A staggering love illuminating the dark corners of a Nazi prison

Renowned German pastor and theologian Dietrich Bonhoeffer is famous for his resistance to the Nazi regime and for his allegiance to God over government. But what few realize is that the last years of his life also held a love story that rivals any romance novel.

Maria von Wedemeyer knows the realities of war. Her beloved father and brother have both been killed on the battlefield. The last thing this spirited young woman needs is to fall for a man under constant surveillance by the Gestapo. How can she give another piece of her heart to a man so likely to share the same final fate? Yet when Dietrich Bonhoeffer, an old family friend, comes to comfort the von Wedemeyers after their losses, she discovers that love isn’t always logical.

Dietrich himself has determined to keep his distance from romantic attachments. There is too much work to be done for God, and his involvement in the conspiracy is far too important. But when he encounters a woman whose intelligence and conviction match his own, he’s unprepared for how easy it is to give away his heart.

With their deep love comes risk–and neither Dietrich nor Maria is prepared for just how great that risk soon becomes.

Based on detailed historical research, this is a true love story at once beautiful and heartrending. My Dearest Dietrich sheds new light on a world-famous theologian . . . and the woman who changed his life.

• 2020 Christy Award Nominee
• 2019 Honorable Mention Foreword INDIES Book of the Year
• 2020 Faith, Hope, and Love Reader’s Choice Award Finalist

"Barratt humanizes eminent German theologian Dietrich Bonhoeffer in this gripping historical romance that needs little fictional embellishment to be both dramatic and tragic."
—Publishers Weekly

“A haunting love story. . . . With beautiful prose and picturesque descriptions, Amanda Barratt draws on the true life events that shaped the romance between Dietrich Bonhoeffer and Maria von Wedemeyer. . . . Infused into every page is a faith that not only Dietrich but Maria was willing to stand on, no matter the cost.”
—Jaime Jo Wright, author of The Curse of Misty Wayfair and Christy Award winner of The House on Foster Hill

“An extraordinary story, richly researched and beautifully told. Within these pages is a treasure lost to time and now returned to vivid life through Amanda Barratt’s gifted pen.”
—Laura Frantz, Christy Award–winning author of The Lacemaker

“As beautiful as it is brave, My Dearest Dietrich is an illuminating novel that exposes the darkness and chases the shadows away. This is a multifaceted story of the highest stakes and the deepest loves, and Amanda Bar­ratt has proved herself worthy of its telling.”
—Jocelyn Green, award-winning author of Between Two Shores

“Every once in a while a novel so captures my heart that it feels like a gift from the author. My Dearest Dietrich is that kind of book. Barratt has taken a true love story, weaving it into a narrative which is endearing, heart-wrenching, and tender. I savored every word of this novel, reflected on the wisdom infused into each chapter, and allowed hope to fill my heart even to the very end. This is a story we so desperately need now.”
—Susie Finkbeiner, author of All Manner of Things and the best-selling Pearl Spence series

“It is not often I have the sublime pleasure to read a novel that lingers with me long after I’ve finished the last page and closed the book. Amanda Barratt’s stellar writing creates a world that, based on truth, also demon­strates such intimate knowledge of her characters as to make them living, breathing, thinking human beings. This is a kaleidoscopic emotional jour­ney through heart-stopping moments of danger and risk faced by two star-crossed lovers. Their tale will take you from weeping over war’s futility to awe at one man’s unwavering faith and conviction.

“A tribute to those who sacrificed greatly to try and bring peace and lasting freedom to a nation ruled by war, My Dearest Dietrich is that rare and beautiful body of work that will appeal to a broad range of readers, including fans of historical fiction and Christian romance.”
—Kate Breslin, best-selling author of For Such a Time