A Winter/Spring 2025 Indies Introduce Pick

“An impressive display of Austen’s storytelling skill . . . unfurling an unusually colorful and intelligent, poignant and rich World War II novel, a special treat for the many fans of that genre . . . As the novel rotates among its plethora of first-person narrators, each with a distinctive voice, from the wry and cultured Sauvin to the horrible busybody Miss Hobert in 3R, the issue of how to live in terrible times is explored with insight, compassion and steeliness . . . Crème de la WWII novel.”—Kirkus Reviews (starred review) 

“The world of 33 Place Brugmann is spacious and intricately connected, filled with both horror and brilliant light. Alice Austen uses her considerable gifts to remind us that the past and the present are more connected than we wish to believe, and that vigilance, loyalty and art hold the key to survival. This is a beautiful and deeply engaging novel.”—Ann Patchett, #1 New York Times bestselling author of Tom Lake

“A richly textured, finely written, deeply thoughtful novel that resonates in the mind. A hugely impressive debut.”—William Boyd, international bestselling author of Gabriel’s Moon.

“Delicate and devastating. disruptive and beautiful, 33 Place Brugmann follows the intertwined lives of the residents of one building in Brussels during Nazi occupation – both within their individual apartments, and also as they try to make their way in the rapidly changing and diminishing outside world. Not only am I filled with admiration for the skill and ambition of this book, I also adored it. It’s a celebration of love, art and human decency when everything is reduced to the basics. It’s bursting with ideas and imagery, it finds courage and love amidst the ruins, and I read with my heart in my mouth.”—Rachel Joyce, author of The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry

“33 Place Brugmann is set in the turmoil of the Nazi occupation of Belgium.  Austen’s device of using one apartment building, its memorable tenants, and their individual transformations is brilliant. A compelling and beautiful read.”—Abraham Verghese, New York Times bestselling author of The Covenant of Water

“An extraordinary tapestry of lives intertwined by fate, fear, and resilience . . . This profoundly moving novel demonstrates the power of storytelling to illuminate the darkest corners of history.”—Christina Baker Kline, #1 New York Times bestselling author of Orphan Train

"A riveting portrait of community during a time when the very notion of community was under siege. A master of time and place, Austen has a historian’s grasp of detail and a storyteller’s command of suspense. This is a beautiful and important novel.”—Jessica Shattuck, New York Times bestselling author of The Women in the Castle

“33 Place Brugmann is an achingly suspenseful historical novel, sad at moments, but always intriguing, with a complex cast of vivid and involving characters. Wonderful reading.” —Scott Turow, #1 New York Times bestselling author of Presumed Innocent

“A work of art - stylish, charming and magnetic. There is a crisp immediacy in the writing so that the eve of a world war is now, here, close and not in the sepia colored past.”—Leila Aboulela, author of The Translator, New York Times Notable Book of the Year

“33 Place Brugmann is a masterpiece. A kaleidoscopic story about residents in a Belgian apartment complex leading up to and during World War II. Alice Austen depicts humanity through the lens of art and philosophy, and reminds the reader that times of crisis and trauma reveal both the depravity and the bravery of man. An absolute triumph.”—Jessica Nock, Main Street Books, Davidson, NC, ABA Indies Introduce

Coming March 11, 2025

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