Author(s): Anika Scott

Fiction

1946. Essen, Germany. Clara. Once heiress to the Falkenberg ironworks and a bright star in German high society; now on the run from the Allied authorities, accused of complicity in war crimes. Jakob. A charming black-marketeer doing what he can to provide for what's left of his family, determined to survive in the wreckage left by the Nazi collapse. Willy. Thirteen years old and diligently guarding a mine full of Wehrmacht supplies, his only company a canary named Gertrude. Convinced the war isn't over, he refuses to give up his post. When Clara returns to her hometown expecting to find her best friend, shefinds everything she once knew in ruins. But in war-ravaged Germany, it's not just the buildings that are scarred- everyone is changed, everyone carries guilt. To survive, Clara must hide who she is; but to live, she must face up to the truth of what she's done.