Engrossing story based on the true couple who managed the Ritz in Paris during WWII.

Claude, the husband, is French, and Blanche is his American wife. Many other famous real people are also featured in the book (Chanel! Hemingway! and with a different point of view than I've seen done before.)

After beginning with how they met, the story focuses on their relationship with each other, as well as what they do during the Occupation.

I had read other stories about the same timeline and topic, but I definitely enjoyed this one the best. It was not dry.

Written as a drama, and changing view points back and forth between Claude and Blanche, I could not put it down!

What a great historical fiction! You can tell by the writing that it was extensively researched and much is known about the Occupation of Paris by the Germans but little is known about those who lived and worked at the iconic Ritz. The characters truly come alive on the pages of this book and the story is at times inspiring and heart breaking. You definitely feel the emotions of the times in this story. The book changing viewpoints is a wonderful way to show how the main couple is so different yet similar in their outlook. I would definitely recommend this book. I received a copy from NetGalley and the publisher and this is my honest opinion.

I received an advanced copy of this title via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

This was such an interesting read. Benjamin interprets the effects of WWII in such a unique way. The book is more than a retelling of how German officers took over hotels throughout Paris and how they rounded up unsuspecting citizens. It humanizes both the Germans and the Parisians. The Ritz was the place to go to see and be seen. It also was a mask for people to hide behind. The Azuellos exhibited how the Ritz gave them strength and courage to act contrary to their public personas. The Ritz though was also the Azuellos crutch as they leaned on it to get through a tumultuous marriage and the devastation caused by the war. Throughout every step, the lives they led at the Ritz was how they identified themselves. This book was both insightful and thought provoking.

I read a lot of historical fiction and much of it is about WWII and I was excited to find a new take on it in "Mistress of the Ritz." The story revolves around the Auzellos - Blanche, an American woman, and her husband Claude, who eventually becomes the manager of the storied Ritz in Paris where everyone from Ernest Hemingway to Coco Chanel visit. Together, Blanche and Claude are the master and mistress of the grand hotel, catering to the whims and keeping the secrets of the famous guests.

But in 1940, the Germans take Paris and with it, the Ritz, making it one of their headquarters and forcing the Auzellos into a new way of life. Their choices make for a suspenseful ride and show how even those who were not enlisted found a way to participate in the fight to bring down the Nazis.

When I got to the author's note, I was shocked to find that Melanie Benjamin based this story on a real-life couple and their associates and experiences during WWII. I wish the author had told the story in a more linear timeline which would have gotten to the action quicker but if you're a fan of historical fiction based on actual events, this is a great read.

I recently read one of Melanie Benjamin’s books and was really taken by her research and writing abilities. When I saw that she had another book coming out so soon, I was eager to jump on board and see how this one compared.

To be honest, I was way more excited about this book than the original book I read, The Girls in the Picture. This one sounded a little more like something I would be into. While I loved the ‘old Hollywood’ vibe in The Girls in the Picture, WWII is more my time period.

As with the first book I read by this author, I love the cover art and found my eye being drawn to the cover again and again. It promised the elegance and romantic vibe of the city of Paris, but also indicated something a little more tragic on the horizon.

Summary

In March 1940, the Nazis sweep Paris and immediately take up residence in one of the city’s most iconic sites: The Hotel Ritz. There, under a roof legendary for its unprecedented luxury and for its fabled residents–including Coco Chanel, the Duke and Duchess of Windsor, Cole Porter, Hemingway, Balanchine, Doris Duke, F. Scott Fitzgerald, and now Hermann Göering–the Nazis rule over a paralyzed city.

But two residents of the Ritz refuse to be defeated: its director, Claude Auzello, and his beautiful American actress wife, Blanche. They not only oversee the smooth workings of the hotel, but both Blanche and Claude throw themselves fearlessly into the dangerous and clandestine workings of the French Resistance.

This is a true-to-life novel of a courageous woman and her husband who put their marriage–and ultimately their lives–in jeopardy to fight for freedom. Intimate, fearless, and moving, it spins a brilliantly and unforgettably vivid human portrait at a time of unimaginable crisis and sacrifice (summary from Goodreads).

Review

Lately there has been a rash of historical fiction novels based on women spies during the World Wars and I am totally here for it! So much emphasis is put on soldiers in the wars with women often being depicted as sock knitting home bodies waiting for their men to come home.

As many of us know, there were a number of women who went to work in factories and took up the jobs of men who were off fighting. But as we have seen in recent years, there were a number of women who also worked in covert ops, spying, and espionage in the wars. Many of those women risked their lives to pass on information or save the lives of soldiers or innocent people. This particular book, while historical fiction, is based on a real life woman which made it so much more exciting for me to read!

When I started this book, I didn’t know if the characters were based on real people or not, but I strongly suspected that they were. Benjamin wrote with such knowledge on the characters and the time period that I couldn’t help but suspect they were based on real life individuals.

This book was very emotional and not something I would call a ‘light’ read by any means. I often found myself nervous for the characters, anxious about the occupation, and of course all the risks the characters were taking. It was a book that I easily became invested in from the start.

There was also quite a bit of romance in the story which I thought nicely balanced the heavy historical content. I also liked how the author addressed some of the issue that Blanche struggled with, such as actually liking some of the Nazi soldiers. I thought that was a very realistic issue that I often wonder about sometimes and I liked how the author moved the characters through issues such as that.

Overall I enjoyed this book and reading about new historical tidbits during a time period where so much material is in the market, I felt like this book stood out and a cross between romance and more serious historical fiction. A wonderful blend of the two!

Overall, I enjoyed this book. I thought the strongest parts of the story were the ones that described the effects of the takeover and Paris and the Ritz both before and during the war. Claude and Blanche seem like they had a great story to tell. I tend to find conflicts caused by cultural differences far more interesting than conflicts caused by simple lack of communication. Also, Blanche seemed to make some foolish choices just to make them a lot of the time.

The atmosphere was great, and I thought the author did a nice job of providing context. I cared about Claude and Blanche, even if they were frustrating at times. I'm still not sure how I feel about the end. Maybe a little more time spent on Claude and Blanche's lives after the war would have been nice.

I was reluctant to read another book based on World War II, and there are so many, as well there should be, knowing we must never forget the horrors of war and especially WWII. The reason I didn’t want to read this was I needed something not as heavy but I succumbed to the pull of The Ritz Hotel and how it played a major roll in the Nazi occupation of Paris and actually served as its headquarters in Paris. Being a historical novel written by the amazing story teller/historian, Melanie Benjamin it was a no brainer as I have enjoyed all her writings....and, a bonus, I was able to obtain an Advanced Reader’s Copy (ARC) from NetGalley. Having recently read and reviewed on my blog, Ritz and Escoffier, which I really loved, I was interested to learn more about how The Ritz survived this horrific period in history.

The story revolves around the Ritz French General Manager, Claude Auzello and his American wife, Blanche. Beginning with their whirlwind courtship, and his advancement as a hotelier it then follows them through the intrigues of living with and serving the enemy in their Hotel. Becoming an important part of the Resistance evolves and using historical facts Benjamin keeps the story moving with intrigue, love affairs, behind the scenes hotel stories as well as how everyday citizens respond to crisis in order to survive.


Obviously, wartime at the Ritz was one of the darker chapters in the hotel's history. When they arrived in Paris, the Germans used the hotel as a swanky headquarters for high-ranking officers, Hermann Göring among them. The Nazis took over half the hotel, allowing the other half to remain open to guests. Gone were the halcyon days of Hemingway, Fitzgerald and Porter and the romantic thoughts of Proust....instead the uniforms and boots of Nazi’s filled the lobby, bar and rooms of the legendary hotel. The hotel staff ate well from the leftovers of the invaders and, of course Claude and Blanche lived on site.

I felt the story told us more of Blanches role as she became more independent of her husband in trying to find her way in a hostile environment, to help those in need, as well as a more self sufficient woman.

Having done extensive research on Paris Haute Couture, I do know quite a bit about how the French Couturiers survived, some are briefly mentioned, and of Hitler’s desire to move Couture to Berlin, not mentioned in the book but worth your while to research if you are interested, it is a fascinating story. I did enjoy the encounter, in the book, between Blanche, who is wearing a Schiaparelli dress, and Mademoiselle Chanel’s comments to her. Chanel and Schiaparelli were arch enemies and this sentence conveys this animosity perfectly.

Gabrielle Chanel plays a minor role in this novel but her presence is definitely there and she makes an occasional appearance. It was while she was staying at the Ritz during the war years that she had a romantic liaison with Baron Hans Gunther von Dincklage, a German officer and spy. She also took care of him in her home, Villa Pausa on the French Riviera, after the war. There is much speculation about Chanel and the Nazi’s....was she a collaborator, was she a spy for the British...for more on this story I recommend you also read Sleeping With The Enemy: Coco Chanel’s Secret War.

I know you want to know if I recommend reading this book....by now you must know I don’t review books I don’t like so the answer is yes, read it.

What an opportunity to write an historical novel built on just a few known facts. In many ways, the author succeeds in developing the two main characters and making the Ritz Paris a character also. Because the most revealing aspect of their lives happens during the Nazi occupation during WWII, I was hoping for more inclusion of the French Resistance and more interactions with the Nazi soldiers headquartered at the Ritz. Unfortunately, Blanche (the main female character) seems so many times to act out of character as a ditzy unthinking woman instead of the strong, caring human being she is also portrayed as. I did love all the famous name dropping of guests of the hotel and the ending was so appropriate.

Thanks to NetGalley and Penguin Random House for the ARC to read and review.

An enjoyable book about the goings on at the Ritz hotel in Paris during WWII. This is a true story while taking some liberties. A married couple where the husband managed the hotel and cheated on his wife. His American wife who was quite spoiled and did as she pleased. It was a sad situation watching how the german’s took over the hotel.

Another wonderful Historical Fiction read for 2019!

Based on true events, The Mistress of the Ritz introduces you to the Auzello’s, the power couple behind the Ritz hotel. Headstrong American Blanche, and her hotel director French husband Claude, are hosts, the mistress and master of the Ritz. Doting on guests and providing the glitz and glamour that only the Ritz is known for.

Taken to the events in 1940 Paris, where German forces sweep through the city and occupy the lovely hotel.

This book features all of the things I love when it comes to historical fiction. Strong character building, a new sense of learning something about a time in history I was previously unaware of, and a little dash of romance thrown in for good measure.

I loved this book and was drawn to the glamour that existed within the walls of the Ritz Hotel, as well as to Blanche, and was pulling for their marriage in such a hard time of history.

*Thank you to NetGalley, Delacorte Press and Penguin Randomhouse for this complimentary digital copy in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own

Captivating, affecting, & illuminating!

MISTRESS OF THE RITZ by MELANIE BENJAMIN is an engaging, suspenseful, and hauntingly beautiful historical fiction novel that totally captures something extraordinary here as well as fully capturing my heart. I was immediately taken with this story and found myself totally mesmerized and in awe of MELANIE BENJAMIN’S ability to weave such a fantastic story that is based on real-life people and actual historical events with her own liberties of juicy fictional storytelling.

MELANIE BENJAMIN delivers a vividly descriptive, interesting, and well-written read here with characters and a setting that totally captivated and intrigued me. I was totally taken and fascinated with both Claude and Blanche’s dynamic relationship as well as with their lives spent in the highly acclaimed Hotel Ritz in Paris.

I was thoroughly entertained and enjoyed how this story unfolded right from the very beginning. And I was totally wrapped up in this couple’s relationship and loved the suspense of the unraveling of the secrets and lies.

** This was a Traveling Sisters Read **

Norma’s Stats:
Cover: Lovely, intriguing, majestic, eye-catching and a fitting representation to storyline.
Title: Appealing, suspenseful, intriguing and absolutely love how the title plays so fittingly into storyline.
Writing/Prose: Well-written, beautiful, fluid, vivid, engaging, and captivating. I totally connected with and absolutely loved MELANIE BENJAMIN’S writing style.
Plot: Haunting, memorable, fascinating, inspiring, suspenseful, perfectly-paced, original, absorbing, enjoyable and entertaining. I absolutely loved that this book was inspired by the real-life couple of Claude and Blanche and the setting of the Ritz. As I thoroughly enjoy books that are based on real life events and people. Knowing that just makes the story that much more appealing, memorable and fascinating to read.
Ending: An exceptional and extremely palpable ending that warmed my heart but also left it a little broken-hearted.
Overall: 4.5 Stars! I was totally captivated by this book and totally taken with these characters and their lives and with the events that happened at the Ritz. A book that I am glad that I took my time with and savoured every single word! Loved this book so much!!!! Would highly recommend!

Thank you so much to NetGalley, Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine / Delacorte Press & Melanie Benjamin for the opportunity to read an electronic ARC of this book.

d rate this at least a 4. I generally like Melanie Benjamin’s books, as The Aviators Wife and The Girls in the Picture, as they are very thoroughly researched on the topics she writes about. Mistress of the Ritz is an intriguing historical fiction account of Claude and Blanche Azuello, he the straight laced manager of the Ritz and she his flamboyant, independent ex-flapper American wife during some turbulent years in Paris, 1923-1945. Although I had never heard of either one before I read this novel, it is a novel about their daring, courage and resistance during the Nazi takeover of France, and particularly at the Ritz which served as a Nazi headquarters in Paris. However, it also is about the Azuellos’s tumultuous marriage with many secrets and lies, and although from different upbringings, and diametrically opposed perspectives on life and living, how in the end they both truly loved each other. I loved reading about life at the Ritz, with all of its opulence and luxury, with the likes of its colorful guests, such as Coco Chanel (a longtime resident), F. Scott Fitzgerald Ernest Hemingway to name a few. Ms. Benjamin gave such a real life depiction of life in the Ritz that you felt like you were there. The characters were all generally well defined. I received a copy of the book from NetGalley in exchange for an unbiased review.

I absolutely loved this book. Once I opened it up it was so hard to out down. The author is able to pull you directly in and feel for the chats right away. So glad I read it.

Mistress of the Ritz by Melanie Benjamin. I like historical fiction. You read a story about something that happened long ago, an author writes about it. Melanie Benjamin writes about Blanche as Mistress Of the Ritz. She does it beautifully. . Is a story that sometimes breaks your heart. You get to the end and you want to find out more about the history. Read it.

For me, this one started off slowly and I wasn't enjoying the writing but a friend pointed out that it may have been purposefully written that way to emphasize the times and the person of Blanche Azuello. That helped somewhat, it helped push me along until just over the halfway point when the story itself became more of the motivation to move along to the end. After reading the author's note, I realize what a contribution this story is to those of us who enjoy reading books set during WWII. It's a story I never heard of before and I'm always happy to learn about new people (the Azuellos), places (Hotel Ritz) and of course, Paris. This is my second book by the author, and while I enjoyed Alice I Have Been more, this ended up being a satisfying read.

My rating: 3.5

Melanie Benjamin's 'Mistress of the Ritz' reminded me of why I love good historical fiction.. There are certainly well-known characters in this book. Ernest Hemingway, Coco Chanel, and other gilded celebrities of the 1930s/1940s. The main characters are based on a real couple who I had never heard of and finished the book with a deep appreciation and respect for- hotel director Claude and Blance Auzello.

Imagine your husband worked as the manager at the FANCIEST hotel in Paris and in 1940, the Germans made it one of their headquarters. Imagine there are some facts about you that many people in your life do not know as you came from America and changed your name to help your husband in his career.

As we learn what Blanche (and Claude) will do, we also learn what brought them to the Ritz during the German Occupation. Ms. Benjamin makes them both very multi-faceted characters (dual narration with chapters in varying years really helped this). I would read a Blanche chapter and think "GRR CLAUDE!" I would read a Claude chapter and think 'OH BLANCHE!" How they interacted with other characters as well helped their character growth and the reader understand more.

This book broke my heart a few times and made me want to learn more about the people who helped Paris stay Paris as much as possible during one of the worst times in it's history. It also made me think a lot less of Coco Chanel...if you want to know why you will have to read it. Thank you Netgalley for the ARC!!!

Melanie Benjamin never disappoints! Her prose and her heartfelt story lines pull you into the story. Not only are you a voyeur of the story, but you become part of the story.
I have not loved a character in such a long time as I do Blanche. Knowing this is based on true events, makes it even better. 5 stars across the board. Thank you NetGalley and thank you Melanie!!!!
I have added this review on Goodreads, Instagram, Amazon and Barnes and Noble.

In her novel Mistress of the Ritz, that she says is “inspired by” rather than “based on” a true story, Melanie Benjamin weaves an account of Claude and Blanche Auzello, who keep the Hotel Ritz in Paris functioning luxuriously through World War II. Known before the war for its rich and famous guests, such as Ernest Hemingway, Coco Chanel, and F. Scott Fitzgerald, the opulence continues once Paris is taken by the German soldiers.

Lily, Blanche’s friend and accomplice, narrates the first and last chapter with the remaining dated chapter narrations switching between Claude and Blanche. When the Ritz is overtaken by the Nazi soldiers, both of the Auzellos, on the surface, seem to adapt to the new residents with Claude serving them with style and Blanche becoming an exuberant drinking buddy at the bar. But this is a world where no one is quite sure who is really acquiescing to the invasion and who is secretly working with the Resistance.

The couple’s secrets from each other and from the conquering army permeate the story and leave the reader in constant suspense. The truth, when it inevitably comes out, forebodes danger for both them and others who have joined them separately in intrigue. A quote from a midpoint in the book sets a theme for the couple’s relationship. “By letting Claude believe what he wants to believe – what he’s so eager to believe about her – she can hide her activities from him.” There remains an even bigger secret that only they know and share that threatens the greatest peril.

This fascinating account of a marriage woven into the war itself has an almost equally fascinating author’s note at the end, giving the research and truth that started Melanie Benjamin on her writing journey for the novel. She takes the intrigue that she learned from that research and adds conjured details for a book that made me only regret that I didn’t have time to read it in one sitting.

Benjamin’s latest novel is about Blanche Auzello, the American woman who in 1924 married Claude, the manager of the Ritz in Paris. In the years of recovery after the Great War, Paris was host to some of the richest and most famous people from across the globe, and the number one place to be and be seen in Paris was the Ritz. When Blanche arrived in Paris, she was hoping to kick-start her film career, but instead, she entered into a whirlwind romance, that culminated in their marrying, without a thought to how very different they were. When the winds of another war begin to blow, neither Blanche nor Claude are willing to leave either Paris or the Ritz, and Blanche being secretly Jewish when Nazis start showing up at the hotel, is going to complicate things, even if she is the “Mistress of the Ritz”. (Thanks for the free book, @PRHGlobal/@prhinternational.)

My regular readers know that my favorite literary genre is fast becoming biographical, historical, women’s fiction. I’m also fascinated with the World War eras, so when these two come together, there’s no way I’m going to pass up an opportunity to read that novel. This is always especially true when it comes to someone about whom I knew nothing before reading this book, which is exactly the case here. Mind you, it might be a good idea to resist the temptation of reading a real biography of Blanche before you’ve finished this novel, because… you know… they’ll have spoilers. But even if you do, there is very little you’ll find there that can ruin a reader’s experience of this book.

You see, this is one of those books that is just so gripping, so compelling that you’ll just not want to put it down. I’m serious here. Remember, I’m a slow reader (because of my mild dyslexia), and I read this book in record time, for me! (If I wasn’t dyslexic, I might have finished this in a day or two at best!) To begin with, Benjamin’s prose is just stunning, if not opulent at times. Not that it’s all that poetic or anything, but it just flows so naturally and with such a clear connection to the characters here, that you can’t help becoming sympathetic to each of the characters, and picturing each of the glorious Paris locations described, particularly the Ritz, itself. What really struck me here was that all of the scenes that take place inside or around the Ritz felt as luxuriously written as the place itself, but when the stark reality of Paris under Nazi occupation was described, the narrative felt colder, more ominous. That’s how you write atmospherically and hats off to Benjamin for achieving this practically genius feat.

Benjamin’s conceit here is to take the (very few) well-known facts about these personalities and draw out from that, in order to build up the actions that went into their every-day lives. This is, of course, the essence of any good biographical fiction novel. For example, we don’t know for a fact that Blanche and Claude had a tumultuous marriage; Benjamin simply assumed that a fiery, American wannabe-actress, flapper who marries the staunch and stalwart Frenchman who manages the most luxurious hotel in Paris, could easily have had some personality clashes. We also don’t know if either Blanche or Claude ever helped the French Resistance, but it is totally reasonable to think they both did. We also know very little about the woman called Lily Kharmayeff, except that she did in fact know Blanche. Here Benjamin builds her up into a rebellious little fighter (which reminded me a little of Kate Quinn’s totally fictional character Nina, in “The Huntress”).

Excuse my conjecture here but I also felt that Benjamin used the Auzellos’ rocky relationship almost as a mirror to reflect the essence of this war. You see, in the way Benjamin describes them, while Claude and Blanche loved each other, they also knew practically nothing about each other. Because of this, they both depended upon seeing each other through the typical stereotypes of a Frenchman and an American actress/flapper, for both the good and the bad. When it came to the negative parts, they both seemed to do things that would allow themselves to live down to the other’s lowest expectations. In fact, what Benjamin has built here is yet another type of resistance between the two of them, in parallel to their anti-Nazi work. I found this to be an absolutely fascinating aspect of this novel.

With all these kudos, I’m sure my readers and wondering if I found any faults with this book. Actually, there were a couple of tiny things that felt slightly out of place, but they were so minor and fleeting that they were almost immediately forgotten and forgiven in light of everything else I found here (not limited to her making me cry, more than once, by the way). This is why I have no choice but to give this novel a full five out of five stars and highly recommend it to all lovers of biographical, historical fiction. Thank you, Melanie Benjamin, for writing this “great big fat juicy story” and for revealing what you call the “emotional truth” of this very special and mysterious couple!

4.5 stars

"How can you recognize a Semite?" Throw her in the back of a Nazi truck with her hands tied too tightly behind her back, and point a German gun at her head."

Ahh, the Ritz. A grand and glamorous hotel which hosts Coco Chanel, Ernest Hemingway, and F. Scott Fitzgerald to name a few. It is the place to see and be seen. It is where Blanche Auzello, who is American, and her French Husband and Hotel Director, Claude Auzello live. The use the glamour of the Ritz to mask the trouble in their marriage. Then in June 1940, the German Army sweeps into Paris and uses the Ritz (and other hotels) to set up their headquarters. Their safe haven from the world and their troubled marriage, is not so safe anymore. Both have secrets, both live secret lives which they live while trying to walk a fine line between keeping their "guests" happy and their staff alive.

The books begins with the couple meeting and showcases the issues in their marriage, their cultural issues and through the use of differing POV, chapters, the reader is given each character's inner thoughts, motivations and secrets. Some have found the beginning to be slow, but I actually enjoyed the pace. I appreciated how the Author took her time introducing each character and their marital issues. I thought this was nicely done to show how they grew to keep secrets, had misconceptions about the other, lacked effective communication skills and how this affected each other throughout their marriage and especially during a time of great danger. They loved each other, but how well did they know each other?

"It is devastating to see a loved one suffer; it is harder to bear than you own pain. Love is despair, love is delight. Love is fear, love is hope. Love is mercy. Love is anger.".

This book was inspired by the real-life couple and the use of the Ritz during the invasion by the Nazi's during the war. As not much is written about the real-life Claude and Blanche Auzello, the Author did fictionalize their lives. I enjoy books about real life events and people. Even though very little is know about the actual couple that these characters is based upon, the contribution to the Ritz and the war effort have been documented even if minimally. While reading this, I couldn't help but wonder, "would I have been so brave?", "would I have risked so much?"

I enjoyed the story which showed how people resisted in their own way, how people found courage and offered help to others at great risk to themselves. This book is historical fiction, but it also examines a marriage over a course of time. This is a book about love, about courage, about pain, about loss, about fear, about the war, about resistance, and the hardships of war. This is a great book for discussion as it touches on many issues. I was captivated by the book and was sucked into these characters lives. There are many characters, including the Ritz itself.

This was a Traveling Sisters Group Read.

Thank you to Random House Publishing and NetGalley who provided me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. The thoughts and opinions are my own.