Are you in the market for another historical fiction novel? Pat's got one for you!
Publisher: Gallery Books (March 27, 2018)
Genre: Historical Fiction
For fans of Kristin Hannah’s The Nightingale and Martha Hall Kelly’s Lilac Girls, this powerful novel of fate, resistance, and family—by the international bestselling author of The Sweetness of Forgetting and When We Meet Again—tells the tale of an American woman, a British RAF pilot, and a young Jewish teenager whose lives intersect in occupied Paris during the tumultuous days of World War II.
When newlywed Ruby Henderson Benoit arrives in Paris in 1939 with her French husband Marcel, she imagines strolling arm in arm along the grand boulevards, awash in the golden afternoon light. But war is looming on the horizon, and as France falls to the Nazis, her marriage begins to splinter, too.
Charlotte Dacher is eleven when the Germans roll into the French capital, their sinister swastika flags snapping in the breeze. After the Jewish restrictions take effect and Jews are ordered to wear the yellow star, Charlotte can’t imagine things getting much worse. But then the mass deportations begin, and her life is ripped forever apart.
Thomas Clarke joins the British Royal Air Force to protect his country, but when his beloved mother dies in a German bombing during the waning days of the Blitz, he wonders if he’s really making a difference. Then he finds himself in Paris, in the shadow of the Eiffel Tower, and he discovers a new reason to keep fighting—and an unexpected road home.
When fate brings them together, Ruby, Charlotte, and Thomas must summon the courage to defy the Nazis—and to open their own broken hearts—as they fight to survive. Rich with historical drama and emotional depth, this is an unforgettable story that will stay with you long after the final page is turned.
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Pat's Review:
In the midst of death and destruction, three people meet in war torn Paris, and that meeting will change the course of their lives.
Ruby Henderson met her husband-to-be, Marcel Benoit, in a coffee shop in New York City. She was dazzled by his charm and intelligence and they were married the next summer in California. They were moving to Paris and her parents were concerned. It was 1939, and Europe was about to erupt.
“The continent has a short fuse and all it takes is someone to light it. Hitler has the matches.”
Ruby felt her parents were being overprotective, Paris was strong and Hitler would quickly be defeated. At first she really believed her own words, but soon the signs of warning could not be ignored. She and Marcel grew more and more apart. Charlotte Dacher lived next door to Marcel and Ruby, and was a delightful 11 year old. She and Ruby formed a friendship. When France fell, and the Nazi’s were headed toward Paris, Ruby knew time was running out. She refused to leave, this was her home now. She would fight however she could. A promise was made to Charlotte’s parents: if the Nazi’s came for them she would keep Charlotte.
Thomas Clark was a young RAF pilot very willing to fight for his country. When his mother was killed in an air raid, he became even more determined. He was shot down over France, but immediately picked up by a farmer and sent through the dangerous territory, assisted by the Resistance, eventually to Paris. There he was to be sent home, helped by courageous men and women who risked their lives every day to save France.
These three people, although seemingly not connected, make this story come to life. The cruelty of the Nazi’s, the death camps, scarcity of food and just the despair of getting up every day is a part of history we can never forget. This historical fiction novel kept me thinking long after I finished it.
4 STARS!
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Pat received an e-ARC of this book from the publisher, via NetGalley.
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Thanks for the review, Pat!
Enjoy!
Until Next Time,
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