Friday Feature Author Interview with Elise Cooper: The Enemy Beside Me by Naomi Ragen

Book Description

Inspired by true events, Naomi Ragen’s The Enemy Beside Me is a powerful, provocative novel about two people fighting for reconciliation over unforgivable crimes of the past.

Taking over from her father and grandfather as the head of the Survivor’s Campaign, an organization whose purpose is to bring Nazi war criminals to justice, Milia Gottstein has dedicated her life to making sure the voices of Holocaust victims will never be silenced. It is an overwhelming and heartbreaking mission that has often usurped her time and energy being a wife to busy surgeon Julius, and a mother and grandmother. But now, just as she is finally ready to pass on her work to others, making time for her personal life, an unexpected phone call suddenly explodes all she thought she knew about her present and her future.

In the midst of this personal turmoil, Milia receives an invitation to be the keynote speaker at a Holocaust conference in Lithuania from Dr. Darius Vidas, the free spirited, rebellious conference head. Despite suspecting his motives—she is, after all, viewed as a ‘public enemy’ in that country for her efforts to have them try war criminals and admit their historic responsibility for annihilating almost their entire Jewish community, including her own family—she nevertheless accepts, having developed a secret agenda of her own. But as Milia and Darius begin their mission, shared experiences profoundly alter their relationship, replacing antagonism and suspicion with a growing intimacy. However, this only ramps up the hostile forces facing them, threatening their families, livelihoods, and reputations, and forcing them into shocking choices that will betray all they have achieved and all that has grown between them.

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Elise’s Thoughts

The Enemy Beside Me by Naomi Ragen makes the Holocaust come alive again through the characters’ journeys. On the heels of the brutality of what Hamas did in Israel it is important to keep the Holocaust atrocities alive. Based on real facts, this book shows how some countries in Eastern Europe, specifically Lithuania, made their own horrible imprint on Holocaust history.  The Lithuanians brutally persecuted the Jews who were also their fellow citizens. 

The story begins with Milia, an Israeli Jew, whose organization’s purpose is bringing Nazi war criminals to judgement. Darius, a professor at a college in Lithuania invites Milia to speak at a conference in Lithuania. Her speech tells the story of families tortured, raped, and killed by their former neighbors. The Lithuanians had the audacity to claim that they were providing aid to the Jews, subsequently becoming heroes, a complete untruth.  

This book is a must read for those who need to remember what happened.  Ragan does a good job of showing through her characters the brutality.  But she also allows readers to understand the characters through their personal stories. As Milia and Darius begin their mission, shared experiences profoundly alter their relationship, replacing antagonism and suspicion with a growing intimacy.  

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Author Interview

Elise Cooper: The idea for the story? 

Naomi Ragan: This story came to me when I was walking down a street in Jerusalem, minding my own business during Covid.  I ran into an old friend, the head of the Simon Wiesenthal Center in Israel, Efraim Zuroff.  He tells me about a story that flabbergasted me. He co-authored a book titled Our People with Lithuania’s famous author, Ruta Vanagaite. She invited him to be a keynote speaker in Lithuania about Nazi War Criminals.  This was the starting point for this story. I wrote a dialogue between the Nazi hunter, and the son of those living during World War II. This is a story about the here and now. 

EC: The book is based on facts? 

NR: Yes.  Ruta and Efraim traveled around Lithuania to gain eyewitness testimony.  Instead of her convincing him that Lithuania did not commit war crimes, the situation convinced her. They became very close on this trip and fell in love, just as in my book.  I never thought Ruta, a child of a preparator and Efraim, a Nazi hunter could get close. 

EC: There are many details about Lithuania and the Holocaust? 

NR: Lithuanians killed over 96% of the Jewish community.  It was neighbors, teachers, and doctors, self-appointed policemen who shot and murdered Jews. They killed as a percentage more of the Jewish community than any other country, including Germany. Today, they are one of the chief Holocaust distortionists. They are trying to falsify what happened to cover their tracks. They are attempting to use a Double Holocaust theory. They say everybody suffered, look at what Stalin did to us.  

EC: The Lithuanian executioners were brutal? 

NR: They killed with such sadism, ferocity, joy, and enthusiasm. They held public parties to give out the spoils after indiscriminately murdering men, women, and children. I based the facts from first person history and testimonies. 

EC: The story speaks of acknowledgement. Can you explain? 

NR: There can be reconciliation and forgiveness. But on what basis?  First, there must be a recognition of the truth. There must be respect for the mass graves that are being treated like garbage dumps. The mass graves have not been marked in any way. They must stop painting over Jewish cemeteries and building shopping malls. This story is not going away because there has not been any justice and a final meeting of minds. 

EC:  Everyone has sympathy for what is going on in Ukraine.  Do you agree many do not know how the cruel the Ukrainians were to the Jews during WWII?  

NR:  They joined mobile killing units. There were squads made up of Lithuanians and Ukrainians. I wrote the book now because people are being honored that were Holocaust perpetrators.  Just look at what just happened in Canada where they tried honoring a Ukrainian who was in the Waffen SS unit of Hitler.  

EC: How would you describe the hero, Dr. Darius Vidas? 

NR: Unpredictable, impulsive, organized, and a novelist. He is someone who wants to seek justice. He starts out thinking justice would clear the Lithuanians of the terrible things they were accused of doing. As time goes on, he realizes his country was involved in such savage brutality.  He becomes a true partner to the heroine, Milia, the Nazi hunter. He has guts as he became a true Lithuanian patriot. He has a lot to lose, everything he has accomplished, if he agrees with Milia. 

EC:  How would you describe the heroine, Milia Gottstein-Lasker? 

NR: She has a dark view of the world, a cynic, with an endless quest for justice.  She compartmentalizes because she is a Nazi hunter. She is based on my friend’s experiences, Efraim. She confronts the truth about what happened to her namesake.  To make her character whole I had her deal with a lot of things: a marriage breaking down and someone who questions her own self-worth as a woman.  She has a lot of insecurities and is losing her sense of purpose. She is trying to figure out where her life is going personally and professionally.  

EC:  How would describe their relationship? 

NR:  The two of them are in mid-life crisis. But more importantly, they are on a journey together. They want to accomplish something important in both their lives.  They start out as enemies because he wants to prove everything she has said about the Lithuanian atrocities is false. But then he realizes she is speaking the truth. They learned to respect each other and to have compassion.  They now trust each other.  Their relationship was a symbol for the rest of the world. Both are honest enough to accept the truth.  

EC: What do you want readers to get out of the book? 

NR: I want them to understand what must be done to honor the victims and to expose all these bogus distortions by countries like Lithuania. They are putting forward Holocaust distortions to erase, cover-up, and rewrite history and silence the voices. I wrote this book quote, “It was not the Jews gripping the past, it was the past gripping the Jews. It will never let them go until there is some kind of reckoning.” This is exactly how I think and feel. These countries in Europe must tell what happened and return the spoils they took. The quote in the acknowledgement summarizes my feelings, “Milia and Darius are both fictional characters.  Their spirits are real and live in all people whose histories have made them enemies.  It is up to us, the living, to make peace with one another.” As Milia says in her speech, there are five things that must be done: mainly Lithuanians need to stop lying about their past, stop honoring the perpetrators, tell the truth to their children, compensate the victims, and make Holocaust education important. 

EC: Next book? 

NR: One never knows. At this point, we will see what happens. 

THANK YOU!! 

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BIO: Elise Cooper has written book reviews and interviewed best-selling authors since 2009. Her reviews have covered several different genres, including thrillers, mysteries, women’s fiction, romance and cozy mysteries. An avid reader, she engages authors to discuss their works, and to focus on the descriptions of their characters and the plot. While not writing reviews, Elise loves to watch baseball and visit the ocean in Southern California, with her dog and husband.

Friday Feature Author Interview with Elise Cooper: Would You Rather and The Roommate Pact by Allison Ashley

Book Descriptions and Elise’s Thoughts

Allison Ashley’s two books, Would You Rather and The Roommate Pact show how friends can be supportive and love each other in different ways.  These books show that as love grows so does the intimacy as well as finding a soul mate.

Would You Rather has the heroine, Mia, given an opportunity to pursue her education and find her dream job.  The problem is that she needs her job because she needs health insurance.  She has a kidney disease and is awaiting a transplant.  Noah, a friend since the age of seven suggests they get married, in name only so she can study full-time and go on his insurance.  Although it takes some convincing, she agrees.  What will happen with this marriage of convenience and will the relationship grow into something more.

The other book in the series The Roommate Pact is also a friend to lovers’ story but with more humor, great banter, and a fabulous plot. Graham, the hero, and Claire, the heroine, agree that if they are still single by the time, they’re forty, they’ll take the proverbial plunge together and get married.  But after a few glasses of wine, Claire changes the rules to being hookup buddies now.  The attraction was there, the tension between them was there and their first kiss turned passionate quickly. But life got in the way.  Graham was seriously injured in a rock-climbing accident. He needs ER Nurse Claire’s help to heal. She’ll do whatever it takes to nurse her good friend back to health, even if it means moving into Graham’s bed and putting up with his little dog, who hates her. There are many emotional moments as Graham struggles with his recovery and Claire is struggling with her past. Will the tragedies interfere with the relationship that is forming between the two?

Both books are heartwarming sweet stories, with readers laughing and crying along with the characters. 

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Author Interview

Elise Cooper: Are these a series?

Allison Ashley:  I am a science nerd with an artsy reading and music side to me. I am kind of an anomaly. For now, the series will be just with these two books. They are stand-alone but in the same world. I enjoy writing friends to lovers’ stories. The first book has Mia and Noah as lifelong friends, while in the second book Claire and Graham are just friends.

EC:  Would you write a book with the roommate Reagan?

AA:  I am somebody who writes with the characters coming alive for me and they just pop out.  Reagan is a little young for me to write.  I am not sure I can write a twenty-five-year old’s story.   I want to write as I know, and I am turning forty so I am not sure I can use the younger generations terminology. 

EC:  In the first book, Would You Rather how did you get the idea for the story?

AA: I wanted to write a story that included marriages of convenience. Being in the medical field I have seen where some are unable to afford a certain medicine.  They either have insurance restrictions or do not even have insurance.  This prompted me to think what if they married because they needed health insurance. I loosely based Mia’s condition on someone that was treated for a kidney condition at the Cancer Center I worked at. It is relatively pricey for a chronic kidney condition.  I wanted to write a story with these issues.

EC:  How did you come up with the scenes where Noah and Mia played practical jokes on each other?

AA: It came from several different places.  I wanted to portray their deep friendship and the comfort level where they can be just silly.  I remembered my first year as an oncology resident where I shared this tiny office with five co-residents.  We were stressed and worked long hours. We would mess with each other’s desks.  One time I literally turned everything on my neighbor’s desk upside down.  This spurred the idea.  I also goggled some of the ideas put into the story. I also put them questioning each other, ‘would you rather.’  They bring these questions up to deflate a situation and a way to tip toe or test their feelings regarding a relationship.

EC:  How would you describe Noah?

AA: Serious, someone who does not like change, compulsive, thinker, calm, gentle, observant, discipline, and a protractor. He is also thoughtful, kind, quiet, introspective, and adventurous.  He was greatly affected by his brother’s death. He is the embodiment of the saying, ‘still waters run deep.’ He is very stoic who does not let his emotions show. These features intensified after his brother died.

EC:  How would you describe Mia?

AA:  Sweet, genuine, charming, mischievous, and feels guilty that her illness has affected those she loves. Through her I was able to show how certain drug companies have support programs, but there are other things that are not covered. She is a little bit of a dichotomy. She always makes new friends everywhere she goes but then she also has introspective times.  

EC:  The role of her kidney disease?

AA:  She has a chronic life-long condition, something that is impacting her. She had to learn to allow those close to her to take care of her.  She tried to avoid that because of the hardship it presented. She had to work through the feelings since she did not want to disrupt people’s lives or be a burden on them.  I put this quote, “The thing we fear most has the greatest reward.”  Having the kidney disease, brought about a traumatic incident regarding her parents. She was shocked. She used it to push her parents away because she feels guilty for what they did on her behalf.

EC:  What about the relationship?

AA:  Around Mia he seems to allow his emotions to be freer. They tease each other a lot but will do anything for each other. They can be jealous and intimate. They have an intense relationship. They went from a friendship to an intimate relationship, going from 0 to 60 quickly, a whole new level. Mia would not let herself think about her feelings, while Noah acknowledged his first. They knew everything about each other.

EC:  In the second book, The Roommate Pact, the dog, Gertrude the dog, was a common thread for the main characters?

AA:  She can be cute, cuddly, and sweet but has another side toward the heroine, Claire. She can be possessive of the hero, Graham, and domineering. She is a complete daddy’s girl and does not like to share with anyone else.

EC:  How would you describe Claire?

AA:  Opinionated, hare-working, strong willed, outspoken, direct, loyal, compassionate, and independent. 

EC: How would you describe Graham?

AA:  As the story goes on, he has a big arc.  In the beginning he is a playboy who avoids commitment, superficial, outgoing, and adventurous.  Then he becomes very kind and caring. He always put up a front while growing up. When he could not speak because of an accident he found the ability to show Claire his true person.

EC:  What about the relationship?

AA:  They had a physical attraction, competitive, irritated each other, and enjoyed a lot of the same interests. Their personalities are very similar, which causes them to rub each other the wrong way sometimes. The accident of her father affected the relationship. She has a fear of something happening because Graham is a first responder.  This part is personal, because it is something I know very well, since my husband is a first responder. Claire watched her mother live in fear over worrying that something could happen to Claire’s dad.

EC:  Next book?

AA: I am working on a book that has a science side, and a love triangle.  A girl had a stem cell transplant and is attracted to the boyfriend of the girl who saved her life. Another book I am thinking of writing is an opposite attracts book about a woman who works at the medical examiner’s office, based on my neighbor. My agent is negotiating with different publishers.

THANK YOU!!

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BIO: Elise Cooper has written book reviews and interviewed best-selling authors since 2009. Her reviews have covered several different genres, including thrillers, mysteries, women’s fiction, romance and cozy mysteries. An avid reader, she engages authors to discuss their works, and to focus on the descriptions of their characters and the plot. While not writing reviews, Elise loves to watch baseball and visit the ocean in Southern California, with her dog and husband.

Book Review: One Wrong Turn by Deanna Lynn Sletten

RATING: 5 out of 5 Stars

Sometimes an author can take the simplest plot and it will pack an emotional punch that resonates with the reader to their core. You follow normal, flawed people and you cry, get mad, become disappointed, have empathy, have sympathy, laugh and feel joy. That was the journey I took with Deanna Lynn Sletten’s novel ONE WRONG TURN.

Jess Connors is renovating her grandparent’s old home into a B&B as she raises her two daughters, Madison “Maddie”, age twelve and Jilly, age seven. She has become a friend to many in the community over the last two years, but all it took was one wrong turn of her steering wheel as she was rushing to pick up her daughters after school to change all of their lives. Now Jess lies in the hospital in a coma.

Clay Connors has been estranged from his wife and daughters for two years until he receives the call notifying him of his wife’s accident. Clay is a talented studio and live musician, but he also let his alcohol addiction destroy his family and his own personal belief in himself. After this third try at rehab and AA, Clay knew it was his last chance to prove himself to Jess. He was afraid to join them at the B&B and lose them forever, so he kept convincing himself to put it off for another day. Now he has to earn the trust of his oldest daughter once again, reintroduce himself to his youngest and remain sober under this stress while reuniting his family and waiting for Jess to wake from her coma, if she does.

The author writes Clay and Jess’ meeting, courtship and family life up to their separation in flashbacks told by Clay interspersed throughout the story. Clay’s alcohol addiction is written with truth and empathy. All his fears and failings are exposed, along with his daily battle to remain sober. The interactions between Clay and Maddie are extremely emotional because she was so close to her father and yet she was too young to understand what addiction is and so she has a severe lack of trust and a huge feeling of abandonment in regards to her father. The author offsets the difficulties with her father, with the care and understanding she shows her younger sister. Jilly is lovable, happy child who is trying to deal with all that is happening.

This book has the story of a couple that has always loved each other, but addiction divides them. For me though, the main characters that I empathized with and cheered to a happy ending were Clay and his daughter, Maddie. The dialogue is realistic as well as the emotions. All of the secondary characters were perfectly placed to add to the story, but never took the main focus off of Clay, his sobriety and/or his daughters as they dealt with their family in crisis.

This book is an emotional roller coaster that is beautifully written. The strength, love, perseverance and forgiveness of the characters will stay with me long after I finish this review. I am looking forward to reading more of Ms. Sletten’s books in the future.