Hitler’s Demons

By: Helena P. Schrader

Synopsis:

Hitler’s demons were those Germans who opposed his diabolical regime on moral grounds. They sought to defend human dignity and restore the rule of law. This novel is a tribute to the brave men and women of Germany’s resistance and tells the true story of the Valkyrie Plot to assassinate Hitler. Award winning novelist Helena P. Schrader earned her PhD in History from the University of Hamburg with a ground-breaking dissertation on the originator of the Valkyrie Plot, General Friedrich Olbricht. She brings to this novel the insight into the historical context and understanding of the people involved from a decade of research and hundreds of personal interviews with survivors of the Nazi regime.

My Review:

I think I’ve mentioned before how much I love to read anything historical and especially anything that has to do with WWII. Hitler, while one of the most horrible figures in history, does make for interesting reading.

Hitlers Demons revolves around one of the many failed attempts to assassinate Hitler in July, 1944 by military conspirators. The military plan, which was code-named ”Valkyrie”, involved senior officers of the German Home Army as they tried to gain power in a coup and free Germany from the Nazi regime. It follows the story of one of the primary developers of the plan, General Friedrich Olbricht, who had been planning the coup d’etat since 1942.  Based on the authors definition,

Hitler’s Demons were those Germans who opposed his diabolical regime on moral grounds. They sought to defend human dignity and restore the rule of law.

As we all know, the assassination attempt  failed but Hitler issued orders to have the local Gestapo and SS rounded up, detained and charged as anti-Nazi. Many of the men associated in this revolt were immediately executed, without a trial, with many others executed over the coming months.

This is a really good book especially if you enjoy history. I enjoyed learning more about Olbricht and Claus Graf Stauffenberg, and the parts they played in Valkyrie. It is amazing the amount of conspiracies that revolve around this story and its hard to know if the entire truth will ever be told. The one thing you definitely bring away is that there were many Germans that did try to rise up and free Germany from the Nazi regime.

I really enjoyed this book and look forward to reading some of her others!

About the Author:

Helena P. Schrader’s novels reflect her extensive travels, her experiences in many nations and cultures, and her solid background in history.  To these she adds a remarkable talent for envisioning interesting characters and bringing them to life.  Readers of her novels on ancient Sparta, medieval Europe, and Europe and America during World War II find themselves transported to a historical place and time that is vivid and accurate, seeing it through the eyes of her characters and experiencing it through their adventures.  And like all good novels, her stories raise basic life questions (concerning love, death, honour, and spirituality) that transcend any one place or time. You can find more information about Helena on her site.

You can purchase Hitlers Demons on Amazon.