The Rebel Girls of Rome

De: Jordyn Taylor

Narrado por: Jennifer Jill Araya, Jesse Vilinsky

Part historical mystery, part sweeping romance, The Rebel Girls of Rome brings the stories of two young women to brilliant life: Lilah, a college student looking to understand her grandfather’s mysterious past, and Bruna, a queer Jewish woman who joins the resistance during World War II.

From Jordyn Taylor, author of The Paper Girl of Paris, this dual-contemporary and historical tale—where heartbreak, hope, and finding light in times of darkness are inevitably intertwined—is perfect for fans of Ruta Sepetys and Monica Hesse.

Now:

Grieving the loss of her mother, college student Lilah is hoping to reconnect with a grandfather who refuses to talk about his past. Then she receives a mysterious letter from a fellow student, Tommaso, claiming he’s found a lost family heirloom, and her world is upended.

Soon Lilah finds herself in Rome, trying to unlock her grandfather’s history as a Holocaust survivor once and for all. But as she and Tommaso get closer to the truth—and their relationship begins to deepen into something sweeter—Lilah realizes that some secrets may be too painful to unbury…

Then:

It’s 1943, and nineteen-year-old Bruna and her family are doing their best to survive in Rome’s Jewish quarter under Nazi occupation. Until the dreaded knock comes early one morning, and Bruna is irrevocably separated from the rest of her family.

Overcome with guilt at escaping her family’s fate in the camps, she joins the underground rebellion. When her missions bring her back to her childhood crush, Elsa, Bruna must decide how much she’s willing to risk—when fully embracing herself is her greatest act of resistance.

©2025 Jordyn Taylor (P)2025 HarperCollins Publishers

Extraordinary

THE REBEL GIRLS OF ROME is a remarkable story of tragedy and triumph. Told from the present day perspective of Lilah and the past perspective of her great aunt Bluma in the 1940s Jordyn Taylor’s latest novel addresses

intergenerational trauma and survivor guilt as Lilah travels to Rome with her grandfather to see the family heirloom Bluma wore before Nazi occupation. They encounter Tomaso and his grandmother Carla, daughter of Bluma’s closest friend.

I wasn’t certain I’d enjoy REBEL GIRLS OF ROME, but preordered based on my enjoyment of Taylor’s other novels. Without coming across as teaching a lesson, Taylor shows that people have stories and reasons for their behaviors and reactions of which we are likely unaware and how we can take personally the behavior and words which are about loved one’s past traumas.