Annihilation

Behind the Darkened Glass #4

by Rachel R. Heil

As war rages across Europe, a plan for complete and utter annihilation is put into effect by the SS.

Hans von Peterson has reached his lowest point. His marriage to his wife Charlotte is in shambles and he questions every move he makes in the SS. However, none of this can even prepare Hans for the nightmare that is about to be unleashed upon the people the Third Reich considers undesirables. As more civilians are killed under the orders of the men Hans works for, he is given an opportunity to redeem himself. But, will he have the courage to take it?

With her marriage in tatters, Charlotte von Peterson takes it upon herself to do anything to make sure both she and her children survive the war. Impulsively she resumes her position as one of Heinrich Himmler’s secretaries, entangling her in the politics of the SS. As she comes to question more of what the SS is doing, she sets down a path to learn the terrifying truth.

Helmut Lehmann believes he has found his way back to the top. As Adolf Eichmann’s representative in occupied Poland, he is placed in charge of the growing ghetto system the Nazis are forcing the Jews and others to live in. As the war continues, Helmut become more brutal and becomes willing to do anything to win the prestige he craves.

As the European conflict expands into a full world war, the Nazis wage a campaign of complete destruction on civilians that will accumulate into one of the worst crimes in history.

Genres: Historical Fiction

309 pages, Kindle Edition

First published February 21, 2020

About the author

Rachel R. Heil is a historical fiction writer who always dreamed of being an author. After years of dreaming, she finally decided to turn this dream into a reality with her first novel, and series, Behind the Darkened Glass. Rachel is an avid history fan, primarily focused on twentieth century history and particularly World War Two-era events. In addition to her love for history, Rachel loves following the British Royal Family and traveling the world, which only opens the door to learning more about a country's history. Rachel resides in Wisconsin.

Reviews

[Ellie Midwood · Rating 5 out of 5]

“Annihilation,” the latest installment in the series, is the most intense one out of all. It kept me riveted to my kindle until the very end - there was just so much going on, not only in the terms of the war and internal conflicts within the RSHA but also concerning character development. Hans undergoes some major changes as he travels to the Eastern front and is confronted with the ugly truth about the organization he used to consider so noble and honorable. He’s in the minority along with a few others, but now he can finally see his superiors for what they really are and will do anything to stop them and their sinister acts. I love how complex his relationship with Charlotte is and how both of them find strength in each other even after everything they’d been through. As always, portraits of real historical figures are absolutely fascinating and true to fact; the plot is complex and full of intrigue; the world-building transports you back in time and allows you a glimpse into one of the darkest eras of the past century. If you love meticulously-researched historical fiction, I can’t recommend this series highly enough. Absolutely brilliant!

[Debbie Trammell · Rating 5 out of 5]

Good book

I hope with this ending there will be more in this series. This series has been suberb. It is obivious that a great amount of research went into these books. The writing is completely in depth.

[maura k plunkett · Rating 5 out of 5]

My husband and I read all 5 books and thoroughly enjoyed them. We look forward to more books by Rachel Heil. We also think combining the 5 books into a movie would be amazing. Think about that, Rachel Heil.

[c Strickland · Rating 5 out of 5]

This series of books is extremely enjoyable. Just starting the 5th and last one. The main figures keep the interest going.

[Cheryl · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is book four in the series. For some reason, Charlotte annoyed me in the early part of this book. That stopped and the book was great. I hate to see the series end!

[John · Rating 5 out of 5]

The most interesting of the series so far as Ms. Heil gets into the war itself and the policy of annihilation the SS began to implement. I could tell the author put a lot of research into the story, making it more authentic. I am sad to move on to the fifth and final book but excited to see how Ms. Heil finishes the series.

[ann betts · Rating 5 out of 5]

Behind. The darkened glass annihilation

I have enjoyed reading Annihilation . Each of the books always follow the events in World War 2, and I look forward to reading more.

[jeannette Dooley · Rating 5 out of 5]

Jean38no

This author is so talented. I feel as if I am right there I’m in the SS know their daily routines. How the top men thought and reacted. The way she weaved her characters within the historical events is mesmerizing. Being such a historical buff of the time period. I am thoroughly enjoying the series. With each book I feel I know the heads of Hitlers organizations more and more as if I worked with them. A real page turner.

[Larmie Fahrendorff · Rating 3 out of 5]

And the story goes on..........and on.

As the sands through the hourglass, so are the days of our lives. When I began this book series, it was advertised as two books in length. But the story never ended there. Then came book three, then came book four. Still no end to the story. I suspect book five will follow, but the time gap makes the story a bit tedious to follow. I'm less than thrilled by this soap opera approach to novel writing.