Thank you Harper Audio for the ALC and Graydon House/Netgalley, #partner, for the advanced copy of The German Wife in exchange for my honest review.
Today, I’m so happy to be a tour stop on the blog tour for The German Wife. Thank you Graydon House for inviting me to participate.
Publisher: Graydon House / Harper Audio
Published: June 28, 2022
Summary:
The New York Times bestselling author of The Warsaw Orphan returns with a gripping novel inspired by the true story of Operation Paperclip: a controversial secret US intelligence program that employed former Nazis after WWII.
Berlin, Germany, 1930—When the Nazis rise to power, Sofie von Meyer Rhodes and her academic husband benefit from the military ambitions of Germany’s newly elected chancellor when Jürgen is offered a high-level position in their burgeoning rocket program. Although they fiercely oppose Hitler’s radical views, and joining his ranks is unthinkable, it soon becomes clear that if Jürgen does not accept the job, their income will be taken away. Then their children. And then their lives.
Huntsville, Alabama, 1950—Twenty years later, Jürgen is one of many German scientists pardoned and granted a position in America’s space program. For Sofie, this is a chance to leave the horrors of her past behind. But when rumors about the Rhodes family’s affiliation with the Nazi party spread among her new American neighbors, idle gossip turns to bitter rage, and the act of violence that results tears apart a family and leaves the community wondering—is it an act of vengeance or justice?
My thoughts:
Kelly Rimmer is an author I’ve been meaning to read more of after reading one of her contemporary books a while back and just loving it. When I saw she had some historical fiction novels out, I added them to my list, but as we all know, putting them on a list doesn’t always translate to getting them read. Luckily, this time it did and I am so glad I did. Despite the heaviness of this book, I will absolutely be recommending it to all my historical fiction loving friends.
One of the reasons why I love reading historical fiction is because I love when I learn something new and that is definitely the case here. I had never heard anything about Operation Paperclip prior to picking up this book and that alone was just so fascinating. As soon as I finished the book, I went down a rabbit hole trying to find out more information on this. It’s not too often I read historical fiction set during the Cold War and so when I do, I just find it so interesting.
The characters really come to life in this book. Rimmer really portrays the distrust and how afraid the Americans were of the German Nazis once they realized who they were. And they passed these biases and prejudices onto their children, so that even these poor innocent kids were affected. I loved, though, the comparisons that were made when the Americans wanted to keep the Germans separate from the Americans – so profound and something I probably never would have considered had it not been pointed out.
This book is not an easy read at times by any means, but it is certainly one that makes you think. And while it is set is the 1930s and 1950s, I cannot help but see comparisons to what is going on in the world today. This is one book that I know I will not be forgetting anytime soon. This is a must read for all historical fiction fans.
Audio thoughts:
I had the opportunity to listen to this one and I was riveted to the story. Despite the heaviness of it, I found myself unable to stop listening and that is definitely due to the story itself, but also to the narration. It is narrated by two narrators – Nancy Peterson and Ann Marie Gideon – and I thought they did a fantastic job bringing this story to life. As I mentioned, this story is heavy and uncomfortable at times, but these gals did such a great job staying in moment, infusing just the right amount of emotion and tension into their voices as needed.
About the author:
Kelly Rimmer is the worldwide, New York Times and USA Today bestselling author of Before I Let You Go, The Things We Cannot Say, and Truths I Never Told You. She lives in rural Australia with her husband, two children and fantastically naughty dogs, Sully and Basil. Her novels have been translated into more than twenty languages.
Authors Links: Website | Twitter | Instagram | Facebook
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