€5 off first Book Purchase of €50+ | With Code: CHAPTERSBOOKSTORE
In the summer of 1944 Gertraud Weisker was twenty years old when her older cousin Eva Braun invited her to come and keep her company at Berchtesgaden, the Fuhrer's mountain retreat. Flattered and seduced by her glamorous cousin's interest, she went, defying her anti-Nazi father, and stayed until Eva left to share Hitler's fate in his Berlin bunker. After the war, Gertraud's husband forbade her to talk about her connection to Braun, and so she kept quiet for over fifty years. It was only in her seventies, after her husband's death, that she decided to break her silence and told her story, to Sybille Knauss, who used it to create a novel based on Gertraud's memories. EVA'S COUSIN recalls that summer of 1944 and the carefree yet sinister idyll of life at Hitler's huge house on the Oberslzberg, 'the country house of evil'. The Fuhrer is away directing the war, and young Gertraud is dazzled by the glamour of her cousin, and the sex appeal of the Nazi officials she finds herself at table with every evening. She falls for a young SS officer, and they embark on a torrid affair.
But in a pavilion in the grounds, she encounters an escaped thirteen-year-old Ukranian slave labourer, and after clandestinely listening to BBC radio reports, she can't prevent her eyes from gradually opening to the atrocities unfolding outside her cloistered world, and the mystery of her cousin's obsessive love for the Fuhrer. Told through the eyes of an innocent, young girl, EVA'S COUSIN illuminates the banality of the domestic face of evil, and looking back from the perspective of more than half a century, tries to come to make sense of a deeply disturbed and disturbing time. Like Bernard Schlink's THE READER and Rachel Seiffert's THE DARK ROOM, it throws a special and sensitive light on the issues of innocence and complicity that are the legacy of Nazism for ordinary Germans to this day.
But in a pavilion in the grounds, she encounters an escaped thirteen-year-old Ukranian slave labourer, and after clandestinely listening to BBC radio reports, she can't prevent her eyes from gradually opening to the atrocities unfolding outside her cloistered world, and the mystery of her cousin's obsessive love for the Fuhrer. Told through the eyes of an innocent, young girl, EVA'S COUSIN illuminates the banality of the domestic face of evil, and looking back from the perspective of more than half a century, tries to come to make sense of a deeply disturbed and disturbing time. Like Bernard Schlink's THE READER and Rachel Seiffert's THE DARK ROOM, it throws a special and sensitive light on the issues of innocence and complicity that are the legacy of Nazism for ordinary Germans to this day.
- Publisher Name:Transworld Publishers Ltd
- Product Format:Hardback
- ISBN: XE80385603607
- Author:Knauss, Sibylle
- Publication Date:2002-05-01
Refund Policy
If you are not satisfied with your order in any way, get in touch. We have an excellent customer service record and we will do our best to ensure you are pleased with your purchase.
📄 Exercise Your Right of Withdrawal
Under EU consumer law, you have the right to withdraw from your purchase within 14 days of receiving your order, without giving a reason. To formally exercise this right, use the button below. This is a distinct function separate from our general returns process.
Your right to cancel
If you order online, you have the right to cancel your order within 14 days of receiving your goods, without giving a reason. This cooling-off period runs from the day you (or someone you nominate) receives the last item in your order. To cancel, contact us at shop@chaptersbookstore.com stating your order number and your wish to withdraw from the purchase. Once we've confirmed your cancellation, you have 14 days to send the goods back to us.
Condition of returned items
To be eligible for a refund, your item must be returned unworn, unused and unread, in its original packaging, and in the same condition you received it. You'll also need your receipt or proof of purchase. If your return is based on the item's condition on arrival, please include a photo so we can advise the best resolution.
Faulty or damaged items
Please inspect your order on arrival and contact us immediately if an item is defective, damaged, or not what you ordered. Separately from the 14-day cancellation right above, you're entitled to a repair, replacement or refund on faulty goods for up to two years from purchase, under standard consumer guarantee rights.
This guarantee covers manufacturing faults only, such as printing errors, missing pages, or binding defects present at the time of purchase. It does not cover damage arising from normal use or wear, including creased spines, worn covers, marked pages or general signs of reading. If you're unsure whether an issue qualifies, send us a photo and we'll be happy to advise.
How to return
To start a return, contact us at shop@chaptersbookstore.com. If your return is accepted, we'll send you a return shipping label and instructions on how and where to send your package. Items sent back to us without first requesting a return will not be accepted. If a return is due to an error on our part, we'll cover the postage cost.
Exceptions and non-returnable items
Certain items cannot be returned, including custom products, special orders, sale items and gift cards.
Trade-In Programme
If you're trading in previously owned books rather than returning a purchase, please see our separate Trade-In Programme terms, which operate independently of this policy.
Refunds
Once we've received and inspected your return, we'll let you know if the refund has been approved. If approved, you'll be refunded automatically to your original payment method. Please allow some time for your bank or card provider to process and post the refund.
Free Delivery in the Republic Of Ireland on all orders over €30. Standard Delivery Charge in Republic of Ireland of €5 for all orders below €30.
Delivery is subject to warehouse availability. Out-of-stock items will be shipped as soon as possible, upon arrival from the manufacturer/publisher. Please take shipping time into consideration.
