This is a fast paced and fascinating novel of another aspect of the Lebensborn program and some of the things that went on in Hochland Home…the first Lebensborn home and also a showplace for the Lebensborn program. . It is told thru the eyes of Allina, the main character, who suffered at the hands of the Germans, but who was determined to save as many children as she could. It is not only a story of perseverance and grit, but how relationships with future generations were impacted. This book deserves five stars. No matter how many holocaust books you have read, this book is a must.

What a wonderfully heart breaking story about the human spirit and overcoming catastrophic events. I am not a huge fan of historical fiction but this story pulled me in from start to finish. I thoroughly enjoyed and appreciated the authors due diligence when doing her research and even cited her references at the end of the book. I was not overly aware of the Lebensborn program and this made me go on the deepest of dives. Not only did this book make me feel ALL THE FEELS but it also shed light on even more tragic events that took place during WW2. I would recommend this book to anyone! Especially those who were obsessed with this period of time like I was. It was beautifully written and I felt like I was transported into Germany circa late 1930s early 40s. Thank you so much to the author for taking the time to tell this story in such a captivating way.

This book here had me in a chokehold. Its equally upsetting, heartbreaking even, yet i couldn’t put it down. The only reason i’ve given jt 4 and not 5 stars was I wish there were more for the characters. I didn’t even know the Lebensborn program existed or was even a thing, its so sad. They deserved more.

A remarkable and traumatic story. I have no words for how well written this novel was. It felt historically accurate, yet captivating and not at all like a history book. Alina’s story first begins in America when her daughter discovers something in her home. The reader is quickly transported to Allina in WW2, Nazi Germany as she lives her life in Hochland home. Allina’s story is full of grief and hate, with a smidge of happiness in the end. 10/10.

Thank you NetGalley for this advanced copy of this wonderful book!

The sunflower house follows the story of a very "handmaid's tale" type of camps in WW2. This story line follows a young woman who becomes a nurse at this house and fights her way through the war in her own way. The book ebs and flows with some major slow downs but the overall story and history drives the reader through til the end.

"The Sunflower House" offers a unique perspective into WWW2 Germany and the Lebensborn project. Allina's daughter stumbles upon a wooden box harboring secrets from her mother's past. Allina tells her the story of her and Karl. Delving into the intricacies of WW2 Germany, the narrative unveils the hidden truths of Allina's involvement in the Lebensborn project, juxtaposed with Karl's clandestine efforts to aid Jewish families. Both characters, grappling with their own identities as part-Jewish individuals, navigate a landscape fraught with danger and deception. As their stories intertwine, the reader is transported into a world where loyalty and survival collide amidst the turmoil of war. The author's meticulous research shines through, lending authenticity to the narrative and ensuring that the characters resonate deeply with the reader. It is an emotionally resonant tale that lingers long after the final page is turned. Special thanks to NetGalley for providing an ARC.

When Katrine took her mother home from the hospital after a fall, she discovered a wooden box with a swastika. Katrina and her mother arrived in America when she was three and she never knew those early years. Her mother, Allina, lived with her aunt and uncle in Germany after her parents were killed. When her uncle was also killed, she was taken by a German soldier to Hockland Home, a home for pregnant women, and young children. She was appalled by the lack of attention to these children and with the help of another German soldier who cared for her, they tried to save as many children as possible. This is well researched with resources at the end of the story. It is heart breaking to realize how children were treated to make the best children for the Nazis. It is a great love story, full of compassion and desire to help those in need.

This was an excellent historical fiction novel! I didn’t know anything about the Lebensborn project, I had heard about the Nazi party trying to create more Aryan children during this time period, but the facts about how they went about it are horrifying. Both heart wrenching and tender, the story unfolds with great pacing and meticulously researched details. This story told from Allina’s POV and Karl’s involvement in their attempt to help Jewish children leave Germany in the 1930s was both gripping and horrifying. I also appreciated that the author doesn’t try to excuse the characters, and notes that most German soldiers were not double agents and that these fictional people were here to tell the story of Allina and Karl, and that they had extreme motivation to help due to their both being classified as "Mischlings" under the Third Reich. Both heart wrenching and tender, the story unfolds with great pacing and meticulously researched details.

I’ve read many books on the Lebensborn program. This was a great read that hooked me in at the beginning. Just unreal what all the Nazis did during WWII.

I am a sucker for a good WWII book.

Although this took a different route than what I am used to, I enjoyed it. I had previously not known about Lebensborn Homes. Therefore, it was a great new piece of history to learn.

Like many stories about resistance and perseverance during this time period, it pulled at my heart strings. I shed a few tears at the end.

My only problem with the book was the story line failed to answer many questions I had. We never found out about Karl’s plan and what went wrong. We never found out more about Albert’s failed plans. The ending did not give answers (and although I understand that many in this time period never got answers, I really wanted them).

I also felt Allina’s relationship with Karl was rushed. She immediately talks back to an SS officer, and shortly thereafter tells him about her family and their secrets !! Like what!! Not very realistic to me, even though she claims to trust him.

Overall, good book!

I finished this book shortly after beginning it because it was one of those that was written so descriptively well that I wanted to push through and keep going even though the subject is an unfathomably difficult one. I wasn't aware of the Lebensborn program despite having read a fair amount of books set during this time. It is heartbreaking. And yet the author told the story of Allina carefully, in a way that protects the horrifying actions of that time while also showing us the loving and hopeful part of her life with the babies and with Karl. I can't recommend this book enough, but would also recommend you have your box of tissues nearby. I'm adding Adriana Allegri onto my list of must-read authors!

The Sunflower House is based on a horrific program during WW2. It starts with finding a secret and continues with the story of sadness, struggle and bravery. An interesting story that was hard to put down and still not be forgotten.
I received an ARC copy through netgalley to leave an unbiased review.

If you're a fan of WWII historical fiction, this novel is for you.
The Sunflower House by Adriana Allegri is a WWII historical fiction novel based upon the true history of the Nazi SS Lebensborn program. During Hitler's rule, unmarried women were encouraged to breed with Nazi officers and bare children to send to "good Nazi families" and grow Germany's Nazi Aryan population. The women and children were housed at homes such as Hochland Home portrayed in this novel.
In a dual timeline layout, the reader follows the main protagonist, Allina, who is part Jewish, and leans of her journey to Hochland Home and beyond.
I read many WWII historical fiction novels, and I was not familiar with this specific topic. It's a heartbreaking read but the storytelling is well written, and the dual timeline (modern/WWII era) successfully details this unique perspective. I enjoyed the complicated relationship between Allina and Nazi officer Karl.
Thank you to NetGalley, the publisher, and author for the opportunity to read the complimentary arc.

Allina has lived with her aunt and uncle in a small German village her entire life. As the National Socialist party gains power and freedom becomes more of a distant memory she wants to fight against the new regime, but doesn’t know how. One terrible night will take everyone she loves from her and see her living at Hochland Home. Living and working in a Nazi baby factory means she will have to keep her head down to survive, but there are children who need her help and she can’t turn away from them. With an unlikely ally she will save who she can, and do her best to survive the war.
I had heard of and have read one or two books mentioning the baby factories, this is the first to exclusively feature it. I liked Allina, she is someone who had her choices taken away and still does her best with what remains. This book does examine the question of what it means to be apart of something bad but trying to do some good from within that, which is a favourite moral topic of mine to encounter in books. This is a book I recommend reading the authors notes, @adrianaallegri put a lot of information about her research and the history of the baby homes in there. This is definitely a book to check out, especially if you like niche areas of World War Two history.
Thank you to @netgalley and @stmartinspress for letting me review #thesunflowerhouse
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I have read many historical fiction novels about World War II. Most were from the point of view of the Allies. The Sunflower House managed to portray German citizens, even officers, in a very different light. The novel also explored one of the little known tragedies of Hitler’s plan for dominance, his baby factories. While we have many compelling stories of holocaust survivors, these littlest victims of the evil mind of Hitler could not tell their story. I was impressed by the development of this novel, it drew you in to the lives of Allina and Karl. This is a novel that will remain with me due to the actions of those trying to protect the infants. I want to hope that the those poor innocent babies had many real life champions.
I was swept away by this story and impressed by the obvious research that went into this compelling novel. I will be recommending it to my reading friends as well as suggesting it to my book club.

I enjoyed this novel, and I usually stay away from WWII historical fiction. The story drew me in, and while there are dual timelines, most of the novel takes place during WWII.

The Sunflower House is a captivating tale of resilience and love and I enjoyed it from beginning to end. Katrine finds different objects from her mother's past. One is a box with a swastika. Was her mother a Nazi? Wanting, demanding, answers, Katrine confronts her mother, and the reader learns about Allina's life in Hochland Home, a place where unmarried women had babies for the good of the nation.

There are trigger warnings of rape, murder and antisemitism.

I am truly at a loss for words with this book. This was an exceptional read. A huge shout out and thank you to NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for my honest review on the book. With ease, I rate this book 5 of 5 stars.

I truly got so emotionally invested in this book by the end of it I was in tears and so full of emotions both happy and sad. It’s truly been a long time since an author has been able to provide that type of emotional connection for me to a book. As soon as this book is available I plan to buy a hard cover copy. This book will be one I will forever read and reread.

The author did an amazing job of writing in the sense that everything was taking place in ~1938. There was only a modern feel to the book when she would transition to the present with Allina and her daughter, Katrina. Besides that she really captured the feel of the past. Even though this was a fiction read it felt so real and so powerful to the non-fiction WWII books I have read.

The author used a multiple character point-of-view perspective, with every chapter being a different characters point of view. The author used a 3rd person point of view for this book. I’d just have to point out one thing regarding the authors writing style. I was not used to sentences being started with ‘And’ and ‘But’, so that threw me off.

This book is a historical fiction / romance. The book has such a passion about it once the connection between Allina and Karl blooms.

I highly recommend this book to anyone that loves romance and/or loves historical fiction or even wants to branch out to a different genre than they are used to. This book holds a special place in my heart.

After the Nazi’s raid her village, Allina is taken by a high ranking SS officer to a Leensborn home. Brutalized by the Nazi’s, she is fearful of everyone around her. Put into service as a nurse, she wonders why half of the children are left disabled by the Nazi’s parenting techniques.

I have to admit that I didn’t love this book. The passage of time did not really work, and took away from the growth and development of the characters. Overall, not a book I would reread or recommend.

This is a thoughtful novel about a Lebensborn home in Germany prior and during World War II. Allina is abused by a German officer and left pregnant in the home. Luckily she miscarries and starts to work with the children housed there. Her observations of their treatment is troubling. She works with a high ranking officer to improve the conditions for some. I have read several fictional accounts of these homes . Their existence and purpose is horrific. Allegri’s take on this is more hopeful than some others. I thank NetGalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read this ARC.

I really love historical fiction I really hate poorly researched historical fiction that fails to immerse you.