Amidst the ruins of Post-WWII, Berlin struggles to rebuild from the ashes, torn apart and facing down the promise of another bloody dictator. A myriad cast, all shaped by that same war, become entwined with the broken city as its hour of need approaches.
Just as Germany is divided between the Americans, British, French, and Soviets, Berlin has been cut into pieces. But the balance of the occupation powers tips eastward as the Soviet Zone surrounds the city, giving them control of all ways into and out of Berlin – save for the air. The occupation currency is worthless thanks to Soviet over-printing, leaving Berlin on a barter system of cigarettes and black-market trading. In order for Germany to recover, the Western Allies plan to introduce a new currency, even if it angers the Soviet bear.
To fight over the city with tanks and planes would mean a third world war and a battle for Berlin that the overwhelming Soviet military force would win without question. This fight must be one of resources and diplomacy. But the Soviets have little interest in rebuilding Germany, preferring to loot from, starve, and rape the defeated Berliners as their means of taking ‘reparations.’
Amidst gridlock in the Allied Control Council and a populace that largely refuses to elect Soviet sympathizers, SMAD (Soviet Military Administration in Germany) tries to push the Western powers out through intimidation and ever-harsher strangling of transit along the streets and railways.
Berliners and occupation forces alike try to build their own future, while bearing the weight of the city’s future.
Robert “Robin” Priestman takes a position as Wing Commander in Gatow, a former Luftwaffe airfield now used by the RAF – located in the British Sector of Berlin – that is, deep inside the Soviet Zone of Occupation, which surrounds Berlin. Memories of his time as a POW haunt him, and he doesn’t understand what the purpose of RAF Gatow even is. However, when a Soviet pilot crashes into a British civilian plane, and as SMAD makes greater plays for unilateral power over Berlin, Robin prepares to use his planes and runway to keep Western opposition alive, for the sake of the Berliners.
David Goldman’s disapproving father weighs him down with a massive inheritance, forcing him out of the RAF and into a business of his own. But heavier on his shoulders are the old properties owned by his aunt and uncle in Germany – before they were murdered by the Nazi regime. David faces a former Nazi officer in the home that holds so many of his childhood memories and resolves to bring the man to justice.
Charles “Kiwi” Murray, David’s closest living friend, helps him to build an air ambulance business, AAI (Air Ambulance International). Berlin needs such a service desperately, its hospitals hopelessly overwhelmed, and Robin gladly offers them use of Gatow’s runway. Kiwi’s struggle with alcoholism nearly tears this dream – and his friendship with David – apart. But he won’t lay down and let that happen, pushing himself to get their ambulance off the ground, even as David’s own struggles wear him thin.
Emily Priestman hopes to reconnect with Robin in Gatow as she helps him with his duties. But she’s even less versed in the diplomacy of the rich and powerful than he is, and knows that she needs to find another purpose, for her own sake as much as that of the ruined city around her. That opportunity presents itself through old friends and new, as she joins AAI to fly their ambulance, saving those who had no chance of survival in Berlin.
Fear and despair hound the people left in WWII’s wake, kept at bay by the hope for a better life tomorrow.
Charlotte Walmsdorf lost much of her family, and lives in Berlin’s desperation, refusing to even try crossing the Soviet Zone. But her cousin Christian arrives, and though his hope seems naïve to her, she feels a flicker of her own as she teaches Emily Priestman German, joins AAI, and finds herself drawn to David.
WAAF Galyna Borisenko, whose father was taken from her by the Soviet Union, makes an unlikely connection with Hero of the Soviet Union, Mila Levchenkova. Both Ukrainian women take the considerable risk of meeting with each other, for the chance to speak honestly with someone who understands the pain of life beneath the USSR. Mila’s strength and courage inspire Galyna, as they form a deep and emotionally impactful friendship.
The City Council of Berlin refuses to back down to the minority Soviet-controlled Socialist Unity Party (SED). Jakob Liebherr, an ardent councilman, holds firm against Soviet misinformation, arguments with his son, and his own terror. He suffered in a concentration camp for his resistance to Nazi power and knows of the tens of thousands kidnapped by the Soviet Union, doomed to a similar fate. His commitment to democracy contrasts the grim state of Berlin with a gripping sense of integrity and determination.
As Soviet control tightens, each character will have to act with courage and clarity to withstand their grip.
Helena P. Schrader blends her character’s internal struggles and desires with the traumas of Berlin, creating a powerful and cohesive read.
WWII left its mark on each of these people, through the ghosts of dead loved ones, injuries that will never leave them, and responsibilities greater than they ever imagined. Some, like Robin and Emily, reckon with the destruction of Berlin as its former enemies. Blackened shells remain where once there were homes, entire stories are missing from those buildings that still stand.
And yet, restaurants open with only one floor, people make dinner in their kitchens and keep warm beside the stove. Neighbors lend clothes to one another, and even black-market smugglers can be convinced to give away that which they can’t use. Just as Berlin must make life from its ruins, so must all the people within this story.
Schrader’s attention to detail illuminates a fascinating place and time in history. Her engaging characters and the tense history offers a gripping blend of fiction and reality that makes the complex political/military situation in post-WWII Berlin approachable and clear for readers, regardless of familiarity with it.
Helena P. Schrader weaves a tapestry of human resilience and courage against the backdrop of post-WWII Berlin. Cold Peace promises to be a captivating journey that will leave readers yearning for the next installment in this important historical-fiction series.
