"Every historical fiction novel should strive to be this compelling,
well-researched and just flat-out good." -- Associated Press
For fans of The Nightingale and The Handmaid's Tale, Cradles of the
Reich uncovers a topic rarely explored in fiction: the Lebensborn
project, a Nazi breeding program to create a so-called master race.
Through thorough research and with deep empathy, this chilling
historical novel goes inside one of the Lebensborn Society maternity
homes that existed in several countries during World War II, where
thousands of "racially fit" babies were bred and taken from their
mothers to be raised as part of the new Germany.
At the Heim Hochland maternity home in Bavaria, three women's lives
coverage as they find themselves there under very different
circumstances. Gundi is a pregnant university student from Berlin. An
Aryan beauty, she's secretly a member of a resistance group. Hilde, only
eighteen, is a true believer in the cause and is thrilled to carry a
Nazi official's child. And Irma, a 44-year-old nurse, is desperate to
build a new life for herself after personal devastation. Despite their
opposing beliefs, all three have everything to lose as they begin to
realize they are trapped within Hitler's terrifying scheme to build a
Nazi-Aryan nation.
A cautionary tale for modern times told in stunning detail, Cradles of
the Reich uncovers a little-known Nazi atrocity but also carries an
uplifting reminder of the power of women to set aside differences and
work together in solidarity in the face of oppression.
"Skillfully researched and told with great care and insight, here is a
World War II story whose lessons should not--must not--be forgotten." --
Susan Meissner, bestselling author of The Nature of Fragile Things
