This is a WW2 novel
The characters were amazing and the premise was so good
It was an emotional read in parts and I loved the writing style.
A great book

Historical fiction isn’t my favourite genre, and I couldn’t connect with the main character as a child. I’m also very sensitive to reading only own voices stories and I was unable to find any information that confirmed this is.

My sincerest thanks to the publisher for a copy in exchange for my review

I didn’t finish this one. I got so far and just couldn’t get into it. With many other books calling my name I decided to call it a day with this one and move on.

I loved this book and it is great to have it told by a German girl in a Nazi family. The story was heartbreaking at times but really well written and a great plot. For anyone who is a fan of these historic stories I would definitely recommend it

Some stories creep up on you out of the blue and utterly sweep you away and for me, People Like Us, was one of those moments. In a nutshell, this story depicts the atrocities of WWII, but personal courage, strength, bravery and hope shines brightly through to the forefront of the narrative. It was moving beyond belief, albeit disturbing at times.

The writing is openly honest and lays all it's cards down on the table. Nothing is off limits and the order of the day is to deliver the truth. The narrative spans many years as we follow Hetty's journey. As readers, we are witness to her every thoughts. It was a remarkable ride watching Hetty mould and shape into the woman we see in the concluding moments and I felt like I knew her extremely well, which made her journey all the more heartfelt.

Although the backdrop depicts the ravages of war, at the forefront we have a moving love story of Romeo and Juliet proportions. Struggle is an almighty theme that dives out of the book and touches each and every corner and character. But no more so than our star-crossed lovers. To dive further into the narrative I feel would reveal too many spoilers. So I shall curb my enthusiasm to relay to you all how special this book is and I'll simply say - read it!

People Like Us is a raw and brutal look at life, love and longing amidst the struggles of a Nazi regime. It stole my heart with its honesty and bravery and it's a book I'll never forget.

Based on a true story. A heart-wrenching story told from the perspective of an SS officer's daughter. One of the best historical stories I have read in a long time. A must read. Recommended.

A heartbreaking and unique story set in 1930s Germany, telling the story of the daughter of a senior Nazi supporter and newspaper editor and her love for her Jewish bestfriend.

Despite the destiny planned for her, life, it seems has other plans and as war breaks out, it seems like everything will be lost.

A beautiful story about love in the darkest of places.

I highly enjoyed this novel that takes place in 1930's Germany. This book sheds light on hatred, bigotry and ignorance, which is much in line with our current times today. I was glued to the pages and highly intrigued with the characters. I also loved Louise Fein's writing style. This was my first novel by her, but it will not be my last.

I would like to thank NetGalley, Aria and the author Louise Fein for my ARC in exchange for an honest review

This story takes the reader into the heartbreak of broken dreams and the darkest of days.

Historical Fiction readers will delight in this extraordinary story. This is the debut novel for Ms. Louise Fein...it is elegant, beautiful and completely unexpected.

Ms. Fein brings the second world war to us in a new and surprising way.

It's a secret, scandalous love affair that is completely verboten..."Hetty", strong arian daughter of a high ranking Nazi is in love with "her country's enemy"... The glory of the Reich's future lies in the complete annihilation of the Jewish race. And yet...

She will risk everything she knows for Walter...but for how long...and at what cost?

4⭐

Thank you to NetGalley, the publishers at Aria~Head of Zeus and the author Ms. Louise Fein, for the opportunity to read this Advanced Readers Copy of "People Like Us". The opinions expressed in this review are mine alone.

Thank you Netgalley, Aria, Head of Zeus and Louise Fein for free e-ARC in return of my honest review.

I loved People Like Us. I could not stop reading about Hetty and I wondered what would happen next. I was totally into the story. The reader meets Hetty in 1930s when Hitler only came into power. Suddenly, her life is changing. Her family is moving to a better bigger house full of everything they need, including two servants. Hetty is a perfect German Arian child. Her father is SS officer, her brother is part of Hitler Youth and she herself is member of BDM. She believes in her country and Hitler. She even has his portrait in her bedroom. After meeting Hitler during parade, Hetty even believes she is the chosen one. However, her life changes when she meets her long lost friend, who once saved her life, but he is a Jew.

Hetty's transformation from fanatic to reasonable human being is quite interesting. She has to go through so much emotional pain that she lost some part of herself. I think Louise Fein did marvellous in developing Hetty. The author creates small missteps and Hetty has to learn. The process of opening her eyes to who Hitler truly was is fascinating.

Forbidden love during Hitler's Nazi regime. Hetty is the daughter of a high-ranking Nazi official, while Walter is a childhood friend with whom she falls in love. As Walter is Jewish, the courage and strength of this couple is stretched to its limits. This book seemed a little plodding, but overall well written historical fiction set during trying times.

Wow! This book ripped my heart out, burned up my soul and re-attached it all, appreciating those who saw the truth and painful trauma that happened to the Jewish people during WWII Germany.
As a daughter of A German mother born in a bomb shelter and whose family literary hid in that bomb shelter in Bremen during WWII to keep from having to participate in the horrific events of the time, this book literally had me in tears.
Hetty, our Protagonist so innocent at first sees the reality and the truth for herself. Through her love for Walter she learned so many painful wrongs her father was leading and having to fulfill as his job in the Nazi Party.

I might have to sit on this book review for a while as i am still trying to wrap my mind around the marvelously written People Like Us by author Louise Fein how it has affected me.

I guess i can only say it needs to be read, it is poignant for the day we are in, there were so many paragraphs that were resemblant of situations happening right now. It is a book full of the depth of a love that goes beyond the span of ages and will restore your sight of the goodness of humanity within the juxtaposition of the worst of humanity.

I thank you, Louise Fein, Net Galley, and Aria the honor of reading this book in lieu of my honest review.

I love historical fiction book and this a great read. Full of emotion in a highly emotional time. A real page turner if you like this gene of book. highly descriptive a thoroughly enjoyable read.

This was an easy to read thriller that kept my attention all the way through! Lots of twists and surprises I didn't see coming. Very good, would recommend.....a quick read but worth picking up

What an amazing and beautiful read...
I absolutely love reading historical fiction and this one came along just when I needed something engrossing..
Sometimes people find love in places they never expect to find it...
We meet Hetty and Walter in this story..
Childhood friends, a pure innocent love for each other...
Loving your friend no matter who they are or where they come from...
I found this to be an incredibly different read in that Hetty comes from a German family so we get such an insight into life in Germany and a family's love for Hitler and all he stood for.
So when she needs to stand up for her friend who is different in his beliefs, she goes against all she knows and all she feels she stands for.
A read which will certainly bring tears...
We see how Hetty grows up loving Hitler and all he stands for.
She believes he is talking directly to her at times.
How sad for her when all she believes in comes crashing down although she comes out stronger for it.
While reading this one, I felt the author put so much time and effort into her research of such a historical time...
Well worth taking the time for this one 💕

This story is set in Germany during the 1930's where bit by bit the stage is set for what is to come. As the daughter of a high-ranking Nazi.Hetty is steeped in the current culture of the country. However, with everything around her changing, she is beginning to question those beliefs. And then there is her brother's friend Walter, a young Jewish boy she happens to fall in love with. We read as the strong arm of Hitler encourages the masses to think his way, like sheep, they follow. Life is becoming more questionable for Hetty ...her dreams of becoming a doctor is not allowed for German women. Needless to say the love affair between Hetty and Walter is secretive, dangerous and their dreams might be nothing more than dreams with no hope of a future together.. Anti-semitism is rising at an alarming pace and freedoms are being taken away. You read this and wonder how can a people let this happen, to be so inhuman and cruel. Can this happen again? Reading this story makes you wonder. My thanks to NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Spanning a six-year time period from August 1933 to August 1939, People Like Us tells the fascinating story of Herta (Hetty) Heinrich who lives in Leipzig in Nazi Germany with her older brother, Karl, mother, Helene, and father, Franz.

Hetty’s father is a writer at a local newspaper called Leipziger but he ends up taking over from the previous owner and editor, Herr Drucker, and acquires a large house in the process. He also works for the Schutzstaffel (SS) and rises up the ranks to become a senior leader.

In 1929, when she was seven years old, Hetty and her brother used to play with a Jewish boy called Walter Keller and one afternoon he saves her from drowning in the local lake. Karl stops playing with Walter and it’s only when Walter and a girl called Freda Federmann are picked on by the new science teacher at school in 1934 and made to leave that Hetty is shocked to discover that this blond-haired and blue-eyed boy is actually Jewish and not ‘pure’ German blood and she should have nothing to do with him.

By this point, Hetty is hearing Hitler’s voice in her thoughts and she has grown up believing in all the Nazi ideology, like anti-semitism and eugenics, which is gaining momentum. Karl has joined the Hitler Jugend (Hitler Youth) and Hetty is in the Bund Deutscher Mädel (BDM) (League of German Girls) and Karl’s next step is to join the Luftwaffe.

It isn’t until three years later, in 1937, that Hetty sees Walter again. They begin meeting regularly in secret. They’re obviously very conflicted and try to resist their mutual attraction but both admit that they’ve liked each other since they were young. Hetty is confused as she’s seeing life through Walter’s eyes and she starts to challenge her beliefs, especially as she learns more about the current situation and what is happening to Jewish people.

Hetty’s father is spreading more Nazi propaganda through his newspaper and, in his SS role, he is privvy to lots of top secret information.

As Hetty and Walter’s relationship progresses, they put themselves in more and more danger, and the general situation in Germany worsens and the couple are risking everything. There would be severe repercussions, for them and others, if their relationship was discovered.

This is a really powerful historical fiction novel; beautifully written prose and very well researched, with details from the author’s own family background. It was so gripping and tense, and very dramatic – at times, I was holding my breath and wondering what was going to happen next. The fear and terror of people was palpable as various shocking atrocities were committed.

Overall, it was an emotional and poignant story and I really felt for Hetty and Walter, to be in such an awful position and in such danger. This book is so thought provoking and absorbing and I was sad that it had to end. It’s a compelling and heart-breaking, but ultimately hopeful, read and one that will stay with me a long time. I really enjoyed it and look forward to reading more from Louise Fein.

It’s not very often I sob uncontrollably in the garden on a sunny afternoon – but my goodness, I haven’t read a book that had such a powerful emotional impact in quite some time. And there was nothing remotely manipulative about it, just a totally heartbreaking love story set against an exceptionally drawn period of history.

Set in Leipzig, the book begins with the innocence of a child – Hetty’s attachment to Walter, the boy who saved her life, her brother’s friend. Through her child’s eye view, we witness the rise of Nazism, the growing enmity towards the Jewish population, the appropriation of property, the regimentation of the population, the deification of Hitler – as Hetty’s father rises through the ranks of the SS, she follows the path of unquestioning duty. The insights into the daily lives of ordinary German people are extraordinary, the domestic detail, the day-to-day lives, all set against a vivid portrayal of the growing threat, the constant indoctrination and the rising tide of hatred.

And then, Hetty finds out that Walter is Jewish – and it turns her firmly held beliefs and her comfortable life entirely upside down. He’s blonde and blue-eyed, and doesn’t conform to the “type” they had described – with living examples – at their school assembly (one of so many stunning set pieces in the book that will long stay in the memory). And when they meet again, totally against the odds, their relationship only grows – despite the massive risks, including the possibility of betrayal by others, their love becomes all-consuming. It’s a love that makes you ache because its sheer impossibility, the risks they take every time they meet… and as their love story develops, it plays itself out against the horrifying backdrop of the approach of the Second World War.

Hetty and Walter’s story is, of course, fiction, albeit inspired by the author’s family history (do read the author’s note at the book’s end) – but fiction set against an only-too-real background, with an exceptional depth of accurate detail. I’ve never read a story told from quite this perspective before, and it’s what makes it all so much more powerful – Hetty’s early unquestioning belief that her way is the right way is exceptionally disturbing, but entirely understandable, and so superbly conveyed. The whole book has the intimacy of a memoir – told in the first person, everything is seen through Hetty’s eyes, as we travel with her along her journey from blind allegiance, through uncertainty and questioning, to anger and opposition as the cruelty and dehumanisation escalates.

This is a deeply affecting love story – one that will strengthen your belief in the power of love, and its ability to overcome every obstacle. The book’s ending – that so broke me – is almost unbearably uplifting, perfectly pitched, a glorious triumph of hope and endurance. But what will particularly remain with me from this book is that horrifying backdrop, the way an ideology took over a people, that blind belief, the ease with which hatred and brutality became the norm. This is such an important book, and one I doubt I’ll ever forget – and to forget its lessons would be unforgivable.

(Review copied to Amazon UK, but link not yet available)

Thank you to Netgalley and Aria for this advanced reader's copy in return for my honest review. Redemption and hope are the overall themes of this captivating story. I read a lot of books set during ww2 so I was delighted to have the opportunity to read this book.

I just finished People Like Us by Louise Fein. This book is going to haunt me for a long time. I read a lot of WWII era historical fiction. I felt the author did a lot of research, and I like that this story is being told from a German perspective in pre-war years from 1929-August, 1939.

The beginning catches the reader right away. Hetty a very young girl is drowning in a lake and is saved by her older brother Karl’s Jewish friend Walter. The story then skips a few years. Getty’s family circumstances have changed. Her father a low level worker for a newspaper has taken over the paper and moved into his Jewish predecessor’s house. Hetty and her family become indoctrinated in Nazi ways. Her father is a high ranking SS leader, her brother joins the Luftwaffe, her mother works with an orphanage and supports her husband, and Hetty is involved in a youth group. Walter, of course, is no longer a friend of the family.

In a chance meeting, Walter and Hetty start a relationship. Over time their love develops and we see Hetty questions the beliefs she has learned at home. Having the story told by Hetty allowed me to feel everything Hetty was feeling. I was on an emotional roller coaster. I felt so many emotions. Please be prepared for an emotional ending. It tore me up but it is also a satisfying ending. The only thing I would change is the cover. Thank you Aria Books and NetGalley for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.