Arie made the impossible choice between betraying his fellow soldiers or protecting his niece. Or was it an impossible choice?

Aire had two sets of lives in his hands: his fellow soldiers or his sister's daughter. If he walked from either, someone would die. Is this a difficult moral dilemma or a clear choice?

It is a perfect example of being caught between a rock and a hard place. Both options could be considered right and neither was absolutely wrong. As Arie tells it, he did the best he could to protect his niece without actually betraying his fellow soldiers. While he may not have been perfect, it would be very difficult to survive while associating with people like Arie was talking to without providing information that could be deemed useful.

It was an impossible choice and I often wonder how much of a hero I’d be in that same situation. But his actions could have killed so many more allies. During war I’m afraid you can never defend support for the other side without ultimately being called a traitor. And this was the nazis!

In an impossible situation like the one Arie faced I think it is unfair to judge another’s choice as few of us really know what we would choose faced with such an agonizing decision.

My heart was aching during this part of the book.

And in the end the British government was ambivalent about returning his body? So many left behind. I thought their response right, even if Aries personal choice was defensible, on a personal level. But not in the best interest of his country.

It was a tough choice for Aries and I don't know what I'd have done in a similar situation. Was he a hero to his county - NO but he was a hero to his family.

Agree that it was an impossible choice. I feel he made the right choice in supporting family.

I'm not sure I agree that it was an "impossible" choice, although I do think it was a difficult one. Seems to me like it was a no-brainer. Soldiers sign up realizing there's a chance they could die, while Arie's niece was an innocent, caught up in events she didn't even understand, let alone control. When forced to choose one over the other, I think most would agree he made the right call.

As sated, who knows what we would do in any situation without actually being in it. Too many circumstances, feelings etc could make you go either way

I agree with Joanw and cindyb.
I can’t judge his actions without any false pride. I know things were done by many in war time that they would NEVER have imagined themselves capable of doing. The demands of war are unimaginable to people like myself, who have been blessed to never have to had osuffered and endured it by the valor of those who have served.

Family and children always come first.

I think KimK said it all. Arie certainly suffered for and over his choice. He tried to work it so few would be hurt or die, but he knew what he was dealing with. No one can judge another. Did the English worry over their choice when they deliberately used Fenna to draw out Arie. Did they worry if she lived or died. Things happen in wars. Terrible choices are made for good reasons.

I agree it is impossible to know what choice we would make in the same situation. I know in my own life there are relatively trivial things over which I later realized I had made the wrong choice. And Arie was dealing with a severely Catch 22 situation. To me, Arie's choice was the correct one.

This plot development is a perfect example of what a powerful author Kristina McMorris is. And uncompromising. She makes difficult choices with her storylines even when she knows that the developments will upset readers and, perhaps, break their hearts. This development was one of those choices.

I hated that she made Arie face that dilemma, but wasn't it fascinating to read about? It brings home the challenges of war & the moral dilemmas that people caught up in war face. McMorris illustrates that there are often no good choices available and people must choose between equally abhorrent alternatives.

Arie was in just that position but, understandably, chose his niece with the knowledge that he was effectively ending any chance he had to return home & watch her grow up because he would be deemed a traitor, and prosecuted if he lived and got back to the U.S. It was a truly heart-breaking development but brought authenticity to the story.