Publisher: HQDigital
Pages: 361
Genre: Historical Fiction Book Description 'Taut, compelling and beautifully written – I loved it!’ ~ DAISY WOOD 'Tense and thought-provoking' ~ CATHERINE LAW 1940. As Soviet forces storm Lithuania, Zofia and her brother Jacek must flee to survive. A lifeline appears when Japanese consul Sugihara offers them visas on one condition: they must deliver a parcel to Tokyo. Inside lies intelligence on Nazi atrocities, evidence so explosive that Nazi and Soviet agents will stop at nothing to possess it. Pursued across Siberia on the Trans-Siberian Express, Zofia faces danger at every turn, racing to expose the truth as Japan edges closer to allying with the Nazis. With the fate of countless lives hanging in the balance, can she complete her mission before time runs out? ‘Such an interesting and original book…. Informative, full of suspense and thrills.’ ~ Netgalley Review Excerpt Something caught Otto’s eye and he stopped talking to stand and peer out of the corridor window, one hand shielding his eyes against the low light. His expression had changed to a tense watchfulness. Zofia rubbed the window to see what had caught his attention. A road ran alongside the railway track, and a row of sand-coloured Russian trucks were keeping pace with them as the train slowed, preparing to pull into the station. ‘Jacek, there are Russian army trucks coming,’ Otto said. He straightened his collar and tie. Masha went out into the corridor to look. ‘He’s right.’ Her eyes were curiously sparked with excitement. Jacek leant half out of the bunk to look out of the window. ‘We’re not at another state checkpoint yet, are we?’ ‘No, just Sverdlovsk,’ said Otto. Zofia had hoped to get out, to get a brief snatch of fresh air and stretch her legs, but the sight of the trucks and the armed soldiers’ rifles made her wary. The train took a few more minutes to creak and clank to a halt, eventually juddering into the station amid a squeal of brakes and a hiss of steam. Zofia tied back her make-shift curtain, pulled back the sliding door and stuck her head into the corridor. Shouts and the thump of men’s boots on the concrete platform, and suddenly the door into the corridor opened and a crowd of men in khaki uniform and blue-banded caps pushed themselves aboard. Zofia hurriedly withdrew. ‘They’re coming on board,’ she said. Otto peered out of the door into the corridor. ‘NKVD,’ he whispered. ‘Russians. The People’s Commissariat. Have your papers ready.’ Zofia fumbled to get them from her pocket as she heard the men moving down the carriage. When they got to their compartment, she saw they wore thick leather belts stuck with short-barrelled revolvers. The guns rattled her. Any armed man in uniform now made her breath come quicker as she tried to suppress the panic inside. It will be all right. We have Sugihara’s visas. Despite the draught, her hands were clammy with sweat as she held out the passport and visa. The two men seemed older than the previous Russian soldiers she’d seen. The one in charge had a growth of stubble and the kind of expressionless blue eyes that were almost transparent. She and Masha handed their passports and visas over and waited silently as the NKVD man flipped open the passports with his mouth in a hard line. Masha smiled at him but he didn’t smile back. Finally with a curt nod, he returned their papers, and Zofia let out her breath. Masha was staring openly at the Russians as they turned to Otto and Jacek on the opposite bunk. Otto was the first to hand over his papers and the men spoke to him politely, and asked him a few questions in Russian. He answered them calmly and told them he was headed for Vladivostok with a stopover in Omsk. Jacek was on the top bunk, his legs dangling over the edge, but the men gestured for him to come down. He sprang down, ready with his papers, but as soon as the man in charge had them in his hand, he whispered to the other soldier. ‘This is the one,’ he said in Russian. The Russians scrutinized the papers together, until the younger one drew his revolver in one quick flourish, and pressed it to Jacek’s chest. Jacek’s eyes flared in shock. ‘Jacek Kowalski? You will come with us.’ Zofia’s heart leapt like a hare. She grabbed Jacek’s arm, horrified. At the same time, Jacek grew taller, trying to regain composure. He smiled at the soldiers, though suppressed panic made his voice waver. ‘There must be some mistake, I have a valid visa to go to Vladivostok and from there to Japan and to Curaçao, just like my fiancée and the others in this compartment. See? Signed by Chiune Sugihara, from the Japanese consulate.’ ‘Perhaps. But we have a warrant for your arrest. Anti-communist activities. You’re a journalist and not to leave Russian soil. We have orders to arrest you before you leave.’ ‘Why? He’s done nothing wrong!’ Zofia stood up to protest, as Masha jumped up too to catch hold of his sleeve. ‘We’re together,’ Masha said. The man with the cold eyes smiled at her, but pushed her away. ‘I’ll come with him,’ Zofia said, standing up again and seizing his arm in a panic. ‘We’re family, we stick together.’ ‘Let go.’ Jacek turned and shook her off. His eyes were enormous in his white face. ‘This is my trouble, not yours.’ He faced up to the NKVD man in charge. ‘You can’t arrest me. I demand to see a lawyer.’ He let out a laugh, a harsh uncompromising sound. ‘You’re welcome. If you can find one where you’re going.’ Where to Purchase Universal Buy Link HERE Meet the Author
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Thank you so much for hosting Deborah Swift with her fabulous new novel, Last Train to Freedom, today.
ReplyDeleteTake care,
Cathie xx
The Coffee Pot Book Club