Review: The Midwife's Child by Amanda Lees*

*I received a copy of this book in eBook format via NetGalley in return for this review. All reviews published on Yours, Chloe are completely honest and my own, and are in now way influenced by the gifting opportunity.

Title: The Midwife's Child
Author: Amanda Lees
Genre: Historical Fiction

Trigger warnings:  War, The Holocaust, Execution, Hanging, Guns, Starvation, Eugenics

Rating: ★★★★★  

‘Save her,’ she begs, drawing her last, quavering breaths. ‘Save my baby. Find her father. And reunite them.’ Both of our tears fall on the tiny creature in my arms, only minutes old and already in terrible danger. There’s never any doubt – of course I’ll do all I can. But will it be enough?

Auschwitz, January 1945: forced on a terrifying death march from the notorious concentration camp, midwife and former secret agent Maggie must find the strength to protect the tiny baby girl her dying friend left to her care. Only weeks old, little Leah is in terrible danger – from the Nazis, from the freezing weather, from starvation.

So when a company of soldiers led by brave Captain Jamie Maclean rescues the marching women, Maggie’s relief knows no bounds. But it soon turns to astonishment when Jamie vows to help Maggie reunite Leah with her father – he has fallen in love with Maggie, and will do everything in his power to assist her.

Maggie can’t yet trust her own, budding, feelings. But she accepts Jamie’s help, and slowly starts to dream of a life together. Until Maggie gets the news every survivor dreads. The most fearsome Nazi of all, Dr Mengele, the terror of Auschwitz, has escaped – and she may be the only person strong enough to track him down.

Looking at baby Leah’s trusting eyes, Maggie’s heart is torn. But she has to find Mengele and bring him to justice. Can she succeed on the most terrifying mission of her life, when so many others have failed? And if she does, will she find her way back home to the ones she loves, or will the heartbreak of everything she has suffered destroy any chance of happiness, forever?

In The Midwife’s Child, author Amanda Lees brings us yet another incredibly powerful Second World War historical fiction novel. This is the third instalment of her WW2 Resistance series but works well as a standalone story too, and it was my introduction to the series. Reading The Midwife’s Child has made me excited to venture into the earlier two books in the series too though, to get to know Maggie’s SOE colleagues on a deeper level having met them within this book.

Amanda Lees is very quickly becoming one of my absolute favourite historical fiction authors. Her compelling storytelling captures your emotions from the very first page and immerses you in the story, taking you on an emotional rollercoaster of a journey through beautifully crafted tension, utterly heartbreaking moments and also heartwarming scenes of compassion, selflessness and light amongst the utter darkness of the subject matter.

The story of The Midwife’s Child is told through a fractured timeline. The majority of the narrative is set after the liberation of Auschwitz and throughout the gradual liberation of Western Europe, with some chapters providing flashbacks to Maggie’s experience in Auschwitz. This structure worked really well and the chapters are short and snappy which facilitates a fast-paced narrative packed full of tension.

This is a difficult read, covering some of the darkest topics in Second World War history such as the evil experiments Mengele conducted at Auschwitz, including those on children. It’s an utterly heart-wrenching story which had me sobbing throughout but it does also feature some really heartwarming moments of communities starting to reunite and rebuild after the atrocities of the Holocaust. Amanda Lees has an incredible storytelling ability which always evokes the most intense emotional responses I’ve experienced as a reader, even as someone who regularly reads very hard-hitting historical fiction novels. I’d highly recommend having tissues to hand when you start reading!

One of the most powerful aspects to the plot is its exploration of survivor’s guilt and the psychological trauma experienced by the Holocaust survivors. This is an aspect of the history I find particularly fascinating as so many books (both fiction and non-fiction) stop at the liberation of the camps and don’t delve further into the lives of survivors after that. Holocaust survivor experiences are something we could never even attempt to understand fully but exploring this through meticulously researched stories such as The Midwife’s Child is a small step in that direction, so this aspect to the story was particularly powerful.

Amanda Lees writes strong female characters exceptionally well and we have a really courageous one in Maggie. She was selfless, compassionate, headstrong and fiercely determined throughout the story. Jamie was another courageous and well-written character who complimented Maggie well and I really enjoyed the historical romance element to the story we had through their characters.

Overall, The Midwife’s Child is a really powerful story which is truly going to stay with me for a long time. It is a must-read for all Second World War historical fiction readers.