The Twins

Two elderly women, one Dutch and one German, meet by chance at the famous health resort of Spa. They recognize in the other their twin sister they believed to be lost. They begin to tell each other their life stories - the last chance to bridge a gulf of almost seventy years. In this monumental novel, Tessa de Loo compellingly weaves the story of two twin sisters separated in childhood with that of two countries opposed in war, and depicts, in a simple yet harrowing prose the effects of nature and nurture on the individual. "Gripping and touching" Independent "Memorable and moving" The Times Bound by blood, separated by love... Twin sisters, Lotte and Anna, share a bond that is far stronger than anyone except they alone can understand. But when war comes between them, the two discover that even the deepest bonds have their limits. Having been cruelly separated as children, Lotte and Anna are at last reunited. Neither lost hope to see each other again. However, with Europe on the verge of war, much has changed between them. While Lotte has enjoyed a privileged upbringing in liberal Holland, Anna has endured a life of poverty in a Germany under the spell of Hitler. With Lotte now engaged to a Jewish musician, and Anna brainwashed by Third Reich ideas, cracks in their relationship soon appear. With the war on, the twins decide to part again. Back in Germany, Anna marries Martin, an Austrian soldier, who hates the war but joins the SS for the sake of his wife only to be killed a few days later. Anna is devastated and longs for her sister. At the same time, Lotte's own life is in danger. The Nazis have invaded Holland and her lover has been taken to Auschwitz. Knowing she will never see him again, all she can do is keep his family safe from Hitler's troops. Now an old woman, Lotte remembers the pain as, before her, stands the sisters she disowned all those years ago. Can these two lives ever be reconciled? The twins now face their final test . . . Translated from the Dutch by Ruth Levitt Two sisters, Lotte and Anna, share a bond that is far stronger than anyone except they alone can understand. But when war comes between them, the two discover that even the deepest bonds have their limits.