The Room on Rue Amelie by Kristin Harmel

*Disclosure of material connection- I received a copy of the book from the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for my honest thoughts. I was not required to write a positive review and all opinions stated are 100% my own. 

About the book-

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.

My thoughts-

I have been waiting for a while for a new book from Kristin Harmel, and I must say The Room on Rue Amelie was worth the wait. The first book I read by Harmel was The Sweetness of Forgetting which I absolutely loved so I was excited to see this new book was also set during WWII.  I found myself absorbed in the story from the first sentence. I love when authors utilize different time periods to make the story more whole, and while the present day story line was pretty small in this story, it definitely served it's purpose. The Room on Rue Amelie mostly focuses on Ruby, an American who marries a Parisian and finds herself in war torn Europe. Ruby's story takes some fascinating and heart wrenching turns. It was also about the French resistance during WWII which I always find myself wanting to learn more about. Harmel added some excellent notes at the end of the book about the resistance that beg to bed read. I will definitely do some further reading based on those notes. I recommend this book to lovers of historical fiction and book clubs.

The Sweetness of Forgetting by Kristin Harmel Book Review + Giveaway!

Hope McKenna is 36 and in many ways her world is crumbling down around her. She lost her mother to cancer, her hopes of a law career are pretty much dead, her husband has left her for a much younger woman and her beloved grandmother Mamie is suffering deeply from the throngs of Alzheimer's disease.

Hope is running her grandmother's bakery on Cape Cod, raising her pre-teen daughter and trying to understand what Mamie is trying to tell her about her own past. Mamie's revelations send Hope on a trip to Paris to learn of secrets her grandmother has held inside for seventy years. She learns of the tragic events her grandmother endured that shaped how her life turned out.

I have read a massive amount of novels this year. I guess it comes along with the territory of being a huge lover of fiction and getting absolutely lost in stories. I can say without a doubt that The Sweetness of Forgetting would be my pick for favorite book I have read so far in 2012...and I have read some pretty good novels. This was a refreshing story in so many ways. It was filled with things I am interested in- The Holocaust, baking, and getting to know characters not only in the present, but also in the past. This was a novel I couldn't put down. I wanted to know what Hope was going to find out about Mamie's life. I felt sorrow for both when reading about the terrible things each had endured in her life. It was especially interesting to me learning of Mamie's woes and how the tragedies that befell her in her youth shaped every essence of her being as an adult. This was a well written story, with characters you can definitely sympathize with and that you will find yourself wanting to know more about . I practically read this in one sitting. If I didn't have 3 little ones to look after, I absolutely would have finished it in one day. I think this is going to be HUGE for Kristin Harmel. I absolutely  recommend The Sweetness of Forgetting to anyone who is interested in fiction that takes a peek into history, who enjoy romance or tragedy or who like to bake! One of the coolest things about this novel is that Mamie's recipes are sprinkled throughout the book. I know there were several that made me think, "Oh, I definitely have to make that" while I was traveling through this story with Hope.

If my review isn't enough to make you want to read this wonderful novel (although I hope that it is) Marie Claire also included it in their Summer 2012 reading guide!

I am so thrilled to announce that I have 3 AUTOGRAPHED copies to give away to you to, my awesome readers, to celebrate the August 7th release date of The Sweetness of Forgetting! 3 winners will receive their very own autographed copy of the novel. This is one giveaway you definitely want to enter! Check out the Rafflecopter below for your chance to win!



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*Disclaimer- I received a complimentary copy of The Sweetness of Forgetting from Simon & Schuster. I was not required to wirte a positive review. All opinions stated above are 100% my own.