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Author Catherine Hokin describes The Train That Took You Away as the story of “a lost child, a hidden painting, and two women from very different worlds trying to put their broken hearts back together again.” The story opens in Berlin in 1936. Esther Spielmann, thirty-four years old, has worked hard and established her reputation as one of the city’s best gallerists, recognized as adept at finding new talent and providing collectors pieces that perfectly match their tastes. Esther’s family founded the Mandelbaum bank and her husband, Caspar, will one day manage it. Esther’s father, Albert, believes that Hitler simply made “empty promises” to garner votes, but it remains unclear to what extent the Nuremberg Race Laws of 1935 will impact the daily lives of Jewish citizens. So, as Esther is sitting with her energetic six-year-old son, Sascha, for a portrait, her offer to exhibit the work of the Jewish artist — who snaps photos of the two from which he will create the painting — at her gallery is met with consternation and skepticism. He inquires if she is concerned about the gallery’s future status, given the number of Jewish businesses that have already been shuttered, not to mention the Nazi “crackdown on modern art.” Thus far, Esther and her family have not sustained significant changes to their lifestyle since the Nazis’ rise to power, and her husband and father naively believe that, given their successful businesses and social standing, Jews in their “circle” are not under threat. They are about to discover how wrong they are.

Following an interaction with a Schutzstaffel (Hitler’s personal troops) officer at a restaurant, they are denied admission into the stadium to watch an Olympic football match. Seeing her father humiliated and her disappointed son sobbing, Esther demands to know precisely why. The officer informs her a call was received from SS headquarters instructing that they be barred from attending the event because the Fuhrer will be there and “you’re not loyal Germans fit be in his presence; you’re Jews. And they don’t want the stadium polluted.”

Amalie Eden’s parents have urged her to return to safety in London, but the headstrong twenty-six-year-old has refused. She loves her work at Berlin’s National Gallery where she is helping set up a conservation department. After completing her studies, she returned to the city in which she loved to spend summers with her maternal grandparents. A stunning new painting is being hung that depicts a group of women in a park on a sunny day. The way he has captured the light leaves Amalie “spellbound.” The artist, Laurenz Kleber, and his wife, Rebecca, are unnerved and reluctant to speak in response to Amalie’s clumsy but well-intentioned inquiry about if and how the new laws and restrictions imposed upon Jews are changing their lives. Amalie’s earnest impulsiveness continues to compel her toward danger. She dares to voice her disapproval when artwork created by Jews is removed from galleries and only Nazi-approved paintings are permitted to be displayed and becomes determined to ensure that precious works of art – including Laurenz’s beautiful painting — are not destroyed or sold by the Nazis into private collections where they will never be seen in public again. By the time she next encounters Laurenz, his studio has been raided, and he has been forbidden from painting or exhibiting his work.

Employing alternating narratives, Hokin details how the two women are impacted as Hitler’s reign of terror expands and intensifies. As Esther desperately – and futilely – tries to obtain visas so her whole family can escape, they are stripped of their businesses and most other assets. On a cold night in November 1938, Albert and Caspar go out for dinner with clients of the bank but never return home. Nazi troops destroy Jewish-owned stores and synagogues, and the raid becomes known as Kristallnacht (night of broken glass for the shards of glass left behind). Esther is later told that her father and husband died of “heart complications.” Amalie observes a synagogue burning while firefighters watch and cheer as books and prayer shawls are tossed into the flames. Her companions warn, “It’s not our place” to intervene, but Amalie’s impetuous nature and revulsion propel her to confront the soldiers. She soon finds herself in a jail cell and is deported the next day.

In December 1938, Esther makes the heart-wrenching decision to send Sascha to London to live with a family that has agreed to take in Jewish refugee children. He does not have a specific sponsor, and Esther has no idea when she will see her eight-year-old child again, but it is clear that Jews are not safe in Germany. Dispatching Sascha to England is the best way she knows to protect him.

Hokin’s tale spans the next eight years of her characters’ lives. Sascha is initially placed with a family who lost a son about his age to diphtheria and knows he is meant to serve as a replacement. His name is changed to Alex as part of his foster family’s efforts to help him become a true English boy and not miss his home or mother. But Sascha carries with him the photo that the painter snapped of him and his mother on what he now remembers as his family’s last happy day. And although it helps him remember Esther, it also causes him great pain and turmoil because, as he recalls that day, it was his behavior in the restaurant that attracted the attention of the SS officer. And thereafter, their lives began to unravel. Was he sent away as punichsment? Did his mother abandon him? He questions go unanswered.

Esther is evicted from the family home and, at first, put to work in a card factory as an illustrator. By September 1940, German bombs are bombarding London, where Amalie was lucky enough to get back her job in a research laboratory and has become an expert in art storage techniques. When she left Germany, she smuggled out key information about the Nazis’ activities pertaining to precious works of art and she is intent on eventually being part of the recovery efforts of the Monuments, Fine Arts and Archives team, commonly known as the Monuments Men.

Each of the narratives is an engrossing tale in its own right. For Esther, survival becomes her only goal when her circumstances grow progressively more dire as the world goes to war and the Nazis inflict her and so many others to previously unimaginable suffering. Sascha’s memories of his mother fade and the trauma of his separation from her deeply affects him as he matures, and his self-concept is transformed. More and more with the passage of time, he thinks of himself as English, not German. Amalie throws herself into her work to find peace, but her efforts put her life in jeopardy.

When the war ends, the survivors begin the herculean task of establishing new lives for themselves. Berlin is decimated, but the National Gallery still stands, and many works of art remain intact. In what is arguably the most riveting part of the book, Hokin’s characters summon their remaining strength, courage, and resolve. For Amelie that means not just the restoration of the National Gallery and its treasures, but also the pursuit of justice. For Esther, whose own gallery has been reduced to a pile of bricks, there is nothing more urgent than finding the son with whom she lost contact so long ago. Records were destroyed, communication lines obliterated, and rebuilding is a slow process. Still, Esther is undaunted, spurred on by her devotion to her only child.

But where is Alex? Did he survive the war, given that he was perhaps in London during the Blitz? Hokin’s clever plot developments are credible and her illustration of her characters’ emotional turmoil believable. Their fears are as grounded in all that they have endured as is their resilience. And Hokin does not evade depicting their complicated feelings and the psychological impact the war has had upon all of them. Rather, she relates their story in an uncompromising and highly effective manner that is both heart-breakingly authentic and resonant.

Hokin says “nothing fascinates me more than a strong female protagonist and a quest. Hopefully, those are what you will encounter when you pick up my books.” Indeed, Esther and Amelie are strong, multi-layered, and fully developed characters – as is Sascha – and The Train That Took You Away is another compassionately crafted, educational, and deeply moving work of fiction about a period in history that must never be forgotten . . . or repeated.

Thanks to NetGalley for an Advance Reader's Copy of the book.

Author James L’Etoile introduced readers to Detective Emily Hunter in Face of Greed, welcoming the challenge of bringing Emily to life, in part, because he believes that women in law enforcement, which is still a male-dominated profession, have never received the recognition they deserve. That aspect of Emily’s career is an integral component of her character, and her desire to succeed, despite sometimes being underestimated and even marginalized, is fierce.

In the second installment in L’Etoile’s engrossing series, River of Lies, Emily again finds herself striving to balance her professional endeavors and her personal responsibilities. She is now a seasoned Detective with the Sacramento Police Department and has forged a solid relationship with her partner, Javier Medina. They have a strong mutual respect for each other’s expertise and work ethic, and care deeply about each other. They have gotten to know each other well, and their frequently hilarious bantering is believably affectionate, often comparable to that of siblings who frustrate each other but would never permit anyone to threaten their strong bond. Their respective dating lives are often the subject of teasing, especially given that Javier’s mother is determined to find the ideal wife for her still-single son.

Emily is still dating handsome Officer Brian Conner, with whom she became involved in Face of Greed, and they are gradually growing closer. She remains deeply committed, of course, to providing the best possible care for her mother, Connie, a retired teacher afflicted with early onset Alzheimer's disease. In a relatable sub-plot, Emily continues to grapple with the grim reality that Connie’s condition is only growing worse with no possibility of improvement. The emotional strain of being fully responsible for Connie’s care again bears down on Emily when she discovers that the facility in which Connie has been residing is no longer an adequate or safe option. Once again, she finds herself juggling her mother’s daily needs against her professional obligations, and relying upon the generosity and affection of others who are willing to assist. It is a storyline that many readers will find heartbreakingly realistic and familiar.

But the real focus of this volume is the work of an arsonist targeting homeless encampments. L’Etoile says that the story was inspired by his experience serving with the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation’s Division of Adult Parole Operations. He and his colleagues were charged with devising strategies for monitoring unhoused parolees living in camps while “politicians wanted to ignore that population or thought they could legislate the social issues away.” While performing his duties he toured various encampments, including one in Los Angeles which was at that time the largest of its kind in the nation. He wondered “what stories, tragedies, and long-kept secrets were hidden in the tents and carboard shelters” he observed.

Sacramento, like so many American cities, has a significant number of unhoused residents and, given that both the American and Sacramento Rivers run through the city, large camps are established along the waterfronts. But someone wants to eradicate those camps – and the inhabitants – and is willing to do so using violent means. As the book opens, a young mother, Lisa, has been living with Willow, her eight-year-old daughter, in various camps for two years. She is despondent, convinced she has failed herself and her daughter. As she is getting Willow to sleep in their tent, she hears a commotion and sees that fire has broken out on the opposite side of the camp. It is “always a risk in the cardboard condos and plastic tarp shelters along the riverbank,” but Lisa sees two men who, unlike the camp’s residents, are not attempting to run to safety. Rather, one of them is setting tents ablaze, and the other is swinging an aluminum baseball bat at anyone who tries to stop him. Before the raging fire is extinguished, the camp is completely destroyed, Lisa is seriously injured, along with sixteen other inhabitants, one man is dead, and Willow has run away.

It's the third such arson attack in two weeks. And the dead man did not succumb to his burns. He was shot in the back of the head.

When Emily and Javier are assigned to investigate the series of fires, they once again find themselves embroiled in a political quagmire. The Chief of Police and newly elected Mayor are focusing on the investigation, expecting results, and media attention is growing. When more camps are obliterated and the former Mayor becomes a victim, the mystery surrounding the crimes intensifies. What was he doing at a homeless camp? And why is the City so quick to conduct clean-up operations, eradicating any evidence left at the crime scenes and impeding the investigation?

Emily, savvy and, along with Javier, respected by her immediate superior who is supportive and willing to run interference with management, again demonstrates both a commitment to the case and willingness to take risks to uncover the truth. They both approach their work with the appropriate blend of detachment and compassion, skepticism and empathy. L'Etoile's law enforcement credentials and investigative experience are on full display in this tautly constructed procedural drama. He details the step-by-step work Emily and Javier perform as they search for answers without slowing down the story’s pace or lapsing into tedium. Rather, the evidence they discover logically leads to successive inquiries as they gradually piece together a complex and intriguing scheme designed to bring new development and prosperity to the River City. But at a tremendous human cost. L’Etoile deftly identifies potential perpetrators and possible motives that propel the story forward and keep readers guessing.

Once again, L’Etoile seamlessly melds the procedural and political aspects of the story, tackling several contemporary and controversial social conundrums. There is no denying that homelessness is a considerable problem in the United States, and various approaches have been debated and implemented, but have failed to provide a solution. Through his characters’ plights and positions – powerless to extremely powerful and influential – L’Etoile illustrates that there is no easy fix and the unhoused are too often repeatedly and cruelly victimized while guileless politicians preen and advance their own self-interest.

River of Lies is another propulsive thriller featuring the indomitable and endearing Emily and Javier. Her struggles are credible, her relationships believable, and her work as a detective impeccable. She is a multi-layered, fully formed protagonist and L’Etoile has wisely surrounded her with a supporting cast of characters in whom readers are equally willing to emotionally invest, especially Connie, whose increasingly fleeting lucid interactions with Emily are genuine and touching. Hopefully, L’Etoile will soon deliver a third installment in this entertaining and thought-provoking series.

Thanks to Oceanview Publishing for an Advanced Readers' Copy of the book via Edelweiss in conjunction with Partners in Crime Virtual Book Tours.