The School for German Brides

A Novel of World War II

By: Aimie K. Runyan

Narrated by: Cassandra Campbell, Kathleen Gati

In this intriguing historical novel, a young woman who is sent to a horrific “bride school” to be molded into the perfect Nazi wife finds her life forever intertwined with a young Jewish woman about to give birth.

Germany, 1939

As the war begins, Hanna Rombauer, a young German woman, is sent to live with her aunt and uncle after her mother’s death. Thrown into a life of luxury she never expected, Hanna soon finds herself unwillingly matched with an SS officer twenty years her senior. The independence that her mother lovingly fostered in her is considered highly inappropriate as the future wife of an up-and-coming officer and she is sent to a “bride school.” There, in a posh villa on the outskirts of town, Hanna is taught how to be a “proper” German wife. The lessons of hatred, prejudice, and misogyny disturb her and she finds herself desperate to escape.

For Mathilde Altman, a German Jewish woman, the war has brought more devastation than she ever thought possible. Torn from her work, her family, and her new husband, she fights to keep her unborn baby safe. But when the unthinkable happens, Tilde realizes she must hide. The risk of discovery grows greater with each passing day, but she has no other options.

When Hanna discovers Tilde hiding near the school, she knows she must help her however she can. For Tilde, fear wars with desperation when Hanna proposes a risky plan.

Will they both be able to escape with their lives and if they do, what kind of future can they possibly hope for?

©2022 Aimie K. Runyan (P)2022 HarperCollins Publishers

Heart wrenching

It’s as if I were there. What a horrific time, a time that brought out the best and worst of human nature.
Well written, heart felt and brutally honest.

Relationships and Politics

This is a powerful story of family, social pressure, and rewards. What do you value most?
Consider: Tangible rewards or incentives, family, ranks, prestige, privilege, humanity, friendship

Description of the Challenges faced by young girls as World War II approaches and their choices for surviving the war.

Very moving and the emotions of the characters were vividly felt throughout the story. A must read for those who enjoy World War II novels .

surprising

Three very different characters that grow and change during difficult periods of time. Well performed.

Fantastic!

The intertwined lives of these three women during World War II fantastic story would definitely recommend

My Musings

Kept me intrigued until the end. Tilda was my favorite character of the three women. Hanna and Clara put a lot into their efforts to fight the tyranny of the times. Happy reading and listening!

Terribly Beautiful

An exquisite story-telling of the Pain and suffering wrought upon so many during one of History's most depraved periods. Yet, amidst all the suffering, the power and goodness of the human spirit will always prevail. Small acts of Kindness and Incredible Bravery- the key ingredients to retain Humanity in the surrounding Evil.

Not my favorite

Disliked the narrator for Tilde. Massively. The other narrator was good but not great. Not sure why there was so much monotone in the people’s speaking voices. Also they tripped over some narrations.

I agree with another reviewer that said the title was misleading since there’s next to nothing about the school.

Need to correct another reviewer who said three Jewish women — no. One Jewish woman. Two aryan women. Makes a difference.

The story was alright. I did not think there was good character development at all. Spoilers ahead…

One minute, Tilde is meeting Samuel and the next she is madly in love with him and the next her heart is breaking and the next she is disappointed in him and in the end she will always tell her daughter how wonderful her father was. What? She had compared his actions to her father’s cowardice and yet she will tell her daughter about how great he was, why?

Another issue: Tilde used the very smallest amount of her mother’s money in one chapter, and toward the end she is hiding all of her mother’s stash that she never had used. Editing anyone?

It was just okay for me.

Ended abruptly. Not enough Connection to the title in my opinion as only a sliver of the book takes place at the school. It didn’t go into enough detail about really happened at those schools for German girls historically which could have really added to the story overall.

Pretty good story but narration wasn’t great

Great story but I wish Clara had been developed just a bit more. The two narrators pronounced the name ‘Clara’ differently, which bugged me.