The German House is Annette Hess’s first novel and I thoroughly enjoyed the story. It was translated from German and I feel that it must have been a difficult book to translate, but it was done excellently. The story takes place in Frankfort, Germany in 1963 during the Auschwitz trials. The main character Eva Bruhns is a Polish translator for the trials. I loved her character. She was sensitive and independent during a time when women were not very independent. She did not let her fiancé or family make decisions for her. She did not pick her wealthy fiancé over translating for the trials. She forged ahead on a mission to see justice done. I always enjoy reading about the German side when it come to the war even though many times I find myself shaking my head and saying, really. The question that always arises and that doesn't have a good answer to is what would we have done in those circumstances to save our families, our neighbors our loved ones? I can’t even imagine the horror and guilt the Jewish people experienced. To think if a percentage of the German officers and guards refused to follow orders the outcome could have been so different. To say what I didn’t like about the book I would have to say the relationship with Eva and her fiancé Jürgen. He was hard to figure out and I didn’t understand their relationship or want to be together. It did not make a difference to the storyline.