Code Name Hélène, by Ariel Lawhon

Posted on March 28, 2020 by Paige

“The weapons of warfare are different for women. Rarely do we have the luxury of bullets and bombs. Our tools are benign. Silk stockings and red lipstick. Laughter. Cunning. The ability to curse in foreign languages and make eye contact without trembling.”

Synopsis above provided by the publisher.

Fictionally, Nancy is presented as a chic tough heroine who never fights without a fresh application of lipstick. The character of Nancy Wake holistically is interesting and I enjoyed her unapologetic nature.

A lot of the past, 1936, is about how Nancy met her husband, Henri. The development of their relationship takes the limelight for the first half of the book.

Nancy’s different identities, totaling four, are not exactly told chronologically. The book is told in dual timelines, but two of her identities are not described until much later in the second half of the book. But, what happens is kind of all over the place. The story of Nancy as the WWII heroine was scattered and rambling. The telling of what she did under each identity isn’t balanced, and the reader sees more from her as the fighter Madame Andrèe.

Every little thing seems to be dictated in the narrative, making it much much longer than it needs to be. As an example, a detailed description of hair color and hair texture is specified for nearly everyone that Nancy Wake meets or sees whether a significant character or just a character passing by.
There was excessive dialogue that didn’t progress the plot about day to day things unrelated to the major storyline. The book is 464 pages, but probably could have been 100-200 pages shorter if these extraneous details were cut. Because of this, I was often bored and the prose didn’t flow for me.

Read Publisher Weekly’s Review for Code Name Hèlène.

https://youtu.be/bbgWKSre4U0

Read Nashville Scene’s article about Code Name Hèlène.

This is Ariel Lawhon’s fourth book. Visit her website to learn more.

Follow Ariel Lawhon on Twitter or Instagram.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an advance copy. Opinions are my own.

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Above the Bay of Angels, by Rhys Bowen

Posted on February 10, 2020 by Paige

“Now I wanted to become an expert cook—but more than that, I wanted to be an independent woman with the means to live life on my terms. Now was time for me.”

In Victorian England, young Bella takes a letter from a dying stranger in the street. She uses the dead stranger’s name, background, and letter of recommendation to obtain a job working as a cook for Queen Victorian in Buckingham Palace. But as events transpire, Bella realizes that she is not the only one with a secret.

The overall story is a very light historical fiction that slowly builds up to Queen Victoria’s stay at the Hotel Regina Excelsior on the Riviera in France. Once they arrive and acts of treason begin to unfold, the story begins to pick up a bit.

For the first 3/4 of the book, it’s basically about the main character, Bella, wondering if anyone will realize she is lying about who she is, helping choose dishes for the Queen, and trying to prove herself among a kitchen full of men. During this time, she is pulled this way and that by various men who are romantically interested in her, and she often thinks about what decision to make regarding their romantic interest in her.

“Did I really want to become a real chef? Even if the prospect of marriage was offered to me?”

Chapter 30 (82% on a kindle) a mystery develops involving a murder. Before this murder mystery occurs, it is mainly what I described above.

There is little historical context outside of the royal family, though I enjoyed reading the Historical Note at the end.

Visit author Rhys Bowen’s website to learn more about her books.

Rhys Bowen is an award winning author. Her novel In Farleigh Field won best historical novel Agatha Award winner. Watch the book trailer for In Farleigh Field below.

Her mystery series, A Royal Spyness Mystery, is popular. Click here to view the books in order.

Follow Rhys Bowen on Facebook.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an advance copy of Above the Bay of Angels. Opinions are my own.

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All the Ways We Said Goodbye, by Beatriz Williams, Lauren Willig, and Karen White

Posted on October 16, 2019 by Paige

I would describe this as primarily a mystery of family lineage with the thrill of untangling the relationships of the characters in the past set over three different time periods. Secondly, I describe this as a romance. Each of the main characters has their own romantic relationship that is flourishing.

Summary: In 1914, heiress Aurelie seeks to restructure her future while war breaks out. In 1942, Daisy joins the resistance though her husband works for the Nazi’s. In 1964, shortly after her the death of her husband, Babs decides to find someone code-named “Le Fluer” who was part of the resistance during WW2 but had an alleged relationship with her husband.

Historically: The focus is not on the resistance, their fight, or the war. The reader does see a bit of resistance occur, but it is short-lived because the focus always turns back to the budding romance. The story revolves around their relationships. It very briefly mentions a few things that other novels have included such as Coco Chanel and the Velodrome. The Jews and their suffering are not detailed. The setting is historical, but historically nothing new is learned.

Chapter Organization : Each chapter alternates between three main characters: Aurelie, Daisy, and Babs. This takes adjusting on part of the reader. Each chapter is not short, so when a new chapter started, I often found myself having to internally remind myself which character that was and their background before beginning.

Overall Thoughts: There were a lot of scenes in Babs chapters that I found hard to believe. The story moved at a moderate pace until around 83% when the missing pieces of the lineage and relationship puzzle start to come together. (However, it was easy to predict most of these pieces.) This is a romantic mystery that takes place in the past. Overall, I kept reading to confirm my suspicions about the mystery concerning the relationships set in the past.
Thank you to NetGalley, Edelweiss, and HarperCollins for a copy. Opinions are my own.

|Purchase on Amazon | Goodreads Review |

Children of the Stars, by Mario Escobar

Posted on September 17, 2019 by Paige

Falling somewhere between an odyssey and a saga, this is a tale of exile reminding us that kindness and humanity will radiate in the season of sorrow.

1942: The parents of Jacob and Moses have sent the boys to live with their aunt in Paris since the war is getting worse. On the streets, the boys get swept away in the Velodrome d’Hiver roundup in Paris. Choosing to escape, Jacob and Moses return to their aunt’s home, discover old letters from their parents, and decide to go find them.

Through Jacob and Moses’ journey to reunite with their parents, we see an assortment of people with their own ethnicity, history, ideals, and stories. The variety of people they encounter leave you seeing the variations of WWII through an array of lenses.

I really enjoyed that it centered around the viewpoint of children; two boys holding on to what remains of childhood. The relationship between Jacob and Moses is so sweet and childlike though war attempts to blockade their innocence.

“Observing the happiness of others always makes the world make a little more sense all of a sudden, makes suffering a little more bearable, makes grief a little less suffocating.”

“When you’re young, you dream about making the world a better place, overturning injustice and inequality. But within time you just settle for getting by.”

“Don’t ever change. Sometimes the world can turn us into something we shouldn’t be.”

“Humans are nothing more than the sum of their affections and the connections they make in life. When those ties break, loneliness destroys what little is left in an uninhabited heart.”

The author confirms the brothers, Jacob and Moses, are fictitious. However, they represent the real children who traveled across Europe as refugees during WWII. Historically, Mario Escobar gracefully blends facts with fiction. He addresses areas in Europe that are commonly suppressed amid a defying WWII history. Several authentic historical characters are involved that include Andre Trocme, Daniel Trome, and Edouard Theis.

4 out of 5 star rating explained: While tender and touching, there were some implausible situations and cliché conditions. Also, their voyage to find their parents continued relentlessly, so I always knew what to expect to happen…they would keep going to find their parents.

Overall, it is a feel-good novel that takes you across Europe with two children during war.There is a lot of historical content and I found myself Googling a lot of the names and places. There is mild violence, no vulgar language, and no sex. I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

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More on this topic:
Andre and Magda Trocme
Le Chambon-sur-Lignon
Phillipe Petain and the Vichy puppets

description — Jewish and non-Jewish refugee children sheltered in Le Chambon.

Mario Escobar is the author of many novels including Auschwitz Lullaby. This title, Children of the Stars, was originally published in Spanish under the title Los niños de la estrella amarilla.

The World That We Knew, by Alice Hoffman

Posted on July 8, 2019 by Paige

I have to admit that I was ambivalent about the description of this novel, but I was completely swept off of my feet. From the first line, you are pulled into the world painted by Alice Hoffman. Yes, this is historical fiction with a splash of magical realism; and yes, it is awesome. This book is filled with insightful quotes, and will saturate you with sensibility and nostalgia.

From the involvement of the Huguenots, Jewish resistance groups, Operation Spring Breeze, etc., I was blown away by the amount of history she incorporated. I would say that there is more history surrounding the characters in this novel than fantasy. While this novel does bare magic, the story revolves around the setting in history.
The fantasy advances the internal conflict within the social setting of Germany and France itself while magical realism vividly paints this picture over the atmosphere of WWII that have never been put into words before. Beasts, angels, and fate contribute to the blanket of symbolism and metaphorical environment of Nazi occupied territories.

I did not enjoy when the golem is made in the beginning. The creation itself seemed to unnecessarily drag on and it almost made me want to stop reading. However, it was only for a chapter, although a tiresome long chapter. This was minute and not enough to take off a star.
If you like WWII novels, I recommend adding this to your list.
Thank you to NetGalley, Simon & Schuster, and Alice Hoffman for giving me the opportunity to read and review this novel. The opinions in this review are my own.