The Sunflower House

This was an interesting dual timeline - 2006 Ramsey, New Jersey juxtaposed against 1938 - Hochland Home of Steinhöring, Germany - where Heinrich Himmler's Lebensborn program flourished.

Katrine, while visiting her mother in Ramsey, encounters a hiding place holding a swastika emblazoned box containing a secret stash of items from her now 86 year old mother Alina's life in Germany during the years leading up to World War II. Why all the secrets? Who is my mother and why does she have these things? So many secrets and perhaps finally her mother will come clean as to the identity of Katrine's father and what happened all those years ago. Alina begins to unveil the horrors of her life back in the village of Badenburg where she grew up and show more how she was forced into service at the Hochland Home - the baby factory of Germany's Aryan race.

"Secrets can't exist in the light of truth, and while the truth can be painful to hear, its lasting gift is peace."

This was a thoughtful, heartbreaking and thought-provoking tale of a most dark time in history. Author Adriana Allegri has done a tremendous amount of research into the program's history and has brought those stories to life through her well-developed characters. The writing is well crafted. The courage of the lead characters comes out strong and true. The mise-en-scène is rich and cinematic at times. Long after the final page is read, this engaging story still lingers.

I am grateful to Ms. Allegri and her publisher, St, Martin's Press, for having provided a complimentary uncorrected digital galley of this book through NetGalley. Their generosity, however, has not influenced this review - the words of which are mine alone.

Publisher ‏ : ‎ St. Martin's Press
Publication Date: ‎ November 12, 2024
Number of Pages: 336
ISBN:‎ 978-1250326522 show less

We meet Allina in present day and at 86 years old when her daughter brings her home from the hospital.

While her mother was resting, Katrine went upstairs to clean up what her mother had fallen on and came across a box with papers inside and with a swastika on top. Was my mother a Nazi?

When she looks up, her mother is in the doorway

Her mother decides that she needs to tell her daughter how they got to America and what she dealt with while she was in Germany.

We are taken back to 1938 when Allina‘s village is raided and all the residents were slaughtered.

A German officer saved Allina from it all, but she said she would rather have perished with everyone else than to go through what she had to go through.

The officer took her to "Hochland show more Home" which was the first Lebensborn facility where German women were required to have babies to German officers to make sure the “perfect” race was not wiped out.

The rules and guidelines enforced by Heinrich Himmler for the women and especially the babies and children made Allina sick. They were so strict and uncaring.

SUNFLOWER HOUSE is a heartbreaking but enlightening read where secrets were kept for years and where the reader can’t believe it happened.

A marvelous debut - wonderful research, pull-you-in writing, and some tender moments despite what was going on.

Thank you to the publisher for a copy of the book. All opinions are my own. show less

Sometimes, one unforgettable story, like The Sunflower House, touches me deeply with its resilient characters, formidable plot, and extremely beautiful and heartbreaking love story.

Allina is a strong and spirited young woman in a time when personal convictions can get you killed. I can’t imagine the terror and loneliness she experienced while trying to keep a dangerous secret and surviving during the war. Her love of the children at Hochland Home gives her purpose as she tries to save as many as she can from the atrocities being inflicted on innocent people.

Allina is understandably reticent of everyone around her, and when the kind and thoughtful SS officer, Karl, takes an interest in her, she is extremely wary. Karl has his own show more deadly secret and elicits Allina’s help for his cause. Their love story is beautiful, but their partnership is rife with risks and difficult choices that ripped my heart out. Historical fiction/romance during WWII is challenging to balance between good and evil, and Karl’s character is so complex and tragic as he fights for his country in his own way but loses his soul in the process. The way he protects Allina and his daughter, Katrine, is extraordinary.

Ms. Allegri does an excellent job explaining the Lebensborn Program, which was a genuine state-run baby factory established by the Nazis to perpetuate the Aryan race. It has been recorded that German women volunteered as part of the war effort, but it’s likely, as in Allina’s case, that not all women were given a choice. The two timelines with Allina’s grown daughter and Allina’s journey as a young girl are skillfully woven together as mother and child come together over tragedy.

I could not put this book down. This exceptional story has left an indelible mark on my heart and mind, earning its rightful place among my favorite reads of the year.

Thank you to Ms. Allegri for giving me the opportunity to read this book with no expectation of a positive review. show less

Beautifully written, this book profiles both profound love and the dark side of humanity before and during WWII.

Katrine was cleaning her 86-year-old mother’s mess in the closet after picking her up from the ER in Ramsey, New Jersey. Allina had fallen from a stool and now she was resting. Katrine decided to straighten it up only to discover an oak box with a swastika. Of course, she was curious and then shocked to find news articles and a photo of her mother as a nurse in 1940. Her mother asked what she was doing. That’s where the story starts.

It goes back to 1938 in the farming town of Germany where 17-year-old Allina lived with her aunt and uncle. Her parents were killed in an omnibus accident when she was a baby. She found out show more just before her uncle died from cancer that she was half Jewish. The next morning, the town was destroyed by the Nazis and her aunt was killed. Allina was severely beaten and taken away to work at a Nazi baby breeding factory. She had to keep her secrets close to her heart – so close that her adult daughter had no idea.

This is a well-written and researched emotional story – one that stays with you thinking of the effects of the propaganda on young children. It’s not easy reading books that are filled with heart-wrenching images. And yet, it includes a powerful love story that makes you want to believe that there is a sense of true goodness in the world. Truth matters. That’s why I want to understand the past and hope it never returns with a dictator who kills without shame.

My thanks to St. Martin’s Press and NetGalley for allowing me to read an advanced copy of this book with an unexpected release date of November 12, 2024. show less

There have been so many books about World War II in the last several years, that it seems like there would be more repetition. This is definitely not the case with The Sunflower House. This debut novel was well researched and about a subject rarely written about - the Lebensborn Program of Nazi Germany. Women of “pure” blood stayed in Lebensborn homes for the sole purpose of perpetuating the Aryan population, giving birth to thousands of babies who were adopted out to “good” Nazi families.

Allina lived in a small German village with her aunt and uncle who raised her. Her life was carefree - she worked with her uncle at his bookstore and spent time with her friends and her fiancé. She isn't worried about the future and feels that show more the changes being brought about by the Nazi party won't affect her small village. Until one morning when most of the people in town are murdered by the Nazis. She is still alive and given the protection of the leader of the group. Hoping that his rape of her has made her pregnant, he takes her to a state run baby factory called Hochland Home. When she finds that she isn't pregnant, she is forced to become a nurse for the babies in the house. There she becomes a witness to the workings of the baby factory that was being praised by the German hierarchy. It was a way to provide sex for the soldiers as well as rewarding the women for having babies that had pure Aryan blood. While there, she fell in love with a German leader who was not what he appeared to be. Will their love and respect for each other allow them to make changes to the poor treatment of the babies at the Lebensborn houses in Germany or is their love doomed to fail?

Years later, Allina's daughter finds a box with a swastika on it in her mother's closet. She and her mother had never been very close and when she asks her mother about the box, Allina shares her past with her daughter which helps to bring them closer to each other in the last years of her mother's life.

This is a beautifully written story about loss and love, friendship and betrayal, and the secrets we bury in order to save ourselves. It's also about the love between a mother and daughter and how important it is to reveal the secrets of the past. This is a debut novel for this author and based on this wonderfully written story, I look forward to her future books. show less

I always have to prepare myself when I sit down to read a historical fiction from this era, knowing what I’m about to consume is not going to be easy to digest. So many horrors occurred during this time in history, and it never ceases to amaze me that no matter how much I learn, I am still shocked by the atrocities.

This is a side of the war that I have not done too much study on, yet I found myself more and more appalled and fascinated the deeper I dove into the narrative. The imagery is incredibly intoxicating, pulling me into this world, allowing my mind’s eye to see everything in technicolor. I felt every swirl of doubt, every slice of fear, and the immense love and passion for not only each other but for the children as show more well.

Though tastefully told, I could’ve done without the cursing and sexual parts, especially the assault, which was very triggering for me. I understand the desire to convey emotions, but I found the language unnecessary and detracting from the story. However, I must admit that the power of the story itself helped me overlook these flaws.

The epilogue, while bittersweet, was satisfying in its own way. The peace that comes when all secrets have seen the light should not be underestimated. This is a story I believe everyone should hear.

*I have voluntarily reviewed a copy of this book which I received from the author/publisher. All views and opinions expressed are completely honest, and my own. show less

When Allina meets Karl, a high-ranking SS officer with secrets of his own, the two must decide how much they are willing to share with each other—and how much they can stand to risk as they join forces to save as many children as they can.

Allina just broke my heart in so many ways. But she never gives up as she struggles to survive.

There is so much to say about this novel! I had to wait a few days before I wrote my review. I had to let this one marinate.

Yes, I knew this occurred. But it is still hard to understand how this COULD have occurred. The author really takes you through some of the outcomes of this method used by the Germans. I really do not think I knew what they actually did to these children as babies. I knew they had show more homes for women to have babies for the Reich but I didn’t quite fathom the child care system. Cringeworthy!!

This is a book which will have you crying and angry all at the same time. This review still does not do this book justice. Just know…you need to read this now! Don’t wait. RUN!!!

Need an emotional read you won’t forget…THIS IS IT! Grab your copy today!

I received this novel from the publisher for a honest review. show less