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Ratings: ★★★★★ (5/5)
Genre: Fiction / Historical Fiction / Drama / Literary Fiction / Romance

Book Review:
''The Thread'' by Victoria Hislop is sweeping, magnificently detailed, and ambitious storytelling at its best. Thessaloniki, 1917. As Dimitri Komninos is born, fire devastates the thriving Greek city where Christians, Jews, and Muslims live side by side. Five years later, Katerina Sarafoglou's home in Asia Minor is destroyed by the Turkish army. Losing her mother in the chaos, she flees across the sea to an unknown destination in Greece. Soon her life will become entwined with Dimitri's, and with the story of the city itself, as war, fear, and persecution begin to divide its people.

Thessaloniki, 2007. A young Anglo-Greek hears his grandparents' life story for the first time and realizes he has a decision to make. For many decades, they have looked after the memories and treasures of the people who were forced to leave. Should he become their next custodian and make this city his home?

Hislop's writing is fresh, unusual, and intrepid. She has done well to tell a story as diverse and tempestuous as Thessaloniki's history with such lightness of touch. If you enjoy historical fiction, richly detailed narratives, or books about love and resilience across generations, The Thread is a must-read. Highly recommended!