The Porcelain Maker is a dual timeline novel set in both World War II Germany and the U.S.A in 1994. In the contemporary timeline there is Clara trying to find out about her father and searching for clues through special porcelain pieces made at the Allach porcelain factory during WWII. I had never heard about this WWII factory before. It was disconcerting to imagine how beautiful porcelain pieces could be made in such an inhumane place. It had been Himmler’s idea and he had the SS insignia stamped on the bottom of them to represent German culture.

Yes this book is about WWII, however, the romance between Bettina and Max, the mystery surrounding Clara’s father and the beauty of art are just some of the thought provoking themes contained in this tale. A fascinating debut by Sarah containing such interesting detail on the factory and the aspects surrounding the making of the porcelain pieces. Sure to be of interest to readers of historical fiction.

I was hooked from the very first page and was surprised to discover this is the author’s debut novel! The Porcelain Maker is told in two timelines, Germany 1929, and America 1993. I particularly enjoyed Max and Bettina’s story, starting in Germany in 1929. This book takes the reader on a journey into the art world in WWII Germany and shows a glimpse of life in Dachau concentration camp. It is an insightful and heartbreaking tale of love, loss, strength, and survival.
No matter how many historical fiction WWII books I read, I am always horrified at how people were manipulated, threatened, vilified, and had everything stripped from them, denied the most basic of human needs. It is important for everyone to learn about what happened to not only Jews, but other ‘undesirables’ and this book is an excellent portrayal of just one section of society affected by Nazism. I love learning new information through reading WWII historical fiction and I was previously unaware of the Porcelain Factories so this one ticked that box. I look forward to more books by this author and highly recommend this book to lovers of WWII fiction. I’m still thinking about it days after I finished it.
Thank you to NetGalley, Storm Publishing, and Sarah Freethy for the digital ARC for review.

"Two lovers caught at the crossroads of history. A daughter’s search for the truth" This is a story of love, betrayal, 1920's Germany and war. Max and Bettina are in love but war interferes and when Max is arrested and Bettina wants to find him and set him free.

A dual timeline story which tells of Max and Bettina's love and courage through war and hardship while also telling the story of Bettina's daughter, who years later wants to find out more about her identity and her mothers past. I love this story and love the references of the Allach Porcelain Factory. The historical aspect is intriguing and the book has been written well with very developed characters and the descriptions of the places took me there and made me imagine what these places were like.

This is an intriguing and at time heart-breaking story that kept me reading from start to finish. The two stories/timelines flowed well and the made the book easy to read. Also love the way it intwines history with fiction to make a wonderful read and one I highly recommend.

Thank you NetGalley and Simon & Schuster (Australia) for giving me the opportunity to read and review this book.

This debut historical fiction novel explores the story of the Allach Porcelain Factory which was under the control of Himmler and the German SS and staffed by labour from Dachau Concentration camp. It was an interesting bit of history to read about and one I wasn’t familiar with before. The descriptions of both the town of Weimer and the porcelain had me googling to see what they looked like. I liked the way historical figures were mixed in fictional ones.

The story unfolds over a dual timeline and is set in different cities in Germany between 1932 and 1946 and between Cincinnati and London in 1993 and 1994. The modern timeline tells the story of Clare, who is searching for more information about her father after her mother passed away. Interwoven with this story is the love story between architect Max, a Jew and Bettina, an artist. The two timeless flowed nicely. I liked the way the author gave hints of past in the modern day timeline. I found myself eager to return to the historical one to see how things played out. A solid debut novel and I look forward to seeing what Sarah comes up with next.

Bettina Vogel is a German modern artist and she meets Max Ehrlich at a party, he’s Jewish and from Austrian and studying to be an architect. They fall madly in love, Germany is on the brink of change, with the ominous threat of Nazism and the rise of Adolf Hitler.

Bettina’s art is labelled degenerative, as we know the Germans hated this style and destroyed paintings, Max and his parents who are still living in Vienna don’t know what to do, they should leave and soon.

The narrative has a dual timeline told from the two main characters points of view, Bettina and Clara, it starts in 1929 and ends in 1994 and it’s very easy to follow.

After Clara’s mother passes away, she’s trying find her father and uncover why her mum would never tell her who he was. All she knows is he made porcelain, in a factory and near the town of Dachau.

The story is based around the Allach porcelain factory, here the pieces were made using labour from the nearby concentration camp and Heinrich Himmler came up with the idea for both.

From 1936 to 1945, the factory made white porcelain figures, mainly cute animals and later household pottery and the pieces had the SS insignia stamped on the bottom of them and Himmler wanted it to represent German culture. When Max was arrested Bettina didn’t know where he is, and she had to make a difficult choice, later she found out he was at Dachau, working at the porcelain factory and she want's to see him.

I received a copy of The Porcelain Maker by Sarah Freethy from Simon & Schuster Australia and NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. A story about lost love and the impact the war has on the two main characters Bettina and Max’s romance and relationship. Art is a focal point of the narrative and so is loss, secrets and mystery, afterwards Clara's left trying to put together the pieces of a puzzle, this takes patience and time.

It was really interesting reading about the Allach porcelain factory, I had never heard about it before, how could the beautiful animal figurines be made in such an inhumane place, four stars from me and a great debut novel by Ms. Freethy.