War Girls Box Set

Chapter 6

Dear Reader,

Lotte has experienced a lot since the first book WAR GIRL LOTTE, when she was an impulsive, outspoken sixteen-year-old teenager. She had to learn that every action bears consequences and that the world isn’t black or white.

Some of you complained she was too immature and selfish in the first book – which she was. But I think she matured nicely and became an upstanding young woman in FATAL ENCOUNTER, where she falls in love with Johann, while they are both in Warsaw during the uprising.

SECRETS REVEALED is the conclusion of her story, although not completely. She will appear yet again in the next book of the series, TOGETHER AT LAST, which is the long-awaited story of Ursula and her British pilot Tom.

The Germans early in the war occupied Norway, but because Hitler considered Scandinavians to belong to the superior Aryan race, they never suffered the same brutal oppression as the Eastern European countries did.

I visited Stavanger many years ago, right after graduating from high school and the Lysefjord is still one of the most impressive sights I’ve ever seen, so I couldn’t resist to sneak in a chapter about this majestic natural wonder. If you ever get the chance to visit Norway, it’s well worth to climb up there.

As for the evacuation and later capture of the Wehrmachtshelferinnen, there’s not much information around. During my research I found thousands of articles about male POWs, but the women were…forgotten.

They weren’t soldiers, but neither were they civilians, so the Allies could basically treat them as they liked and often seemed clueless about what to do with them. As always the Soviets were the worst perpetrators and those women unfortunate enough to be in the Balkans or Eastern Europe in general didn’t make it home. Thousands were sent to labor camps in Russia where most of them perished.

Even the Wehrmacht had not clear indication what to do with them, because the commanding officers were ordered to evacuate all female auxiliaries “in an emergency”, but on the other hand, they were needed in their positions to ensure operational readiness of the troops. Therefore, if an officer evacuated the women too early, he’d be tried for defeatism and cowardice. If he evacuated them too late and they were captured he’d be tried for violating the order to keep the females safe. It really was a no-win situation for the commanding officers who often risked their own careers to protect the women by sending them home.

Midsummer night, or Sankt Hans as it’s called in Denmark is a huge festivity, marking the longest day of the year. I spent one summer in Finland where this may well be the biggest celebration of the entire year. Under Nazi rule it was f*******n, but as soon as the war was over, the Scandinavians took to their traditions again.

Just when I had settled for a title and my fantastic designer Daniela Colleo from stunningbookcovers.com had made the perfect cover for this book, I found out that Roberta Kagan already has a book with the exact same title in her Eidel’s story series. Since I didn’t want any trouble, I offered to use another title for my own book, but the incredibly generous, warm-hearted and talented Roberta graciously told me not to worry about it.

So my thanks go to her, for being so kind and I wholeheartedly recommend her books to everyone who loves to read h*******t novels. Despite the awful topic, her books always carry a sliver of hope. You can find them here: h***:://www.robertakagan.com/

Tami Stark, my editor, and Martin O’Hearn my proofreader made this book the best it can be by cleaning up typos, unclear sentences, or anachronistic terms. There still may be mistakes that slipped past them and if you find one, please let me know.

My biggest thanks go to you, my reader. Thank you for following the lives of my War Girls, for your wonderful emails, the encouragement, and the kind words. I love hearing from you!

If you’re seeking a group of wonderful people who have an interest in WWII fiction, you are more than welcome to join our f*******: group.

https://w**************m/groups/962085267205417

Again, I want to thank you from the bottom of my heart for taking the time to read my book and if you liked it (or even if you didn’t) I would appreciate a sincere review.

Marion Kummerow