Five years after being seized by the United States government, German rocket scientist Jürgen Rhodes was finally reunited with his family --- his wife, Sofie, and their children, Gisela and Felix --- when they moved to the US to join him in Huntsville, Alabama.

THE GERMAN WIFE is inspired by the true story of Operation Paperclip, a secret US intelligence program that employed former Nazis after World War II. The novel alternates between two sets of characters and two time periods, the 1930s and the 1950s. I was immediately drawn into this powerful account of a German family who was appalled by the  activities of the Nazis but felt powerless to stop them.

"THE GERMAN WIFE is thoughtful and thought-provoking. I have only read a few of Kelly Rimmer’s books, but she’s quickly becoming one of my favorite historical fiction authors."

"A man like Hitler always wants war. He wants power and land and no one is going to give those things to him. At some point, he'll try to take them."

I very much wanted to condemn Jürgen and Sofie for not doing more. However, it was clear that they felt utterly hopeless while being surrounded by propaganda and so many former close friends who wholeheartedly believed in the Nazi agenda to exterminate the entire Jewish race.

"We had so long been afraid of dissent that even as a nation descended into madness, any moral call to rise up against the chaos went unheeded."

After hiding their shame for nearly a decade, they were more than ready for a fresh start in the US. But will they be accepted by the Americans residing in the area? What about the other German families living near them on "Sauerkraut Hill"? Will their new neighbors be able to understand why they were unable to stop the atrocities?

"Every single time I opted not to take a stand, I was taking a stand --- for the wrong side."

Meanwhile, in the US, during both the Depression and the Dust Bowl era of the 1930s, Lizzie, her brother Henry and their parents struggled to farm their land despite the severe drought in Texas. They were determined to hold onto their property, but unfortunately nature had other ideas. Lizzie stated:

"I was a realist who loved my land and my life enough that when a moment called for it, I thought nothing of working until my hands were red raw if it meant turning a problem into an opportunity."

Two decades after the story begins, all of these characters converge in a set of circumstances that end in one pivotal, violent moment. What lessons will they learn from their mistakes? Will they finally take a step back and really see each other's humanity? The helplessness and despair emanating from them left me feeling anguished. But despite this and the book’s considerable length, I devoured it in just two days.

THE GERMAN WIFE is thoughtful and thought-provoking. I have only read a few of Kelly Rimmer’s books, but she’s quickly becoming one of my favorite historical fiction authors.