Friday, April 23, 2021

German Girl

About the Book

Book: The Good German Girl

Author: Erica Marie Hogan

Genre: Historical Romance

Release date: April 15, 2021

RGB300TheGoodGermanGirl Omaha Beach
June 6, 1944

When battle-hardened Private Bernie Russell witnesses a fellow soldier shoot a young German boy with his hands up, he’s shaken to his very core. Then, as that same boy is dying, he presses a packet of photographs and letters into Bernie’s hand and utters three words in English.

It must end.

After having the letters translated, he discovers they were written by the soldier’s twin sister and the photographs within the packet reveal evidence of Hitler’s plan to wipe out the Jews.

Berlin, Germany

Margot Raskopf is a young art teacher, forced to conform to the education Hitler has designed. Then, when one of her sources with the underground resistance receives a letter for her from an American soldier, she’s shocked and filled with renewed hope. But Margot has been harboring a secret. In her house she hides a young Jewish woman she’s known since childhood, risking being discovered by the gestapo with each passing day.

As they begin a dangerous correspondence, both Margot and Bernie embark on treacherous journeys. One taking Bernie across Europe and right into Germany. Another taking Margot through the gates of Auschwitz … and under the scrutiny of Josef Mengele.

Click here to get your copy!

About the Author

Author Photo From as far back as she can remember, Erica Marie Hogan loved to write. When she was a little girl she adored make believe, but gradually her imagination became too big to restrict it to playtime and so, she wrote.
Erica was born and raised for nine years on Orient Point, Long Island, New York. After that she moved with her family to Virginia and, finally, to Texas where she now lives. She was homeschooled, is an avid reader, and a member of American Christian Fiction Writers. She lives to plot new stories, enjoys a good tear-jerker, and chocolate is her cure for any ailment.
Erica’s wish is to continue to write stories that not only drop her readers into the middle of historical time periods, but also to show the ability to rise up out of adversity and tragedy in hope, faith, love, and strength. When it comes to genre, she has no limits.

Along with The Winter Queen Series Erica’s World War I standalone novel, The Lost Generation, is also available now from Elk Lake Publishing, Inc.

More from Erica

There are two things I love in a good story. History and Romance. And when the two come together? Well, I’m sold.

Hi, I’m Erica Marie Hogan, the author of The Good German Girl, book one in a Historical Fiction series called A League of Extraordinary Women. When I set out to write a novel based during World War II, I never imagined The Good German Girl would be the end result. I started with an idea about a young German woman living in Berlin who wants to fight back against Hitler’s rule. This mustard seed of an idea took me on a journey through the battles at Omaha Beach, Aachen, Germany & the Battle of the Bulge. It took me through the gates of Auschwitz and right into Josef Mengele’s lab.

This little idea took me on a quest for love in the most horrible of circumstances. Where war and death divided two people who should be enemies but, through a miraculous correspondence, found each other and knew in their hearts they were meant to save each other. The Good German Girlis a Historical Fiction novel about the tragedy of World War II with the gentle beginnings of an epic love woven through the pages. I hope you enjoy the story of Margot Raskopf and Bernie Russell as much as I enjoyed writing about them!

MY REVIEW

The opening page of this book describes in detail the horrors of war. Although hard to read, it is a realistic look at what men and women faced during this time period. I appreciate an author who doesn’t sugar coat the war, but portrays it as a tragic time that no one will ever forget. I knew I needed to prepare myself for an emotional journey that will forever have a profound impact on my life.

The story is deep rooted in the war that found the Jewish community in harms way. It is so hard for me to understand how one man could have such hatred for others that destroyed the lives of innocent men, women and children. The ones who survived were left with emotional scars so deep that they had nightmares at times.

As we travel to the camp where prisoners are we are faced with stench, rats, sickly people and hopelessness. Margot must fight everyday to stay alive. It was emotional to read how Margot and Bernie began to write to each other. An American soldier and a German woman who should be enemies found comfort in each other’s words. I wanted to scream as the scenes came up on the battlefield. All around was death as Bernie fought to stay alive. The author writes with vividness in a way that I felt as if I was planted on the battle field.

The story was so intense at times I wasn’t sure if I could finish it. Yet I had to know if Margot survived. Did she and Bernie finally meet? The details of the war, camp and despair was heartbreaking. I have fallen in love with this author’s words and look forward to more from her. Throughout the story we see hope, forgiveness , survival, trust and God’s protection. This is one story that stirs within you the strong desire to live and make a difference. Margot never gave up even when she stared death in the eyes.

I received a copy of this book from Celebrate Lit. The review is my own opinion.