The Bookseller of Paris
An absolutely gripping and emotional WW2 novel
Ratings1
Average rating5
15
An absolutely gripping and emotional WW2 novel
Ratings1
Average rating5
Paris, 1940: Madeline tries to scream, but she can’t breathe. A German soldier is working to free her from the rubble – but if he reaches her, he will find the books hidden beneath her clothes…
When the Germans seize Paris, its peaceful streets fill with terror overnight, and nowhere is safe. Desperate to help her friends, Parisian bookseller Madeline Valette turns her bookshop into a sanctuary for those in hiding, but she knows it’s only a matter of time before she’s found out.
So when she is asked to join the Resistance and smuggle banned books from Berlin, she accepts, desperate to defy the Nazis. And while she wants to save precious books from destruction, she also hopes her trips to Germany might help her find the last living connection she has to her beloved husband…
Because Madeline has received a letter from a German woman called Ada, the mother of her husband’s son. Facing persecution, the Jewish boy is in terrible danger. But where are they now, and can Madeline help them before it’s too late?
When Madeline finally finds Ada and the child, she realises Ada is at the mercy of a high-ranking Nazi official and both their lives are now at risk. Can Madeline get them to safety? Or will the unthinkable happen to this innocent child?
The second unputdownable novel in the Paris Sisters series, this is the story of two women’s bravery in the face of the darkness of the Second World War. Perfect for fans of Roberta Kagan, Kristin Hannah, and Fiona Valpy.
Featured Series
2 primary books3 released booksThe Paris Sisters is a 3-book series with 2 primary works first released in 2024 with contributions by Suzanne Kelman.
Reviews with the most likes.
One New Revelation Can Change Everything. This is, ultimately, a tale of exactly what the title says. As a dual timeline tale, the linkage here is rare, but rare in the sense of the now-mythical banana chocolate chip cookie from Chips Ahoy - done once years ago, and *may* (HOPEFULLY, in the case of the cookie, I've missed it ever since!) eventually come back.
Discussing the 2010s era timeline at all is a spoiler in that it isn't mentioned at all in the description of the book (at least as it exists at publication in August 2024), but it was one that I could very much relate to given my own family's history. It was also the timeline where this book could be classified as a romance, but that is all that I will say here.
The WWII story is compelling, though we've actually seen its pivotal moment in at least The Last Day In Paris (Book 1 of this series), if not The Paris Orphans (Book 0). The story here is more both how we got to that particular moment and what happens after - both compelling, if at least slightly different, mysteries.
Overall this was a tense book full of both the peril of WWII in so many facets as well as the long tail of its aftermath in so many different ways. Very much recommended.
Originally posted at bookanon.com.
