The Paris Secret

                                                                                           
                                                                                             

On the brink of the second world war, a beautiful Parisian bookshop hides a heartbreaking secret that will tear one family apart forever …

The last time Valerie was in Paris, she was three-years-old, running from the Nazis, away from the only home she had ever known.
Now as a young woman, Valerie must return to Paris, to the bookshop and her only surviving relative, her grandfather Vincent, to find out what really happened to those she loved. As she gets to know Vincent again, she hears a tragic story of Nazi occupied Paris, a doomed love affair and a mother willing to sacrifice everything for her beloved daughter.
Can Valerie and Vincent help each other to mend the wounds of the past? Valerie isn’t after a fairy-tale ending, she only wants the truth. But what is the one devastating secret that Vincent is determined to keep from his granddaughter. 

Amazon:http://geni.us/B07GFQMHC5Social

iBooks: http://ow.ly/R7qs30m3XRz

Kobo: http://ow.ly/Sjqv30m3WLm

Googleplay: http://ow.ly/Ltd730m3XLc

About the author

 

Former journalist, Lily Graham grew up in South Africa, and spent much of her childhood buried inside the covers of a book. Her adulthood has passed no differently. Except that now she occasionally gets to make up some of the stories for a living. She is happy to report that most of her neighbours think of her as a cheerful layabout and no amount of protesting that lazing about in her pyjamas is actually 'work' she is never taken seriously. She lives in West Sussex with her husband and her beloved bulldog, Fudge.

Lily is the author of five novels, including THE ISLAND VILLA. All her books have entered the Amazon Top 100 bestseller list.

https://www.facebook.com/LilyRoseGrahamAuthor/

https://twitter.com/lilygrahambooks

My Review

I knew I wanted to read this book as soon as I saw the cover. If you add in the fact that it's set in France, a country for which I have a deep affection, and that it's set against the build-up to WW2, then I must admit to opening it with a soupcon of anticipation. Would it be as good as I hoped?
From the start, I was intrigued by Valerie and even more so as we heard her story as a child. Her grandfather, Vincent, is a brilliant character and I loved their relationship, wondering all the time what would happen when Valerie reveals who she really is. The story is incredibly moving and as you might imagine in Nazi-occupied France, quite chilling in parts. Nevertheless, it is the emotional pull on the reader that really sets this book aside.
The ending, whilst it does bring the story full circle and provides a sense of completion, might feel rather contrived to some. Overall though, I have to say this is a beautiful story that will stay with you.

K