The Book of Lost Names: a WWII story of survival and courage

The Book of Lost Names by Kristin Harmel is a story of the French Resistance, the underground network which worked to fight against the Germans during the French occupation. The story opens in May 2005 when a German librarian is featured in newspapers as he announces that he wishes to return the books the Nazis looted from their rightful owners. An elderly woman sees the article and recognizes the book the librarian is holding is hers! She sets out to Berlin to retrieve the book and remembers the events which centers around it. The story then rewinds to France, 1942 when Eva Traube is a student living with her parents. She gets a warning from a friend that the police are rounded up the Jews and shipping them off. Not heeding the warning, Eva’s father is taken in the night and Eva and her mother must now run for their lives. They reach the small village in the Free Zone where Eva becomes a member of the underground network and their dangerous work against the Germans. Will Eva be safe? Will she survive? Will she be reunited with her father?

The Book of Lost Names is a gripping, heartbreaking and inspirational story of a people’s resilience and fortitude to fight back. From the opening chapter to the final pages, Ms. Harmel takes the reader on a journey of heartbreak and danger. Every character was great. Even the villains with their nasty attitudes are those you love to hate. I loved Eva with her courage and resolve although she was a bit naïve at times. Based on the real French Resistance, it captivated me as I realized that people did fight back and at the cost of their lives to save many more. It is hard to imagine the strength and courage these people had to risk life and limb for their cause. As one character notes, “With courage and a bit of faith,” the individuals of the Resistance did what they could to fight back, never truly knowing if it would work or if they would survive. Many of the events and attitudes in the book are eerily similar to events happening today and it saddens me that we still haven’t learned our lesson. I highly recommend The Book of Lost Names.

The Book of Lost Names

is available in hardcover, eBook, and audiobook

The Winemaker''s Wife: a beautiful story during a horrible time in history

The Winemaker’s Wife by Kristin Harmel is a story of war, of survival, of betrayal and of redemption. The story opens in May 1940, Ines Chauveau and her husband, Michel have been married for almost a year. They live among the vineyards of the Champagne regions and produce some of the finest Champagne. News comes to them that the Germans have invaded France and Michel begins his preparations. Fast forward to June 2019, Liv Kent is 41 years old, jobless, childless and on the verge of divorce when her eccentric grandmother, Edith Thierry, arrives and takes to her Paris. The story travels back and forth between 1940-1943 as Ines, Michel and their friends, Theo Laurent, the head winemaker and his wife, Celine, deal with the German occupation and June 2019 as Liv is trying to figure out what her Grandma Edith needs to tell her but seems very reluctant to do so. Liv meets Julien Cohn, a family friend and lawyer who knows parts of Edith’s story but can’t reveal what he knows without betrayal attorney-client privilege. What horrors do Ines, Michel, Theo and Celine must endure in order to survive? What is the connection to Liv and Edith now?

Last year, I reviewed Ms. Harmel’s The Room on Rue Amelie and loved it. When I had the opportunity to read The Winemaker’s Wife, I eagerly looked forward to it. Both books feature events surrounding the French Resistance between World War II. While I enjoyed The Room on Rue Amelie, I loved The Winemaker’s Wife! This book was filled with drama, action, intrigue and tears from the opening chapter to the closing pages. I enjoyed every character and loved how they evolved and did their part during the war. There are great moments which I can’t discuss as it will give away major plot twists, but it is a story of great endurance and survival. Most American history class teach World War II with a brief synopsis of the war before 1941 when the Americans officially entered the war, so I enjoyed reading about the French Resistance and the underground which fought against German occupation. One of my favorite quotes from the book is from Grandma Edith who says, “Many people lose more than they can image, and they find a way to carry one.” This statement certainly describes the individuals who fought against unbelievable odds to survive. I highly, highly recommend The Winemaker’s Wife. It is an amazing, beautiful story with twists and turns that just when you think you see where the story is heading, you’re wrong! It will not disappoint!

The Winemaker’s Wife

is available in hardcover, eBook and audiobook

The Room on Rue Amelie: a beautiful story of strength of the human spirit

The Room on Rue Amelie by Krisitn Harmel is a story of the French Resistance in World War II. The story opens in March 2002 as a elderly woman is dying and her husband begins to recall when they met in occupied France. Flash back to December 1938, when American Ruby Henderson meets Marcel Benoit and falls in love. They marry and move to Paris to his apartment on Rue Amelie. It is a dangerous move as the rumbles of war are being to spread. By September 1939, Hitler invades Poland and World War II has begun. In their apartment building, Ruby befriends the Dacher family, a Jewish couple with an 11-year-old daughter, Charlotte. By October 1940, Hitler has occupied Paris and trouble for Ruby and the Dacher family. Soon Ruby and Charlotte are pulled in the French Resistance as part of the chain which helps lead fallen Allied pilots out of France. A choice that puts them all in danger. Despite the risks, they fearlessly help the pilots to the next stop along the escape line. Will they be discovered? Will they survive the war?

The Room on Rue Amelie is a beautiful story about the strength of the human spirit in times of great turmoil. While the book was marketed to fans of Kristin Hannah’s The Nightingale and it does remind me of that story as the French Resistance is a major thread of both books, The Room on Rue Amelie tells another side of the French Resistance and focused more on the characters’ lives as they deal with the occupation of Paris and the harsh treatments of the Jewish. I enjoyed each character as they played their part in the struggle against the occupation. I cried with them when tragedy happened and I held my breath as they got closer to danger. I highly recommend The Room on Rue Amelie. If you have read The Nightingale, you will enjoy The Room on Rue Amelie.

The Room on Rue Amelie

is available now in hardcover and eBook

Paperback will be available on October 23, 2018