Orphans of War – ARC Book Review

Amsterdam, 1941
Their whole world is about to shatter.

German forces have invaded the Netherlands, but the Dutch are trying desperately to believe it won’t be that bad. Meanwhile, Nazis openly terrorize Jewish people on the streets. Rumors of bone-chilling violence are getting harder to ignore.

Christiaan, a man of passion and principle, joins the resistance. He risks everything to shield the oppressed and fight for the freedom of his beloved nation.

Floris is a man with a plan. Promoted to the Bureau of Jewish Affairs, he becomes instrumental in organizing transports to Nazi death camps.

Floris’s wife, Nora, discovers his unspeakable atrocities as Nazi aggression grows more brutal. Defying him, she joins the fight to rescue orphans from the terror of the transport trains and to save them from the same fate.

The Reich’s grip on Amsterdam tightens. These three will find themselves in the middle of a maelstrom that will change the course of history. As ambition, fear, and desperation collide, no one is safe.

Not the Jewish.

Not the Dutch.

Not even the powers-that-be.

“Orphans of War” is the breathless first installment in the heart-wrenching “Dutch Resistance” trilogy. Enter the terrifying world of 1940s Europe, where the only thing eclipsing the violence of the regime is the bravery of the heroes and heroines of the resistance.

This is the third book I have read written by this author and I have to say, this book did not disappoint me.

This time, the story is set in the Netherlands when the Nazis invaded the Dutch in 1942. The story follows about three people–Floris who was being promoted as an officer to oversee the transportation of the Jews, Nora, Floris’ wife who tries to be dutiful and is appalled the way Nazis treat the Jews and Christiaan, Floris’ brother who is involved in the resistance of saving the Jews and the children.

The author does a good job of drawing the reader into the story, making the reader feel like they are the part of the 1940’s Netherlands. The ending was what actually drew me, how Christiaan and Lisa escaped from Amsterdam and moving to Switzerland. Despite the fact that it was a fiction, it still feels emotional and heartbreaking to read that these events did actually happen in real life. The Dutch are one of those who had strong resistance group against the Nazis and Christiaan was involved in the resistance movement. You can see that though most Dutch people resisted against the Nazi rule, there were people like Floris who only seemed to care for his position. Overall, this was truly an emotional and touching story. Worth five stars.

Many thanks to the author for inviting me to read and review the book. Many thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for the ARC. The review is based on my honest opinion only.