I am a fan of Danielle Steel and she never disappoints. I am not much for historical fiction but woth her books it's always a great read!

The time frame she made it to where you understand the WW2 setting! The characters were awesome! As usual what a great read!!!

Thanks NetGalley!

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the advanced copy. Danielle Steele has done it again. Her books are such a comfort read, even if the subject is heavier. I greatly enjoyed this story. It follows Sophia, who is growing up in the middle of World War 2 in Germany. Although it is heavier than Steele’s typical books, I believe that many will enjoy Only The Brave.

Only The Brave was actually my first book I've read by Danielle Steel and it did not disappoint!!

The book follows Sophia from the start of WW2 with all of the events she experiences.
This novel is heartbreaking, inspiring and beautifully written. I truly felt like I was seeing Sophia's life during WW2.
I loved this book and will recommend it to any that loves historical fiction.

Thank you NetGalley and Random House publishing group for the opportunity to have this ARC in exchange for my honest review!

Another 5 Stars from me! Thank you again for letting me get my eager hands on another ARC!! Such a great romance, and love for friends and family during WWII, Germany Nazi’s wartime.

I love Danielle Steel books and this one is one of the reason's why she is a no-brain have to read for me. This book left you with. all the feels, I could relate to this book so much because we lived in Germany for 3 years and had visited Dachau. I can still remember the eery silence that was over the concentration camp as we walked the grounds where so many died. Your heart ached for what had been done there. The research that went into this book was very well done and I felt like I was right there with Sophia as she endured the horrible era of Hitler's reign.

Sophia Alexander has always been mature for her age, but when her mom is put into a sanatorium for people that have Tuberculosis, she has to grow up even faster and try to keep a reign on her younger sister that is boy/men crazy. Sophia makes it a point to visit her mom every day and while doing so and taking care of her mom, she finds her calling in life to be a nurse. Sophia's dad is a well known surgeon and is always busy with his practice. Sophia takes up a lot of the slack for her dad by visiting her mom everyday and taking care of her sister. Before too long, her mom takes a decline and they end up loosing her, It was devastating for Sophia because she had been the one spending so much time with her mom.

Sophia decided to go into nursing and get to where she could help her dad at his practice to try and relive some of the workload. Her dad was still always busy and ended up spending the night at the practice a lot because he was worried about his patients and wanted to keep a close eye on them. When the war started, her dad was a go to for the people that were trying to hide out from the soldiers collecting the Jewish people and sending them to concentration camps. Thomas would treat them and then help them get back without anyone really knowing they had come to see him. Sophia was always busy helping her dad, but she had also found a way to feel needed and useful for the Jewish children. Sophia would help get them to a safe place during the cover of night or sit with them while they were waiting for someone to come and get them.

The things that Sophia and her family have to go through because of the war will break your heart. I felt like I was going through it with them while reading this but I know I could never feel what they felt. It is so sad to know what all they went through, and they weren't even Jewish. They had just offered to help and were faithful to their oath that they had taken being in the medical field. I know Danielle Steel had to have done some research on all of this and I can't imagine listening to someone's story that actually lived through this, Such a sad time for the Jewish community.

I know you will enjoy going with Sophia on her journey during the concentration camps and what all she and her family had to go through. Bring your tissue because some of it will have tears rolling down your face. How could they do what they did to innocent people? This is such a great story and I am so fortunate that I got to read it early.

I voluntarily read and reviewed this book and all opinions are my own. Thanks to NetGalley, the author and the publisher for an advanced copy of this book. It will pull at your heart strings!

Wow! Danielle Steel is definitely one of my favorite Authors, but this is by far one of my favorite novels that she's written.

Reading about historical fiction and the atrocities that happened during WWII always takes an emotional toll on me. However, this is something that the world needs to remember.

This was written so well and I just want to hug and cry with Sophia. She was such a lovable character and devoted her life to helping others. This book focuses on how the cruel atrocities were also committed on so many of the German (Non Jewish) people as well. Anyone that openly did not agree with Hitler was automatically punished.

I could not put this book down. It's definitely one that I recommend for everyone to read.

Thanks to NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Two sisters in Berlin during WW2. Their father is a well respected surgeon, and they live in comfort. All the younger daughter wants is to get married, have lots of babies, and live in comfort. The older sister wants to be a nurse and work beside her father. Then the Nazis start their reign of terror.

The atrocities described in this book are simply immeasurable and almost unimaginable the amount of suffering that people during this time went through. It is one thing to read about it, have an emotional reaction to what transpired but as a person, I cannot even come close to what happened to those that experienced it. To the guards and those who supported the movement, these prisoners were not even human. They saw people wither away in front of their eyes. One line that stuck with me is when Sophia saw women torn apart by dogs. This was nothing but evil. Yet, Sophia persevered in her quest to help others and to sacrifice potentially her life in doing so as evidenced by her helping Theresa and Heinrich escape to safety. She helped her bunkmates escape from the concentration camp. She nursed Ted back to health. Her goodness and compassion for others was more than most people believe is possible. Like the title said, only the brave could have lived through what she did and continued to believe. The greatest emotion that permeated through this book is love. Her and Ted were brought together for a reason.

This is a historical fiction novel focused on a young woman named Sophia, and her experience during WW2. There is a lot of raw emotion in this story as Sophia grows up in a strong household, mourning her mother's illness and death, assisting her father as one of her surgical nurses, and then experiencing the impacts of the war as her sister has to escape Germany after learning of her husband's newly discovered Jewish heritage. The story incorporates the life in concentration camps, efforts of the resistance groups, and most of all, Sophia's strong resilience in all circumstances.

It is never easy to read a novel that explores the atrocities of World War II Germany, and this book is no exception. However, it is a superb historical novel featuring elements of the author’s classic style – namely a strong, independent female protagonist, a fast-paced storyline, and a modicum of romance. While I enjoy Steel’s books for entertaining escapist reading, her historical novels (Flying Angels, and Ball at Versailles) including this one, reflect her best work.

Sophia Alexander lived a comfortable life in Berlin leading up to the war due to her father’s skill and devotion as a successful surgeon. All that rapidly changed – first with the death of her mother followed by the rise of the Nazi party to power. Trained as a nurse, she shared her father’s deep commitment to serve, and while her practice was based on the same principles, her faith added another dimension. Ultimately, she joined a convent while participating in underground activities to save children from the Nazi efforts to exterminate undesirables.

The storyline follows the courageous and compassionate acts of a woman who was willing to risk her life to save others, including a daring escape from a concentration camp. Sophia was an admirable, even inspirational, character as well as her father as he stood up for his oath as a physician and paid a horrific price. There are other characters that also demonstrated bravery in the light of the severe consequences of resisting Hitler’s agenda, as well as a few who lived in wealth and comfort far removed from the horrors of war.

While this story is a work of fiction, it rings true based on historical facts. I highly recommend it for those who enjoy the author’s work – just be prepared to be deeply affected by the events and the characters.

My thanks to the author, the publisher, and NetGalley for the privilege of reviewing this book. The opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

This review is being posted immediately to my GoodReads account and will be posted on Amazon upon publication.

This one was more of a slow burn for me than the usual DS fare…once it hooked me tho boy was I hooked. Sophia is quite the tortured heroine this time, from a sick mother to a concentration camp and beyond she sure is tested and comes out on the other side stronger. My only complaint is how quick it wraps up…the ending almost feels like an afterthought…other than that I rate this as 4.5 out of 5 stars!

Loved reading the engaging and engrossing story. When war breaks out in Germany, Sophia sees the atrocities being done to the Jews, helps her sister and husband (1/4 part Jewish) flee Germany, works as a nurse, her father, a well-known doctor won't agree to euthanize, and Sophia joins a convent. Read the highly recommended, wonderfully written, and a must read riveting story of a woman who wants to do everything she can do to help. Can't wait to read the next novel by the phenomenal author, Danielle Steel.

Only the Brave by Danielle Steel is one of the best historical fiction novel, I have read. Sophie is a delightful and inspiring heroine. Her commitment to helping others even in the worst of times is truly remarkable. Ms Steel touches on the horrors of the times which a deft hand that makes the reader feel the terror and heartbreak rather than describing them in lurid detail. Highly recommended.
Thank you to Ms. Steel, publisher, Random House Publishing Group--Ballantine, and NetGalley for opportunity for preview the book.

I’m not usually a fan of historic novels, but a Danielle Steel novel will always catch my eye.. I couldn’t help but admire the bravery of Sophia’s father, standing up for his beliefs and continuing to uphold the Hippocratic Oath against Hitler and his men. Sophia follows in his steps through the adversity and heartbreak of her journey during World War II. This novel gives you a glimpse of the travesties that took place during this war. I was on the edge of my seat hoping the outcome I wanted was the outcome that happened.
Thank you to NetGalley for this ARC copy. I thoroughly enjoyed it!

Over the years I have read many books by Danielle Steel, however, in my opinion, this is one of her best books yet. It is a story that encompasses much of history beginning in the late 1930s. From the beginning, my heart was totally into this captivating, heartfelt story and could not put it down.
It is 1937, in Germany, where the Nazis have created much persecution with their take-over of the country. People have been defined as either Jewish or Aryan. Sophia at age sixteen has experienced many changes, including her mother suffering with tuberculosis in a sanatorium. Her father is a well-known surgeon, who is extremely busy with little time to visit his wife and her younger sister is more interested in the social aspects of life and is struggling to get through school so she can move on with her plans which includes marriage and children. Sophia visits regularly, and her mother’s illness has motivated Sophia to enroll in nursing school.
As the years progress and the Nazis gain more power, Sophia, who has completed nursing school, works at her father’s hospital and is a great help to him. She also joins a group and has helped move Jewish children who have lost their entire families at the hands of the Nazis to safer places where they are hidden and cared for. To the shock of her family, Sophia also joins a convent where she sincerely believes her calling is to live a life helping others as a Nun. As the years pass and the conditions worsen, Sophia who is known at the convent as Sister Anne, is arrested and taken to a Nazi Concentration Camp where she endures unthinkable torture and hardships, and yet she remains brave and is called a hero because of her heroic plan that saves her and several other women.
This story is fast-paced with many surprises and frightening situations; however, it is a testament to those who were so brave they risked their own lives to make a difference in the lives of others. This is truly a book of historical fiction at its finest!
I received a complimentary copy of this book. All comments and opinions are my own.

Danielle Steel brings us the story of family and how each person carves their lives in the face of danger and war. We meet the Alexander family at a time when Hitler's power is rising and they start to see his devastation to those around them. When the matriarch passes away, eldest daughter Sophia must keep the family together with her sister wanting to party and enjoy life as a teenager and her brilliant surgeon father whose practice keeps him busy. Sophia finds comfort with the nuns nearby and the resistance meetings she attends with those whose thoughts mirror hers. What does each member of this family do when faced with betraying their fellow man and going against everything they believe? Will they go along with everyone else just to keep the peace and suspicion away from them, or will they stay their ground?

Danielle Steel brings us this story of how the little things you do can impact so many. She shows the many facets of people and what each are willing to do in the face of danger and possible deportation when saying or doing the wrong thing can label you as a traitor. Follow along with Sophia and her family as they try to maneuver this new life in the midst of war and chaos. Will their choices bring them peace, or will it be their downfall?

I have read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own. I would like to thank NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine, Delacorte Press for this privilege.

Only the Brave is a different kind of novel than the usual Danielle Steel romance, love story. Although there is love, this historical fiction looks at love in its many different forms--love for one's fellow man, for those in need, for the displaced women of war, and love as a way to improve the world. The setting of Only the Brave is World War II Germany, where those who resist Nazi doctrine pay a heavy price with their lives.

Steel describes the concentration camps that serve as punishment for those people labeled as undesirable. The camps provide a slow painful movement toward death. Readers learn about the starvation, the savage beatings, and the labor that was designed to work people to death. Many people endured a long slow push toward death. Steel creates characters who are realistic, well-defined, and compelling. The female protagonist, Sophia, possesses the kind of compassion that was modeled by her heroine Edith Stein, who used her role in the Church as a way to save lives and offer succor for those most in need. Sophia experiences the horror on a concentration camp and the loss of those she loves, but she never loses her faith in the possibility of creating a better world.

Only the Brave is the best kind of historical fiction. Steel makes clear that there are always people who strive to transform even the worst of times into a better world. I enjoyed this novel very much. Thank you to Steel, publisher Random House Publishing Group--Ballantine, and NetGalley for providing me with this ARC in exchange for my honest review. The comments above are my honest thoughts about Danielle Steel's Only the Brave.

I received a complimentary copy of this book and the opinions expressed are my own. When I read what this book, "Only the Brave"was about I was not sure if I was going to like it because of the nature of it. But I was so wrong! This story made you want to cry at times because you could actually feel the hurt and pain the characters were going through. It also made you aware of the atrocities that were being done to the Jewish race so unfairly! Even though the book was painful to read, there was some good people and good things that happened and the story had a good ending. Kudos to Ms. Steel for another job well done!

I read, Only The Brave by Danielle Steel. This book was one of Danielle Steel’s best. The characters were deep and complex. The setting was during WWII and I feel she did a great job with the timeframe. The story sounded plausible and involved twists, turns, and unexpected events. I would recommend this book to anyone that enjoys reading historic fiction or would like to explore the genre.

The sweet Danielle Steel story of one young woman who wants to help others during WWII. Unlike my other favorite Danielle Steel novel, Jewels and The Duchess, this story while hard to put down, feels rushed, especially at the end.