Publication Date: August 21, 2025
“Max.” Aurelia went to her husband, and took his face in her hands. “You need to leave. You are the one in danger. I am not. I have my brother; the soldiers won’t touch me. You go and I’ll stay.”
Berlin, 1933: As Aurelia grasps her husband Max’s sleeve so as not to be separated in the crowd of torch-bearing people, a shiver slides down her spine. She sees wild-faced people all around her, their hands waving leaflets full of hateful slogans, and knows deep in her heart that she and her husband are no longer safe in the city they’ve always called home.
Up on the stage, she sees her brother Wilhelm, resplendent in his uniform, a cold smile playing across his lips as he throws books onto a pyre. Max’s hand trembles in hers. It feels like the end of their freedom.
Later, as she and Max stand terrified on a train platform, Aurelia knows that Max, her fragile lifeline in a world full of danger, must flee Germany. As a Jewish film director, he has attracted the wrong kind of attention…
The only way to protect him is for Aurelia to strike a terrible bargain with the brother she hates. But as she and Max are forced apart, a chill wraps itself around Aurelia’s heart as the reality of their situation strikes her. She will do anything to save her husband, but she cannot bring herself to help the evil regime. She is willing to break the promise she has made her brother and sacrifice herself. But what will that mean for Max, the man she has always loved?
A haunting and gripping story of love, strength and sacrifice during the dark days of World War Two. Fans of The Nightingale and The Alice Network will be totally hooked on this page-turner from bestselling author Ellie Midwood.
Before Hitler rose to power and flexed his political muscle to the world, he launched efforts in 1932 through the Nazi Party that triggered a ripple effect throughout the arts and entertainment community.
Author Ellie Midwood uses that time period to craft a fascinating story about a couple caught up in the fray and forced to make difficult choices. To Save Her Husband is historical fiction, but many of the horrors are rooted in fact.
At the center of the story are Max and Aurelia Laub. As a film director, Max is targeted for his half-Jewish heritage. Aurelia, meanwhile, has built a reputation as a rebel for public opposition.
With persecution rising, Max must flee and leave Aurelia. They are both forced to make sacrifices for love, especially at the hands of Aurelia’s despised half-brother, who is a high-ranking Nazi officer.
The story focuses heavily on the impact that rising tensions had on the arts and entertainment world, where censorship soon took hold. Aurelia’s sacrifice to ensure Max’s safety demonstrates their deep love for each other.
To Save Her Husband traces the struggle a couple faces in light of the Nazi political landscape.
Ellie Midwood is a USA Today bestselling and award-winning historical fiction author, whose works have been translated into 20 languages. She owes her interest in the history of the Second World War to her grandfather, Junior Sergeant in the 2nd Guards Tank Army of the First Belorussian Front, who began telling her about his experiences on the frontline when she was a young girl. Growing up, her interest in history only deepened and transformed from reading about the war to writing about it. After obtaining her BA in Linguistics, Ellie decided to make writing her full-time career and began working on her first full-length historical novel, “The Girl from Berlin.” Ellie is continuously enriching her library with new research material and feeds her passion for WWII and Holocaust history by collecting rare memorabilia and documents.
In her free time, Ellie is a health-obsessed yoga enthusiast, neat freak, adventurer, Nazi Germany history expert, polyglot, philosopher, a proud Jew, and a doggie mama. Ellie lives in New York with her husband and their three dogs.
