Review: The American Wife by Chrystyna Lucyk-Berger *

  *I received a copy of this book in eBook format via NetGalley in return for this review. All reviews published on Yours, Chloe are completely honest and my own, and are in now way influenced by the gifting opportunity.

Title: The American Wife
Author: Chrystyna Lucyk-Berger
Genre: Historical Fiction

Trigger warnings:  War, Antisemitism, Guns

Rating: ★★

With her heart in her mouth, Kitty let herself into her husband’s private study. She knew where he kept the papers that might save her dearest friend from the Nazis. She just had to steal them…

Vienna, 1937. When beautiful American Kitty becomes engaged to Austrian diplomat Edgar, she finds herself thrown into a very different world in Europe, and soon longs for home. But when the woman designing her wedding dress, Judith, takes Kitty under her wing, she sees the city of Vienna in a new light – a city of culture and music that she can explore with her new friend.

But when the Nazis come, the fact that Judith is Jewish means she is no longer safe. Kitty knows that as a diplomat’s wife she can steal the papers that will allow her closest friend to escape to safety, but will it mean betraying the love of her life?

Except that Edgar has grown distant and secretive since she joined him in Europe and, when war breaks out, Kitty wonders which side her husband is really on. And, as she prepares to betray him, Kitty begins to fear that she doesn’t really know the man she married at all.

Facing an impossible choice between her dearest friend and the man she loves, Kitty knows she must be brave, and do the right thing, no matter the personal cost…

 

The American Wife is the latest historical fiction novel by Chrystyna Lucyk-Berger and the first in her new ‘The Diplomat’s Wife’ book series.

I want to preface this review by saying that I did really want to like the book as a story focusing on the annexation of Austria and the lives of American diplomats living in pre-war Europe was a really interesting concept but unfortunately it did really miss the mark for me.

One of my primary criticisms of the book was that it tried to be too many things. There were three distinctly separate aspects to the story: Kitty’s work for the US embassy processing visa applications for those trying to leave Austria, the relationship between her and her diplomat husband Edgar despite their apparent opposing political views and her work for the Austrian resistance protecting people being persecuted by the Nazis. All three aspects were interesting plot points in themselves but it felt like they were fighting for page space and therefore none of them were explored in the depth I was craving.

I did particularly find the exploration of the American visa application process for people trying to escape Nazi persecution to be very interesting and something I hadn’t seen before in other Second World War historical fiction novels. It was particularly powerful to see the book shed a light on the impact of international antisemitism

I unfortunately didn’t warm to Kitty’s character at all and that did have a big impact on my overall enjoyment of the story. She felt incredibly immature, selfish and generally unlikeable. Although she did have redeeming qualities such as her determination to do whatever it takes to protect the friends she hadn’t even known for that long, these moments of bravery and thoughtfulness didn’t quite do enough to make up for her negative traits unfortunately.

Although I can be a fan of the instalove trope normally, it was really quite hard to root for Kitty and Edgar’s relationship at all. Their initial connection felt very superficial and their marriage was incredibly rushed, although we are told that this was very typical of Kitty’s character. It was inevitable that the cracks in their relationship would start to show very quickly and I honestly didn’t find myself really caring if they found their way back to each other or not. Kitty was clearly not mature enough for marriage and I felt Edgar would have actually been better finding someone more mature and trusting.

Although they were only supporting characters, I actually found myself really drawn to the different characters within ‘The Gang’ and felt they would have actually been much stronger protagonists than Kitty and Edgar. I am curious to see the direction Chrystyna Lucyk-Berger plans to take the rest of the series to see if we get any further exploration of their stories.

The ending of The American Wife paves the way for the next book in the series although I have to say I did find it predictable, particularly the ‘big twist’ about Pim’s identity.

Overall, whilst The American Wife did feel well researched, the plot and characters really didn’t grip me unfortunately and it ended up feeling like I was having to drag myself towards the end of the book. As stated previously, this was a shame as the different aspects of the storyline were interesting but they just weren’t as effectively executed as I would have wanted.

Review: The First Spark of Fire by Marion Kummerow*

  *I received a copy of this book in eBook format via NetGalley in return for this review. All reviews published on Yours, Chloe are completely honest and my own, and are in now way influenced by the gifting opportunity.

Title: The First Spark Of Fire
Author: Marion Kummerow
Genre: Historical Fiction

Trigger warnings:  War, Antisemitism, Infertility, Fire, Violence, Guns

Rating: ★★★★★ 

Germany, 1930s: Edith holds the letter in a trembling hand, her eyes fixed on the eagle carrying the terrifying symbol in its claws. The summons from the Gestapo is everything she has dreaded for months. She tells herself she has nothing to fear. She has done nothing wrong…

In this heartbreaking story based on real events, it will be up to one woman to fight for her love in a world that wants to destroy it.

When beautiful, shy Edith married her elegant, banker husband Julius, she believed that their union would be forever. In spite of her humble background, they have loved each other since the minute they met at a dance. As she learns how to behave in the high society world Julius has opened to her, she is determined to enjoy every moment.

But the Nazi party is growing in power, and her marriage comes under increasing strain. Julius is of Jewish origin—and even some of Edith’s closest family believe their relationship is an abomination, demanding she divorce him.

Julius refuses to see the risk, insisting his powerful friends will protect him. But Edith finds herself scared that her husband may be declared her enemy. And if that happens, how will she protect him?

Soon, she finds herself plunged into a world of revolution and danger, where everything she knows can be changed at the stroke of a pen—or the strike of a fist. As the peril grows, can she find the fire in her heart to fight for what is right, at the cost of her own safety?

The First Spark of Fire is the latest gripping historical fiction novel by Marion Kummerow and the first in her new ‘German Wives’ book series. It is a gripping and fast paced exploration of the Nazi rise to power and the impact it had on German citizens, focusing on two fictional housewives Edith and Helga.

The narrative opens in Munich in 1923 and we’re taken on a journey through the 20s and 30s as the Nazi Party take control of Germany and move Europe towards another world war. Although the novel is less than 300 pages long, it provides a deep dive into many key events in Germany during the inter-war period. This includes the Beer Hall Putsch, the Reichstag fire (and the political consequences of the fire such as the Reichstag Fire Decree and Enabling Act), the Night Of The Long Knives, the 1936 Summer Olympics and Kristallnacht. This was all clearly meticulously researched and history is seamlessly woven into the story. As an avid reader of historical fiction focused on the Second World War and the years building up to it, I’ve read a large number of books set during this era but never before have I read something which covered so many crucial historical events in such depth whilst still creating a captivating and emotive story.

The First Spark Of Fire provides an unique perspective on the rise of antisemitism in Germany through its focus on non-Jewish women who were supporting their Jewish husbands (and in Helga’s case, also her half-Jewish children) through the introduction of antisemitic laws and were determined to keep them safe. We have two strong female characters in both Edith and Helga and it was nice to see a strong female friendship represented through the two old school friends reconnecting in adulthood. The choice to give the women contrasting family backgrounds (through their relationships with their husbands, whether or not they had children and also how affluent they were) was really impactful and allowed us to explore the impact rising antisemitism had on a range of different members of society.

Alongside Edith and Helga, we also get some chapters sharing the perspective of Edith’s brother Joseph as he joins the SS and rises through its ranks. I was conflicted on the choice to give Joseph his own chapters as it does ultimately really humanise the SS but on the other hand I do also recognise the importance for historical fiction to explore how ordinary Germans such as Joseph were sucked into the Nazi ideology and became willing to commit such atrocities. Sharing Joseph’s perspective also allowed us to explore how families could have really opposing views on Hitler and the Nazi party and the impact it would have on their family relationships.

In The First Spark of Fire, Marion Kummerow has found a powerful balance between creating a story which is educational and historically accurate whilst also capturing the raw and emotional experiences of German citizens at the time. The characters are all beautifully written and perfectly capture the courage shown by Jewish people and their non-Jewish spouses during the rise of antisemitism. The ending to this book is rather abrupt, paving the way for the next book in the series. After reading the entire story in a single sitting I am eagerly awaiting the next book in the series.

Overall, The First Spark of Fire is a powerful and incredibly gripping piece of historical fiction which is a must-read for fans of historical fiction and those with an interest in Second World War history.

Review: The Sharp Edge of Silence by Cameron Kelly Rosenblum*

 *I received a copy of this book in eBook format via NetGalley in return for this review. All reviews published on Yours, Chloe are completely honest and my own, and are in now way influenced by the gifting opportunity.

Title: The Sharp Edge of Silence
Author: Cameron Kelly Rosenblum
Genre: Young Adult

Trigger warnings:  Rape, Rape Culture, Sexual Assault, Sexual Violence, Misogyny, Guns

Rating: ★★★★★ 

As a straight-A student and girlfriend of the school's star rower, Charlotte believes in what the school has to offer. Meanwhile, scholarship student Max is struggling. Until he's asked to join the rowing team offering him popularity - but at what cost? Then there's Quinn, a sixth-generation legacy student, who should be able to lay claim to the school in a way others can't. Who instead must watch the boy who assaulted her continue to play at the top of the school's food chain. Only in the dead of night does Q realize the solution to her suffering: Colin Pearce must die.

But Lycroft Phelps has more than one dark secret at its heart, and as the three students uncover just how far the school will go to keep those ugly truths hidden, there's a lot more than reputation at stake...

The Sharp Edge of Silence is a YA contemporary standalone novel which explores toxic masculinity and rape culture at a prestigious American private school in a raw and heart wrenching way. Although it is a YA novel, the mature writing style and the way it tackles important hard-hitting and mature topics means that adult readers can also take so much from the story.

Something that makes the novel really stand out from others is the way it tackles lesser-explored aspects of rape culture. This includes the generational passing down of the toxic ideologies that contribute to it, the idea of individuals being complicit by ignoring and not reporting sexual violence they witness and the repeated examples of systems protecting those guilty of rape and sexual violence because of their athletic ability.

The story is told in three alternating perspectives: Quinn, Charlotte and Max. Although the chapters sharing the POVs of Charlotte and Max did feel initially out of place alongside Quinn’s raw and explicit accounts of rape and the mental impact it had on her, they became increasingly important as the story progressed and the perspectives begin to overlap. Through Max’s perspective we get an exploration of silent complicity and through Charlotte’s perspective we explore the group of girls who supported Quinn and fought for revenge and justice, determined that the boys would be held accountable. It was wonderful to see this representation of strong female friendships, particularly as they immediately believed and supported Quinn without belittling or questioning her experiences.

The characters are beautifully complex and I want to particularly commend Cameron Kelly Rosenblum for how she’s written the character of Quinn. We have strong mental health representation through the raw and authentic portrayal of Quinn’s PTSD and the book captures how her anger towards her rapist turns her self-destructive prior to intervention by others. We get to follow her journey towards a path of healing from her trauma and it felt particularly credible that her recovery wasn’t linear. I also particularly enjoyed the references to Quinn’s use of music to help her process the difficult emotions she’s experiencing (and not just because she has an impeccable taste in music).

Overall, The Sharp Edge of Silence is a powerful, heart wrenching and truly ground-breaking story. Although this isn’t an easy read given the difficult subject matter, I think it’s a story which should be read by everyone. 

Review: The Three Lives of Alix St Pierre by Natasha Lester*

  *I received a copy of this book in eBook format via NetGalley in return for this review. All reviews published on Yours, Chloe are completely honest and my own, and are in now way influenced by the gifting opportunity.

Title: The Three Lives of Alix St Pierre
Author: Natasha Lester
Genre: Historical Fiction

Trigger warnings:  War, Violence, Guns, Domestic Violence, Suicide, Death of a Partner, Death of a Parent, Parental Loss

Rating: ★★★★ 

 A compelling and lavish novel from the NYT bestselling author about a young woman striving to forget her part in the war by building life anew as the publicist at the just-launching House of Dior in Paris

1943. After spearheading several successful advertising campaigns in New York, PR wizard Alix St Pierre comes to the attention of the US government and finds herself recruited into a fledgling intelligence organisation.
Enlisted as a spy, Alix is sent to Europe where she is tasked with getting close to a Nazi who might be willing to help the Allied forces - but there's also the chance he might be a double agent.
1946. Following the war, Alix moves to Paris to run the Service de la Presse for the yet-to-be-launched House of Christian Dior. But when a figure from the war reappears and threatens to destroy her future, Alix realises that only she can right the wrongs of the past and bring him to justice.

The Three Lives of Alix St Pierre is the latest historical fiction work from New York Times best-selling author Natasha Lester. It is a captivating, beautifully written novel told in three timelines: before, during and after WW2. The story is impeccably researched and historical details were seamlessly woven into the narrative.

In Alix, we have a really strong female protagonist who is witty, headstrong, courageous and had me truly enchanted. Like all of the supporting characters in the novel, she is beautifully complex and we see her trying to recover from the trauma of a failed mission towards the end of the war and the responsibility she feels for it.

Although I was drawn to The Three Lives of Alix St Pierre for the WW2 aspect, I also really enjoyed the time period which focused on Alix’s PR work for House of Christian Dior. The exploration of Parisian post-war fashion and the experiences of women such as Alix navigating post-war Paris were really interesting and really set this novel apart from other WW2 historical fiction works.

The narrative started off with a slower-pace as Alix established herself in Paris and within Christian Dior and I will admit that during these chapters I found it quite hard to fully engage with. But I’m glad I stuck with it because as the novel progressed it became fast-paced and had me completely hooked by around the halfway mark. Natasha Lester effortlessly builds tension and has the reader on the edge of their seat before switching back to one of the different timelines and making us hold out for answers.

Although I feel like The Three Lives of Alix St Pierre didn’t necessarily need a romantic element, I did enjoy the slow burn enemies to lovers relationship between Alix and Anthony. In the earlier timeline, it was also beautiful to see the connection between Alix and Matteo blossom even if it was a typical short-lived right person, wrong time relationship. My heart was completely torn between which love interest I adored the most, with both Anthony and Matteo being strong competitors I just couldn’t get enough of. I did feel like some of the scenes between Alix and Anthony could have done with being a little bit spicier but I appreciate that this isn’t the style of all authors.

Unfortunately, I was disappointed by the ending as (whilst being mindful of avoiding spoilers) the apparent resolution surrounding the Nazi agent they’d been trying to track down felt really anti-climatic and lacked the drama and tension I craved. Natasha Lester did a good job of making sure all loose edges were tied up and it was interesting to see how different aspects of the story linked but unfortunately quite a lot of this was predictable. This was a shame as until the final chapters the book was a 5* read for me but my dissatisfaction at the ending reduced this rating.

Overall, The Three Lives of Alix St Pierre is a powerful and incredibly gripping piece of historical fiction which is both heart-breaking and heart-warming. It is a must-read for fans of WW2 historical fiction who also have an interest in Parisian fashion.

Review: The Paris Maid by Ella Carey*

  *I received a copy of this book in eBook format via NetGalley in return for this review. All reviews published on Yours, Chloe are completely honest and my own, and are in now way influenced by the gifting opportunity.

Title: The Paris Maid
Author: Ella Carey
Genre: Historical Fiction

Trigger warnings:  War, Violence, Guns

Rating: ★★★★ 

Paris, 1944. “Traitor!” yells the crowd as they push me down onto a stool. “Nazi collaborator.” Tears blur my vision as the razor grazes my scalp, waves of blonde hair falling to the ground. As men paint a swastika across my face, I hold onto one small glimmer of hope. They have no idea who I am. Louise Basset works as a housemaid at The Ritz Hotel, home to the most powerful Nazis in France. As she changes silk sheets and scrubs sumptuous marble bathtubs, she listens and watches, reporting all she can to the Resistance. The only secret she never tells is her own. Everything changes for Louise on the day a young Allied pilot, hunted by the Nazis, is smuggled into the hotel. As he and Louise share a small carafe of red wine hidden amongst her cleaning bottles, she feels her heart begin to open. But if Louise trusts someone with the truth, what will happen? Years later, her granddaughter Nicole looks up at the ornate façade of the infamous Paris hotel. She is reeling from her recent discovery: a black-and-white photograph of her grandmother as a young woman, head shaved, branded a traitor. Devastated by her new legacy and about to start a family of her own, Nicole searches for answers. When a French historian calls Louise by a different name, Nicole realizes there must be more to her grandmother’s story. Was the woman who taught Nicole so much about family and loyalty a resistance fighter, or will her granddaughter have to live with the knowledge that she is descended from a traitor? And will Nicole be able to finally move forward with her life if she can uncover the truth?

The Paris Maid is the latest gripping novel from historical fiction author Ella Carey. It’s an emotional fast-paced exploration of themes such as love, courage, betrayal and family which gives us a fantastic insight into those who worked at the Ritz Hotel in Paris during the Nazi occupation of France. We have some really strong female characters featuring in the story, highlighting the importance of female contributions to the resistance and war effort.

The story opens with an incredibly powerful prologue focusing on the punishment imposed on French women accused of so-called ‘horizontal collaboration’ with the German occupiers during the Second World War. We see our protagonist Louise have her head shaved and being labelled a ‘femme tondue’ (shaven woman). It provides a really emotive opening to the story which immediately grips the reader and pulls them into Louise’s story.

The Paris Maid was clearly impeccably researched and historical details were seamlessly woven into the narrative. The story also features fictional portrayals of real individuals such as SOE agents who operated in France and members of the Ritz hotel staff who worked for the French resistance, passing on information they had overheard from the high ranking Nazi officials living in the hotel. Personally, I find the history of the Ritz during the Nazi occupation of France absolutely fascinating and it was wonderful to see the anti-German activities completed by the staff at the Ritz portrayed within historical fiction.

It is worth noting that you do have to stay quite switched on whilst you’re reading The Paris Maid as characters are frequently referred to using code names and aliases but by playing close attention to the intricate details and references within the narrative you can keep track of the events and who’s who.

I did find the ending to the story slightly rushed and confusing but the epilogue is cleverly crafted to provide extra clarity. The ending does provide a bit of a plot twist which I definitely wasn’t expecting and this was a nice way of keeping us readers on our toes right to the very end of the story.

The story is told through a dual timeline, alternating between Louise’s wartime experiences and her granddaughter Nicole researching them years later. Although I’m a definite fan of the use of dual timelines in historical fiction, I don’t think this was as well executed as it could have been. The concept of Nicole researching her grandmother’s wartime experiences off the back of her discovering the photo of her as a ‘femme tondue’ was really interesting but I didn’t like the family conflict between Nicole and her aunt. It didn’t add anything to the story at all really and just unnecessarily took our attention away from Louise’s story.

I also thought it a shame that we weren’t given more specific references to the date each part of the story is taking place on as chapters were instead given more vague labels such as “Summer 1944”. There are occasional references to specific dates such as Bastille Day but this works on the assumption that the reader will have a good enough understanding of French history and culture to know when Bastille Day actually is. More specific references to the date at the beginning of each chapter would have supported the progression of the narrative as it would help the reader to track the progression towards the Allied liberation of Paris.

Overall, The Paris Maid is a powerful and emotive story about the courage of the French Resistance and SOE agents operating around Paris, and particularly within the Ritz hotel, during the Second World War. It’s well-paced, gripping and an overall must-read for fans of WW2 historical fiction.