Books

The Lost Letter

  • Sep 28, 2020
  • Jillian Cantor
  • 677 responses.

The Lost Letter A heart breaking heart warming historical novel of love and survival inspired by real resistance workers during World War II Austria and the mysterious love letter that connects generations of Jewis

  • Title: The Lost Letter
  • Author: Jillian Cantor
  • ISBN: 9780399185670
  • Page: 136
  • Format: Hardcover

    • A heart breaking, heart warming historical novel of love and survival inspired by real resistance workers during World War II Austria, and the mysterious love letter that connects generations of Jewish families For readers of The Nightingale, Lilac Girls, and Sarah s Key.Austria, 1938.Kristoff is a young apprentice to a master Jewish stamp engraver When his teacher disapA heart breaking, heart warming historical novel of love and survival inspired by real resistance workers during World War II Austria, and the mysterious love letter that connects generations of Jewish families For readers of The Nightingale, Lilac Girls, and Sarah s Key.Austria, 1938.Kristoff is a young apprentice to a master Jewish stamp engraver When his teacher disappears during Kristallnacht, Kristoff is forced to engrave stamps for the Germans, and simultaneously works alongside Elena, his beloved teacher s fiery daughter, and with the Austrian resistance to send underground messages and forge papers As he falls for Elena amidst the brutal chaos of war, Kristoff must find a way to save her, and himself Los Angeles, 1989 Katie Nelson is going through a divorce and while cleaning out her house and life in the aftermath, she comes across the stamp collection of her father, who recently went into a nursing home When an appraiser, Benjamin, discovers an unusual World War II era Austrian stamp placed on an old love letter as he goes through her dad s collection, Katie and Benjamin are sent on a journey together that will uncover a story of passion and tragedy spanning decades and continents, behind the just fallen Berlin Wall A beautiful, poignant and devastating novel, The Lost Letter shows the lasting power of love.

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      Jillian Cantor

    About "Jillian Cantor"

    1. Jillian Cantor

      Jillian Cantor has a BA in English from Penn State University and an MFA from The University of Arizona She is the author of award winning novels for teens and adults including the critically acclaimed MARGOT, which was a Library Reads pick for September 2013 and also featured in O the Oprah Magazine, People, Ladies Home Journal, and Time Her most recent book for teens, SEARCHING FOR SKY, Bloomsbury US UK, book club was nominated for the 2015 Carnegie Medal in the UK Jillian s next historical novel for adults, THE LOST LETTER, will be out 06 13 17 from Riverhead Penguin Born and raised in a suburb of Philadelphia, Jillian currently lives in Arizona with her husband and two sons.

    677 Comments

    1. I have goosebumps right now Hands down The Lost Letter is my favorite book of 2017 and I m not a big fan of historical fiction If I could give this novel 10 stars I would The Lost Letter has all the feels, beautiful writing, and a fantastic story There are two storylines in this novel Part of this book takes place in 1989 and the other part takes place in 1938 In one storyline Katie lives in California and is the daughter of a stamp collector It s 1989 and she comes upon an unopened letter with [...]

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    2. A letter written in 1939 is found 50 years later and it was definitely worth waiting until the end of this story to learn its content Katie Nelson s father is in a nursing home and is losing his memory He has collected stamps as long as she can remember, always telling her about the gem that could be found When she takes his collection to a stamp dealer to be evaluated, the unopened letter with a stamp that catches the dealer s attention is found and is the gem of this story This is where Katie [...]

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    3. Her father had been an avid stamp collector his entire life, Katie fondly remembers going with him to resale shops and garage sales, as he searched for unusual stamps Now in a memory care unit, regressing to the past, Katie takes his collection to an appraiser to see if there are any hidden gems A letter is found, unopened, addressed to a Miss Faber, bearing an unusual stamp This will be the impetus for a search that will take us back to Austria in 1938, and to an Jewish engraver, his daughters [...]

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    4. Author Jillian Cantor truly knows how to draw a reader inI could not put down this beautifully written book At the end of every chapter my heart was pounding in anticipation The Lost Letter is two compelling stories artfully woven together and destined to intertwine at the end The first takes place in the late 1930s Austria, and is about the Fabers, a Jewish family The father is an engraver and he has a young, non Jewish apprentice, Kristoff, living with them to learn the trade Kristoff becomes [...]

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    5. Kate Nelson grew up with a father who was an avid stamp collector He is currently in a nursing home, and Kate decides to take his large collection to be appraised During the review an unusual Austrian World War II stamp on a sealed letter is discovered Kate, along with the appraiser, investigate the history behind the stamp and the origins of the letter Kristoff grew up in an Austrian orphanage and is an apprentice at a stamp engraver in 1938 His employer, the Farber family, are deeply religious [...]

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    6. 4.5 Stars Three words beautiful, moving, and bittersweet This book is a unique tale of the Austrian Resistance during World War II, centering around the love story between the daughter of a Jewish stamp maker and his apprentice THE LOST LETTER is really historical fiction within historical fiction the story alternates between the fall of the Berlin Wall late 80s early 90s and the German invasion of Austria late 1930s.In 1989, Katie Nelson, whose life has been upended by her divorce and caring fo [...]

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    7. The Lost Letter is one of the best books that I have read this year Jillian Cantor writes an intriguing and fascinating tale of Austrian resistance to the Nazis highlighting the innovative ways resistance workers used to evacuate Jews from Austria I collected stamps as a child so the storyline focusing on stamp engraving and its use during World War 2 to aid the resistance completely captivated me Cantor uses a dual timeline format, World War 2 and the present, and ties them together so well Som [...]

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    8. And you, of tender years,Can t know the fears that your elders grew by,And so please help them with your youth,They seek the truth before they can die Teach Your Children lyrics by Graham Nash Katie Nelson, living in L.A is on the verge of divorce, although she hasn t shared that information with her family, yet She s just moved her father into assisted living facility due to his Alzheimer s, her husband growing distant in the months she spent taking care of her father before then As a child, K [...]

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    9. This is a good and moving story, a light read despite its WW2 backdrop Everything in the narrative focuses on one central mystery, an unopened letter with a striking stamp However I had some problems with how it s told, mostly the very ordinary nature of the prose I think this is largely a question of taste I m not a great fan of simple unimaginative writing There wasn t a single sentence in this book that I couldn t have written myself and I want from people who write for a living I suppose if [...]

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    10. Historical fiction lite along the lines of The Nightingale If you liked that, you will definitely want to read this I read it in one day and it kept me engrossed A good Sunday lazy day read.

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    11. I adore everything that Jillian Cantor has written, but The Lost Letter is quite possibly my favorite of her books I love the dual storylines, the rich, relatable characters and the poignant story of a WWII stamp engraver and his surprising bond to a young woman living in modern times A must read

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    12. The Lost Letter won t be lost for long This well written dual time novel will soon be on every book club s 2017 and 2018 reading list We move between 1938 occupied Austria and 1989 Los Angeles In Austria we follow the story of a Jewish Stamp engraver, his family and apprentice In Los Angeles, a young woman caring for her elderly father suffering from late stage Alzheimers discovers a unique Austrian postage stamps while sorting his belongings Examples of Landscape and Landmark Postage Stamps Fro [...]

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    13. All of my reviews can be found on novelgossipThis beautiful story is told through dual perspectives and they flow together absolutely perfectly Kristoff s story is an heartbreaking tale of love, loss and perseverance and Katie s had some parallel themes as well The two narratives were separately engaging in their own way and I was truly enraptured by both stories Kristoff lived in a time of despair and fear, but he still managed to cling to hope and love Katie is experiencing her own tough time [...]

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    14. When Kristoff becomes an apprentice to Frederick Faber, a Jewish stamp engraver, he moves into his house As he is being taught by Frederick, he becomes involved in his family life and though of German descent, feels very much at home there Even though he gets along with most members of the family, Elena one of Frederick s daughters is a challenge but as the war intensifies so does their relationship Fastforward fifty years, Katie is going through a divorce and while cleaning her home comes acros [...]

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    15. Jillian Cantor you drew me in, held me captive, gave me pause, enlightened me, made me cry, caused me to tremble, broke my heart then put it back together again and I am humbly grateful for the experience He slept restlessly Dreaming her here with him, and then he awakens, devasted to remember again and again and again that he was all alone AMAZING So close to five stars, I can do nothing but round up with reader s afterglow of deep satisfaction I m just sorry it took so long to get this poste [...]

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    17. Fabulous book It is a beautiful and also heartbreaking story told in dual storylines that takes place in 1938 1939 Austria at the beginning of WWII, and in 1989 Los Angeles, California I was captivated by the story and the history of stamp engraving and how it played an important role during the war This was something I was not familiar with until I read this book Loved all of the main characters, and the ending had me in tears Jillian Cantor s research and writing is absolutely amazing The Lost [...]

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    18. OUTSTANDING This book is so so good Cantor has knocked it out of the park with this one The dual storylines are each captivating and have their own plot lines I loved the story and the characters I loved the ending in that it was very real, yet touching I loved this book Margot by Jillian Cantor is one of my all time favorite books Now The Lost Letter is also.I received an advance review copy of this book All opinions are my own.

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    19. Jillian Cantor s The Lost Letter is an exquisite book From the very first page, I was drawn into the story and could not put the book down I ended up finishing the book in 1 day, which is a first for me given my busy schedule nowadays The story is told via a dual narrative in alternating chapters one narrative takes place in Los Angeles in 1989 and the other in Austria right before and during the Nazi occupation in 1938 1939 In the present day, Katie Nelson is a thirty something journalist who f [...]

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    20. This was a solid 4 stars for me and I think this book has been my favorite 4 star book in a long while This had many things that I liked family history, mystery, historical fiction, WWIIl of these I enjoy reading So combine them into a single story, and I am in with both feet I liked the two MCs They were strong but yet had flaws that kept them grounded Some of the other supportive characters were a little thin, but I think the overall sweetness, seemed to gloss over that Even with that, this wa [...]

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    21. I loved this book I m not much of a historical fiction reader but I really enjoyed this book It is told back and forth between two different time periods, 1938 in Austria during the war and 1989 in Los Angeles at the time the Berlin Wall came down We follow the story of an apprentice stamp engraver in Austria and a daughter in Los Angeles trying to track down the history of a stamp in her father s stamp collection Katie s father has Alzheimer s and is in a care facility so she is getting his sta [...]

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    22. What an amazing heartbreaking beautiful book I loved it This book has dual story lines, one set in Austria in 1938 during World War 2 and the other in America in 1989 The dual story lines go together seamlessly and each tell a beautiful story The characters are so very real and I found myself crying in multiple parts of the story It is a book I will be recommending to all my friends and family I received an Advanced Reader Copy of this book from the Great Thought s Ninja Review Team All opinions [...]

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    23. A while back, I read The Transformation of Things by Jillian Cantor I was impressed by it and thought she had a strong writing talent Since then, she has come out with a few historical fiction novels that I ve been meaning to read After hearing rave reviews for The Lost Letter, I decided to add it to my queue right away Jillian managed to wow me once again The Lost Letter was definitely a page turner I was annoyed when I had to get back to real life because it meant having to put the bookmark ba [...]

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    24. The story opens with Katie, dropping of her father s stamp collection to a dealer to get it appraised Katie fondly remembers going with her father to resale shops and garage sales, as he searched for unusual stamps, a gem he called them Now suffering from dimentia alzheimers, he is in a home, The Willows, and has told Katie she can keep his collection She tells her father and he becomes very agitated When she calls the dealer to tell him she is going to pick up the collection, he tells her he ha [...]

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    25. Forget every other book, THIS is the top book of 2017 Five stars is an understatement And, I don t even really like historical fiction All the buzz this was getting persuaded me to give it a try and two chapters in I was hooked

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    26. I must admit that I fell in love with Ms Cantor s writing in her debut, Margot The Lost Letter captured my interest just as quickly With intense and intriguing characters and a storyline that masterfully crosses periods of time, this book flowed like water and I couldn t put it down Her ability to write outside the typical WWII romances has always helped to capture my interest too Absolutely can t wait for her next one.

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    27. I just turned the last page of this beautiful book, and now that the tears are wiped away and I can see clearly again, I am so grateful for having had the privilege of experiencing this story Every once in awhile you come across a story that is truly special and you know it will be a book you will remember for the rest of your life This book is truly one of those.I will long remember Elena and Kristoff, and Katie and Benjamin and all of the other characters that peopled this book I will remember [...]

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    28. This book is going to be a huge hit for Jillian Cantor The story is written in two different time periods, 1989 in Los Angeles and 1938 in Austria Katie, who is going through a divorce she doesn t want, just put her father into a nursing home, and working for her soon to be ex, discovers an unopened letter from WWII when she takes her father s stamp collection to an appraiser, Benjamin They go through a search together to find out the history of this unusual stamp The story also flashes back to [...]

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    29. 2.5 stars rounded up to 3This was a nice tale about love and the effect World War 2 had upon people and especially the father of the main protagonist, Katie It was reminiscent of the many stories that have been written about love and loss.While I did like the concept, that of a long lost letter and importantly the stamp that was affixed to it, I felt the writing was somewhat lacking The circumstances related in the book seemed contrived and honestly hard to fathom This was a case where I loved [...]

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    30. I love everything about The Lost Letter by Jillian Cantor The publisher is Penquin Group, Riverhead and the publishing date is June 13, 2017 The genres of this book are Historical Fiction and Fiction Kudos to Jillian Cantor for the beautiful storytelling and descriptions of the locations in this novel The timeline of this story is both World War Two and in the time when the wall came down between East and West Germany, both significant times in history The locations take place in Austria, German [...]

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