Book Review · Books

The Lost Girls of Paris by Pam Jenoff

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★★★★

In the 1940’s, with the world at war, Eleanor Trigg leads a mysterious ring of secret female agents in London. Twelve of these women are sent to Paris to aid the resistance.

They never return home!

Shortly after the war ends, passing through New York’s Grand Central Station, Grace Healey finds an abandoned suitcase beneath a bench. The case is filled with a dozen photographs, each of a different woman.

Setting out to find the women in the pictures, Grace is drawn into the mystery of the lost girls of Paris, their fierce friendship, unthinkable bravery – and, ultimately, the worst kind of betrayal.

Eleanor is a woman that men fear and women hate. Wherever she goes, fear follows. However, in a world of men who lead and men who are in war, she starts a programme in London where she recruits women, prepares them and deploys them to help in the war. The women have to aid the man, transmit radio messages and blend in with the french people. Eleanor makes sure they are prepared for every possible scenario, and she would’ve joined them, if they let her. As much as she seems cruel, she loves her girls like her daughters, and when things go horribly wrong, she blames herself.

Marie never imagined she would be recruited by Eleanor. Leaving her daughter behind and going into the unknown, she is deployed in Paris for a very dangerous mission. But can friendships so easily made survive the dark days of war? And what happens when Marie is one of those twelve women that disappear without a trace, never to be seen again…

And then Grace finds the suitcase full of photos of women and she can’t help but wonder what happened to them. The paths of these three women will indirectly cross over, leaving us, readers, with an amazing story to follow.

The writing is incredible and it transports you right in the 1940’s. Feelings and emotions are overflowing. I am not completely sure how I felt with the ending, as it ended too predictable for my taste, with a lot of unrealistic scenes and no character development, really.

But even despite all that, it warmed my heart and made me rethink my life decisions. The Lost Girls of Paris is a book about women who are brave and loyal. Women who are not afraid to stand up and fight. Women who have everything to lose and nothing to regret. A tale of pure emotion.

Thank you to the team at HarperCollinsHQ, for sending me a paperback ARC copy of this book, in exchange for my honest review.

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| Amazon UK | Amazon US |

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Book Review · Books

Nemesis (Tom Wilde #3) by Rory Clements

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★★★★★

Nemesis is the third book from the Tom Wilde series by Rory Clements. I haven’t read the previous two books, and I also haven’t read any books from Rory Clements before. I received this book through ReadersFirst, and I will be honest, I was quite reluctant to read it. You already know my opinion on reading sequels before reading the previous books – but I went in blind in this book.

The blue cover is simply gorgeous and I knew it was a thriller and a mystery, so I decided this was enough to get me going. If this book review ever captures your attention, I advise you to also go in blind. I think going blind made me enjoy this book even more.

The fact that this is a third book in a series doesn’t mean anything. The only similarity with the other books is the main character. Almost the same basis as Dan Brown’s series and his professor Robert Langdon. The books are entirely standalones.

It is very hard to reveal what the plot is about without spoiling the fun. Tom Wilde is a university professor and one of his very talented students, Marcus, has left to join the International Brigades in Spain. Now, two years after, he is in trouble, and Tom helps him come home.

Meanwhile, numerous things happen, involving World War 2 Politics and propaganda, and in these times, no one knows who to trust. And when Tom Wilde finds himself in great danger, who will help him? And who does he needs to be afraid from? Has maybe helping Marcus been his greatest mistake?

Nemesis is full of suspense from the very first chapter, and the thing I loved the most about it was that the chapters are quite short, and always leave you hanging, hungry to find out more. Every word that Rory Clements types had a meaning and a purpose in this book, and that was the bit I admired the most.

The time setting revolves around the Second World War – a subject I don’t often read about. I can’t judge about the historical fiction element. However I do know that while I am a person that doesn’t enjoy war books, this one struck me in a nice way. The war setting was very well written, and you could even feel the atmosphere around it. The ending was pleasantly surprising and it involved a mystery I could simply not resist.

I will definitely read more books by Rory Clements, as I really enjoy the writing. If you enjoy thrillers and if you are a fan of Dan Brown, you will probably enjoy Nemesis a lot!

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Books

The Night Raid – Clare Harvey [BOOK REVIEW]

If you are a fan of drama, history, romance, World War II related books, heartwarming read and words that will make you laugh and cry at the same time – The Night Raid from Clare Harvey is the perfect book for you.

In the time of the World War II, in a factory in England, women work their way to earn a bit of money for themselves and their families. All of these women have their own stories and their own secrets.

When a woman comes to the factory to paint the ladies working the night shift, a lot of secrets will reveal itself. The stories of love, broken hearts, never-haves, hopes and dreams for the future will be painted on that canvas.

Full with passion, mystery, warmness and moments that will stay with you forever, Clare Harvey captures all of these and more in this amazing book.

She describes the characters in a unique way, she gives them life and meaning, and in a page or two you will already be inside their world, going through their happiness and pain.

This book was quite fast paced – in the meaning of, the story goes on smoothly, and there aren’t any sideway streets where you can get lost into. It was easy to keep track of what is happening from the very first beginning and easy to stay on track as well.

Clare managed to capture the World War II period in England quite well. I would never know how it was then, of course, but by reading the book, I could find myself being there, stuck in that time, stuck with those principles that we don’t believe in now. Stuck in a time where people believed that if a woman becomes pregnant during her working time, she has to either give up the baby, or live in a house full of other women that ended up the same way as her. Stuck in a time where gender equality is not a thing, and how could it be?

I would definitely recommend The Night Raid to every one of you, because it is a perfect blend of history and romance, of sadness and happiness, and of such powerful women that fought against all odds to survive and achieve in what they believed in!

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