The Winter Orphans
THE WINTER ORPHANS releases September 13th, 2022 from Berkley/Penguin Random House.
A poignant and ultimately triumphant novel based on the incredible true story of children who braved the formidable danger of guarded, wintry mountain passes in France to escape the Nazis, from the acclaimed author of Courage, My Love.
Southern France, 1942
In a remote corner of France, Jewish refugee Ella Rosenthal has finally found a safe haven. It has been three years since she and her little sister, Hanni, left their parents to flee Nazi Germany, and they have been pursued and adrift in the chaos of war ever since. Now, they shelter among one hundred other young refugees in a derelict castle overseen by the Swiss Red Cross.
Swiss volunteers Rösli Näf and Anne-Marie Piguet uphold a common mission: to protect children in peril. Rösli, a stubborn and resourceful nurse, directs the colony of Château de la Hille, and has created a thriving community against all odds. Anne-Marie, raised by Swiss foresters, becomes both caretaker and friend to the children, and she vows to do whatever is necessary to keep them safe.
However, when Germany invades southern France, safeguarding Jewish refugees becomes impossible. Château de la Hille faces unrelenting danger, and Rösli and Anne-Marie realize that the only way to protect the eldest of their charges is to smuggle them out of France. Relying on Rösli’s fierce will and Anne-Marie’s knowledge of secret mountain paths, they plot escape routes through vast Nazi-occupied territory to the distant border. Amid staggering risk, Ella and Hanni embark on a journey that, if successful, could change the course of their lives and grant them a future.
“A winning wartime tale set in the snakepit world of Mussolini’s Rome. Single mother Lucia and polio-crippled Francesca make appealing heroines, flowering slowly from reticent bystanders to fierce resistance fighters as the Eternal City comes under German occupation. Kristin Beck’s debut is a fresh, compelling read.”
—Kate Quinn, New York Times bestselling author of The Huntress
About the Author
Welcome! Thanks so much for visiting my website!
Hailing from the Pacific Northwest, I often write to the sound of drumming rain and percolating coffee, and I wake up every day excited to do so. My books center on overlooked women in history who led courageous, often riveting lives.
Growing up, I loved listening to my grandmother’s stories of her experiences during World War II. Shortly after graduating from nursing school, my grandmother enlisted with the Canadian army and shipped to Europe to work in frontline hospitals. She cared for patients in canvas tents strung across muddy fields, helped transform bombed-out buildings into clearing stations, and eventually fell in love with my grandfather, who was an American soldier. When they returned to North America, my grandparents settled down, raised children, and assumed quiet lives. That’s the part that compels me: to most people, my grandmother appeared to be a typical wife and mother, yet she concealed an extraordinary, unexpected past.