Heather B. Moore

A riveting and emotionally gripping novel of an American spy working in Soviet-occupied East Berlin and a West German woman secretly helping her countrymen escape from behind the Berlin Wall.

The Slow March of Light

Barbara Williford

Luisa and Bob are both in Germany at the Start of the Cold War. Luisa as a citizen and nurse. Bob as an America soldier. They meet and instantly have a connection.

They are torn apart when she relocated to Berlin where she helps with those fleeing communist rule and he takes an assignment as a spy for the government. This story is about their struggles, hardships, imprisonment and their faith in God.

The fact that Bob’s story is true and that he endured what he did with compassion is inspirational.

Trigger warning: war time situations

Luisa and Bob are both in Germany at the Start of the Cold War.  Luisa as a citizen and nurse.  Bob as an America soldier.  They meet and instantly have a connection.

They are torn apart when she relocated to Berlin where she helps with those fleeing communist rule and he takes an assignment as a spy for the government.  This story is about their struggles, hardships, imprisonment and their faith in God.

The fact that Bob’s story is true and that he endured what he did with compassion is inspirational.

Trigger warning:  war time situations 

Paige Green

Disclaimer: I received this e-arc from the publisher. Thanks! All opinions are my own.

Book: The Slow March of Light

Author: Heather B. Moore

Book Series:Standalone

Rating: 4/5

Recommended For...: historical fiction, biography, Berlin wall

Publication Date: September 7, 2021

Genre: Historical Fiction

Recommended Age: 16+ (violence, gore, romance, slight language)

Explanation of CWs: Romance is a slow burn. There is a war going on, so there’s violence and gore.

Publisher: Shadow Mountain

Pages: 368

Synopsis: In the summer of 1961, a wall of barbed wire goes up quickly in the dead of night, officially dividing Berlin. Aware of the many whose families have been divided, Luisa joins a secret spy network, risking her life to help East Germans escape across the Berlin Wall and into the West.

Bob Inama, a soldier in the US Army, is stationed in West Germany. He’s glad to be fluent in German, especially after meeting Luisa Voigt at a church social. As they spend time together, they form a close connection. But when Bob receives classified orders to leave for undercover work immediately, he doesn’t get the chance to say goodbye.

With a fake identity, Bob’s special assignment is to be a spy embedded in East Germany, identifying possible targets for the US military. But Soviet and East German spies, the secret police, and Stasi informants are everywhere, and the danger of being caught and sent to a brutal East German prison lurks on every corner.

Review: For the most part I thought the book was well done. It had some good character development and world building. I liked the plot for the most part and it was really interesting to read about this time period that I hadn’t read previously.

However, I did feel like the book was more of a documentary/biography than a historical fiction. There was a lot of history, which I appreciate, but it was just not enough “not real fiction” with my history, which made me wonder why not just go ahead and do a full biography at that point.

Verdict: It was good, just a little strangely written.

The Slow March of Light

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