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A review by mudder17
The Riviera House by Natasha Lester
5.0
4.5 stars
This was a long book. And the structure of the book is similar to others I've read with dual timelines and a connection between the two timelines that you don't figure out until further into the book. The story in the past takes place during WWII, so also similar to other books I've read, and there is a strong woman in both timelines. So it seems I would become tired of these. But this is definitely one of the better ones I've read and I had a hard time putting it down. In the past, we have Eliane Dufort, who lives in Paris during WWII. As with many, she is struggling to help support her family as a waitress in her family's restaurant, and also in the Louvre. When the Germans invade France, she and Rose Valland are tasked by the Germans to catalog all of the priceless artworks so that they can steal them. In the present, Remy Lang is struggling to survive after losing her husband and daughter in a car accident. She is living in a house in the French Riviera that she inherited when she lost her parents, although she has no idea who her parents are. The deeds and a few other items simply came with a note with her adoption papers. When her parents see how much she's struggling in NY after her loss, they suggest she go to her inherited house to recover, thinking maybe a change in scenery will help.
This book is partly a mystery as we uncover how the past and the present are connected, but it is also a love story, both in the past and in the present. With many of these dual timeline stories, I end up finding one story much more interesting than the other, but I was surprised that I couldn't wait to return to each story as the timelines alternated. I found both stories equally compelling, and I kept dreaming up scenarios for what happened in the past to lead to this future. I also did the math, trying to figure out how many generations were between Remy's timeline and Eliane's timeline. The other thing I loved about this book was that the subject, the artwork in France during the war, was something I didn't know that much about. I had some inkling about the Germans stealing artwork during the war, both as a nation and as individuals, but I didn't realize the extent to which it occurred. I had heard some recent stories about some of these pieces being recovered, so this was an extra point of connection for me. I loved the role that art, photography, and vintage clothing played in this story; this book was rich with beautiful images in a very dark time. This book definitely tugged at my heartstrings and I'm so glad the book came across my feed. For me at least, this was one of the better examples of the genre/trope of dual timelines, WWII, strong women.
This was a long book. And the structure of the book is similar to others I've read with dual timelines and a connection between the two timelines that you don't figure out until further into the book. The story in the past takes place during WWII, so also similar to other books I've read, and there is a strong woman in both timelines. So it seems I would become tired of these. But this is definitely one of the better ones I've read and I had a hard time putting it down. In the past, we have Eliane Dufort, who lives in Paris during WWII. As with many, she is struggling to help support her family as a waitress in her family's restaurant, and also in the Louvre. When the Germans invade France, she and Rose Valland are tasked by the Germans to catalog all of the priceless artworks so that they can steal them. In the present, Remy Lang is struggling to survive after losing her husband and daughter in a car accident. She is living in a house in the French Riviera that she inherited when she lost her parents, although she has no idea who her parents are. The deeds and a few other items simply came with a note with her adoption papers. When her parents see how much she's struggling in NY after her loss, they suggest she go to her inherited house to recover, thinking maybe a change in scenery will help.
This book is partly a mystery as we uncover how the past and the present are connected, but it is also a love story, both in the past and in the present. With many of these dual timeline stories, I end up finding one story much more interesting than the other, but I was surprised that I couldn't wait to return to each story as the timelines alternated. I found both stories equally compelling, and I kept dreaming up scenarios for what happened in the past to lead to this future. I also did the math, trying to figure out how many generations were between Remy's timeline and Eliane's timeline. The other thing I loved about this book was that the subject, the artwork in France during the war, was something I didn't know that much about. I had some inkling about the Germans stealing artwork during the war, both as a nation and as individuals, but I didn't realize the extent to which it occurred. I had heard some recent stories about some of these pieces being recovered, so this was an extra point of connection for me. I loved the role that art, photography, and vintage clothing played in this story; this book was rich with beautiful images in a very dark time. This book definitely tugged at my heartstrings and I'm so glad the book came across my feed. For me at least, this was one of the better examples of the genre/trope of dual timelines, WWII, strong women.