Set in Nazi Germany, Cradles of the Reich explores a neglected part of German history, the Lebensborn programme, where young women were encouraged to increase the number of racially pure children based on Nazi eugenics. I came across the Lebensborn programme while studying history at university and when I saw the premise of Cradles of the Reich, I knew that this was be an intriguing and equally disturbing story.

Told from the perspective of three women, their stories are woven together beautifully by the author. Irma, a former nurse, who has suffered great losses in the past; Hilde, a fanatical young woman determined to forge a path for herself amongst the key players in the Nazi political world, carrying the child of a Nazi officer, and Gundi, a young woman who is pregnant by her Jewish boyfriend, a member of a resistance group and terrified that the Nazis will find out about her unborn child’s father.

Beautifully written and expertly researched, Coburn brings this aspect of Nazi Germany to life on the page. The setting of Heim Hochland in a beautiful estate in Bavaria full of all the trappings of wealth and status contrasts superbly against the sordid and terrifying truth hidden behind its doors. The focus on three women and their individual experiences of the home is riveting and I couldn’t put the book down. I feel that this story could be continued in a second book as I became really invested in each of the characters’ stories.

A truly terrifying aspect of Hitler’s warped ideology, Coburn has shed new light onto this aspect of World War Two history and brought the human aspect of it to the fore with her focus on three ordinary women caught up in the storm of propaganda, lies and manipulation broadcast by the Nazis at this time.

Fans of Kate Quinn’s historical fiction set in World War Two will thoroughly enjoy Cradles of the Reich. Thanks to NetGalley and publishers for the arc. Cradles of the Reich will be out on the 11th of October.

This review will be published on my blog and Instagram page in early October.

Three German women find themselves at Heim Hochland maternity home, part of the Lebensborn Society during World War II. This home is part of the program to breed "racially fit' babies and raise them in upstanding German homes. Hilde, Irma and Gundi's lives intertwine here.

I give this 3.5 stars as I wished it was a little bit longer and could have expanded more on the lives of the women before and after their stay. The trauma all the women in this story endured was horrific, and that was very well told.

Thank you to NetGalley and Sourcebooks Landmark for providing me with an advance copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Available October 11, 2022.

I was very happy to read Cradles of the Reich. I had been waiting on this book for a year! The subject matter is difficult so I can't really say that I enjoyed the book although, I sure learned a lot. I had no idea that there was a "breeding" program within the Nazi party. I don't know why I was surprised by that. In this book, which is a work of fiction but based on real life events, we meet 3 women who are affected by the unwed mothers' home, Heim Hochland. I didn't get to know these characters enough and would love to learn more about their lives.

ℂ𝕣𝕒𝕕𝕝𝕖𝕤 𝕆𝕗 ℝ𝕖𝕚𝕔𝕙 ℝ𝕖𝕧𝕚𝕖𝕨 ✨

𝐏𝐮𝐛 𝐃𝐚𝐭𝐞: OCTOBER 11th
𝐀𝐮𝐭𝐡𝐨𝐫: @jennifercoburnbooks
𝐆𝐞𝐧𝐫𝐞: Historical Fiction

𝑻𝒉𝒐𝒖𝒈𝒉𝒕𝒔 💭:
This is such a beautiful story on a piece of history I know very little about. The author did a great job researching a topic that has very little information recorded.

This story is told through 3 different POV, Gundi - whom is pregnant and who the Regime thinks is carrying 🤰🏼 a “superior” blood line to the regime. Irma - a nurse, who works at a home that is part of the Lebensborn program (a place that houses the women who are to give birth to racially fit babies). AND Hilda - who wants to be part of the superior race and give birth to a German “superior” baby.

Even though the three women come from very different backgrounds and circumstances, they all end up in the same home and their stories begin to intertwine and unfold.

If you like historical fiction, and reading about a part of WWII that there is little information on, I highly recommend.

Cradles of Reich is a shocking and sad look back at history.

𝗙𝗶𝗻𝗮𝗹 𝗩𝗲𝗿𝗱𝗶𝗰𝘁: 𝗧𝗵𝗼𝘂𝗴𝗵𝘁 𝗽𝗿𝗼𝘃𝗼𝗸𝗶𝗻𝗴 & 𝗛𝗮𝘂𝗻𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗦𝘁𝗼𝗿𝘆 ✨

I have read a ton of World War 2 books and this is definitely one of the best! This book is based on true events which I enjoyed learning about as I had never heard of these events. The story is told by 3 women. Hilde is eighteen-years-old and is happy to carry a Nazi child, Gundi is a pregnant university student and a member of the resistance, and Irma is a nurse trying to build a new life. This book told another horror committed by the Nazis taking babies from their families to be raised for the New Germany. This story was heartbreaking at times and hard to read but I read the book quickly as I couldn't put it down. I received and advanced readers copy and all opinions are my own.

I have read many historical fiction books about WWII and you would think I wouldn't be surprised, but I was proven wrong! The characters were well developed and the subject matter was dark.. Breeding homes for "racially pure" babies put in place by the Nazis.; such a dark time in history that should not be forgotten. Thank you Jennifer Coburn for your research and fine writing skills.

Historical fiction is my go to genre, especially books based on WW2. I had heard about the nazi breeding program but had never read a book on it. Unfortunately, I felt this one was a miss for me. I couldn’t connect with the characters and felt the ending was very abrupt. I had so many unanswered questions. Overall an okay read.

Cradles of the Reich was a very interesting study of the Lebensborn Society in Nazi Germany and how Hitler tried to create thousands of more Aryan children. The three main characters-Gundi, Hilde, and Irma represented three different members of German society. What went on at Heim Hockland, the palatial life style lived by some of these girls was very informative. I had thought these homes were bare bones where girls were virtually locked inside. Not the case here. Some parts of the book were a little slow moving,, but the last 5 or 6 chapters were riveting. It is always great when people do the right thing in the end. The resistance was filled with thousands of people who tried to bring down Hitler and his ideology and to make the world a better place. Jennifer Coburn….thanks for the great research.

This was a very interesting historical fiction book. It centers around the lives of three women during WWII and Hitler's rule. I did not know a lot about this portion of the war prior to reading the story. I found it sad, but informative. However, I did not always like the characters, and found the story lagging at times.
I received an advance copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

Cradles of the Reich was an incredibly well written book that focuses on a part of world war 2 that I really did not know much about. Coburn did a masterful job of highlighting three different women’s experiences with the Lieberborn, one being a nurse thrust in a situation that challenges her own beliefs.

This is an excellent account of a little known atrocity that occurred during WWII that not a lot of people are aware of. This book is based on historical events regarding the Lebensborn Society whose main goal was to produce a master race of perfect Aryans based on Nazi eugenics.

This story takes place at Heim Hockland, a mansion in Bavaria which is a maternity hospital and brothel, where babies are taken from their mothers after they are born to be adopted by officers of the Reich. The story is told from three points of view; Gundi Schiller is a 20-year-old college student who is in love with a Jew and is pregnant. Hilde Kramer is an 18-year-old who wants desperately to have a baby by an SS officer and work for the SS. Irma Binz is a 44-year-old nurse who ended a relationship and took a job offer to go back to nursing. The three women cross paths at Heim Hockland which makes this book an unputdownable page-turner.

Thank you NetGalley and Sourcebooks Landmark for the ARC of this fantastic book that the author did an excellent job covering this little known atrocity from WWII.

I’m amazed that I continue to learn about new things from WWII/Holocaust. I had no idea about the Lebensborn societies. This was a very intriguing historical fiction read, I was glued from the beginning to the end. Each woman was so different from each other, but yet was living among each other in the same place. It was tough to put down this book! I enjoyed the author’s note explaining some facts behind the writing of this book. I would recommend this read! Thank you to NetGalley and Sourcebooks Landmark for the ARC. All opinions are my own.

Hitler’s new Germany was going to be an Aryan paradise and he had maternity homes created to ensure his vision came to fruition. Thousands of “racially fit” babies were bred like animals and adopted into “good” German homes while the Third Reich was in power.

Gundi Schiller is the picture of motherhood according to the Reich’s standards. She is of good German stock and is exactly the type of girl Hitler wants representing Germany’s future, except the Nazi party has no idea she is with the resistance and in love with a Jew. She is forced into a maternity home when her family doctor reports her pregnancy. The entire time she is pampered in a maternity home, she frets over what her baby will look like and how she will get her and the child to safety if her child should come out looking like the father.

Hilde Kramer is Gundi’s total opposite. Though she is not the party’s physical ideal, she is a zealous follower. When her relentless flattery catches the attention of a high ranking SS officer, he arranges for the now pregnant Hilde to take refuge at the maternity home until she delivers. Hilde is honored to have a baby for the Reich and considers her actions in service to her country. She will quickly learn what she can actually contribute to the party.

Irma Binz’s life did not turn out at all like the expected. Turning away from nursing after the Great War and losing the love of her life, she ends up in a boarding house waiting on her fiancé to stopping dragging his heels and marry her already. When she has hit her limit she takes a job nursing at Heim Hochland, a maternity home, in hopes of finding a new future. Instead she finds out what is really happening at these homes.

Through the three women we find out what the Lebensborn Program was all about both in appearance and actual events in the homes. This is another fantastic contribution to the World War II historical fiction genre, and the only I’ve read that focuses on this specific program within the Reich.

Thank you to Netgalley, Sourcebooks Landmark, and Jennifer Coburn for the advanced copy of the book. Cradles of the Reich comes out on October 11th. All opinions are my own.

While all of Nazism destroyed, what happened to women and children is despicable. The master race was desperate to raise up a new generation of obedient Nazis.
Kidnapped, adopted, or murdered if there were defects, these innocent children had no say.
Humanity must be brainwashed and dehumanized in order for the superior race to flourish. Woman are degraded and given one task, no matter how vilified, to produce children for Hitler.
The evil root of hated for other races of people flourishes today and will end treacherously.
This is a dark, detailed story of the sexualization of young Aryran women willing to do anything for Heil Hitler. Or, is all as it seems?

Interesting subject and characters. I enjoyed getting to know the characters but, ultimately was disappointed in the ending. It seemed too abrupt. I felt like there was probably lot more exploration to be done with two of the characters — Irma and Hilde. I guess if the author had said all she wanted to say, that’s ok. I did enjoy most of it.

I have read many books about Germany during WWII and the Holocaust. It's one of my favorite genres. But this book told a different story than any I have read previously. It's always good to read a fictional book and learn a little factual history. This story is about three young women from different backgrounds and different areas in Germany. One was a true believer in the Riech, one was on the fence, and one pure Aryan female was about to marry a Jew. Motherhood in Germany was critical and considered to be one if the greatest sacrifices a female could make for her country. One of these three young women became a mother but refused to serve the Riech. I enjoyed reading this book and I hope there's a sequel on the way because I was not crazy about the way it ended. There were too many loose ends, too many questions left unanswered. All in all, I would give this book 4 stars out if 5.

OH MY GOODNESS GRACIOUS this book was insane and I loved every single second of it. Highly recommend!

4.5 stars rounded up. A really interesting and informative look at the Lebensborn Society - and yet another layer of how infiltrating, ingenious, and horrendous the Nazis were. If you want to indoctrinate a society, start with children who are innocent and don’t know any better but to believe you. I’m always a bit flabbergasted at their evil brilliance whenever I read again at how to well they did this with typical, unsuspecting German families.

I enjoyed the 3 perspective approach with the main characters of Gundi, Irma and Hilde. It provided a really intriguing story and a good look at both how each aspect of the culture - against, indifferent, for - dealt with something that came across as innocent and helpful but underneath was disgusting and depraved.

The only thing I wish was different was that more was fleshed out at the end and the story continued a bit. I was a little disappointed at the lack of closure but enjoyed it nonetheless.

Thanks to Netgalley for the advanced copy of this book. Opinions are mine alone.

Gundi, a pregnant university student, is sent to live at Heim Hochland, a Nazi “maternity home”, until she has her baby. Here, she meets Irma, a nurse in her 40s with no children of her own. Then there is newcomer Hilde, recently pregnant by a high ranking Nazi officer. Other girls they meet in their temporary home are being carefully selected and groomed to to breed “racially fit” babies and show the new age of the “German mother”. In a deeply disturbing look at a real place that existed in Nazi Germany, these women make the kind of connections that carry them through a very dark time.

This time in history is so fascinating to me. It’s shocking that human beings did this to one another, and it wasn’t even that long ago! I have read a lot about Auschwitz and other Nazi death camps, but this was the first I read about the Lebensborn Society where women were groomed to breed “perfect” children. Jennifer Coburn clearly did her research when creating this novel (that is based on very real places and events). She even included an author’s note explaining some of her findings. It was so twisted to read how people were brainwashed by Hitler into doing horrendous things to others. The resistance - the helpers - restored my hope in humanity. It’s important for this story to be told, for respect to be given to those who lost and risked their lives. The author did a beautiful job creating complex characters while tackling a very heavy subject. Thank you to Netgalley, Sourcebooks and Jennifer Coburn for the ARC! “Cradles of the Reich” is available October 11th!

This review will be shared to my Instagram blog (@books_by_the_bottle) shortly 😊

As a fan of Holocaust and WWII fiction, this book is one of the different types of historical fiction book I have read.

Based on the real events, the story talks about three women whose life have been impacted by the Nazi rule--Hilde is an ambitious woman who will blindly be loyal to the Nazi regime by producing a pure "Aryan" race child, Guddi who secretly was in love with a Jewish boy named Leo and was pregnant with his child and Sister Irma, is a nurser. All three are living in a place called Heim Hochland, a place for breeding perfect Aryan children.

The author must have done tremendous research although the names of the characters are fictious. I like really reading Hilde's and Guddi's parts, particularly the ending as well. The story is well written, taking you back to those times and making you feel like you are living in that era. All those propaganda about making perfect Aryan children race, Hilde's blind loyalty towards the Nazi regime was all too realistic and the author has done a tremendous job writing tactfully on those topics. This also shows the courage and bravery of these women living during the Nazi regime.

If you are fascinated with historical fiction with women as central characters, then this book is one for you. Wort five stars

Many thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for the ARC. The review is based on my honest opinion only.