Blood Rouge (The Presence Collection)
Abused, assaulted, and thrown out by his mother, Josef finds himself alone on the streets of 1930s Berlin. By chance, he meets Lucas and his sister Anke. Being used to cruelty from others, he’s hesitant about their kindness but eventually decides to accept their offer of a job and shelter. One night, Lucas, who plays piano at a cabaret bar, aka a “doll bar,” invites Josef along. There, Josef’s world is transformed when its star performer takes him under her wing. Josef discovers the person he’s always longed to be: Die blaue blume (the blue flower). But a Nazi raid shatters everything and sends both Josef and Lucas to Dachau. When Josef’s past comes back to haunt him in the death camp, the choices made for survival will risk destroying his soul. During these darkest hours in human history, can Josef protect Lucas and not lose himself while doing so?
Josef is a gender-fluid young man whose journey is sensitively explored. Josef is best described using the author’s own words: “A gentle soul that is too special to be defined by the rigidity of man.” There’s a poignant allegory about life and the application of makeup that really hits home on the difficulties of growing up, particularly as a gender nonconforming youth in a world of intolerance and violence. The book’s vivid portrayals of love contrasted with graphic acts of unchecked cruelty potently convey a soul-stirring message. This is a bittersweet melody of belonging and self-love that also serves as a poignant aria about the LGBTQ+ lives cruelly lost to the Nazis’ reign of terror. The ending is a tour de force that will simultaneously tear apart and lift your heart. Josef’s story is one that will stay with me. While I advise readers to take note of its trigger warnings, I highly recommend it.
