Christine WellsRezensionen

Cleo knew she was adopted and longed to know who her “real” parents were. Whispers here and there led her to believe that her father might be the Prince of Wales. Could it be possible?

Despite having a warm and loving adoptive family, Cleo needed to know her origins. She was given a story where her father was the Prince of Wales and despite being skeptical she clung to the possibility. The timing might be realistic.

She longs for a life beyond the constraints of ballgowns and conventional marriage. In fact, Cleo has quite a talent for designing jewelry. Will she be allowed to expand on that talent or will she be forced by convention?

Her childhood companion has remained a stalwart friend and he is now going off to war and the feelings this stirs in her are confusing to say the least. But there are more important things to deal with at the moment than her love life; like will any of them survive the war, will she be able to design the jewelry she wants to design, and can she be of any assistance to the War effort.

To learn the answer to any and all of these questions you will have to read this very engaging and dare I say sparkling novel. As someone who used to design and make jewelry – albeit not with the kind of stones that Cleo used – I understood the allure of a colorful gemstone or a sparkling facet.

The characters are diverse and well defined and the story is not your typical War tale. The romance is also not derivative which just made for a truly delightful way to spend a day reading a book.
I received a free copy for my honest review.½

Cleo Davenport is a feisty character whose goals are to find out who her parents are and to become a jewelry designer.

Cleo was left on the doorstep of a luxurious hotel in Egypt and adopted and given a privileged life.

When she turns 17 she is taken to Paris and then London.

She doesn’t want to leave, but she knows she might be able to find out more about her parents in Paris and London especially since it’s rumored that her father is the Prince of Wales - now King Edward VIII.

I really liked Cleo. She is ambitious and sweet.

Following her journey was fun.

Loved the ending. 4/5

Thank you to the publisher for the advanced copy. All opinions are my own.

Paddy Bennett is an ordinary woman, but she gets caught up in an extraordinary plot when she is recruited to work for the Intelligence division of the British Navy during WWII. She thinks that she will be doing mostly secretarial work, but her skills and reliable nature soon have her working with top secret projects, particularly those cooked up by Ian Fleming. Fleming's imagination for spy missions knows no bounds, and Paddy finds herself having to hid much of her work life to her friends and family, even to her fiancé and husband. Meanwhile a young woman name Friedl is grateful to have escaped the Germans, but when a German intelligence officer corners her and recruits her as sleeper agent she is fearful for her life - and she clutches at the chance to gain true British citizenship and protection by becoming a double agent for them. A risky mission that involved Friedl and Paddy and Ian Fleming ties all the threads together, and leads to quite a thrilling story. This was an enjoyable tale, full in intrigue on both the domestic and wartime fronts - I particularly was kept on pins and needles as Paddy tries to keep her husband from becoming too suspicious of her odd behavior while trying to honor her vow to keep the mission a secret. I would definitely recommend this to fans of historical thrillers - especially if they want to see the female point of view emphasized.

This was an interesting, historical fiction novel. I liked the alternating points of view, it is always fun seeing the story from different angles. I love how the characters paths all intertwined and Friedl was great. I would read more books written by Christine Wells in the future.

I enjoyed Saskia Maarleveld's narration of this audiobook; Saskia was able to provide different voices for each character and it made it easier to distinguish who was speaking. I would definitely look for books narrated by Saskia in the future.

This novel made for a fun read, centered around intelligence work during World War II. Alternating in perspective between two woman - Paddy Risdale, a secretary to Ian Fleming in Naval Intelligence, and Friedl Stottinger, a Austrian woman with ties to both German and British secret agents. I actually found Friedl more interesting at times, with her divided loyalties, and the events leading up to the conclusion kept me turning the pages. Paddy and Friedl, who don't actually encounter each other until the end, are still connected by their work on the same secret project - one of the more bizarre incidents during the war. A fun, engaging read for fans of WWII-era historical fiction.

It was the subtitle of Christine Wells' new book One Woman's War that caught my eye. 'A Novel of the Real Miss Moneypenny'. Uh huh, I was curious too. With so many WWII books being penned now, I find am getting a bit choosy on which one I choose to listen to.

Here's the facts...

"Dame Victoire Evelyn Patricia Ridsdale, Lady Ridsdale, DBE (née Bennett; 11 October 1921 – 16 December 2009), known as Dame Paddy Ridsdale, was a British secretary and intelligence operative. She was author Ian Fleming's secretary during World War II and was the model for the character Miss Moneypenny, being M.'s loyal, long-suffering secretary, who is smitten with James Bond."Isn't that fascinating?

Wells builds her story on a actual event that took place in WWII. I'm going to let you discover what that is on your own. Wells adds a fictional twist to that event with the addition of a double agent with their own agenda. I quite enjoyed the subterfuge on both sides.

But it's not all spy stratagem. Wells gives the main characters rich personal lives as well, making them easy to imagine.

Wells' settings are wonderfully depicted through her descriptions of offices, restaurants, dance clubs, homes, food, clothing, social expectations and more.

I liked how Wells took these factual bits and actual events to bring us an entertaining and realistic look at the past.

I chose to listen to One Woman's War. The choice of narrator was another reason I chose to listen. Saskia Maarleveld is an award winning narrator and a favorite reader of mine. Her voice is pitch perfect for this story. She has a rich, lower toned voice that is easy on the ears and well enunciated. The accents she provides for the characters are real and easily identify the players. Her reading has lots of movement, easily capturing the tone and action of the events and the feelings of the characters. Another excellent performance.

Girls come out to play!

Victorie “Paddy” Bennett found herself in extraordinary circumstances fleeing the advance of the Germans in France. It’s here she first runs into Ian Fleming.
Once back in England she finds herself in Admiralty’s Room 39, signing the Secrets Act, and working for Naval Intelligence.
At the same time, a second story of a Viennese woman, Friedl Stöttinger, whose father was a committed Nazi, finds herself forced into being a double agent working for the Germans. A role she doesn’t want, and at some time will have to make a stand. Friedl can’t escape her background.
The journey of these two women will cross over eventually.
Ian Fleming’s outrageous ideas for spreading false information are documented. In his writing Paddy identifies herself as Miss Moneypenny. Underneath are hints of his very troubled relationship with Muriel Wright.
We are mesmerized by these wild young things partying hard, and working equally diligently, fighting off the malaise and distress of war. War torn London and the blitz are given teeth.
An interesting look at the women whose behind Ian Flemming’s James Bond.

A William Morrow ARC via NetGalley.
Many thanks to the author and publisher.

Set in 1944 and alternating chapters in 1947, this is the story of two sisters working independently for the Resistance after Paris was taken over by the Nazis. They live with their mother and work as apartment superintendents- an apartment that also houses Catherine Dior, sister to Christian, the designer. Yvette, has also worked as a manakin for the House of Dior while Gabby has worked with her mother.

This book is too long! I really enjoyed the first half or so, but then it began to dray (perhaps it was also my reading time). The plot involves Catherine Dior's work which is based on fact. The girls become involved through various means, some of which seem a stretch. The ending is also way too pat.

Probably would not read more by this author.

Alternating between 1944 and 1947, this book follows sisters Gabby and Yvette in Paris. During the war, both sisters secretly helped the resistance, until Yvette was forced to flee over the mountains. Riddled with guilt, Yvette reluctantly returns to Paris to testify in the trial of a woman being tried for treason.

This book caught my attention instantly. It was well written, the characters were dynamic and the story was well paced. The back and forth timelines worked really well and came together beautifully in the end. Overall, highly recommended.

historical-novel, historical-figures, historical-places-events, historical-research, historical-romance, historical-setting, history-and-culture, espionage, double-agent, London, Europe, WW2, action, family, fast-pace, marriage, suspense, suspicion*****

One woman is recruited by the Admiralty to work as secretary to Lt Cdr Ian Fleming and later became involved in a major deception.
The other is an entertainer and once wealthy young woman from Austria who is first recruited under duress by a German agent, and then by the man known as M, spending the war as a double agent.
I really enjoyed this engrossing double story.
Saskia Maarleveld is a delight to listen to because of her varied interpretation of each character and with appropriate dialect and/or non-English accent as well as the tone of her voice.
I requested and received a free temporary audio from HarperAudio via NetGalley. Thank you!

Thanks to the author for this book.

I usually enjoy WWII books set in Paris or anywhere for that matter but this one didn't do it for me. I liked the plot of Christian Dior and his sister Catherine but was bored with the rest. It didn't get to the point fast enough for me. I dnf at my usual page 100.

This book was kind of a boring mess. The heroine doesn't want to get married because she doesn't want to leave her grandfather's estate that she runs. Grandfather is the hero's godfather and since the grand/godfather thinks he's dying, asks hero to marry heroine. Hero is all rake-y/dad issue-y and not wanting to marry but agrees to get heroine to his estate to try and hook her up with dudes and if he fails at the end of the month(? I can't remember time frame) he has to marry her.

There's some drama with the heroine's mom being gossiped about as a loose woman and the heroine has tried to live "good" to keep the stain from also falling on her. My eyes glazed over in the middle because it was a lot of back and forth with heroine and hero being attracted, liking each other but "I can't!". There was a very short messy secondary romance between the hero's sister and hero's bf, that actually seemed to have some fun and passion but too much to the side and wrapped up silly quick.

I came to towards the end because suddenly the who was thought to be the heroine's mother's lover was turned out to be the heroine's brother???? Yeah. I told you it was boring messy.

Anyway, heroine and hero decide that "I can!" and HEA. I only wrote up this little recap because I wanted to post this quote:
“Did you tell her, my dear?”
He could have asked the obvious question, but he knew what she meant. “No. I did not tell her I love her. She does not want my love. She is better off without it.” They stood together in the freshening breeze, as storm clouds rolled over the sun.
“How do you know?” she said.
“Pardon?”
“How do you know she is better off? Your love might make all the difference.”

This is why I very, very rarely DNF, there can be little hidden gems. Like, YES. "Your love might make all the difference." You might be using your fear to protect yourself but it could in turn hurt the person you love. I thought this was a gorgeous little passage.

The war; it's ugly with pieces of beauty thrown in.

The book draws attention to the past. A big fear at the time was the Nazis taking control of Paris in 1940. But there's another fear just as dangerous with a group of French thugs who wanted power and they got it from the police and support of the Third Reich. The "Gestapo" was known to search for Jews and interrogate them. Nothing stopped them from taking property and valuables in this city of love and romance.

Within this craziness, two sisters, Yvette and Gabby, worked in the fashion industry and helped Christian Dior's sister, Catherine, with the WWII French Resistance in different ways. Yvette was a delivery girl. She said, "the only good Nazi is a dead Nazi" as she dropped off packages on her bike route and helped a movie star, Louise Dulac, to get ready for the evening's events. Gabby worked with her mom as a concierge of an apartment building. One of her tenants was Catherine Dior who was secretly hiding Jews. Gabby was there to offer assistance.

While both sisters were involved with the war, Yvette was more daring and found herself in a dangerous position. She had no choice but to escape to New York. In another timeline of this book, 1947, Yvette returned to an all-paid trip to be a witness for Louise Dulac's trial who was locked up in a prison as a traitor. The question is: will she help someone that is the most hated woman in France? And did I mention romance? Yes, love, fashion and everything you can expect from Paris is in the book.

There has been an overwhelming amount of historical fiction novels recently on WWII. Each one helps us learn a piece of what happened because of the words written by an author. My thanks to Christine Wells, HarperCollins Publishers and NetGalley for allowing me to read this advanced copy to be released on June 8, 2021.

DNF

I really enjoyed this book about two fictional young women in Paris under Nazi occupation and about the real Catherine Dior. Their involvement with the resistance is thrilling and nerve-wracking.

I actually ended up really liking this story after starting out not really knowing what direction it was headed in. Set over a 3-5 year period, the tale follows Yvette and Gabby, 2 young French girls who find themselves in the middle of occupied France toward the end of WW11. Both girls end up fulfilling different roles as street level members of the French resistance. The story begins in 1947 with an exiled Yvette returning to France to serve as a star witness in the trial of disgraced film star Louis Dulac who is facing charges related to her open relationship with a high ranking Nazi officer during the war. Alternating between current events and the last years of the war, we learn all about the secret activities of these 2 sisters. Activities that ultimately drove Yvette to flee France out of concerns for her safety. An engaging story which becomes more interesting as the story builds through the pages. Yvette and Gabby are the perfect sister pair, one a carefree rebel who always seems to land on her feet, the other a nurturing worrier consumed with taking care of all whom need help. Should appeal to fans of the genre. Thank you to Netgalley for the copy in exchange for an honest review.

A surprisingly sweet story with an equally sweet and happy ending - quite an accomplishment for a novel set during the German occupation of Paris during World War II.

Two sisters find themselves embroiled in the French Resistance in this novel set during and after World War II. Yvette and Gabby take different paths toward their work for the resistance, but they each find themselves in challenging situations and with deep questions about the loyalty and motivations of some those they worked with closely. These questions come to the fore after the war and the sisters struggle to build new lives in the wake of the conflict. Overall, I really enjoyed this book - it was paced well, the characters were interesting, and the conclusion was satisfying. It's yet another read for the overflowing genre of WWII historical fiction, but I really appreciated the nuanced loyalties of some of the characters portrayed, which is not always prominent in this kind of fiction.

Sisters of the Resistance intrigued me as I was interested in reading more about Catherine Dior and the spy network she ran during WWII. While I know there is not a lot of information about her activities, or at least any information that is available to the public, this is a fiction novel and it sounded like the author has created a story about her life, her arrest, her time in the camps, and what happened afterwards, all based on the information that is available. However, that is not what this novel is all about. I have a huge problem with marketing techniques that lure you in thinking the novel is going to be about one thing and then you discover that person is only a secondary character which actually puts me right off. I've been seeing this more and more lately, especially in WWII fiction, and I am at the point where I would prefer to read non-fiction as at least I know what I am getting into.

The author usually doesn't have control over marketing tactics, so once I realized Catherine Dior played only a minor role, I actually did enjoy the novel. Yvette and Gabby were interesting characters and I thought they developed quite a bit throughout the story. Yvette is the one who drove me crazy at first as her actions put so many people in jeopardy through her naivety and her thoughtlessness. She just couldn't seem to understand that ignoring people's advice put a lot more than just herself in danger and I just wanted to smack her sometimes. And I just couldn't understand why Yvette would not read letters from home? Especially when you learn the reason for why she had to leave home. Didn't make sense. Gabby was much more level-headed, although I will admit I am not sure of her motivations as I don't think the author was very clear about that and maybe could have developed that a bit more. She was milder, always putting others before her own needs and I loved seeing her grow into someone who took control of her life and realized she had needs that were just as important as everyone else's. The interactions between the two sisters was intriguing as well, especially during times of stress and danger. I would have loved to learn more about their mother though as I felt she just got shunted into the background, but as we learn, Maman knew about everything that was going on so I wanted to know how and when she found out.

The story was told through both Yvette and Gabby's viewpoints, and through two timelines, 1944 and 1947. I found the shift between characters and timelines was pretty good, although I preferred the 1947 one better simply because so many books don't deal with the aftermath as much. And while this one dealt with Yvette's return to France and huge sensational trial, I still don't think it went deeply enough into how troubled things were in France during the years after the war and how much people still struggled to deal with the knowledge of the camps, the betrayals, the shortage of food, and so much more. There was a mention of the world entering the Cold War which I did appreciate, and how things were going to get dicey and much more difficult, but in a different way. And I really liked how Yvette was going to play a role in that new warfare; it almost seemed like there might be another book coming.

The writing style was good and the author really tried to show how tenacious and strong people had to be during this time period. One didn't know whom to trust, whom to depend on, and the wrong word to the wrong person could land you in a prison being tortured for weeks on end. The level of fear was palpable and I liked how the author showed how resilient the characters could be during these tough times, doing whatever they could to resist in their own unique ways. I did feel like Yvette's story line was stronger though, and wished that the book had been developed around her; her story line was just so much more interesting.

Sisters of the Resistance was an interesting story about two sisters who took two different paths to resistance during WWII. I did think Yvette's story line was the stronger of the two and wished the book had been written about her. I also thought the marketing was misleading as Catherine Dior was a secondary character and although we learn about her fate, that's all we really learn. I did think building a novel around the fashion industry was fascinating and I liked learning how the fashion greats kept their business in Paris during this time period. Overall, I did enjoy the book, and I look forward to seeing what it coming next from this author.

France, 1944: The Nazis still occupy Paris, and twenty-five-year-old Gabby Foucher hates these enemies, though, as the concierge of ten rue Royale, she makes it a point to avoid trouble, unlike her sister Yvette. Until she, like her sister, is recruited into the Resistance by Catherine Dior—sister of the fashion designer, Christian Dior.

Gabby and Yvette are both swept into the world of spies, fugitives and Resistance workers, and it doesn't take long for the sisters to realize that their lives are in danger.

Gabby discovers an elderly tenant is hiding a wounded British fugitive, and Yvette becomes a messenger for the Resistance. But as Gabby falls in love with her patient and Yvette’s impulsiveness leads her into intrigue at an ever-higher level, both women will discover that their hearts and even their souls hang in the balance as well.

Thank you, William Morrow, for sponsoring this giveaway and giving me the chance to read Sisters of the Resistance by Christine Wells!
I was so excited to read this book! Christian Dior, all so known as Ginette Dior. I did a report on her in high school. The report was around the time she’s arrested in 1944 in Paris by the Gestapo, then tortured and deported to the Ravensbruck women's concentration camp and her life afterwards. She was a brave woman and lived through ALOT. So you could imagine how excited I was to read a book with her in it.
The Sisters of the Resistance is a beautiful story written about an ugly time period. Christine Wells did a wonderful job bringing each character to life and making you like them each in their own way. Sometimes the author is so descriptive that you feel you are standing in the same place. It was amazing some names that came up here. I did not know that it involved some of them in the movement.
This was one of those books that once you start you won't want to put down. You’ll say to yourself, ok at the end of this chapter I'll put it down but you won't be able to! In the end it’s a book full of intrigue, drama, romance, suspense, mystery, and espionage! Happy reading everyone!

Listening to the audiobook with its excellent narration including topnotch voice changes for the various characters was an enjoyable way to become immersed in the Parisian fashion business during World War II. Sisters Gabby and Yvette Fouche are brought into the French Resistance movement by Catherine Dior, sister of Christian Dior. She is a real person and at the end of the war, caught by the Germans and sent to Buchenwald. Although a secondary character in the book, she provides the base for the story. The story continues after the war, as Gabby and Yvette forge on with their lives. The feeling of tension throughout the book is enhanced by Saskia Maarleveld’s ability to convey French, American and German voices of the many characters in the book.

Resistor or traitor? Yvette was summoned back to Paris to testify at the trial of Louise Dulac.

When Yvette arrived in Paris, she couldn’t face her mother or sister, Gabby, but went instead to a show Christian Dior was putting on and the place where she had worked during the war.

She was hired as a fill-in as well as a permanent model/mannequin, but her past kept coming back along with people from her past.

Her past along with her sister’s is told in alternating chapters during and after the war.

Gabby and Yvette worked for the resistance headed by Catherine Dior.

SISTERS OF THE RESISTANCE is a fascinating account that keeps you on edge as you are left hanging at the end of chapters to see what is going to happen next.

Ms. Wells’ writing keeps the reader interested with the tension of the war and the opportunity to hear about the fashions of Christian Dior. And we can’t forget romance - it is always a part of a war story.

Enjoy when you read SISTERS OF THE RESISTANCE.

Historical fiction fans will be captivated with the story line and the characters. 4/5

This book was given to me by publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

I just finished reading it. I had a hard time find sympathy for Sarah. While I'll concede part of her hesitation in contacting her family was guilt and shame, I still believe the majority of it was simple pride. She didn't want to admit her mistakes to them and apologize, which shows a lack of maturity and stubbornness that borders on stupidity.

I understand that basis of what the author was trying to achieve, but I feel she failed for the most part. While I give her credit for taking on such a hard character, I think what should have come across as fear and guilt just seemed cold and cruel instead. I'm afraid I saw her only as a prideful martyr, all the way through the end.

It was hard to sympathize with her as she was.

I can't say I was very impressed with the book as a whole, though it did have a few redeeming qualities.

I may be curious enough to read the second book, Sweetest Little Sin (which I have in my TBR pile), however. We shall see.

Paired with The Dangerous Duke., this is Louise and Jardine's story which started (or at least which we are introduced to} in The Dangerous Duke. I never really warmed to the hero, Jardine. He was introduced in the first book and just came across as cold and almost cruel. While I've read books with hero's like this before, they've had much more character development and you are able to see their change and understand their history better. None of this happened with Jardine and I never really warmed to him. Disappointing, probably my last book by this author.½

The Duke is looking for the men responsible for the fire that killed the previous Duke and his family. He believes that Lady Kate's brother knows where these men are but the brother isn't talking. Kate's trying to get her brother out of jail and to protect him and comes up with a ludicrous idea. Way too many twists and turns that only made sense superficially; once you started to think about them, it just became a mess. A ho hum romance.½