Daughters of Paris | Review

Daughters of Paris Published by One More Chapter by Elisabeth Hobbes
on August 5, 2022
Genres: Abuse, European Literature, French, Romance, War, WW II, Women's Fiction, Historical
Pages: 437
Source: Netgalley
Format: ARC, eBook
Find the Author: Twitter, Facebook
Also by this author: Daughter of the Sea
Find the Book: Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Goodreads

Rating:

Paris 1930s
Colette – daughter of a wealthy Parisian. No-one expects her to amount to anything other than socialite wife. But there’s more to Colette than meets the eye…
Fleur – daughter of a maid in Colette’s household. Her life will not be one of service! She wants an education, to travel and become something more…The two young girls see in each other what no-one else can: intelligence, strength and courage. They form a forbidden friendship. They become secret sisters.
But as the Nazis occupy their beloved Paris, the bond between them is severely tested. One fights with the resistance, the other protects her family at all costs. Soon they find themselves embroiled in espionage, murder and treason, risking everything to save those they love, their people and their country.
Will their friendship survive the ultimate betrayal?

I read this right after reading The Nightingale. And while there were many similarities–Daughters of Paris does, indeed, stand on its own.

The story of two childhood best friends, this story started off pulling at my heartstrings. I could already see how difficult it would be for Fleur and Colette to maintain their friendship with such a disparity in circumstances.

Fleur is the niece of Colette’s family’s domestic help. Which means Fleur is kind of the hired help. And when they’re children this makes no difference to either of the girls. It isn’t until they grow and make different friends that things get more complicated.

There are a variety of circumstances that rip the girls apart and drive them away from their friendship. It isn’t until their country, France, is taken over by the Germans when that gap starts to be bridged between them.

They each deal with the occupation in their own way. Granted, Fleur, with not as many privileges as Colette, quickly finds herself in the company of fellow French who wish to drive away the Germans at all costs. It isn’t until later that Colette also finds her own way of helping.

This story was one of friendship, love, and what each person must do in grave times to survive and also to stand up for what they believe in. Even at the detriment of self.

I really loved the way Hobbes weaved this story. The historical background just added to the story and brought me really into the world of Colette and Fleur.

 

 

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