All My love, Derrick took me longer to read than I had thought it would. I had to take breaks and compose myself. The realities of WW2 filled the pages. Many pages brought me to tears. Other pages brought me to extreme anger. There were pages that brought a smile, but like during the war they were few and far between.

All My Love, Derrick had me in tears and kept me hooked until the very end. I think I went through a box of Kleenex like it was nothing. I got so cranky my boys decided to give me space.

The way the story was written, I couldn't help but become invested with the characters. It is stories, like this one, that have allowed me insight into what was happening during the war. By following Derrick during the time period my eyes were opened to things that I had never thought of before. I won't be forgetting them now. I will never completely understand. I will never complete grasp what people suffered through. I do however gain more and more respect for those touched by the tragedies of war.

If you want to learn more about WW2 you need to grab All My Love, Detrick. It isn't the easiest book to read. But it is a great way to gain more understanding. It is a great way to learn an important lesson. We must never forget the past. It just may save us in the future.

Thank you to Netgalley for the opportunity to read this book for my honest review.
An incredible story of heartbreak, love, Nazi hatred and finally the freeing of the Jewish people and the death of the most heinous man to ever live in my opinion. I smiled and cried many times throughout this book.

When a young German man falls in love with a young Jewish woman, the Nazi regime will not allow the romance to continue. This book has so many good points, good chapters that I'm not sure where I lost the thread of the story. I feel it starts and stops and sputters along, there is no smooth flow to the story.

My heart was rung in so many directions in this not so happily-ever-after work of historical fiction. It is set in Hitler's Germany as things heat up and progress into WWII. Mercifully, there is a gleam of goodness and kindness, stark against the awfulness, which weaves tender tendrils of romance throughout the tale as a saving grace. Jacob, Leah and Detrick bridge the gap of racism with secrets that are too dangerous to expose.

In this book, I found the author Roberta Kagan to be exemplary in her telling of the tale. She didn't mince words or stifle outcomes, creating this narrative into greater aura of reality, of how people most likely experienced it. I could 'feel it' almost as if I had gone through the experience myself. Therefore, I believe she deserves a 5-Star rating ovation.

One caution is that some readers may not wish to read the many intimate scenes portrayed.

~Eunice C., Reviewer/Blogger~

September 2023

Disclaimer: This is my honest opinion based on the complimentary review copy sent by NetGalley and the publisher.

A WWII story about a young German boy and his friendship with a Jewish family, particularly his relationship with the daughter of the family. The author is talented and can clearly write, but I didn't like the way the subject matter was handled.

A touching story of love between people of different races during WW2. A young man falls for a lovely Jewish girl, and wants to protect her and her father, who the young man works for, and hides them in an attic. All of the forces around them are trying to tear them apart.

“All My Love, Detrick” is the first book in a series by Roberta Kagan. This book was originally released in 2012 and, per the editor, has been edited for re-release. I’ve read another WWII historical fiction series (Blood Sisters) by this author, so I’m a bit familiar with her style of writing. This book, however, reads like a first book - even after being re-edited. There are A LOT of characters in this book - we’ve got the two main characters - Leah and Detrick. Toss in families, friends, acquaintances, romantic interests, and … it gets a bit confusing at times keeping track of who is who. I believe, having not read the sequels, that maybe those characters get fleshed out in subsequent books, but for some (especially Dorothy), I would’ve preferred an introduction in this book and then fleshing out backstories in separate books. Additionally, this book drags regarding pacing and also due to so much happening with minor character arcs. I don’t know how much time passes in this book because the only references to time passing are historical events (and one event I’m still wondering where the author got her information - I cannot find reference to the event happening the way she described it online). Another reviewer claimed this book is a romance novel set with the background of WWII and I have to (sorta) agree. There’s a lot of insta-lust (not my favorite trope) between many characters. I would say that the *bones* of this book are there, but there’s so much fluff surrounding the bones that the love story between Leah and Detrick gets bogged down. I wanted to like this book more than I did as I know Ms. Kagan can write … but this book wasn’t as polished as I would have liked.