I have mixed emotions about rating this book which was sent to me by Book Browse as an advanced reading copy. Since I have read so many books about the Nazis and their atrocities, I couldn't believe I had never heard of the Lebensborn Society maternity homes that existed in …more several countries during World War II. Apparently thousands of babies born to pure Aryan women and fathered by pure German men were stolen from their mothers shortly after birth and raised by SS officers families and others who were loyal to the Reich to become part of the master race in the new Germany. I found the author's notes at the end of the book as compelling and troubling as the fictional characters Jennifer Coburn created. I had no idea how Coburn would create a suitable ending for Gundi, the beautiful German woman whose face the Nazis used as the paragon for German mothers who were awarded with medals of honor if they gave birth to at least six Aryan children and whose baby was fathered by a German Jew. Coburn also creates Hilde an obnoxious and zealous eighteen year old woman who would go to any means to produce an Aryan child to help her escape her mundane life. Irma, the third woman and a nurse, bought into the single minded Nazi belief that Jews cause the world's problems. I felt no sympathy for Hilde whose world turned upside down, but Coburn's development of Irma proved a turning point in the story. I really liked the book because the story added dimension to Hitler's plan to rule the world. Although this part of his plan is repulsive, Coburn's objective in writing it is clear. Germany never fares too well in the stories that have emerged from these dark years, but Irma's character shows that all Germans did not agree with his plan. Unfortunately most did not disagree soon enough. (less)