I received this book from HarperCollins Canada in exchange for an honest review.

The story behind The Ventriloquists is fascinating - it retells a little-known incident in nazi-occupied Brussels in 1943. Ramzipoor even uses names of some of the people who were actually involved.

Basically, a group of rebels released a parody version of the national newspaper Le Soir, poking fun at Hitler and all he stood for. The newspaper had turned into nazi propaganda during the occupation, so their version was all the more glaring at the newsstands. They did this, knowing it would probably end in their deaths. Why isn’t this act of bravery more well known?! It sounds incredible.

The story itself is told from the point of view of a homeless child named Helene, who becomes involved in the scheme. She is recounting the tale to a young woman in the present day. It’s a structure I struggled with. Helene describes events she wasn’t present for, and even the inner thoughts of the other characters. It was confusing - I couldn’t figure out how she could know so much. Personally, I think it would have flowed a bit better if it had been written in the 3rd person, without a specific narrator.

But Ramzipoor hit it out of the park in every other aspect of this book. The world building is immersive, firmly planting the reader in wartime Brussels. The characters themselves are beautifully written - their flaws and bad choices felt very natural. There is even some positive LGBT+ representation. Overall, a solid debut.