Our Darkest Night by Jennifer Robson is 1.99
There are so many great WWII books and if you love reading about that time, Robson’s book is one you shouldn’t miss.
I loved everything about this book. The pacing was perfect – I was on the edge of my seat the whole time, wondering if Antonia/Nina would be discovered, worried that Nico’s continued work with smuggling Jewish families to safety would get him caught and killed, terrified that the evil Nazi officer would do something to the family as an outlet for his jealousy. And yet into that anxiety the author weaves threads of joy, love and beauty that give the narrative a wonderful balance.
The prose is lovely. Ms. Robson gives us such a luminous picture of life on a small Italian family farm that it felt like I was watching a movie of the events because I could picture everything so clearly. Even though the life described was hard she imbues it with the love the people who lived it feel for it and that made spending time in the environment so wonderfully enticing. I could see why Nina and Nico, both of whom could aspire to a much wealthier existence, had a deep affection for where they were.
The characters are marvelous. As I said, Nico is a to-die-for hero. He is brave and kind and good and just darn near perfect. Nina is the same, and watching them fall in love was as sweet and romantic as I could have wished.
The plotting here is excellent. The author moves us briskly along our story path, giving us a rich, detailed look at occupied Italy and how the denizens came to hate their former allies. She takes our hero and heroine on their perilous route through this war torn landscape, holding out the hope of their finding a peaceful future but always reminding us that there was no guarantee for such a thing in their situation. There are some truly gut-wrenching, horrific moments in the story but the ending makes it all worthwhile.
For those wondering, Nina stays true to her faith and her roots. The idea that she do anything beyond posing as a Christian before the Germans is never entertained. Also worth noting – there is an attempted rape scene at one point, and numerous scenes of wartime violence throughout.
Our Darkest Night was a glorious start to my 2021 reading. I would recommend it to anyone looking for a great, emotional read.