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The Road Beyond Ruin
The Road Beyond Ruin | Gemma Liviero
10 posts | 9 read | 1 reading | 23 to read
For some people in post-World War II Germany, the battle is not over. August 1945. As Stefano, an Italian POW, heads toward home across war-ravaged Germany, he encounters a young child beside his dead mother. Unable to leave him to an unknown fate, Stefano takes the boy with him, finding refuge in a seemingly abandoned house in a secluded woodland. But the house is far from vacant. Stefano wakes at the arrival of its owner, Erich, a former German soldier, who invites the travelers to stay until they can find safe passage home. Stefano cautiously agrees, intrigued by the disarming German, his reclusive neighbor Rosalind, and her traumatized husband, Georg. Stefano is also drawn to Monique, the girl in a photograph on Rosalind's wall, who went missing during the war. But when he discovers letters written by Monique, a darker truth emerges. This place of refuge could be one of reckoning, and the secrets of the past might prevent the travelers from ever getting home.
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readingjedi
The Road Beyond Ruin | Gemma Liviero
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Pickpick

This book took a little getting into but eventually gripped me as the slow, tantalising reveal progressed. It is the plot that intrigues rather than the writing delights as it is, at times, a little lacklustre. I love that you don't know exactly what's going on or if the characters are who or what they say they are. It shows the destruction of war but also the things that survive war - love, loyalty, resilience and ... revenge!

74 likes2 stack adds
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readingjedi
The Road Beyond Ruin | Gemma Liviero
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This one next. Though I'm not sure if can start it straight away as I'm still a bit stunned by the last one (Tin Man).

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Texreader
The Road Beyond Ruin | Gemma Liviero
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Pickpick

All is not what it seems to be in this story about an Italian POW walking home through Germany after WWII. Told from the perspective of three characters, this is a complex novel with secrets galore. It gets a little too complex towards the end—one part left me confused. But kudos to the author for making it work for the most part. This was an Amazon 5-star Kindle first pick. I give it 4 stars.

jy0tiar0ra The cover looks so good. I'm scared to read war books as they make me sad. But feel like trying this one. 6y
Texreader @jy0tiar0ra This one definitely has depressing sections. But it also has some redeeming sections that I think make up for it. I recommend it 6y
jy0tiar0ra @Texreader ok, thanks 6y
88 likes5 stack adds3 comments
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Texreader
The Road Beyond Ruin | Gemma Liviero
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As I understand it, a German chef moved to Beeville (in the middle of nowhere) and opened this very authentic restaurant. So I had lunch there today. If the food didn‘t confirm it, the music in German sure did. The Berliner Schnitzel was terrific, while reading the tagged book, which coincidentally is about post-WWII Germans and Italians dealing with its aftermath.

MidnightBookGirl Beeville, Texas? My sister-in-law and her family loved there for many years. 6y
LoverofLit Mmmm. I love German food. 6y
julesG Looks like the Chef/owner is from east Germany. That flag is the GDR flag. 6y
See All 7 Comments
inthegreensandblues There is not enough German food where I live. 🤤 6y
Texreader @MidnightBookGirl Yes! I‘ve been here this week to work with a client. It‘s an out-of-the-way place to end up unless someone is from here. Was her family from Beeville? 6y
Texreader @LoverofLit @inthegreensandblues I love German food too and despite their strong Germanic roots, both my hometown of Austin and my adopted town of San Antonio neither have great German food. So I have to find it when I travel around parts of Texas. Real nice surprise in southern Texas 6y
Texreader @julesG That is so interesting!! I had no idea though I did try to figure it out. It almost looks like a Freemason symbol on it. 6y
69 likes7 comments
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Texreader
The Road Beyond Ruin | Gemma Liviero
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So here I am in Beeville TX and checked out a highly recommended local dive, while reading the tagged book.

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Texreader
The Road Beyond Ruin | Gemma Liviero
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Starting this Amazon first pick Kindle book during my regular bout of insomnia tonight. This one has 5 stars. Looks sad though.

BookBabe I feel you, I‘m doing my insomnia thing too 😑 6y
BookBabe By the way, thanks for helping me choose my Kindle First Reads pick for the month. 😛 I missed the last 2 months because I couldn‘t decide in time. 6y
Texreader @BookBabe Insomnia sucks. Every evening I hope for a better night. I like this Kindle book so far. We‘ll see if I end up reading it during the night 6y
85 likes3 comments
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irrelevance10
The Road Beyond Ruin | Gemma Liviero
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Panpan

I'm usually a fan of historical fiction, but this was just not good. I'm a fairly intuitive reader, so I usually have a good idea of where a plot is headed. I'm usually happy to be surprised, but this is only the case if the plot twist is well-executed. This book has a few twists, but they are so poorly thought out that it makes what could have been a great novel terrible. The twists don't make sense. 2 out of 5 stars.

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irrelevance10
The Road Beyond Ruin | Gemma Liviero
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“You have a leg to walk on, not like others.”

He nods more somberly. “I suppose I should be grateful then.” He means it to some degree, but there have been times when he wasn‘t grateful, for anything, not even his own life.