The Puzzle Women is such a wonderful read that I want everyone to read it. Beautifully written with an intriguing plot set in an interesting place and period (Berlin, 1998), it is a tale that reaffirms the breathtaking capacity of women united.
When siblings Rune and Lotte are woken one night by Mama and instructed to follow her as she leads yet another attempted escape from abusive Papa, they embark on a whole new life – this time on the other side of the Berlin Wall. Mama promises that no one will ever hurt them again.
Ten years later, their memories of the escape are hazy; Mama has disappeared, and the siblings are back at Papa’s house. When they receive a notebook that seems to have been sent from Mama and are summarily torn to pieces by Papa, they realise there must be more to their past than previously assumed.
With the introduction of the Puzzle Women, a group of women tasked to reconstruct the mountains of documents shredded by the former secret police of East Berlin, the plot thickens as Lotte starts to piece together the puzzle of her own mother’s story.
It is captivating and intriguing, set against the chaos of the newly united Germany after the fall of the Berlin Wall, a country then fraught with police violence, domestic violence and abuse. At the same time, Ellory manages to capture beautifully the love between siblings, between mother and children, and the endless possibilities when brave women band together and refuse to lose hope.
There are many layers to this novel, and I found the piecing together of countless lives – by a group of strong women – in order to make sense of Berlin’s true history, warts and all, especially interesting.
It’s heartbreaking at times, and the amount of untold crime, secrecy, hatred and fear of the time boggles the mind, but it is such an entertaining storyline that it is guaranteed to bring the occasional smile to your lips.
Ultimately, a lovely read and I can’t recommend it enough.
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