The Traitor is a thrilling and unbelievably tense story based on the White Rose German resistance movement. I had heard of Sophie Scholl, but there is so much more to the story. The White Rose were a small group of incredibly brave individuals who stood up for freedom against the genocidal Third Reich. The group, condemned as traitors, were actually true patriots, sticking up for ordinary Germans.
I read breathlessly as Natalya and Lisa go on terrifying missions to spread their message. The level of terror and threat to poor Natalya is ratcheted up right until the end of this amazing story.

The Traitor is the story of Natalya, a naturalized German citizen from Russia, who finds herself in the middle of an anti-Hitler movement in Munich in 1942. As an 18 year old Natalya does a tour on the eastern front as a nurse. When she returns to Munich she discovers that the friends she made in Russia are part of a group called The White Rose. Quickly Natalya becomes involved in spreading their word. However in 1943 she is caught and spends the next two years surviving in a Nazi prison and asylum.

Even though there have been some books and movies about Sophie Scholl and the White Rose I was not very familiar with them and hoped to learn more through this novel. This story is more about a fictional character and her WWII experience from 1942 through 1945 and not about the White Rose movement. I think I would have enjoyed the story more if it focused more on the movement and ended with the "end" of the group.

I would still recommend this novel to fans of WWII historical fiction. The story was different than most of the ones I have read lately. Usually the recent novels have been about British spies and this one is about "traitors" within German society.

This book has been inspired by true events during the second world war in Germany. I love stories based on real events and when they're written as well as this, it can really make the time period come alive for me. Both heart breaking and hopeful, I highly recommend.

I love books that are based on real historical events, especially World War II. Even with all of the reading about this time period that I have done, I have never heard of the White Rose resistance group. I know that this is a work of fiction, but I was touched at the bravery of these brave people, as I know this is based on the real group. I wonder if I would have been as brave if I were around during this time period. The author did a great job with this one, as I enjoyed reading about Natalya and her bravery during this time. She was a character that was easy to invest in.

Young Natalya Petrovich and her friend Lisa Kolbe are horrified by the German Reich’s actions on Kristallnact, and in 1942, after Natalya witnesses the violence meted out to prisoners in Russia, the pair join the White Rose underground movement, producing leaflets decrying the Nazi regime. But the risks are great and traitors are dealt with harshly. Can the girls survive?

I found The Traitor a very moving story, the more so because it is based on fact. It is unusual to read a story based on resistance workers on the German side of the war, and I admit I’d never heard of the White Rose movement’s actions until I read this book, but it is a tale that needs to be known. The fact that they could have been (and ultimately were) betrayed at any time, but were still willing to risk their lives to get the truth out, is a powerful message and shows that many in Germany were as much victims of Hitler as the rest of the world.

A very good historical tale, and a must read for anybody interested in World War II.

Set in Germany during WWII and based around true events, The Traitor takes it's inspiration from The White Rose. A Resistance group led by a group of students from The University of Munich. In this fictitious tale we meet our main protagonist Natalya as she decides to join the group. The story is one of courage and survival..
A difficult and harrowing read at times it really highlights what people went through.
I hadn't heard of The White Rose and this book does a great job of blending fact and fiction as we read of how Natalya joins the group and her work of helping write and distribute anonymous leaflets, hiding them in public places or sending them to random addresses, denouncing the Nazi Regime.
A very dangerous game to play but Natalya is a young woman of strong principals and is willing to take this high risk.
A great story of who you can or can not trust, if anyone at all, and of courage and fear. Some good characterisation too. If you like historical fiction, particularly set in WWII, I would recommend this book.
Thanks to One More Chapter, the author and to Netgalley for a copy of this book.

I read this ARC for an honest review
All thoughts and opinions are mine

I loved historical fiction and absolutely loved this

Set in WW2 and wonderfully descriptive
Loved the characters and the story
The fact it is based on true events just adds to the brilliance of this

If you enjoy reading books set in WWII then this is a must read. Brilliant characters and a story based on true events, it keeps you turning the pages.

As war rages across Europe, a series of anonymous leaflets, criticizing the brutal Nazi regime, appear on the streets of Germany. Their message, written in secret, is a daring act of defiance.
Natalya Petrovich, a student, knows more than she should. As a member of the secret resistance group, the White Rose, Natalya is risking everything.
But even among those she trusts most, there is no guarantee of safety. The Gestapo are everywhere and Natalya knows that falling into the hands of the secret police means torture–and almost certain death.
At times harrowing, at times uplifting I found this to be an intriguing, compelling read. It started slowly with Natalya not joining the White Rose until about a fifth of the way through. I didn’t love Natalya but did admire her. I loved the mix of fact & fiction & loved the amount of research that had gone into the book to marry the two. Not a comfortable read but it had me often at the edge of my seat
My honest review is for a special copy I voluntarily read

This isn't my normal genre of reading so when I picked it up to read it I was reluctant but then it started and I enjoyed it.

This story shows us the horrors of world war II from a German womans perspective. 

It was heartbreaking reading about the things that happened and all the emotions were raw. 

This book isn't for everyone but I recommend it if you like reading about the war and history.

I absolutely enjoyed reading 'The Traitor' which was based on a true story. I had never heard of the White Rose group, so learned something new. I love reading about this period in history and was so grateful to have the chance to read this book by V S Alexander. I rarely write what a story is about as i prefer one to read the book for themselves, but i do highly recommend. I hope to read more books by this author.

My thanks to Netgalley and the Publishers for my copy. This is my honest review which i have voluntarily given.

Stories about World War II have always fascinated me, especially those that are based in fact and tell the stories of ordinary people forced into extraordinary circumstances. Sometimes it seems like it was all of Europe. The Traitor by V. S. Alexander fits right into that category and I enjoyed it very much.

Natalya Petrovich is just a student when things begin to get ominous in Germany. Her family comes from Russia but they have done their best to assimilate themselves into the German culture. However, as Natalya and her family – and many, many others – soon find out, assimilation for all isn’t part of the Master Plan. Purges and concentration camps appear, and many Germans just don’t understand how this can be and resolve to try to do something about it.

Natalya joins the White Rose, the resistance movement of young Germans against the Nazi regime. Her job is to participate in writing and distributing a series of anonymous leaflets hidden in public places or mailed to addresses selected at random from the phone book denouncing the Nazi regime. Author Alexander does an excellent job of portraying the fear and danger, the dedication, the loss of friends and the betrayal of others.

Thanks to One More Chapter Books Harper Collins for providing an advance copy of The Traitor via NetGalley for my honest review. I enjoyed it and recommend it. All opinions are my own.

Based on the true story of the White Rose.

Natalya became a member of the underground Resistance group the White Rose, but she got caught. The group took great risks to take messages to the German people. These brave men and women risked their lives fighting against the enemy. Natalya was a traitor to Hitlers regime. She survives prison but lost friends.

I had never heard of the White Rose, so this alone peaked my interest. The book is well written and the author has researched WWII and the White Rose. This is a story about the brave men and women who risked their lives fighting the enemy. These people were traitors to the Nazis. This is a thought provoking read.

I would like to thank NetGalley, HarperCollins UK, One More Chapter and the author V.S. Alexander for my ARC in exchange for an honest review.

The Traitor by V.S. Alexander is based on a true story regarding the White
Rose resistance movement. A group of students who attended the University of Munich decided they could not longer sit on the sidelines and watch what the Nazi’s were doing to the Jews and the German people. They decided on creating a resistance group in order to make the change they wanted to see. Four characters in the story were based on real life people. The author created a fictional member of the resistance so as not to change or do an injustice to the memory of these four heroes.
I have read many, many books of this period but this was the first time I was made aware of a real life movement known as the White Rose. The White Rose was a risky but peaceful movement.

V.S. Alexander does an excellent job of bringing the lesser known stories of WWII to readers. I love learning about this time history. It is definitely worth the time to read the author’s notes at the end. V.S. Alexander’s books are wonderful because they shed light on historical topics through likable characters.

Thank you, NetGalley, Kensington Books, and V.S. Alexander for the ARC of The Traitor in exchange for an honest review.

Readers of the genre know that there's always something special when fictional characters interact with real historical figures= and this novel of the White Rose movement is no exception. Told through the voice of Natalya, it's the tale of young Germans who tried to fight the regime non-violently, a fight which was, unfortunately, unsuccessful. Natalya is a Russian emigre to Germany, her parents having fled to Munich when things went sideways in Russia. The novel opens with Kristallnacht and then jumps (disconcertingly) to Natalya traveling via train to serve as a nurse at the front. It brings her back to Munich where she connects with the network and, sadly, discovers that trust is a fragile thing. I was unfamiliar with the White Rose network; recommend reading the afterward for additional information. My quibble is that Natalya is not the most engaging character. Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC. For fans of historical fiction.

This is an excellent historical novel. The author states that the issue of WWII " ...is a tragic, terrifying and humbling subject" and the plot and characters create all those emotions.
I knew very little about the White Rose group but they were probably the most famous civilian resistance movement that developed in Nazi Germany but some of its members paid a terrible price for their support for them.
They were formed by students and a leading philosophy lecturer in Munich University. Of course Hitler hated such people who questionned what was happening in Germany with the rise of the Nazis.
The novel begins by introducing Natalya Petrovich as a teenager still somewhat oblivious to what is building up in Munich as war approaches. The first scene with Natalya and her friend out and about in the wake of the infamous Kritallnacht of November 9 1938 sets the mood. But Natalya's parents know of the building threat especially her father who works as an apothecary for a Jewish chemist. When Natalya sees how her father's work place is destroyed and how girls such as her need now to be'the good Germans' she fears for how the future will develo.
As a volunteer nurse she heads to the Russian front where she meets three soldiers, Willi, Alex and Hans. Hans and his sister Sophie Scholl are real characters and their placement through the plot is not forced at all and made all the later tragedy seem even more personal. Despite the growth of right wing populism in Germany which sees a restoration of vile facism both the Scholls and the Whote Rose circle are national heroes.
"We thought the world would be different...we were wrong" says one of the young characters as Natalya and her friends as nurses and soldiers and later as students meeting to try and overcome the growing threat of Hitler's plans mature so fast in a world none of us can really imagine today.
A timely novel. Well written with of course believable characters undertaken with a deft touch from real history. There is happiness but an awful lot of cruelty and death. But then that is war. Whatever the regime that never changes.

I found this story really interesting. I had never heard of the White Rose group before and I thought that fiction and fact were very well intertwined in this story. Their bravery in the face of death is an incredible story.

Thank you to Netgalley for my copy.

Thank you net galley for the advance reader copy of this novel. This was my second novel by this author and it was so very good. Well researched and true to history regarding the white Rose movement resisting Hitler. The characters were well rounded and believable. I enjoyed this novel and the authors more at the end was an especially nice touch. Well done!

A unique story of a young German girl, Natalya, who betrays Hitler and joins the Resistance. She is a survivor and her story is very unique and interesting. I liked that the story was written from the perspective of a German. Thank you to Net Galley and the publisher for the opportunity to read an advance copy in exchange for an honest review.

The Traitor is a compelling weave of fiction and imaginatively structured fact. A story that relives the harrowing days in Germany under Nazi rule, where young men and women espouse bravery, loyalty and fortitude in their opposition to the Nazi ideology. In 1942 several students at the University of Munich, led by brother and sister, Hans and Sophie Scholl, founded a non-violent, intellectual resistance group to the Nazi regime, called The White Rose (die Weiße Rose). The group conducted a leaflet and graffiti campaign to illustrate how Nazi power was destroying freedom and social values, killing millions of innocent people, and conducting an unjust war at the behest of a megalomaniac and his party.

The White Rose Group risked their lives to challenge Hitler’s regime and the leaders were finally caught after a caretaker at the University of Munich reported them to the Gestapo. Siblings Sophie and Hans, along with their friend Christoph Probst, were executed by guillotine on 22 February 1943. Not only were the three friends inspirational and brave conducting their opposition campaign but as they each went to their deaths, they remained committed to their cause, loyal to their colleagues, and resolute to the end. Hans Scholl’s last words were “Let Freedom Live”, and Sophie stood upright and determined at her trial constantly challenging the partisan judge. They were tried and executed the same day.

The true story resonated deeply with me, how young men and women can assume the selfless dedication and bravery at a time in history where cruel lurking horror was commonplace. This story is truly inspirational.

“When you see the world in all its enchanting beauty, you’re sometimes reluctant to concede that the other side of the coin exists. The antithesis exists here, as it does everywhere, if only you open your eyes to it. But here the antithesis is accentuated by war to such an extent that a weak person sometimes can’t endure it.”

The fictional aspects of the story place a young Russian-German woman Natalya Irenaovich Petrovich as a member of the White Rose Group. Natalya and her friend Lisa Kolbe undertake various ventures throughout the story as they stray dangerously close to the authorities and discovery. V.S. Alexander writes a fictional novel through the eyes of Natalya and creates a wonderfully absorbing story with an authentic concern for the real activities of the White Rose Group. The characters illustrate the pervasive fear existing in German society at the time and how they struggled to maintain secrecy and caution, with everyone that they encountered. The atmosphere of suspicion and the anxiety of what has become normal life is extremely well depicted.

What V.S. Alexander has achieved is the blending of actual inspirational moments in history with such a compelling fictional narrative that creates an outstanding novel. It is fitting that this book is released in February. I would highly recommend this book and I’d like to thank Harper Collins, One More Chapter and NetGalley for providing me with a free ARC copy of the book in return for an honest review.