Name: Paris Never Leaves You
ISBN: 9781250622778

Ellen Feldman

"Masterful. Magnificent. A passionate story of survival and a real page turner. This story will stay with me for a long time." —Heather Morris, author of The Tattooist of Auschwitz and Cilka's Journey Living through World War II working in a Paris bookstore with her young daughter, Vivi, and fighting for her life, Charlotte is no victim, she is a survivor. But can she survive the next chapter of her life? Alternating between wartime Paris and 1950s New York publishing, Ellen Feldman's Paris Never Leaves You is an extraordinary story of resilience, love, and impossible choices, exploring how survival never comes without a cost. The war is over, but the past is never past.

A Novel

Paris Never Leaves You

Kayla 

Paris Never Leaves you is a historical fiction set in WWII France and just after the war in America. Charlotte is a refugee who survived the war with her daughter and is trying to start over in America.

I was really interested in Charlotte’s story, however I soon found myself confused and lost within the plot. While I love a dual timeline, I would find myself reading a chapter and then all of a sudden we were back in the past. It was a bit too chaotic for me.

Her character was also very, not sure the word for it, but she didn’t have feelings. Like at all. Not even towards her daughter. It was awkward to read.

Anyway, I’m happy to have finished this one as it’s been on my TBR for a while.

💛 Thank you @stmartinspress for this e-book.

Jolie

If this book had been told without the dual timelines, I would have loved it. But, Charlotte in the 50's and Charlotte in the 40's didn't jive with me. That took away from my enjoyment of the book. There were other things that I didn't like but I don't want to say because they are spoilers. I did think the writing was beautiful and the characters were well written and well researched. Other than that, this book wasn't my favorite.

Jessica 

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  As always, a copy of this book was provided by the author or publisher in exchange for my honest review. This does not effect my opinion in any way.


On a surface level, I assumed that Paris Never Leaves You would be one of my favourite books of 2020. Yet, reading it, I always felt like something was missing. Plain and simple. And despite Ellen Feldman's lyrical prose, and stunning historical setting, there was just this constant nagging feeling that I was constantly missing something. An experience. An extra layer. Anything, really.

One of my biggest issues with Paris Never Leaves You is that I was overwhelmed with the beauty of Feldman's writing, and I didn't mind the central romantic themes, but I was so underwhelmed with--quite literally--everything else.

The characters were my biggest source of connectivity issues. I never found myself growing attached to them individually. I never found myself completely understanding what made them tick, where they were headed next, what their story would hold. I was... indifferent. And with every new development, even the one's that nearly engaged me, I just couldn't find myself drawn to much of anything.

Look, sometimes books don't work for us. Sometimes it's the reader's mood. Sometimes the story just isn't there cup of tea. In the case of Paris Never Leaves You, I don't think it's the book or the author's ability to weave stories. I genuinely liked the writing and I thought it had promise--but my mood seemed to hold me back from really and truly appreciating this one for what it was.

If you are a fan of historical fiction/romance, I think that this is the very sort of novel you will long to curl up with in your favourite coffee shop. Paris Never Leaves You truly will captivate many readers and, like Paris, will never leave them. Sadly, it didn't work for me.

Paris Never Leaves You A Novel

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