This book, inspired by a true story about the rise of the Nazis and their censorship of everything that doesn't fit their ideas, is frightening in the context of today's world. The Novelist from Berlin is a stark reminder of the horrors that can befall us if we don't learn from our mistakes, what happens when people with unspeakable ideas get their hands on power and slowly take the power from the people, and what happens when people are afraid to stand up against the government when said government is wrong.

Niki Rittenhaus is married to Rickard Länger, a movie producer in post WW1 Germany. During the 1920s and 1930s, Niki watches in horror as the power of the Nazis grow, even as her husband begins producing propaganda films for the them, and worse still, starts to believe in their message.

This story follows Niki through the beginnings of the Nazi regime and their rise to power, and her flight to a safe place, when her book is blacklisted and her life is in danger. She flees to the Netherlands, joins the Resistance, and eventually returns to Berlin to fight for her daughter's and her own freedom.

This book, as dark as the subject is, is well-written, engrossing, and inspiring, in the way that only people who resist and fight the worst of humanity can be. The darkness in humanity is on full display here, but the bright light of hope and the desire for a safe and better world shines brighter, for those who look for it.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for the eARC in exchange for an honest review!

V.S. Alexander’s novel is inspired by Irmgard Keun, a German novelist who lived in exile because her books were blacklisted by the Nazis. Keun bravely and unabashedly wrote about German society and German women in a manner that had never been explored before - a manner that contradicted those of the rising power.

Alexander’s character, Niki, like Keun, married a film producer who had differing political views. When Niki chose to write about the modern German woman, her books were burned and her husband became friendlier with the Nazis. When she brazenly faced the Gestapo, she was stripped of everything and forced into hiding. Niki feared not only her husband but also the Nazis. She felt helpless in fighting against the regime that was taking so much from her.

I was as shocked at the censorship and thuggery of the Nazis as I was by the seeming complacency of the German population. I read in awe as the author used Niki as a conduit to highlight historical events and I began to see how acceptance became the norm and how it is creeping into our society today. Alexander’s spotlight on this daredevilish bold woman has honoured her legacy. He has shown us how much trailblazers, such as Keun, lost and is giving back by resurrecting their fight to be seen and heard. They will not be buried by history.

This novel is a wake-up call, a call to arms, if you will, to protect our freedom of speech and expression so that history doesn’t repeat itself.

I was gifted this copy by Kensington Books and NetGalley and was under no obligation to provide a review.

Thank you to @netgalley and Kensington Publishing Corp.for this ARC. Niki Rittenhaus, an actress and an author marries Rikard and starts a family just as she was publishing a couple of books. When she can no longer stand that her husband has fallen iunder the spell of the Socialist/Nazi party, she takes her daughter and runs. Her books become banned by the party and she is a wanted woman. After having her daughter ripped from her arms to be return to her husband, she flees to Amsterdam to save her own life. Will she be able to ever return and find her daughter? This book is loosely based on the life of Irmgard Keun, author and enemy of the Nazi party. VS Alexander always writes a good book! #TheNovelistFromBerlin #VSAlexander #KensingtonPublishing #Sept2023

'The New German Woman lived on the hope of survival, and each day it became clear that her future would be challenging'.

In 1929 Berlin, there were murmurings of Hitler, his SA Brownshirts roamed the streets, intimidating citizens, and bullying the weak. But it's also the age of The New German woman; a new found feminist freedom in the lull between wars. Niki Rittenhaus is such a woman. She lives life on her terms: smoking, drinking bed hopping - whatever it takes to survive. She's even written about being a New German Woman with great acclaim. But as her husband of convenience, Rickard, is slowly sucked into the world of Nazism, and her books are burned in a pro-Nazi rally, she decides to leave and take their daughter too. Now hunted by both her husband and the government, she really does need to do everything to survive not only the years of the war but the years following the war when Communists begin to flex their might. 'Perhaps we have to kill in order to live'.

Based on the real-life author, Irmgard Keun, 'The Novelist from Berlin' is a lot of story, covering decades, packed into an average-sized book. With the division of Berlin and the Communist foothold suffocating part of the city, the war for these Germans lasted a very long time, 'The battle for survival had been so long and hard, I didn't know how much more I could take.' Niki, the protagonist, wholly involves herself in the resistance to Hitler and maintains a never say die attitude throughout. Each time one aspect of the story began to finish, another would begin on the next page. To the point, I truly had no idea how the book would wrap up and end. I've never read V S Alexander before but I was taken with this nuanced, deep story of a WW2 survivor and her life in Germany before, during, and after the war. I will definitely be looking for V S Alexander books in the future.

This is the story of a strong and courageous woman, a story told from the side of Germany and its people, a story that is different from other war stories. That is what I liked about this story and what drew me to it.

Niki is a smart, intelligent and driven woman but things don't work out for most women in this time/era as they are seen to be only there for certain purposes. But she is not going to give up and writes novels under a pseudonym. But as I said things don't always turn out as planned so Niki has to escape Germany only to return to make things right.

This is her story and it is inspired by a true story and I love that in a book as it makes the characters and story so real. I enjoyed reading this book as the characters are well throughout and well written, the research has been down very well and it flows effortlessly. There is strength, courage, fear and determination in this story and it is one that I highly recommend.

Thank you NetGalley and Kensington Books for giving me the opportunity to read and review this wonderful book and story.

The scope of this novel is staggering. It begins in Berlin right before the Depression, tracks Hitler's rise to power, World War II including a period in Amsterdam, post-war Berlin, the Berlin airlift, and the city's division by the Berlin Wall. However, viewing these events through one woman's eyes allows all of this history to flow through the pages effortlessly. As one would expect, this is a dark novel because these were dark times, especially for Berliners. There aren't many happy endings or miracles. The author pulls no punches nor should he because the parallels between Hitler's rise to power and what we see in today's politics are impossible to miss. The trend towards fascism, anti-semitism, attacks on the LGBTQ community, and censorship are happening again. I knew nothing about Irmgard Kuen, the inspiration for this book but I plan to read her books. Any book worth banning is a book worth reading. This book is also well worth reading and I highly recommend it.

I'm grateful to NetGalley & Kensington Publishers for the opportunity to read the ARC. The review is my own.

An amazing novel that takes the reader from the 1930's when Nazis and Hitler came into power through the 1960''s when the Russians took over and Berlin was cut in half. The protagonist, Niki, was a young girl when the Brownshirts came into being and Nazism was on the rise. Not being able to find employment she met a film producer, Rickhart, one evening at a bar...their affair becoming more serious, they married. While Niki despised the political arena, her husband, for several reasons, went along with the times. After writing two novels, Niki watched as her novels were burned at a bonfire, censorship was the order of the day. As times grew worse, and her husband seemingly embraced the "new" Germany, Niki could no longer stand by and watch. She was a wanted woman by the regime. Fleeing the country she winds up in the Netherlands and becomes a resistor. After the war when she returns to her native country, she finds living under the communists, life isn't any better.

A strong story, a powerful novel that I couldn't put down. This novel was based on a true story, told in excellent writing and well researched. Was it easier for the German community to believe the Nazi propaganda, to look away at what was happening all around them? Globally times were bad, but where were those who couldn't or wouldn't stand against what was happening? Reading this, I see similarities in our own society currently. will we be duped as well? I highly recommend this book. My thanks to NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This is a dark read.
The main character sure goes through a lot in her lifetime.
There is a good look at just how the German people dealt with the lead up to Hitler taking power.
It amazes me that so many bought into communism and didn’t even realize that the Russians could be just as violent and awful to their own prisoners. The division of Germany post war was terrible. The wall went up.

The Novelist from Berlin covers the time period from the 1930s to the 1960s but most of the story is centered on World War II and the aftermath of the war in Berlin. The book is based on a real person, Irmgard Keun, who was a novelist in Berlin before the war. When her books were banned by the Nazis, she knew she was in danger and fled Germany for the Netherlands where she did what she could to help fight against the Nazi regime.

In the early 1930s, an 18 year old girl, who was called Niki by her friends, was what she referred to as a New German Woman. She smoked and drank and had lots of boyfriends and affairs. At a club, she meets Rickard Langer who was a major movie producer in Berlin. Seeing a chance to become a movie star, she begins a relationship with him and they eventually marry. He isn't the love of her life but she has a better standard of living by staying with him. There is limited work for her at the studios so she decides to write a book about the New German woman. It becomes very popular until the Nazi hierarchy becomes aware of it and bans the book. Though he wasn't a Nazi, her husband became friends with many and his studio began to produce Nazi propaganda films. She grabs their young daughter and escapes only to have her daughter taken from her and her life threatened. She escapes to the Netherlands for safety but as soon as the Germans invade, her life is again in danger. Eventually she feels the need to return to Berlin to help the resistance and search for her daughter. Will she ever find her daughter or find peace in war torn Berlin after the war ends?

Niki led a pretty exciting life and stayed right on the edge of danger. She was a strong woman -- too strong to stay in a marriage with a man she no longer respected and strong enough to work with the resistance in the Netherlands and Berlin. She was strong enough to spend years trying to find her daughter, protect her best friend and learn how to be a daughter to her mother after years of estrangement.

As with previous novels by this author, the book is well researched and it shows on every page. V. S. Alexander has once again given his readers the story of a strong and resilient woman willing to risk her life to save those she loves during horrific times.

V.S. Alexander does a beautiful job in telling this World War 1 story, I enjoyed that this was based on a real person. It really added to the realisim in this world, it was a wonderfully written story and I think it did the story proud. I was hooked from the first page and glad I got to read this.

"We talked about the trial. The court would be stacked with Nazis and I dared not show myself. It was rare for a woman to be on trial, let alone an observer in court. Even if I disguised myself, or sent a friend like Rudi or Lotti, the SA would be watching for me or anyone associated with the banned books of Verlangen—anything out of the ordinary, anyone acting out of suspicion or fear, would be marked. It made no sense to put myself or my friends in danger just to witness a trial."

An interesting historical novel set in the Great War era. It is full of warmth, emotion and suspense. The storyline was well written and the characters were interesting.

Thank you to V.S. Alexander, NetGalley and Kensington Books for the arc of this book