The German Heiress by Anika Scott Pages: 384
Published by William Morrow Paperbacks on April 7, 2020
Genres: adult, Historical Fiction
Source: Paperback from publisher
For readers of The Alice Network and The Lost Girls of Paris, an immersive, heart-pounding debut about a German heiress on the run in post-World War II Germany.
Clara Falkenberg, once Germany’s most eligible and lauded heiress, earned the nickname “the Iron Fräulein” during World War II for her role operating her family’s ironworks empire. It’s been nearly two years since the war ended and she’s left with nothing but a false identification card and a series of burning questions about her family’s past. With nowhere else to run to, she decides to return home and take refuge with her dear friend, Elisa.
Narrowly escaping a near-disastrous interrogation by a British officer who’s hell-bent on arresting her for war crimes, she arrives home to discover the city in ruins, and Elisa missing. As Clara begins tracking down Elisa, she encounters Jakob, a charismatic young man working on the black market, who, for his own reasons, is also searching for Elisa. Clara and Jakob soon discover how they might help each other—if only they can stay ahead of the officer determined to make Clara answer for her actions during the war.
Propulsive, meticulously researched, and action-fueled, The German Heiress is a mesmerizing page-turner that questions the meaning of justice and morality, deftly shining the spotlight on the often-overlooked perspective of Germans who were caught in the crossfire of the Nazi regime and had nowhere to turn.
The German Heiress is an adult historical fiction standalone by Anika Scott. The German Heiress is set in post-World War II Germany. Historical fiction is not a genre that I typically read a lot of, but I am never really sure why. I love history, and every time I read good Historical Fiction, I really enjoy it. I think the problem is that historical fiction has a tendency, in my opinion to be a bit heavier and drier if the plot or characters does not capture my attention relatively quickly. (tell me in the comments below your thoughts on historical fiction. Do you agree with me? Am I crazy?) Either way, that is neither here nor there because The German Heiress was great! I was immediately drawn in to the story, and I loved the characters. This book is blurbed as being perfect for fans of The Alice Network and The Lost Girls of Paris. I loved the Alice Network, so I knew I had to give this book a chance, and I am really glad that I did because I really enjoyed it. I can’t wait to see what Anika Scott is going to write next.
In The German Heiress we meet our main characters, Clara. Clara was once heir to a powerful ironworks empire, however; since the end of WWII, she has been living under an assumed identity. I liked Clara. She is plucky and fearless. When Clara can’t get in touch with her friend Elisa, she heads off in search of her. Clara’s quest to find her friend is fraught with danger, capture, escapes, deception and plenty of suspense. I loved the mysterious and suspenseful air of the story. Anika Scott does a great job creating a world that kept me on the edge of my seat. I honestly had no idea what direction the story was going to take and almost all of the twists took me by surprise, which made reading The German Heiress a pleasure.
There are obviously some deeper topics explored as well. With any war novels, we have themes of good and evil, but there were also more social aspects of the war explored. The effect that wartime has on society as a whole, and on the people. The characters were also wonderfully developed shades of gray. There is no black and white 100% good or 100% evil in most cases, and wars bring out those shades of morality on an even larger scale. I really enjoyed exploring all of that as Clara met different people on her quest. (and with Clara herself.) Clara made me feel a variety of things, I wanted to root for her, but sometimes I was also rooting for something very different. I think the best part of The German Heiress is that it explores deeper concepts, while still keeping the book easily accessible for a variety of readers. It is really easy to feel very heavy and bogged down with war-centric books, and while there are certainly sad and dark moments, I didn’t really feel too bogged down by the weight of everything going on while reading the German Heiress. Overall, this was a book I really enjoyed, and one I would recommend to both new and old fans of historical fiction.
Reading this book contributed to these challenges:
- 2020 New Release Challenge
i enjoy historical fiction now and then and i agree, it can be heavier and slower reading than other genres.
sherry @ fundinmental
Historical fiction is a hit or miss with me sometimes and I agree sometimes it can be a little heavy of a read. I have more luck with the historical romances. I’m glad you were able to enjoy this one despite the few issues you had with it.