life will be lived on knife edge for some considerable time to come.
The destruction of a long-held friendship and breakdown in trust, between family and authority, so horrendous and unforgiving that the rift can never be truly reconciled.
The abject depravity of one individual, whose view was so distorted and mind so deranged at having lost one family with such futility, deciding that it is never going to happen again, no matter what the cost.
And finally, the two young people central to the whole storyline, who have suffered the most. My heart was broken for their shattered lives as they knew them. To them it must have seemed as though the very people who were purportedly there to help them, were the ones who were ripping the heart out of their family as they knew it. Everything happening in their young lives was perfectly normal to children who had never seen the outside world, only in their imagination. Their journey of recovery will be long, terrifying and traumatic, and who knows what grudges will fixate in those educated but unworldly, vulnerable minds, which will pursue and engulf them for the rest of their lives.
Personal endings and futures, which although they may not be final with no loose ends, feel so right and appropriate, with just that spark of hope.
A brilliant debut translated novel, full of heart and feeling, Romy and Jamie make a fantastic team.
Long may they keep collaborating on those wonderful storylines, which take me on such a unique and personal journey.
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