Review: The Paris Dressmaker by Kristy Cambron

Set in early 1940’s France, the Paris Dressmaker tells the story of two women who risked their lives to save the people and country they love.

Title: The Paris Dressmaker
Author: Kristy Cambron
Genre: Historical fiction/romance
Publisher: Thomas Nelson
Publication date: February 16th 2021

Synopsis

Based on true accounts of how Parisiennes resisted the Nazi occupation in World War II—from fashion houses to the city streets—comes a story of two courageous women who risked everything to fight an evil they couldn’t abide.

Paris, 1939. Maison Chanel has closed, thrusting haute couture dressmaker Lila de Laurent out of the world of high fashion as Nazi soldiers invade the streets and the City of Lights slips into darkness. Lila’s life is now a series of rations, brutal restrictions, and carefully controlled propaganda while Paris is cut off from the rest of the world. Yet in hidden corners of the city, the faithful pledge to resist. Lila is drawn to La Resistance and is soon using her skills as a dressmaker to infiltrate the Nazi elite. She takes their measurements and designs masterpieces, all while collecting secrets in the glamorous Hôtel Ritz—the heart of the Nazis’ Parisian headquarters. But when dashing René Touliard suddenly reenters her world, Lila finds her heart tangled between determination to help save his Jewish family and bolstering the fight for liberation.

Paris, 1943. Sandrine Paquet’s job is to catalog the priceless works of art bound for the Führer’s Berlin, masterpieces stolen from prominent Jewish families. But behind closed doors, she secretly forages for information from the underground resistance. Beneath her compliant façade lies a woman bent on uncovering the fate of her missing husband . . . but at what cost? As Hitler’s regime crumbles, Sandrine is drawn in deeper when she uncrates an exquisite blush Chanel gown concealing a cryptic message that may reveal the fate of a dressmaker who vanished from within the fashion elite.

Told across the span of the Nazi occupation, The Paris Dressmaker highlights the brave women who used everything in their power to resist darkness and restore light to their world.

Review

The writing in this novel is lyrical and gorgeous. Every word gripped me, and I couldn’t put the metaphorical book down. At the same time, I tried to savour it and make it last. It was one of those books that you wish would last for ever whilst simultaneously being desperate to know how it will end.

The romance was perfect, it was so painful and really pulled at my heart because of the setting. But I could feel its depth in every word. I particularly love René, as we get to see more of him throughout the book than we do Christian. In general I have absolutely dreadful luck with romance novels, however in this case, the romance is woven into the overall plot, rather than being the sole focus of the book. It is as much a part of the story as Lila and Sandrine’s work within the French Resistance.

I loved the characters and I was equally invested in Sandrine and Lila’s stories. The supporting cast of characters also felt very realistic. I’d have liked to see more of some of them, but that would have increased the length of the novel considerably, and I know that it would have probably then made it far too long for many readers. As it was, I still felt invested in them all and I cared about them and if they would be ok in the end.

There are almost four stories, as the novel jumps between 1944 and back to 1940, moving between Sandrine and Lila’s lives. We see what is happening to both Sandrine and Lila in the present, and then the past events that led up to it. This helped build suspense and I think if the novel had been told in a linear fashion we would have lost some of that. I really enjoyed how the novel was structured. Even though the structure is quite complex I found that I was able to keep track of all of the events. One of the things I found most incredible is that Sandrine and Lila’s stories are seemingly separate, but you know they must connect somehow. And they do, in more ways than one. It takes time to see those connections, and details that you wouldn’t have even thought were significant are later revealed to be important. I really loved how the author was able to weave their stories together in this way. There was one particular moment in the story where I saw that all along, their stories had been connected, and it hit home perfectly. I know some readers have found it frustrating that their stories only connected later on, and that Lila and Sandrine didn’t really interact during the novel. This didn’t bother me personally, I didn’t feel like they actually needed to spend time together for the ways in which their lives were connected to matter.

I listened to the audiobook which was read very well and I’d highly recommend it. The audiobook is read by Barrie Kreinik who does an excellent job voicing the characters. She has a particular talent for accents, and so although the characters come from different countries, including France, the UK, Germany and the United States, she is equally capable of performing all of their voices. This was a particular highlight for me.

I didn’t know when requesting, or even reading this book that it’s considered Christian fiction. I wasn’t aware that the publisher is specifically for Christian literature. Although some of the characters in the novel do have a faith, the author isn’t heavy-handed with her messaging at all. You can read this book, whether you believe or not, and it doesn’t feel like you are being preached to. I am including this note because I think this aspect was handled particularly well. I may not have requested the book if I’d known, so I want to urge others to give it a chance. It is a truly beautiful story that respects the beliefs of all people.

I definitely want to read more from this author in future.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for giving me the opportunity to read and review this book in advance of publication.

Rating: 5/5 stars.

Where To Buy

• Amazon
• Book Depository (great for international shipping)
• WHSmith

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