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Gian Sardar, the Author of “When the World Goes Quiet” has written a captivating, intriguing and thought-provoking Historical Fiction novel set in the later part of World War One. It is 1918 in German occupied Bruges, Belgium. In this extremely well-written novel, Gian Sardar takes us back into a different time of war, and vividly describes the plot, the scenery, and the dramatic characters. The characters are described as complex, complicated, courageous, and flawed. Especially during war, there are secrets, lies, betrayals, danger, and the will to survive at any cost. The questions of good people doing bad things during war, and lying to protect other people and oneself are brought up. Can a person that does bad things during war, be considered a good person?
The protagonist Evelien is obsessed with art, and is an artist, and has been promised a famous work of art in exchange for keeping her employer’s possessions safe. Towards the end of the war, a member of the resistance approaches Evelien with the promise of letters from her husband Emiel if she steals a list of names from her employer’s home. She will be risking her life, and be in tremendous danger. Emiel is fighting the Germans and has not been heard from in quite a while. Her mother in law encourages Evelien to do this.
Evelien makes the acquaintance of an injured German soldier, who is recovering and still working in Belgium. Both share a love of Art, and both have regrets and guilt in their family lives. It is amazing how the author weaves these characters lives together. There are twists and turns, heartaches, danger, loss of life, and unexpected unravelling of the truth. This is a memorable Historical Fiction novel that I would highly recommend for other readers.
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