Great story! I hope there are more coming... ( )

My book club is discussing this book in February 2023 and, since the author is local, we are hoping she will come to our meeting. That always adds excitement to the meeting. I'm looking forward to learning how she learned so much about art.

I've lost track of how many historical novels feature a dual time line. It's a popular method to tie a historical story line into more recent events but I have to say I'm getting a little tired of it. The historical story is set during World War II and features two women working for the Resistance in Paris. The modern time line takes place during 2017 and features a woman who is the granddaughter of one of the historical characters and a man who is the grandnephew of the other.

The book opens in 2017 when Aurelia (henceforward referred to as Lia) first opens the door of an apartment in Paris that has been left to her by her grandmother, Estelle Allard. Until it was revealed in her will Estelle's family knew nothing about this apartment. Lia discovers it is filled with paintings and even though she doesn't know much about art she figures they are worth a small fortune. Same thing goes for all the fabulous couturier gowns in the bedroom. Lia discovers a card signed by Hermann Goering and worries that all these goods were acquired by collaborating with the Nazis. Enter Gabriel Seymour, an art appraiser and restorer. Lia found him by looking for the artist who painted a small landscape showing an English manor house that was the closest thing her grandmother left as a clue. The landscape was painted by Gabriel's grandfather. As the book progresses we learn more about Estelle's activities during the war and we also learn about the mysterious Sophie, Gabriel's great-aunt, who was believed killed when the Nazis invaded Poland. Sophie's husband did die but Sophie escaped and made it back to England where she took a job working at Bletchley Park. As most people must know by now, Bletchley Park was where the Allied forces were decoding German messages. Sophie is asked to go into France where Estelle has reported that there is a new code machine in the Ritz Hotel because Goering is living there. And so the historical duo meet causing the modern duo to get together to work out the mystery.

This was an interesting read but I was a little sceptical about the actual details to fully endorse it. But maybe that's just me as it looks like the book has gained a lot of good reviews. ( )

Marvelous! I listened to the Swedish audiobook version and I was completely absorbed in the story. Both timelines worked wondrously and I recommend this book to everyone that loved a good historical fiction novel and especially WW2 novels. ( )

In @readForeverPub's The Paris Apartment, Aurelia Leclaire inherits an apartment kept secret of her grandmother's and finds a treasure trove of art hidden.�
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The book chronicles the search for who owned the artwork in modern day, as well as the struggles from the past that lead to the art being hidden in the first place.�
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I really enjoyed it and found myself eager to solve the mystery of where the art came from! I hope you'll consider picking this one up and doing just the same!�
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Thank you to Forever for allowing me to read this one and give my honest opinion!� ( )

Aurelia (Lia) inherits an apartment filled with art from her grandmother Estelle. She fears her grandmother was a German collaborator during WWII. She hires Gabriel Seymour, an art appraiser, to help her determine if any of the art was stolen. Gabriel recognizes a picture of his great-aunt, Sophie, thought dead from a bombing in Warsaw. In fact, Sophie survived and became a spy.
Their investigation leads Aurelia and Gabriel to discover some interesting facts about their ancestors, who were actually heroes.
This is a story highlighting the very important role that the women and the resistance movement played in defeating the enemy. It is told in dual timelines and provides an interesting story to describe the risks that so many took to help save lives and defeat the Germans. ( )