Publication Date: June 11, 2025
Paris, 1940. Golden light bathes the crumbling rooftop of the orphanage. I stroke my little sister’s hair and comfort the other war orphans climbing into the rickety truck. We must leave the only home we have left, or the Nazis will find us…
Margot has spent most of her life at St Agnes’ Orphanage with her little sister Lucie. She does her best to care for all the children, cradling them under the stars when Sister Helen can’t get them to sleep. But she knows that when the Nazis reach the gates of Paris, the Jewish orphans will be in terrible danger. She must help them escape…
Holding on tightly to Lucie as they all scramble into a truck bound for the countryside, Margot cannot prevent her hands from shaking. Then one night, by the flickering light of the makeshift fire, Sister Helen tells Margot she has found a rich family to take Lucie in. But there will be no safety for the other children – unless Margot can lead them to the French coast for a ship destined for America.
Looking from her sister’s bright blue eyes to the little patchwork teddy the children share, Margot realises she must trust someone else with the only family she has left. But as soon as the wrought-iron gates of Lucie’s new home slam shut, Margot knows she’s made a mistake. Devastated at being left behind with strangers, Lucie runs away.
Margot knows the only place Lucie will run to is the high stone walls of the orphanage, where she last knew warmth and food and comfort. With fear in her heart, Margot is faced with an impossible choice. Should she race to save her sister from a terrible fate, or make sure the other orphans escape?
A heart-wrenching and powerful historical fiction page-turner set in World War Two Paris. Perfect for fans of Kelly Rimmer, Anna Stuart and Rhys Bowen.
Amidst the uncertainty of World War II, a French orphan faces a terrible decision that could threaten not only her safety but others around her.
The Home for War Orphans highlights a time of great unrest in France. As the first installment in the Orphans of St Agnes series by author Jenna Ness, all orphans have been placed with foster families except for six.
The plot centers around Sister Helen’s plans to get those six to safety. In spite of her carefully laid plans, German attacks and thieves force an unexpected delay. Add in a missing orphan, which throws a wrench in the plans.
Sister Helen, who is actually an American nurse, is hiding secrets that will send a ripple through the band of travelers. With a carefully constructed cliffhanger, readers are left anticipating the next installment.
The Home for War Orphans details the race to reach the safety of Marseille for a group of orphans and their leader.
Jenna Ness’s debut historical novel THE HOME FOR WAR ORPHANS, to be published by Bookouture in June 2025, is the first in a World War II-set trilogy about orphan girls faced with a heartbreaking choice: will they surrender to the anguish of war, or courageously fight for themselves and those they love? Under a pseudonym, Jenna has also sold four million romance novels in twenty different languages and is a USA Today-bestselling author.
She lives in Idaho with her family and two dogs who follow her like ducklings from her desk to the fridge – Cosmo, a badly behaved Labrador-Collie mix, and Scootie, a chunky Chihuahua.
