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hattiereadssomanybooks_x's review against another edition
dark
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.5
nattyc96's review against another edition
4.0
Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for "Paris Never Leaves You" by Ellen Feldman in exchange for my honest review!
Charlotte is living in Paris with her daughter Vivi when the occupation begins. As she continues to work in a bookstore and tries to keep her daughter alive, she is faced with a moral crossroad. What would you do to survive? As the story flashes between the past and Charlotte's future life in New York, Charlotte is struggling. Can she forgive herself for what she's done? Or will her past always haunt her?
Feldman's take on another perspective of WW2 was interesting, for certain. I love Charlotte and her life. Books and editing are honestly a dream, so she was an easy character to attach myself to. That being said, Charlotte is not without flaws. I think it's interesting to see her flaws in light of her relationship with her daughter and to see her flaws play out in a similar fashion in the past and the future.
I also find it interesting when the book delves into the issue of what is acceptable during war times. Do the standards change or are they the same? Often, we see this issue in books set in any war period. How bad is it to sleep with the enemy if it means food? How bad is it to accept food from the enemy? How bad is faking an identity? So many things that would ordinarily be unacceptable become questionable.
This book also touches on forgiveness. Who do we offer our forgiveness to? And even more, can we forgive ourselves? Charlotte struggles with this. She can't forgive herself and because she never received what she thought she deserved, she can't move on. It's sad, but relatable to see.
Overall, I gave this book 4 stars. It kept my interest throughout and, while telling a similar story, gave me a new perspective to consider. Feldman is an excellent writer, so the prose flowed easy. If you like historical fiction, add this one to your list!
Charlotte is living in Paris with her daughter Vivi when the occupation begins. As she continues to work in a bookstore and tries to keep her daughter alive, she is faced with a moral crossroad. What would you do to survive? As the story flashes between the past and Charlotte's future life in New York, Charlotte is struggling. Can she forgive herself for what she's done? Or will her past always haunt her?
Feldman's take on another perspective of WW2 was interesting, for certain. I love Charlotte and her life. Books and editing are honestly a dream, so she was an easy character to attach myself to. That being said, Charlotte is not without flaws. I think it's interesting to see her flaws in light of her relationship with her daughter and to see her flaws play out in a similar fashion in the past and the future.
I also find it interesting when the book delves into the issue of what is acceptable during war times. Do the standards change or are they the same? Often, we see this issue in books set in any war period. How bad is it to sleep with the enemy if it means food? How bad is it to accept food from the enemy? How bad is faking an identity? So many things that would ordinarily be unacceptable become questionable.
This book also touches on forgiveness. Who do we offer our forgiveness to? And even more, can we forgive ourselves? Charlotte struggles with this. She can't forgive herself and because she never received what she thought she deserved, she can't move on. It's sad, but relatable to see.
Overall, I gave this book 4 stars. It kept my interest throughout and, while telling a similar story, gave me a new perspective to consider. Feldman is an excellent writer, so the prose flowed easy. If you like historical fiction, add this one to your list!
kimmerthebooknerd's review against another edition
3.0
3.5.
Thank you NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.
Paris Never Leaves You has a dual timeframe, which I love. Alternating between the early 1940s and the 1950s. Only a ten year difference, but you can feel the energy of the times in this novel. Beautifully written historical romance fiction. For me, it felt it was missing something. There was no aha moment; however the story will stay with you. If you are a fan historical fiction with a little romance, this ones for you.
Thank you NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.
Paris Never Leaves You has a dual timeframe, which I love. Alternating between the early 1940s and the 1950s. Only a ten year difference, but you can feel the energy of the times in this novel. Beautifully written historical romance fiction. For me, it felt it was missing something. There was no aha moment; however the story will stay with you. If you are a fan historical fiction with a little romance, this ones for you.
ladykatiereads's review against another edition
4.0
I was kindly given an electronic copy of this novel by the publishers in exchange for an honest review. I also participated in the blog tour for Paris Never Leaves You, so check it out on my blog (ladykatiereads.wordpress.com) to read an excerpt of chapter one!
Going into this book, I had assumed it would be about a character struggling to make it through the war, but it’s actually a story of coping with your past and recovering from past trauma.
Set in the 1960s, Charlotte and Vivi are faced with residual Anti-Semitism as Vivi is excluded by her classmates because she is known to be half-Jewish. As Charlotte navigates being a strong mother for her teenage daughter, she struggles to reveal the truth about their past, knowing it would affect how everyone who has kindly taken them in will perceive her. Throw in a romance with Charlotte’s employer (who is also her landlord and sponsor), and you’ve got a tangled mess of moral tests. I flew through this novel, and I definitely recommend it for historical fiction fans!
Going into this book, I had assumed it would be about a character struggling to make it through the war, but it’s actually a story of coping with your past and recovering from past trauma.
Set in the 1960s, Charlotte and Vivi are faced with residual Anti-Semitism as Vivi is excluded by her classmates because she is known to be half-Jewish. As Charlotte navigates being a strong mother for her teenage daughter, she struggles to reveal the truth about their past, knowing it would affect how everyone who has kindly taken them in will perceive her. Throw in a romance with Charlotte’s employer (who is also her landlord and sponsor), and you’ve got a tangled mess of moral tests. I flew through this novel, and I definitely recommend it for historical fiction fans!
cmareads's review against another edition
2.0
Thanks to St. Martin's Press for the free review copy. All opinions are my own.
This book had so much potential, yet it fell short for me. I did enjoy the 1950s storyline between Charlotte and Vivi. The mother daughter relationship was complicated, and the author took the time to explore the intricacies of their stories. However, the alternating timelines in this book were so hard to follow. I found myself having to reread over to figure out where I was in the story and what was going on. I also found that there are a lot of subplots in this story, which led to a lack of depth.
I wanted more and less from this story. More exploration of the main plot and relationships and less subplots that distract from the main story. The ending also felt rushed and awkward to me. I didn't quite follow everything that was going on because of how jumpy the story was. There's a lot of potential here, I just didn't see it all fleshed out unfortunately.
This book had so much potential, yet it fell short for me. I did enjoy the 1950s storyline between Charlotte and Vivi. The mother daughter relationship was complicated, and the author took the time to explore the intricacies of their stories. However, the alternating timelines in this book were so hard to follow. I found myself having to reread over to figure out where I was in the story and what was going on. I also found that there are a lot of subplots in this story, which led to a lack of depth.
I wanted more and less from this story. More exploration of the main plot and relationships and less subplots that distract from the main story. The ending also felt rushed and awkward to me. I didn't quite follow everything that was going on because of how jumpy the story was. There's a lot of potential here, I just didn't see it all fleshed out unfortunately.
whatjenreads's review against another edition
2.0
This is a dual timeline story of love, loss, survival, and grief. I enjoyed the bond the mother and daughter had and how fiercely the mother protected her daughter. The timelines didn’t flow very well, many times I had to go back and re-read the beginning of the timeline switch to readjust my mindset. I enjoyed the storyline in France during Nazi regime. The later storyline didn’t mesh well with the earlier timeline and felt odd. My thanks to the publisher for the advance reader in exchange for my honest review.
3heartsandawishkatie's review against another edition
4.0
Thank you St. Martin's Press for the gifted copy.
It’s no secret that I love historical fiction, especially of the WW2 era. Paris Never Leaves You by Ellen Feldman is the story of Charlotte and her daughter Vivienne. The dual timelines take you from the years of the Occupation of Paris to the 1950s in NYC. It’s a different viewpoint of the Occupation and Charlotte’s memories of that time and her guilt and emotions years later.
This was a little bit of a slower read, but I enjoyed the story and the characters. And how gorgeous is this cover?
It’s no secret that I love historical fiction, especially of the WW2 era. Paris Never Leaves You by Ellen Feldman is the story of Charlotte and her daughter Vivienne. The dual timelines take you from the years of the Occupation of Paris to the 1950s in NYC. It’s a different viewpoint of the Occupation and Charlotte’s memories of that time and her guilt and emotions years later.
This was a little bit of a slower read, but I enjoyed the story and the characters. And how gorgeous is this cover?
letstalkaboutbooksbaybee's review against another edition
2.0
2⭐️
Thanks to the publishers for a copy of this book to review.
This book is told in dual timelines between 1940s France and 1950s America, with Charlotte and her young daughter Vivienne trying to survive German occupier France during WWII, and after as she works for a publishing company and her and Vivi try to rebuild their lives.
I typically love WWII books, but this one was just very, very boring. I didn’t care about Charlotte at all, and I feel like she existed purely to sleep around?? Or at least that’s what I got from this. Which is fine, like live your best life girl, but maybe not with the enemy or with married men? Just my opinion though.
I did not feel invested in the “present day” timeline whatsoever, in fact I found myself mostly skimming it for any big scenes. I also found the way that she got her and her daughter to America to be really questionable and kind of cringey/possibly offensive?? I’m not Jewish though so I can’t really speak on that.
All in all, I DO think there are people out there who will really enjoy this book. But I also think there are sooooooo many better WWII books out there. If this sounds interesting to you, I’d recommend reading The Nightingale by Kristin Hannah instead tbh.
Thanks to the publishers for a copy of this book to review.
This book is told in dual timelines between 1940s France and 1950s America, with Charlotte and her young daughter Vivienne trying to survive German occupier France during WWII, and after as she works for a publishing company and her and Vivi try to rebuild their lives.
I typically love WWII books, but this one was just very, very boring. I didn’t care about Charlotte at all, and I feel like she existed purely to sleep around?? Or at least that’s what I got from this. Which is fine, like live your best life girl, but maybe not with the enemy or with married men? Just my opinion though.
I did not feel invested in the “present day” timeline whatsoever, in fact I found myself mostly skimming it for any big scenes. I also found the way that she got her and her daughter to America to be really questionable and kind of cringey/possibly offensive?? I’m not Jewish though so I can’t really speak on that.
All in all, I DO think there are people out there who will really enjoy this book. But I also think there are sooooooo many better WWII books out there. If this sounds interesting to you, I’d recommend reading The Nightingale by Kristin Hannah instead tbh.
leanettascott82's review against another edition
3.0
I just finished reading this and would to thank Martin’s Griffin, NetGalley, and Ellen Felderman for allowing me a chance to read the early reviewers copy of this book.
Let me start by giving a little pretext into the book which is set in Paris during the German Occupation and New York in the 50’s. The story switches back and forth between the two settings but in a sort of weird way. I think the switches are supposed to be more of memories for her (Charlotte, MC) but they come off all wrong. She has a daughter called Vivi that really gives it to her a few times in the story and all for it.
She isn’t a very likable or charismatic person and she doesn’t shy away from lying to her daughter to keep her managed. I’m glad Vivi had Hannah the downstairs neighbor to talk to and help sort stuff out. Horace is Hannah’s husband in name only as it would seem since they are both actively pursuing other people.
The only person I did like and felt bad for was Julian the German-Jew Doctor who was also in the Third Reich. Ironic isn’t it. I didn’t like how he met his end and how Charlotte got to be the happy third or forth wheel in Hannah-Horace marriage and live happily ever after. After everything she did or didn’t own too. Anyway the story drags for a while and my favorite parts are during the Paris setting. There are more good parts but I’m not going to spoil anymore than I already have. Please let me know your thoughts on the book too.
Let me start by giving a little pretext into the book which is set in Paris during the German Occupation and New York in the 50’s. The story switches back and forth between the two settings but in a sort of weird way. I think the switches are supposed to be more of memories for her (Charlotte, MC) but they come off all wrong. She has a daughter called Vivi that really gives it to her a few times in the story and all for it.
She isn’t a very likable or charismatic person and she doesn’t shy away from lying to her daughter to keep her managed. I’m glad Vivi had Hannah the downstairs neighbor to talk to and help sort stuff out. Horace is Hannah’s husband in name only as it would seem since they are both actively pursuing other people.
The only person I did like and felt bad for was Julian the German-Jew Doctor who was also in the Third Reich. Ironic isn’t it. I didn’t like how he met his end and how Charlotte got to be the happy third or forth wheel in Hannah-Horace marriage and live happily ever after. After everything she did or didn’t own too. Anyway the story drags for a while and my favorite parts are during the Paris setting. There are more good parts but I’m not going to spoil anymore than I already have. Please let me know your thoughts on the book too.
chelz286's review against another edition
4.0
Charolette survived the war, and was able to make her way to America with her toddler daughter, as a refuge. She, with the help of others found an apartment and a job. She has a good life in America, but her past starts to come back as her daughter, now a teenager starts questioning who her father was and their life in Paris during that time.
Vivi hardly remembers anything from Paris and the war. She was just a toddler during that time, and she is starting to get curious about their past, her mother's past and who her father is. She realizes how much she really does not know, when during school one day they are asked to talk about their fathers. Most of the others have photos and live with their father, she has neither.
Charlotte doesn't like to talk about the war. It is a close guarded secret, and often people know that she came from Paris and are respectful enough not to ask her any questions. However, many do want to know. Thinking about that time, she is ashamed. She doesn't feel she deserves what she has, and thinks of herself as a collaborator.
Vivi's constant questioning and a few letters that manage to show up for her, finally get her to break. She finally tells it all to her boss, also her landlord. What happened over there, how she was able to survive, and her daughter to survive with hardly any illness or injury, unlike the thousand of other refuges.
It takes him to make her understand that what she did, was not in vein or should be classified with the other collaborators. She did what she needed to survive, and to keep her daughter alive. There is no shame in that, and no on can judge in that they don't know what they would have done in that situation.
This was a very well written novel! I enjoyed the double story lines and for those who like reading about the war but need something a little lighter, this is your novel! Thank your to Shelf Pro Awareness and St. Martin's Press for the arc!
Vivi hardly remembers anything from Paris and the war. She was just a toddler during that time, and she is starting to get curious about their past, her mother's past and who her father is. She realizes how much she really does not know, when during school one day they are asked to talk about their fathers. Most of the others have photos and live with their father, she has neither.
Charlotte doesn't like to talk about the war. It is a close guarded secret, and often people know that she came from Paris and are respectful enough not to ask her any questions. However, many do want to know. Thinking about that time, she is ashamed. She doesn't feel she deserves what she has, and thinks of herself as a collaborator.
Vivi's constant questioning and a few letters that manage to show up for her, finally get her to break. She finally tells it all to her boss, also her landlord. What happened over there, how she was able to survive, and her daughter to survive with hardly any illness or injury, unlike the thousand of other refuges.
It takes him to make her understand that what she did, was not in vein or should be classified with the other collaborators. She did what she needed to survive, and to keep her daughter alive. There is no shame in that, and no on can judge in that they don't know what they would have done in that situation.
This was a very well written novel! I enjoyed the double story lines and for those who like reading about the war but need something a little lighter, this is your novel! Thank your to Shelf Pro Awareness and St. Martin's Press for the arc!