Book Synopsis:
France, 1942. At the end of the day, the schoolteacher releases her pupils. She checks they have their identity passes, and warns them not to stop until the German guards have let them through the barrier that separates occupied France from Free France. As the little fly across the border and into their mothers’ arms, she breathes a sigh of relief. No one is safe now. Not even the children.
Berkshire, present day. A letter left to her by her beloved late grandmother Gigi takes Hannah Stone on a journey deep into the heart of the Dordogne landscape. As she begins to unravel a forgotten history of wartime bravery and sacrifice, she discovers the heartrending secret that binds her grandmother to a village schoolteacher, the remarkable Lucie Laval . . .
My Review:
I loved this author’s first book so I was very excited to be invited onto the blog tour for this book. I absolutely loved it and thought it was a beautifully written, absorbing, thrilling read which manages to be both heartwarming and heart breaking at times.
The story is told in two timelines one following Hannah as she tries to follow her grandmother’s last wishes and find someone she used to know in France, while the other is set in occupied France and follows the brave residents as they fight against the Nazis. I have to admit to preferring the timeline set in the war more as it was very interesting to learn more about the school teacher and the brave work of the resistance. It was great to follow the two stories together and try to piece together what had happened.
The author has obviously done her research and I enjoyed learning more about life in occupied France during the war. Despite reading lots of historical fiction set in this period I hadn’t heard that there was a free area of France so I found that particularly interesting. It’s always amazing to read about the resistance and their exploits definitely had me on the edge of my seat at times. From the author’s note I believe they are all based on actual events which made it even more amazing.
I thought this book was very gripping and soon found myself absorbed into the story. The wonderfully vivid descriptions of France has made me want to visit there as soon as possible while the exciting events in the story ensured I kept reading. I liked how the story manages to be both poignant but hopeful at the same time and I closed the book a very satisfied reader. I can’t wait to read more from this author in the future.
Huge thanks to Rosie from Headline for inviting me onto the blog tour and for my copy of this book. If you like dual timeline historical fiction I highly recommend this book!
About The Author:
Sarah Steele trained as a classical pianist and violinist before joining the world of publishing as an editorial assistant at Hodder and Stoughton. She was for many years a freelance editor, and now lives in the vibrant Gloucestershire town of Stroud. Her debut novel The Missing Pieces of Nancy Moon was published by Headline.
Over The Rainbow Blog 