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A review by rozanne_visagie
Orphans of the Storm by Celia Imrie
4.0
*Disclaimer: I was kindly gifted a copy of this book by Jonathan Ball Publishers in exchange for an honest review.
"It was just a fly. But even a mere fly knew that, when you really needed to escape, hurting yourself could be worth it, if at the end you gained your freedom." -- Marcella Navratil
The Sunday Times Bestselling Novelist Celia Imrie brings the story of the RMS Titanic back to life in her latest touching novel, Orphans of the Storm. Based upon a true story of two families whose lives were affected by the tragedy taking place in the early morning hours of 15 April 1912. Most of us are familiar with the story of Titanic but let's backtrack a little to September 1911, Nice, France.
Marcella arrived in Nice years earlier as a young girl full of hopes and dreams. Full of fire and eager to pursue her dreams of becoming a singer, but her dreams were extinguished when she was pushed into a trade, tailoring for ladies. Convinced by her cousin Rosa to sign up for a tailoring course, Marcella meets Michael Navratil and her life changes. After their short romance and marriage and working together as tailors, things quickly turned toxic. Enduring verbal abuse and controlling behaviour from Michael, Marcella knew she had to do something to protect herself and their two little boys, Michel Marcel (Lolo) and Edmond (Monmon). In a time where divorce was frowned upon, Marcella takes a chance visit to a lawyer. When Michael eventually finds out about Marcella's plan, he wasn't happy. Being a well-known tailor, Michael made some unwise decisions that led to massive debts and this added to Michael's behaviour. While reading, Michael kind of reminded me of the character of Cal Hockley, Rose's fiancé in the Titanic movie.
We can gather from the title that Lolo and Monmon were onboard the RMS Titanic and was orphaned by the sinking of the majestic ship. I don't want to give away too many details about the time spent onboard the RMS Titanic, but what I can say is this is where Margaret Bechstein crosses the paths of Lolo and Monmon. Through her selfless act, the toddlers were given a second chance. Told from Marcella, Michael and Margaret's POV, the reader is swept up in the toxic marriage of Michael and Marcella, caught up in the exhilarating boarding of the Titanic and left desolate after the vivid descriptions of the ship descending into the darkness leaving two small boys to the fate of strangers. In this case, a stranger who only had their best interests at heart.
The moment I heard this book had a connection with the Titanic, I was easily convinced to read it. For years I have found the story of the Titanic fascinating, so it's obvious that my favourite part was onboard the ship. I found Margaret's story a bit slow, but I think it was because of my level of excitement about the part onboard the ship. The ship itself has a small part in the story, the main focus is on the story leading up to the boys being on the ship and their life after the sinking. I enjoyed the historical research by Fidelis Morgan and found it really interesting. If you have a love for the Titanic (like me) or you enjoy Historical Fiction, then this book needs to be on your TBR.
TW: toxic marriage, verbal abuse, death, death of a parent.
This review is posted on my blog:
https://willowscornerbook.wordpress.com/2021/09/29/orphans-of-the-storm-by-celia-imrie-book-review/
"It was just a fly. But even a mere fly knew that, when you really needed to escape, hurting yourself could be worth it, if at the end you gained your freedom." -- Marcella Navratil
The Sunday Times Bestselling Novelist Celia Imrie brings the story of the RMS Titanic back to life in her latest touching novel, Orphans of the Storm. Based upon a true story of two families whose lives were affected by the tragedy taking place in the early morning hours of 15 April 1912. Most of us are familiar with the story of Titanic but let's backtrack a little to September 1911, Nice, France.
Marcella arrived in Nice years earlier as a young girl full of hopes and dreams. Full of fire and eager to pursue her dreams of becoming a singer, but her dreams were extinguished when she was pushed into a trade, tailoring for ladies. Convinced by her cousin Rosa to sign up for a tailoring course, Marcella meets Michael Navratil and her life changes. After their short romance and marriage and working together as tailors, things quickly turned toxic. Enduring verbal abuse and controlling behaviour from Michael, Marcella knew she had to do something to protect herself and their two little boys, Michel Marcel (Lolo) and Edmond (Monmon). In a time where divorce was frowned upon, Marcella takes a chance visit to a lawyer. When Michael eventually finds out about Marcella's plan, he wasn't happy. Being a well-known tailor, Michael made some unwise decisions that led to massive debts and this added to Michael's behaviour. While reading, Michael kind of reminded me of the character of Cal Hockley, Rose's fiancé in the Titanic movie.
We can gather from the title that Lolo and Monmon were onboard the RMS Titanic and was orphaned by the sinking of the majestic ship. I don't want to give away too many details about the time spent onboard the RMS Titanic, but what I can say is this is where Margaret Bechstein crosses the paths of Lolo and Monmon. Through her selfless act, the toddlers were given a second chance. Told from Marcella, Michael and Margaret's POV, the reader is swept up in the toxic marriage of Michael and Marcella, caught up in the exhilarating boarding of the Titanic and left desolate after the vivid descriptions of the ship descending into the darkness leaving two small boys to the fate of strangers. In this case, a stranger who only had their best interests at heart.
The moment I heard this book had a connection with the Titanic, I was easily convinced to read it. For years I have found the story of the Titanic fascinating, so it's obvious that my favourite part was onboard the ship. I found Margaret's story a bit slow, but I think it was because of my level of excitement about the part onboard the ship. The ship itself has a small part in the story, the main focus is on the story leading up to the boys being on the ship and their life after the sinking. I enjoyed the historical research by Fidelis Morgan and found it really interesting. If you have a love for the Titanic (like me) or you enjoy Historical Fiction, then this book needs to be on your TBR.
TW: toxic marriage, verbal abuse, death, death of a parent.
This review is posted on my blog:
https://willowscornerbook.wordpress.com/2021/09/29/orphans-of-the-storm-by-celia-imrie-book-review/