The Postmistress of Paris [Book Review]

November 30, 2021

The Postmistress of Paris by Meg Waite Clayton

Genre/Categories/Setting: Historical Fiction, Reisistance Movement, France, Art

*This post contains Amazon affiliate links.

My Summary:

Thanks #NetGalley @HarperCollins @HarperBooks for a complimentary eARC of #ThePostMistressOfParis upon my request. All opinions are my own.

The Postmistress of Paris is the story of a young American heiress, Nanee (inspired by real life Mary Jayne Gold), who helps artists and intellectuals escape from Nazi-controlled Europe. Free-spirited Nanee lives in Paris when the war breaks out, but she soon relocates to Southern France and joins the Resistance Movement. Nanee works with American journalist Varian Fry and delivers information to those in hiding, helps to house the hunted, and occasionally participates in bringing them to safety.

My Thoughts:

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Daughters of War [Book Review]

November 15, 2021

Daughters of War by Dinah Jefferies

Genre/Categories/Setting: WW11 Historical Fiction, France, Sisters, Family Drama

*This post contains Amazon affiliate links.

My Summary:

Thanks #NetGalley #HarperCollins @HarperCollins360 @Harper360 for a complimentary eARC of #DaughtersOfWar upon my request. All opinions are my own.

In 1944, three sisters live together in an old cottage as they wait out the war. Their father died and their mother is living in England. The oldest, Helene, works as a nurse for a local doctor and takes responsibility for her younger sisters. The middle sister, Elise, operates a small cafe in the village and is committed to working with the Reisistance despite the danger. The youngest sister, Florence, prepares the meals, works in the garden, and is artistic. As the war comes to their doorstep, the sisters take more risks as they fight to survive in their own ways.

My Thoughts:

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Ribbons of Scarlet: A Novel of the French Revolution’s Women [Book Review] #ThrowBackThursday

November 11, 2021

Ribbons of Scarlet by Kate Quinn et al.
#throwbackthursday

Genre/Categories/Setting: Historical Fiction, French Revolution, France

In 2020, I decided to systematically revisit my older review posts and update them. On Thursdays, I’ll be re-sharing a few of these great reads. Today, I’m re-sharing a compelling story of several women of the French Revolution, Ribbons of Scarlet by Kate Quinn.

I’m linking up today with Davida @ The Chocolate Lady’s Book Review Blog for #throwbackthursday.

*This post contains Amazon affiliate links.

My Summary:

“Six masterful storytellers collaborate to share the experiences of seven unforgettable women of The French Revolution. During the Revolution, these courageous and determined women felt compelled to speak up and exert their influence wherever they could. Even though these are six separate stories, passionate convictions and ideas connect them.”

Liberty! Equality! Fraternity!

Continue here for my full review of Ribbons of Scarlet…

QOTD:

Have you read Ribbons of Scarlet or is it on your TBR?

The Women of Chateau Lafayette [Book Review]

March 30, 2021

The Women of Chateau Lafayette by Stephanie Dray

Genre/Categories: Historical Fiction (French Revolution, WW1, WW11), France, Women, Biographical

*This post contains Amazon affiliate links.

Summary:

Thanks #NetGalley @BerkleyPub #BerkleyWritesStrongWomen #BerkleyBuddyReads for my complimentary e ARC of #TheWomenOfChateauLafayette for review. All opinions are my own.

A real castle in France, Chateau Lafayette, connects three women: noblewoman Adrienne Lafayette (wife of Gilbert Lafayette); New York socialite and actress Beatrice Astor Chanler; and French school teacher, aspiring artist, and orphan Marthe Simone. After having been the home of the Lafayette’s, the castle became a refuge for orphan children during two world wars.

Chateau Lafayette (Source: Wikipedia)

My Thoughts:

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The Invisible Woman [Book Review]

February 9, 2021

The Invisible Woman by Erika Robuck

Genre/Categories: Historical Fiction, WW11, Resistance Movement

*This post contains Amazon affiliate links.

Thank you, #NetGalley @BerkleyPub #BerkleyWritesStrongWomen #BerkleyBuddyReads for my complimentary e ARC of #TheInvisibleWoman upon my request. All opinions are my own.

The Invisible Woman is based on the true story of Virginia Hall who trades in a safe life to work as an Allied Spy with the Resistance Movement in France during World War 11. Her first operation ended in betrayal, so now she’s more determined than ever to prove herself, to protect the people she recruits, and to help the Resistance prepare for D-Day. Despite her painful foot prosthetic (nicknamed Cuthbert) and episodes of PTSD, Virginia is determined, brave, cunning, and committed.

Virginia Hall as a wireless operator in WW11.

Virginia Hall receives the Distinguished Service Cross in 1945.

My Thoughts:

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The Paris Library [Book Review]

February 8, 2021

The Paris Library by Janet Skeslien Charles

Genre/Categories: WW11, Historical Fiction, Paris, Books About Books

*This post contains Amazon affiliate links.

My Summary:

Resistance in a silent and unlikely place…the importance of books…

Thank you, #NetGalley @AtriaBooks for a complimentary e ARC of #TheParisLibrary upon my request in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

The Paris Library is a dual timeline story of family, friendship, resistance, romance, betrayal, heroism, bravery, and books. In 1939, idealistic, courageous, and ambitious Odile Souchet works at the American Library in Paris when the Nazis arrive. Odile and the other librarians negotiate to keep the library open so they can protect the books and also make secret deliveries to their Jewish patrons. In 1983, Lily, a lonely teenager living in Montana, befriends a mysterious and reclusive, elderly, French neighbor woman and discovers they have a great deal in common.

American Library in Paris Image Source: Wikipedia

My Thoughts:

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Paris Never Leaves You [Book Review] #blogtour

August 4, 2020

Paris Never Leaves You by Ellen Feldman

Genre/Categories: Historical Fiction, WW11, France

*This post contains Amazon affiliate links.

Welcome to my stop on the Blog Tour celebrating the release of #parisneverleavesyou by Ellen Feldman. Thanks, Maria Vitale, #stmartinspress, and #netgalley for a complimentary e ARC. All opinions in this review are my own.

Summary:

Survivor’s guilt ….

Charlotte, a young French widow, lives through WW11 while working in a Paris bookstore with her friend, Simone. Charlotte has an eighteen-month-old daughter which she brings to the shop with her. Conditions are difficult: food is rationed, the food lines are long, the possibility of stocking banned books is worrisome, and the German soldiers are intimidating. Charlotte makes decisions that allow her to survive but these decisions haunt her long after she has escaped Paris and left the war years behind. Told in dual timelines, the story alternates between the war years and Charlotte’s current life in New York City (the 1950s). She keeps many secrets because she still fears being charged as a collaborator as a result of the decisions she made to survive. In addition to her fears, she also experiences survivor’s guilt as she remembers her past. Paris never leaves you.

My Thoughts:

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The Book of Lost Names [Book Review]

July 21, 2020

The Book of Lost Names by Kristin Harmel

Genre/Categories: Historical Fiction, WW11, France

*This post contains Amazon affiliate links.

Summary:

Inspired by true stories from WW11, a young Jewish woman who flees Paris with her mother after the arrest of her father finds herself committing to a forgery ring whose primary goal is to create documents that will help hundreds of Jewish children flee the Nazis. The story is told in dual timelines from the present-day perspective of Eva who is a semi-retired librarian living in Florida and the young Eva as she flees Paris and joins an underground forgery operation in a small mountain town near the Switzerland border. The Book of Lost Names becomes an important link between the two timelines.

My Thoughts:

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The Winemaker’s Wife: A Review

February 26, 2020

The Winemaker’s Wife by Kristin Harmel

Genre/Categories: Historical Fiction, WW11, France

*This post contains Amazon affiliate links.

Summary:

Told from multiple perspectives and in a past and present timeline, The Winemaker’s Wife is a story of secrets, survival, guilt, and love.

Through the perspectives of Inès and Céline, we experience the intrigue of their daily lives before and during the German invasion of France during WW11; we learn details of the champagne production at the (fictional) Maison Chauveau in northern France near the city of Reims; and we also hear a little about the French resistance (hiding munitions and Jews). An alternate present-day timeline shares the story of Liv who is mysteriously whisked away from her home in New York to France by her eccentric grandmother. There are secrets from the past to be revealed.

My Thoughts:

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Ribbons of Scarlet: A Novel of the French Revolution’s Women [Book Review]

November 14, 2019

Ribbons of Scarlet: A Novel of the French Revolution’s Women by Kate Quinn, Stephanie Dray, Laura Kamoie, Sophie Perinot, Heather Webb, and E. Knight

Genre/Categories: Historical Fiction, French Revolution, France

*This post contains Amazon affiliate links.

My Summary:

Liberty! Equality! Fraternity!

Six masterful storytellers collaborate to share the experiences of seven unforgettable women of The French Revolution. During the Revolution, these courageous and determined women felt compelled to speak up and exert their influence wherever they could. Even though these are six separate stories, passionate convictions and ideas connect them.

My Thoughts:

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Ribbons of Scarlet by Kate Quinn et al. #throwbackthursday

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Ribbons of Scarlet by Kate Quinn et al.
#throwbackthursday