People Like Us

Description

Shortlisted for the RSL Christopher Bland Prize and the RNA Historical Romantic Novel Award 2021 'A compelling tale of forbidden love set in 1930's Leipzig' Independent 'Terrifying, yet tender. I loved it' Irish Examiner 'Heart-breaking, thought-provoking story' Adele Parks 'I nearly drowned and Walter rescued me. That changes everything.' Leipzig, 1930s Germany Hetty Heinrich is a perfect German child. Her father is an SS officer, her brother in the Luftwaffe, herself a member of the BDM. She believes resolutely in her country, and the man who runs it. Until Walter changes everything. Blond-haired, blue-eyed, perfect in every way Walter. The boy who saved her life. A Jew. Anti-semitism is growing by the day, and neighbours, friends and family members are turning on one another. As Hetty falls deeper in love with a man who is against all she has been taught, she begins to fight against her country, her family and herself. Hetty will have to risk everything to save Walter, even if it means sacrificing herself... Perfect for fans of The Tattooist of Auschwitz and The Book Thief. Why people love People Like Us: 'People Like Us is also a reminder that - even in the darkest times - the extraordinary power of love can light the way' Fiona Valpy 'A powerful, unforgettable love story' Gill Paul 'A heartbreaking, beautiful story' Jenny Ashcroft 'This is historical fiction at its absolute best' Liz Trenow 'An outstanding and heart-breaking story of Nazism seen from the 'other side': blind indoctrination is transformed into true heroism by the power of love' Sharon Maas, author of The Violin Maker's Daughter 'People Like Us is part romance, part character study, part call to arms' Lizzie Page 'People Like Us is an incredibly moving, utterly captivating, beautiful story of love, courage, and the strength of the human spirit. It was both heartbreaking and hopeful at once. The ending had me in tears' Rhiannon Navin 'A heartbreaking and thought-provoking story about forbidden love during Nazi Germany. Had me gripped to the very end' Luke Allnutt, author of We Own the Sky 'Beautiful and absorbing - a vital story of kindness, and a reminder that humanity can flourish in the darkest of times' Caroline Hulse, author of The Adults

Louise Fein is the author of People Like Us, her debut novel. It is a story of forbidden love and the brainwashing of a nation, set in 1930's Leipzig, and was inspired by the experiences of her family who fled Leipzig as refugees in 1933. The novel has been published in thirteen territories and has been shortlisted for the RSL Christopher Bland Prize 2021, as well as for the RNA Historical Novel of the Year award 2021. Her second novel, The Hidden Child, is set in 1920's England and tells the story of a couple who are ardent supporters of the burgeoning Eugenics movement, until their own daughter turns out to be not quite perfect. She holds an MA in creative writing from St Mary's University, London, and lives in Surrey with her family.

Beautiful and absorbing - a vital story of kindness, and a reminder that humanity can flourish in the darkest of times -- Caroline Hulse, author of The Adults Part romance, part character study, part call to arms. The subject matter - racial hate - is sensitive but we are in safe hands with Fein who writes with great passion and urgency. The minor characters are living, breathing, three-dimensional people, each with their own motivations and dark secrets -- Lizzie Page, author of When I Was Yours [People Like Us] spins childhood innocence shattered, the tendency for society to carry us along in wrong directions, and the importance of standing up against tyranny in ways small and large into an absorbing, heart-wrenching story of love and letting go - and a lesson for us all -- Meg Waite Clayton, New York Times bestselling author of The Last Train to London I adored this book because not only is is beautifully written, it also tells a familiar story from a very unfamiliar perspective: that of a naive German teenager caught up in the rise of Nazism,and her gradual realisation of the inhumanity driven by Aryan fanaticism. Louise Fein's characters help us understand how so many people were taken in by Nazi propaganda, and the terrible, heartbreaking dilemmas they faced trying to protect the people they loved. This is historical fiction at its absolute best -- Liz Trenow, author of The Forgotten Seamstress A powerful, unforgettable love story -- Gill Paul, author of The Secret Wife Moving and extremely powerful' * Woman's Weekly * A nerve-wracking and gripping read... Louise's cherished goal is to remind us all that we are all the same, and she encourages us all to cherish freedom of speech, debate and the acceptance of difference' * Family Tree Magazine * Powerful and poignant, moving and provocative, this beautifully eloquent novel is set before and during the Second World War. People Like Us highlights love, humanity and kindness in the terrifying face of intolerance and hate... This is one to climb the rooftops and shout about' * LoveReading * A compelling tale of forbidden love set in 1930's Leipzig * Independent. * Terrifying, yet tender. I loved it * Irish Examiner. * A spellbinding story of impossible love set against the backdrop of the Nazi regime * Irish Times Weekend * A love story with deep resonance as it tackles the contemporary issue of rising popularism and antisemitism * Mslexia * This heart-breaking, thought-provoking story about forbidden love and racial hate reminds us that even in the bleakest of times love, decency and humanity will triumph * Platinum * The ending packs a considerable punch * Tablet * An emotionally compelling and skilfully crafted debut novel... People Like Us is a book of brutal truths, uplifting bravery and both a condemnation of inhumanity and a joyful celebration of mankind's innate capacity for good... With a little help from love' * Lancashire Times *