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A Dance of Mirrors
A gripping auto-fictional novel about a long-kept family secret, painful love and female experience of barriers in society.
A young woman in post-war Germany is looking for a new start after the horror of the Nazi years and the war and has to make a far-reaching decision which will affect the rest of her life. Many decades later her daughter who lives and works a as a psychotherapist in present day Britain looks back on her mother's life and tries to understand this decision. She herself struggles with the loss of her husband and her own impending old age. As a consequence of looking at her mother's story and as a result of her own need to feel alive again, the daughter starts to mirror her mother's story and begins to echo her mother's experience of painful love and broken boundaries.
This is a book about guilt, love and identity. While it has at its center the fallout of a love triangle, the story is told against the backdrop of post-war Germany, with the world of psychotherapy and the narrator's experience of being an older woman providing an extra dimension. The author weaves personal reflections and poetic images into the narrative.
A young woman in post-war Germany is looking for a new start after the horror of the Nazi years and the war and has to make a far-reaching decision which will affect the rest of her life. Many decades later her daughter who lives and works a as a psychotherapist in present day Britain looks back on her mother's life and tries to understand this decision. She herself struggles with the loss of her husband and her own impending old age. As a consequence of looking at her mother's story and as a result of her own need to feel alive again, the daughter starts to mirror her mother's story and begins to echo her mother's experience of painful love and broken boundaries.
This is a book about guilt, love and identity. While it has at its center the fallout of a love triangle, the story is told against the backdrop of post-war Germany, with the world of psychotherapy and the narrator's experience of being an older woman providing an extra dimension. The author weaves personal reflections and poetic images into the narrative.
- GenresHistorical Fiction
214 pages, Paperback
Published July 3, 2026
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Displaying 1 - 17 of 17 reviews
September 7, 2026
3.5 stars
A Dance of Mirrors is a family story with a twin timeline.
Much of the story is based on the real lives of the author’s parents in post-war Germany. This was a time of recovery, new birth and growing opportunities for many of the survivors. The rest of the book is about the later life of the author; a psychologist, her patients, her relationships and how her life was moulded by her parent’s actions.
I was intrigued by the parts set in post-war Germany and how the author’s parents lived their lives. It was an interesting window into a by-gone era. I can see that this tale would have great appeal to the author’s friends and family, and I also understand that it may have provided the author with answers to her own life questions.
I thought that this was a lovely piece of family history; it probably won’t appeal to a wide reading audience, it is one of those niche reads.
A Dance of Mirrors is a family story with a twin timeline.
Much of the story is based on the real lives of the author’s parents in post-war Germany. This was a time of recovery, new birth and growing opportunities for many of the survivors. The rest of the book is about the later life of the author; a psychologist, her patients, her relationships and how her life was moulded by her parent’s actions.
I was intrigued by the parts set in post-war Germany and how the author’s parents lived their lives. It was an interesting window into a by-gone era. I can see that this tale would have great appeal to the author’s friends and family, and I also understand that it may have provided the author with answers to her own life questions.
I thought that this was a lovely piece of family history; it probably won’t appeal to a wide reading audience, it is one of those niche reads.
August 20, 2025
Annette Byfords Icherzählerin ist wie die Autorin selbst Anfang der 50er Jahre in Deutschland geboren und absolvierte nach ihrem Umzug nach England eine Ausbildung als Psychotherapeutin. Mit Ende 60 ist sie weiter berufstätig, seit kurzem verwitwet und hat Kinder und Enkel. Ein unerwarteter Einschnitt in ihr Leben veranlasst sie, sich endlich mit ihrer Herkunft und besonders mit dem Leben ihrer Mutter zu befassen. Der Handlungsstrang ihrer eigenen Familiengeschichte wechselt mit Ereignissen der Gegenwart, als die Therapie einer besonderen Patientin die Therapeutin mit ihrem Altern und dem baldigen Loslassen der Verantwortung für Patienten konfrontiert.
Ihre Mutter war in den 20ern geboren, hatte ein Studium abgeschlossen und arbeitete bei Kriegsende weit unter ihrer beruflichen Qualifikation als Schreibkraft unter einem männlichen Chef. Wir erinnern uns: zu dieser Zeit herrschte einerseits durch die Kriegsfolgen in Deutschland Arbeitskräftemangel, arbeitsuchende Frauen wurden jedoch gern zu schikanösen Bedingungen eingestellt, z. B. wurde gefordert, in der Probezeit ohne Lohn zu arbeiten.
Die junge Frau gerät am Arbeitsplatz in eine für die Zeit klassische Hackordnung, als sie sehr viel häufiger zum Diktat gerufen wird als ihre Kolleginnen und nur schwer verbergen kann, dass ihr verheirateter Chef mit ihr eine Affäre beginnt, obwohl ihm bekannt ist, dass seine Mitarbeiterin bereits ihre Hochzeit plant.
Annette Byford zeichnet mit wenigen Schlaglichtern ein treffendes Bild der Nachkriegszeit, in der Frauen am Arbeitsplatz und in der Ehe keine Ansprüche vertreten sollten, sich niemals beklagen und Männer bewundern. Angesichts von fast 40% Kriegstoten in den heiratsfähigen Altersgruppen hatten Frauen froh zu sein, wenn sie überhaupt einen Partner gefunden haben. Mit dieser Mahnung im Ohr muss die Mutter der erzählenden Therapeutin über ihre Zukunft entscheiden, als sie feststellt, dass sie ungeplant schwanger ist. …
Fazit
Da die Mutter der erzählenden Therapeutin ihre preußische Einstellung und ihr Männerbild von ihrer eigenen Mutter eingebläut bekam, lesen wir hier über Einstellungen dreier Frauengenerationen. Geschätzt 2 Millionen Frauen in Deutschland werden nach dem Zweiten Weltkrieg keinen männlichen Partner finden, es sei denn, sie wanderten aus.
Anfangs fand ich verwirrend, dass eine ältere Frau aus dem Leben ihrer damals rund 20-jährigen Mutter erzählt, die zu dem Zeitpunkt ja selbst noch eine Mutter hat. Da Annette Byfords Protagonistin jedoch über die Generation meiner eigenen Mutter erzählt, konnte sie mich mit jeder Seite zunehmend fesseln. Das von der Nachkriegszeit in Deutschland treffend gezeichnete Bild verknüpft Byford mit den Themen Altern, Trauer und Loslassen vom Beruf.
--> Das Nachwort informiert darüber, dass es sich um einen autofiktionalen Text mit fiktiven Figuren handelt, den Annette Byford selbst aus dem Englischen übersetzt hat.
Ihre Mutter war in den 20ern geboren, hatte ein Studium abgeschlossen und arbeitete bei Kriegsende weit unter ihrer beruflichen Qualifikation als Schreibkraft unter einem männlichen Chef. Wir erinnern uns: zu dieser Zeit herrschte einerseits durch die Kriegsfolgen in Deutschland Arbeitskräftemangel, arbeitsuchende Frauen wurden jedoch gern zu schikanösen Bedingungen eingestellt, z. B. wurde gefordert, in der Probezeit ohne Lohn zu arbeiten.
Die junge Frau gerät am Arbeitsplatz in eine für die Zeit klassische Hackordnung, als sie sehr viel häufiger zum Diktat gerufen wird als ihre Kolleginnen und nur schwer verbergen kann, dass ihr verheirateter Chef mit ihr eine Affäre beginnt, obwohl ihm bekannt ist, dass seine Mitarbeiterin bereits ihre Hochzeit plant.
Annette Byford zeichnet mit wenigen Schlaglichtern ein treffendes Bild der Nachkriegszeit, in der Frauen am Arbeitsplatz und in der Ehe keine Ansprüche vertreten sollten, sich niemals beklagen und Männer bewundern. Angesichts von fast 40% Kriegstoten in den heiratsfähigen Altersgruppen hatten Frauen froh zu sein, wenn sie überhaupt einen Partner gefunden haben. Mit dieser Mahnung im Ohr muss die Mutter der erzählenden Therapeutin über ihre Zukunft entscheiden, als sie feststellt, dass sie ungeplant schwanger ist. …
Fazit
Da die Mutter der erzählenden Therapeutin ihre preußische Einstellung und ihr Männerbild von ihrer eigenen Mutter eingebläut bekam, lesen wir hier über Einstellungen dreier Frauengenerationen. Geschätzt 2 Millionen Frauen in Deutschland werden nach dem Zweiten Weltkrieg keinen männlichen Partner finden, es sei denn, sie wanderten aus.
Anfangs fand ich verwirrend, dass eine ältere Frau aus dem Leben ihrer damals rund 20-jährigen Mutter erzählt, die zu dem Zeitpunkt ja selbst noch eine Mutter hat. Da Annette Byfords Protagonistin jedoch über die Generation meiner eigenen Mutter erzählt, konnte sie mich mit jeder Seite zunehmend fesseln. Das von der Nachkriegszeit in Deutschland treffend gezeichnete Bild verknüpft Byford mit den Themen Altern, Trauer und Loslassen vom Beruf.
--> Das Nachwort informiert darüber, dass es sich um einen autofiktionalen Text mit fiktiven Figuren handelt, den Annette Byford selbst aus dem Englischen übersetzt hat.
July 18, 2026
It’s hard to adequately review Annette Byford’s “A Dance of Mirrors” without giving away a late-in-the-novel revelation that’s very much at the heart of the book, which attempts, with debatable success to my mind, to make the individual circumstances of a woman in immediate post-Nazi Germany a microcosm of the times in general.
Complicating things is that the story is told through the limited perspective of the woman's daughter, who, in a notable instance of how she can’t know with absolute certainty what her mother might have been doing or thinking in particular situations, openly acknowledges that in one such situation – the one involving the revelation – she is out-and-out imagining a couple of possible scenarios.
Complicating things, too, is that she is a psychotherapist, with the by-its-very-nature less-than-ironclad certitudes of the undertaking.
And if all that sounds complicated enough to demand close attention from a reader, it is, though engagement for the reader is helped by invitingly lyrical prose, which, for instance, at the novel’s opening, pictures the mother “walking … along Burg Strasse (thinking) of the women of the rubble, their hair tied up with cotton scarves, handing bricks to one another down the quickly formed line.”
Also making for greater reader engagement is interest in general in the Nazi period and the issues of complicity and impossible choices it made for regular people of the time – most notably in the fictional realm, the unimaginable choice forced on the titular character in William Styron’s novel and the movie made from it, "Sophie’s Choice,” which in fact is cited in Byford’s novel.
All in all, a largely absorbing read, Byford’s novel, though its narrative technique, with the daughter imagining in the sections devoted to her mother how she might have felt or acted in various situations, would make for occasional moments of confusion for me – when, for instance, in those sections there would be a reference to “my mother,” I would have to remind myself that it wasn’t the mother of the mother that was being referred to but rather the narrator's mother.
Complicating things is that the story is told through the limited perspective of the woman's daughter, who, in a notable instance of how she can’t know with absolute certainty what her mother might have been doing or thinking in particular situations, openly acknowledges that in one such situation – the one involving the revelation – she is out-and-out imagining a couple of possible scenarios.
Complicating things, too, is that she is a psychotherapist, with the by-its-very-nature less-than-ironclad certitudes of the undertaking.
And if all that sounds complicated enough to demand close attention from a reader, it is, though engagement for the reader is helped by invitingly lyrical prose, which, for instance, at the novel’s opening, pictures the mother “walking … along Burg Strasse (thinking) of the women of the rubble, their hair tied up with cotton scarves, handing bricks to one another down the quickly formed line.”
Also making for greater reader engagement is interest in general in the Nazi period and the issues of complicity and impossible choices it made for regular people of the time – most notably in the fictional realm, the unimaginable choice forced on the titular character in William Styron’s novel and the movie made from it, "Sophie’s Choice,” which in fact is cited in Byford’s novel.
All in all, a largely absorbing read, Byford’s novel, though its narrative technique, with the daughter imagining in the sections devoted to her mother how she might have felt or acted in various situations, would make for occasional moments of confusion for me – when, for instance, in those sections there would be a reference to “my mother,” I would have to remind myself that it wasn’t the mother of the mother that was being referred to but rather the narrator's mother.
Review of advance copy received from NetGalley
“A tale of two countries, a tale of two women. A long-kept family secret rewrites two lives.
In present day England a daughter tries to understand a decision her mother made decades ago as a young woman in post-war Germany. While attempting to unravel her mother’s story, the daughter’s life turns increasingly into a mirror image of that of her mother and she begins to echo her mother’s painful experience of love and broken boundaries.”
Annette Byford’s autofictional debut novel has a quiet strength I always love and appreciate when it comes to this particular genre: it is subtle but emotional without falling into the trap of pretension.
Our narrator, a German expat and therapist in present-day England tells us the story of her mother in post-war Germany. The quiet, reflective prose shows both women in an intimate light, highlighting the complicated feelings the daughter has towards her mother and her decisions as a young woman in post-war Germany. We see her through her daughter’s eyes, she is the storyteller who tries to put the pieces together after her mother’s passing.
The dual timeline structure works almost perfectly - Byford is precise when it comes to the balance between past and present. She travels with us back in time and tries to figure out who her mother really was.
I really enjoyed the historical fiction elements of the story, how ordinary people managed to go on with their lives after the war, how they tried to bring back normalcy to their world when nothing was remotely normal.
We have a long-kept family secret, collective and individual grief and an emphasis on peeling the layers of the story gradually. The reading experience was almost like a therapy session to me and I kept thinking about the non-linearity of healing, the level of vulnerability it takes to tell your story to a complete stranger.
Take your time with this one, it will be worth it.
In present day England a daughter tries to understand a decision her mother made decades ago as a young woman in post-war Germany. While attempting to unravel her mother’s story, the daughter’s life turns increasingly into a mirror image of that of her mother and she begins to echo her mother’s painful experience of love and broken boundaries.”
Annette Byford’s autofictional debut novel has a quiet strength I always love and appreciate when it comes to this particular genre: it is subtle but emotional without falling into the trap of pretension.
Our narrator, a German expat and therapist in present-day England tells us the story of her mother in post-war Germany. The quiet, reflective prose shows both women in an intimate light, highlighting the complicated feelings the daughter has towards her mother and her decisions as a young woman in post-war Germany. We see her through her daughter’s eyes, she is the storyteller who tries to put the pieces together after her mother’s passing.
The dual timeline structure works almost perfectly - Byford is precise when it comes to the balance between past and present. She travels with us back in time and tries to figure out who her mother really was.
I really enjoyed the historical fiction elements of the story, how ordinary people managed to go on with their lives after the war, how they tried to bring back normalcy to their world when nothing was remotely normal.
We have a long-kept family secret, collective and individual grief and an emphasis on peeling the layers of the story gradually. The reading experience was almost like a therapy session to me and I kept thinking about the non-linearity of healing, the level of vulnerability it takes to tell your story to a complete stranger.
Take your time with this one, it will be worth it.
October 10, 2025
Wundervoll zärtlich und wortgewaltig!
Schweigen. Ein unausgesprochenes Erbe zweier Frauen, das generationsübergreifend die Grenzen vom Nachkriegsdeutschland bis ins heutige Großbritannien überwindet. Schweigen, das sich in einer ganz besonderen Mutter-Tochter-Beziehung spiegelt und die damit die Vergangenheit mit der Gegenwart schmerzlich verbindet. Psychotherapeutin Annette Byford erzählt in ihrem Debütroman „Tanzende Spiegel“ eine nicht nur zutiefst bewegende, sondern auch ebenso außergewöhnliche, autofiktionale Geschichte.
Als Ich-Erzählerin erzählt sie autobiografisch und geradezu zärtlich, die Geschichte ihrer Mutter zur Nachkriegszeit in Deutschland und verbindet dies mit einem fiktionalen Teil, der ihre eigene Geschichte als Psychotherapeutin im heutigen Großbritannien erzählt. Es gibt also nicht nur zwei Zeitebenen, sondern auch zwei Erzählstränge. Darin werden - neben dem familiären und gesellschaftlichen Schweigen - Themen angesprochen wie Schuld, Liebe, Verlust, innerer Frieden, weibliches Begehren, sowie dem Wunsch nach Selbstbestimmung, auferlegte Grenzen und die gesellschaftliche Stellung von Frauen. Herausragend ist der Schreibstil. Er ist unaufgeregt, aber dabei so wortgewaltig, warm, klug und ergreifend, dass ich etliche Textstellen markieren und erst einmal darüber nachdenken musste.
Fazit: Ich fand das Buch einfach wundervoll! Es hat mich gleichermaßen bestürzt, wie beglückt, bewegt, wie nachdenklich gestimmt. Für mich definitiv ein Jahres-Highlight!
Schweigen. Ein unausgesprochenes Erbe zweier Frauen, das generationsübergreifend die Grenzen vom Nachkriegsdeutschland bis ins heutige Großbritannien überwindet. Schweigen, das sich in einer ganz besonderen Mutter-Tochter-Beziehung spiegelt und die damit die Vergangenheit mit der Gegenwart schmerzlich verbindet. Psychotherapeutin Annette Byford erzählt in ihrem Debütroman „Tanzende Spiegel“ eine nicht nur zutiefst bewegende, sondern auch ebenso außergewöhnliche, autofiktionale Geschichte.
Als Ich-Erzählerin erzählt sie autobiografisch und geradezu zärtlich, die Geschichte ihrer Mutter zur Nachkriegszeit in Deutschland und verbindet dies mit einem fiktionalen Teil, der ihre eigene Geschichte als Psychotherapeutin im heutigen Großbritannien erzählt. Es gibt also nicht nur zwei Zeitebenen, sondern auch zwei Erzählstränge. Darin werden - neben dem familiären und gesellschaftlichen Schweigen - Themen angesprochen wie Schuld, Liebe, Verlust, innerer Frieden, weibliches Begehren, sowie dem Wunsch nach Selbstbestimmung, auferlegte Grenzen und die gesellschaftliche Stellung von Frauen. Herausragend ist der Schreibstil. Er ist unaufgeregt, aber dabei so wortgewaltig, warm, klug und ergreifend, dass ich etliche Textstellen markieren und erst einmal darüber nachdenken musste.
Fazit: Ich fand das Buch einfach wundervoll! Es hat mich gleichermaßen bestürzt, wie beglückt, bewegt, wie nachdenklich gestimmt. Für mich definitiv ein Jahres-Highlight!
July 10, 2026
The first thing I had to do before I read this book was check whether my assumption about what an autofiction book was was correct, and it was. In case you've not come across this genre before, it's mainly fiction, but parts of the story are autobiographical and based on real people.
This is one of those rare, curious books where both nothing really happens, and yet so much happens that I couldn't fit it all into a short review. There are themes of grief and love, loss and birth, lust and lies; and the mother/ daughter relationships that can be so tricky for so many people. It showed how the decisions we make can affect not only us, but ripple out to those around us. And sometimes those lies turn out for the best.
I loved the way this was narrated, with the daughter telling the mother's story, almost as if it were an audio description for a movie. I found it strangely soothing and relaxing to read.
There was also so much that I could recognise from my own life. I've been on the
train with groups
like the >>football boys<< and they make me ashamed to be British.
I was blown away when I read at the end that this is not only a debut novel, but also that it's been translated, edited and translated back. Speaking of translations some of the information on German words and phrases was fascinating!
I think Byford is definitely an author to look out for!
This is one of those rare, curious books where both nothing really happens, and yet so much happens that I couldn't fit it all into a short review. There are themes of grief and love, loss and birth, lust and lies; and the mother/ daughter relationships that can be so tricky for so many people. It showed how the decisions we make can affect not only us, but ripple out to those around us. And sometimes those lies turn out for the best.
I loved the way this was narrated, with the daughter telling the mother's story, almost as if it were an audio description for a movie. I found it strangely soothing and relaxing to read.
There was also so much that I could recognise from my own life. I've been on the
train with groups
like the >>football boys<< and they make me ashamed to be British.
I was blown away when I read at the end that this is not only a debut novel, but also that it's been translated, edited and translated back. Speaking of translations some of the information on German words and phrases was fascinating!
I think Byford is definitely an author to look out for!
July 3, 2026
An autobiographical novel set across the authors own life in modern day Britain and her mother’s life in the early years of post war Germany. As she reflects on her own life, and her role as a psychotherapist, she considers the experiences of her own mother in Germany in those post war years. A country trying to recover its identity where societal silence, guilt, re-establishment of interpersonal trust and the status of women are themes in her mother’s life, ultimately framing the choices she has to make. Recalling this allows modern day Annette to make her own choices and establish new connections to heal intergenerational trauma.
It is beautifully written autobiographical novel capturing the impact of family, and war trauma. I felt better able to engage in her mother’s story rather than the more psychoanalytical account of her own life. The book was originally published in German and is about to be published again in English. The post war period in Germany is a fascinating insight into how society was functioning during that period. A capturing read and a recommendation as a reflective novel weaving history into modern day life
Thank you to Literally PR, the author Annette Byford and the publisher for my copy of the book in exchange for an honest review.
It is beautifully written autobiographical novel capturing the impact of family, and war trauma. I felt better able to engage in her mother’s story rather than the more psychoanalytical account of her own life. The book was originally published in German and is about to be published again in English. The post war period in Germany is a fascinating insight into how society was functioning during that period. A capturing read and a recommendation as a reflective novel weaving history into modern day life
Thank you to Literally PR, the author Annette Byford and the publisher for my copy of the book in exchange for an honest review.
July 13, 2026
A Dance of Mirrors is a beautifully written and deeply reflective story about family, identity, and the secrets that can shape generations.
Told across two timelines, the novel follows a daughter in modern-day England as she tries to understand a life-changing decision her mother made as a young woman in post-war Germany. As she uncovers the truth, she begins to recognise unsettling parallels between her own experiences and those of her mother, creating a powerful sense of history repeating itself.
What I enjoyed most was the way the story explores the connections between personal choices and wider historical events. The emotional themes of love, loss, family expectations, and blurred boundaries are handled with sensitivity and honesty, making the characters feel incredibly real.
This isn’t a fast-paced novel filled with dramatic twists; instead, it’s a thoughtful and character-driven story that gradually reveals its secrets and leaves plenty to reflect on once you’ve turned the final page.
A compelling read for anyone who enjoys historical fiction, family dramas, and stories that explore the lasting impact of the past on the present
Told across two timelines, the novel follows a daughter in modern-day England as she tries to understand a life-changing decision her mother made as a young woman in post-war Germany. As she uncovers the truth, she begins to recognise unsettling parallels between her own experiences and those of her mother, creating a powerful sense of history repeating itself.
What I enjoyed most was the way the story explores the connections between personal choices and wider historical events. The emotional themes of love, loss, family expectations, and blurred boundaries are handled with sensitivity and honesty, making the characters feel incredibly real.
This isn’t a fast-paced novel filled with dramatic twists; instead, it’s a thoughtful and character-driven story that gradually reveals its secrets and leaves plenty to reflect on once you’ve turned the final page.
A compelling read for anyone who enjoys historical fiction, family dramas, and stories that explore the lasting impact of the past on the present
July 6, 2026
Dance of Mirrors is an impressive novel. Annette Byford explores human relationships in a very unique way.
The story centres on a psychotherapist revisiting her mother’s experiences in post-war Germany, but it becomes something much bigger than historical fiction. It’s about mothers and daughters, love in all its forms, memory, identity and the way we often find ourselves repeating patterns we never expected to.
The title becomes more and more meaningful as the novel unfolds. The idea that we mirror those around us—and are changed by really seeing another person—is explored through family, therapy and relationships.
This isn’t a book driven by dramatic events or shocking twists. It’s a reflective novel that asks the reader to think alongside it. I also like that it doesn’t provide easy answers. Not every character is likeable as such, but they all feel authentic.
Beautifully written and full of psychological insight, if you enjoy literary fiction that examines people rather than simply telling a story, I’d definitely recommend it.
#adanceofmirrors
6 m
The story centres on a psychotherapist revisiting her mother’s experiences in post-war Germany, but it becomes something much bigger than historical fiction. It’s about mothers and daughters, love in all its forms, memory, identity and the way we often find ourselves repeating patterns we never expected to.
The title becomes more and more meaningful as the novel unfolds. The idea that we mirror those around us—and are changed by really seeing another person—is explored through family, therapy and relationships.
This isn’t a book driven by dramatic events or shocking twists. It’s a reflective novel that asks the reader to think alongside it. I also like that it doesn’t provide easy answers. Not every character is likeable as such, but they all feel authentic.
Beautifully written and full of psychological insight, if you enjoy literary fiction that examines people rather than simply telling a story, I’d definitely recommend it.
#adanceofmirrors
6 m
July 19, 2026
This is the story of a therapist and her reflections on both her career and her mothers life. As her mother aged she reflected on her life in post WWII
Germany as a young woman, trying like everyone else, to rebuild her life. She commented one day that the availability of birth control no longer made it necessary for a young woman to "look for a bridge to jump off".
She starts to chase down her mothers story as a young woman. Photographs showed a pleasing young lady who would have attracted attention from suitors. Her mother was a child when the Nazis came to power. After the war Germans who hadn't participated in the horrors of war still had a very difficult time justifying what had occurred. The therapist sees love as mirrors- whether romantic, family or friends. She starts to delve into her mother's story and how it may reflect her own.
The author actually lives and works in Germany and her reflections on the postwar country are compelling. This book has plenty of depth and a lot to consider.
Germany as a young woman, trying like everyone else, to rebuild her life. She commented one day that the availability of birth control no longer made it necessary for a young woman to "look for a bridge to jump off".
She starts to chase down her mothers story as a young woman. Photographs showed a pleasing young lady who would have attracted attention from suitors. Her mother was a child when the Nazis came to power. After the war Germans who hadn't participated in the horrors of war still had a very difficult time justifying what had occurred. The therapist sees love as mirrors- whether romantic, family or friends. She starts to delve into her mother's story and how it may reflect her own.
The author actually lives and works in Germany and her reflections on the postwar country are compelling. This book has plenty of depth and a lot to consider.
July 6, 2026
A Dance of Mirrors by Annette Byford
A Dance of Mirrors grew on me the more I think about it.
The story moves between post-war Germany and the present day, following a daughter trying to understand her mother's past while gradually uncovering things about herself too. I found the historical setting fascinating, I love the way the novel explores mothers and daughters, love, belonging and the things families leave unsaid.
The real strength of the novel sits in its themes and the questions it asks about how much of our lives are shaped by the generations before us.
Annette Byford writes with real sensitivity, and although this isn't a fast-paced novel, it's one that rewards taking your time with it. It's thoughtful, intelligent and has a lot to say about family, identity and the echoes of the past.
I'd happily recommend it.
A Dance of Mirrors grew on me the more I think about it.
The story moves between post-war Germany and the present day, following a daughter trying to understand her mother's past while gradually uncovering things about herself too. I found the historical setting fascinating, I love the way the novel explores mothers and daughters, love, belonging and the things families leave unsaid.
The real strength of the novel sits in its themes and the questions it asks about how much of our lives are shaped by the generations before us.
Annette Byford writes with real sensitivity, and although this isn't a fast-paced novel, it's one that rewards taking your time with it. It's thoughtful, intelligent and has a lot to say about family, identity and the echoes of the past.
I'd happily recommend it.
July 8, 2026
This is an autofictional debut novel and, as the title suggests, a mirror story of a mother and daughter. What I found very interesting is the author never names her mother although half of the book is about her. That said, the reader gets a sense of her raisin picker personality, a woman with creative flair that I felt a great deal of empathy for. I really liked the different font used for the author and her mother, clearly defining the two.
The book is a very emotive read around London now and Germany during and after the Second World War - the devastation, rubble and rebuilding clearly conveyed. I felt for Walter, a man in love with a strong sense of loyalty. The book has strong themes of guilt, shame, grief, secrets and silence. I found it moving throughout and, for a book of just over 200 pages, powerful and poignant.
The book is a very emotive read around London now and Germany during and after the Second World War - the devastation, rubble and rebuilding clearly conveyed. I felt for Walter, a man in love with a strong sense of loyalty. The book has strong themes of guilt, shame, grief, secrets and silence. I found it moving throughout and, for a book of just over 200 pages, powerful and poignant.
July 7, 2026
“A tale of two countries, a tale of two women. A long-kept secret rewrites two lives.”
This is an autobiographical novel set in modern England and post-war Germany. Two women, mother and daughter, and their decisions throughout their lives. How much are those decisions and generations linked? This book explains the reality of post-war Germany and the complicated sense of identity that “we” meant during those years. It’s a story about family, love, identity, and change. While the post-war generation people were almost forced to hide and forget, their sons and daughters chose to speak and in this way to be freed.
Beautifully written and emotional.
Thank you to Literally PR and Annette Byford for gifting me an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.
This is an autobiographical novel set in modern England and post-war Germany. Two women, mother and daughter, and their decisions throughout their lives. How much are those decisions and generations linked? This book explains the reality of post-war Germany and the complicated sense of identity that “we” meant during those years. It’s a story about family, love, identity, and change. While the post-war generation people were almost forced to hide and forget, their sons and daughters chose to speak and in this way to be freed.
Beautifully written and emotional.
Thank you to Literally PR and Annette Byford for gifting me an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.
July 8, 2026
.This beautiful novel completely stole my heart and kept me turning pages late into the night. It tells the deeply moving stories of two women, perfectly weaving their personal journeys together with the broader weight of family history. The writing is calm, unfussy, and absolutely gorgeous—the kind of book where you find yourself constantly marking lines just to sit and think about them later. It is a stunning, honest exploration of loneliness, belonging, and how our past shapes who we are.If you love thought-provoking stories with incredible psychological depth, you need to add this to your TBR list immediately. It is easily one of my biggest highlights of the year, and the kind of quiet, powerful book that lingers in your thoughts long after you close the final page.
July 3, 2026
Having never read, or even heard of for that matter, a book written in an autofictional style I was eager to get started...
The story plays out across a dual timeline and is told throughout from the reflections of the daughter (the author) of her mother in a post-war Germany, seamlessly intertwining contemporary and history.
It's deliciously deliberate in pace, and very much a story to be savoured allowing you to appreciate it fully.
'Characters' were easy investible, and their emotions fast became mine.
An engaging and enjoyable read.
The story plays out across a dual timeline and is told throughout from the reflections of the daughter (the author) of her mother in a post-war Germany, seamlessly intertwining contemporary and history.
It's deliciously deliberate in pace, and very much a story to be savoured allowing you to appreciate it fully.
'Characters' were easy investible, and their emotions fast became mine.
An engaging and enjoyable read.
Review of advance copy
This was such an interesting and entertaining read. From the very first page I was hooked and I read it in one sitting. The story was easy to follow and there was a great cast of characters. I loved the author's writing style and the pacing was just right. I highly recommend it and I look forward to reading more by the author.
💝 Thank you to Literally PR, the author Annette Byford and the publisher for my copy of the book in exchange for an honest review.
💝 Thank you to Literally PR, the author Annette Byford and the publisher for my copy of the book in exchange for an honest review.
May 6, 2026
Eine junge Frau im Deutschland der frühen Nachkriegsjahre ist auf der Suche nach ihrer eigenen Identität. Obwohl sie mit einem anderen Mann verlobt ist, beginnt sie ein leidenschaftliches Verhältnis mit ihrem Vorgesetzten, einem zwanzig Jahre älteren Familienvater. Doch sie fühlt sich von ihm wahrgenommen und verstanden. Als sie nun schwanger wird, muss sie sich entscheiden ob sie sich den damaligen gesellschaftlichen Normen anpasst und das Baby illegal abtreibt oder ihrem Verlobten die Schwangerschaft unterjubelt. In der Gegenwart wird sich ihre Tochter, die Psychotherapeutin ist, bewusst das sie sich emotional zu sehr mit einer ihrer Patienten einlässt ...
Unheimlich interessante Story, besonders die der Mutter, die ich persönlich besser nachvollziehen konnte. Diese befand sich in Zeiten der Nachkriegszeit in der die Männer rar waren oder eventuell durch den Krieg eventuell psychisch oder physisch geschädigt waren. Zudem befand sich diese Generation nach dem Krieg erst einmal in einer Situation in der sie lernen mussten was sie selber vom Leben möchten, da sie zuvor nur auf das Überleben fokussiert waren und nun sich teilweise verloren fühlten.
Unheimlich interessante Story, besonders die der Mutter, die ich persönlich besser nachvollziehen konnte. Diese befand sich in Zeiten der Nachkriegszeit in der die Männer rar waren oder eventuell durch den Krieg eventuell psychisch oder physisch geschädigt waren. Zudem befand sich diese Generation nach dem Krieg erst einmal in einer Situation in der sie lernen mussten was sie selber vom Leben möchten, da sie zuvor nur auf das Überleben fokussiert waren und nun sich teilweise verloren fühlten.
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