Daughter of the Reich-a journal like book that reads smoothly like a novel. Hetty, a young girl, lives through a historically challenging time. Her loyalty is put to the ultimate test. I was completely drawn in to her constant battle between what she believes to be right and what she is told to believe.
Very well written. I would recommend to anyone!

Just. Wow. Historical novels are usually a bore to me and I find it so hard to get into a book. This one, however, was just captivating from the first chapter. Imagine life growing up as a nazi and growing up alongside Jews as best friends. And being confused as a child. Then growing up to a young adult and seeing this person again. And being drawn to them again. How much would you sacrifice and put on the line to rekindle a friendship and a potential love. And a forbidden one at that. Oh and did I mention your dad is a high official in the reich? I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

I read an advanced copy of Daughter of the Reich by Louise fien. Omg! I almost stayed up all night reading it. I read lots of war/nazi books but have never read one told from this perspective..told from a young German girls point of view and how her mind changes as the political climate around her changes. The story was amazing and I rushed thru it because I had to find out what happens, yet I really hated for it to end. This book comes out May 12 and I believe everyone should but it on their “tbr” list!

Daughter of the Reich was an interesting view of Hitler's Germany from the inside. The main character is the daughter of a rising SS officer who struggles with love and loss in WWII and the decades that follow.
The story is well written and intensely descriptive.
Although I didn't care for the subject matter, I would love to read other books by Louise Fein. She is a great author.

This was a really beautifully rendered and compelling story set in 1930s Nazi Germany. There is a forbidden romance, many painful references to the holocaust period, and some good tension with the many human crimes and deceptions of the Reich movement. I highly recommend this one, with a hugely satisfying ending. Thank you to #Netgalley for providing me with an ARC copy of this book.

This is a powerful book about the Nazi build-up to WWII. Through the eyes of a child until her teens, the author shows the thoughts and concerns of Hetty. Readers will be able to more clearly understand the brainwashing of Germany's youth as Hitler begins his evil reign. Hetty is caught between lies and the truth. Which will she believe? Highly recommended!!

Not your average WWII story. Told from the point of view of Hetty, who is a young girl at the rise of Hitler’s power. She believes in his rhetoric and hears his voice in her head, however throughout the story we see shifts in her beliefs as she grows and begins to truly see what is happening in her country. This novel started out slow for me, but by the end I could not put it down.

<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/45306333
Daughter of the Reich is a story about Hetty, a young German girl growing up in the years prior to WWII. Her parents Franz, an SS officer with high ambitions, and Helene, a devout believer of Hitler’s plan, shape young Hetty’s early years. Her life is also greatly influenced by her brother Karl and his best friend Walter Keller. Hetty has an obvious crush on Walter, especially after he saves her from drowning. As time goes by, Hetty doesn’t understand why Karl suddenly turns his back on Walter. Then in full display of the entire student body, Walter and another young girl are singled out and forced to endure embarrassment as the school is told that they are both Jews. <br />For a period of time Hetty and Walter lose touch, until the fateful day that they meet again. And the attraction that was once there years ago becomes a full blossomed romance. Through her relationship with Walter, Hetty begins to realize that all she had been told and led to believe by her parents and Hitler was horribly wrong. The author does a very good job of bringing the reader into the horrors of Hitler’s Germany through the pre-war years. I found the characters to be well developed and story well written. <br />#netgalley<br />#thebookclubgirls<br />#harpercollinspublishers
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<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/list/61461390-janet-mcclain">View all my reviews</a>

I have mixed emotions about this read. I thought Hetty's inner struggle was interesting, but this book had a juvenile feel to it. Hetty was a younger character than I expected going into this, and the first person point of view made her seem even more childish. I also didn't like the fact that she was not at the age of consent when she was having her relationship with Walter. I did find the ending moving. Thank you to NetGalley for the E-ARC.

Louise Fein's Daughter of the Reich is a thoughtful, well-researched historical fiction novel focusing on an adolescent German girl's transformation from committed Nazi to informal resistance member during the years leading up to the Second World War. While Fein's dialogue is sometimes slightly clunky, the tense, fast-paced plot and well-drawn characters make this book an exciting read. While much World War II historical fiction focuses on the experiences of the victims, Fein succeeds in showing the ways in which the Nazism and its cultural cult was oppressive to both the known victims as well as to ordinary Germans who failed to conform. Of all of the historical fiction I have read about this era--and I have read a great deal of it--Daughter of the Reich is among the most realistic in terms of both the research underlying it and that it does not guarantee its characters happy endings or satisfying resolution. Highly recommended.

Thanks to Book Club Girl and Netgalley for my copy of this book.
The story is told by Hetty, the young daughter of a high ranking Nazi officer in Leipzig, in the 1930s. We see Hetty’s transformation from a good German girl, who loves HItler, and wants nothing but to live for the Reich, to one who questions what she is being told, to one comes to firmly believe that the Nazi’s ideals are not right. She falls in love with a Jewish boy she has known from childhood - and you know that things are not going to work out well for them. The story moved along quickly, with interesting characters, some devoted to the Reich, and Hitler, and others who oppose. I liked the writing style; in the beginning, when Hetty was 14, it was very simple, as a girl that age might write, but progressed as the book went on.

Let me start by saying I loved this book! Huerta was such a quizzical young lady and she didn’t understand how the Jewish people were evil and shouldn’t be allowed to interact with everyone. She had loved Walter for saving her life and he had been her brothers best friend for many years before everything changed. This book was so interesting to see how things could have been and they truly didn’t need to be. I had held out hope for many of the characters and was relieved by the ending. What a touching story!

This is a heart wrenching story of Hetty Heinrich, daughter of a high ranking Nazi officer, and coming to terms with her beliefs. Hetty chooses love with Walter which comes with hardship and survival. A wonderful read, it gave me all the feels! Thank you to the Book Club Girl Early Read Program and Harper Collins Publisher for this beautiful ARC. This is my honest review.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the Advanced Reader copy.
I wanted to like this book. World War II historical fiction is my favorite genre, and Daughter of the Reich promised to be a different take. At first I enjoyed the jarring pro-Nazi perspective, not because I ascribe to that ideology, but because it was a fresh perspective on a dark time in recent history. I couldn't put the book down! However, as time went on, I never really warmed to Hetty. I found her unlikable and rolled my eyes when she found herself in a predictable situation. Her struggle between her beliefs and her love for Walter became tiresome for me. I did think the resolution of the problem and the ending was clever, yet sad. 3.5 stars, rounded to 4 for the unique viewpoint.

Although this book is one of so many 1930s Germany stories, this one is different because it is told from the perspective of a girl who grows up believing that Hitler was next to God. She wants to faithfully serve the Reich and believes all of the lies about the inferiority of the Jews. The story is about her awakening to the truth and the hardships and heartbreaks that she endures.
I was held captive by this book from the very first page until the last. It is beautifully written, and I will miss the characters!

eARC kindly provided by NetGalley and Book Club Girl.

Historical fiction is rapidly becoming a favourite genre of mine and this book is an excellent example. Hetty's viewpoint is a new one for me, and I was totally immersed in her journey. Heartwarming at times, then heartbreaking, this was a book written with immense care, and the author showed real dedication to preserving the integrity of the real life events and people depicted in this novel.

I will definitely pick up another book by this author and would encourage anyone with an interest in WWII historical fiction to read this wonderful book.

Did not really hold my interest. Subject matter of this book has been redundant...I have been reading books for my various book groups all based in the same time period, same Nazi subject matter. The writing style was rather plain, I didn’t really enjoy reading it and sorry to say would not care to recommend it to my groups/friends.

People Like Us by/Daughter of the Reich Louise Fein is an excellent historical fiction that takes place mostly during the years 1937-1939 Germany.

This novel is unique in that it focuses more on the early years of WWII and from the thought process and inner workings of how indoctrination occurred in German communities. It was fascinating and terrifying to see all of the pieces fall into place to create the atmosphere of terror, blind following, fear, conspiracies, superstition, and anger. Seeing the nuts and bolts of the rising of the Third Reich from Hetty Heinrich’s point of view, a teen that has a father moving up the ranks of the newly formed SS, and a family steep into the blind faith that the newly formed government is their long-desired savior, is so unique that it drew me in from the very beginning. To see how things fell into place, how one fear layered onto another, how propaganda and news outlets were angled and limited, and how schools and families focused on indoctrination, was stunning. We always wonder how the German citizens could have “let it all happen”. While nothing can ever excuse what horror was done to so many people, I can see how brainwashing from a young age, fear of causing trouble if one doesn’t do what is instructed, and full immersion can do to warp young minds, and a culture in general. Having family that perished and were affected by concentration camps, I obviously have a hard time sympathizing, however in Hetty’s case, I think I can.

Yes, Hetty was spoiled, self-centered, and slightly bratty at the beginning of the novel, but she was a teenager and as the novel continues and she finds all of the dark undercurrents, lies, truths, who she can truly trust, and who truly loves her, she is able to mature, grow, and change for the better. It is heartbreaking to see what happens to Hetty, Walter, Erna and her family throughout the book. It is so upsetting to see what happens to the German Jewish citizens through no fault of their own, especially knowing what is to come. Hetty, Walter, and Erna grew so much and were all so brave and selfless in the end.
Without giving anything away, the Epilogue was stunning, and I found myself crying as I finished. Some of the tears were happy tears, but most were for all that was lost and all that were hurt. For my family, and for millions of others’ lives that were permanently changed.

I also enjoyed the author’s note and her family story as well. It gave me another connection to the haunting and beautiful story.

We must learn from the past, not doom ourselves to repeating events, and we must never, ever forget.

An unbelievably stunning novel. I am sure this will be one of my favorites this year.

5/5 stars

Thank you NetGalley and Head of Zeus/William Morrow for this ARC and in return I am submitting my unbiased and voluntary review and opinion.

I am posting this review to my GR and Bookbub accounts immediately and will post it to my Amazon and B&N accounts upon publication.

Having read so many WWII books lately & with so many on the market, I was not planning on reading any more books of this genre for a while. However, I was lucky enough to get an ARC of this through Net Galley & I am so glad I did.

This book grabbed me from the get-go & I read it in 2 days. Told from the perspective of Hetty Heinrich, daughter of a prominent SS officer, the novel really gave life to what life might have been like in Germany in the years leading up to WWII. It was fascinating to me because the whole rise of Hitler & the Eugenics theory are so inconceivable to me, yet they are eerily prescient to some of the things that are going on in society today...the blaming of "them"; immigrants, Jews, etc. It clearly highlighted how the media could be used to whip people up into a frenzy & how someone like Tomas, who had such a hard & sad life, could be easily manipulated into believing he could become someone important by joining the movement.

Another thing that really stood out in this novel was the very real fact that most Jews could not get out of the country because other countries would not take them. I knew that Anne Frank's family was refused asylum but this novel really drove the point further for me.

A bit of an abrupt ending for me but I understand why it somewhat need to be that way. All in all, it was a very impressive debut for me & I look forward to reading more from this author.

Daughter of the Reich by Louise Fein

Daughter of the Reich takes place in pre-WWII Germany. Hetty Heinrich, narrator and protagonist, lives with her parents and brother in Leipzig. Her father is a prominent SS officer, and Hetty is being fed lies and propaganda about the Jewish people. As the political situation escalates and Hitler’s power becomes greater, life for the Jewish population becomes more dire. Hetty’s brother, Karl, wishes to join the fight as a fighter pilot. Meanwhile, she falls in love with Walter, Karl’s childhood friend, who once saved Hetty from drowning during a family outing. The only problem is, Walter is Jewish.

As the story unfolds, Hetty learns the truth about her father’s position, and begins formulating her own opinions. It is not the Jews who are to blame; the Germans are waging war on hundreds of thousands of innocent people. Hetty must face heartbreaking choices as she develops into a young adult and comes to grips with the crumbling world around her. Who can she trust? Who are the people in her life who actually have integrity?

Although I can’t even begin to imagine the horrific reality of experiencing the Holocaust first-hand, the author does a commendable job of placing the reader in the world of the characters. I could not help but be swept away in Hetty’s emotional experiences. However, the book dragged at times. It could have been about 20% shorter. I also found some aspects of the book predictable, especially one major plot point that ultimately decides the fate of Hetty and the end of the story. The author deftly brings the story to an emotional conclusion. I highly recommend the book to fans of historical fiction with a strong female protagonist.

Thank you to NetGalley for the advance reader’s e-proof.