All the Ways We Said Goodbye is more similar to The Three W's The Forgotten Room than their The Glass Ocean, which made me happy!

Across three time periods are three women in France. Aurelie is the daughter of an American heiress and French comte during WWI, who is a beacon of hope and defiance against the Germans for her people. During WWII, Daisy is Aurelie's grown daughter and is now the wife of a French bureaucrat who is more pro-Nazi than pro-France; Daisy becomes a spy for the French Resistance under the tutelage of her Jewish grandmother. And Babs is the English wife (and now widow) of a WWII spy who had been stationed in Paris during the War, who has come to Paris in the early 1960's to discover the truth behind a secret of her husband's. How does Babs's story fit in with Aurelie's and Daisy's? There are so many secrets to uncover, lies of omission to be revealed, and romances to be had in war-torn France.

Willig, Williams, and White again accomplish an intricately plotted story that is all historical fiction; intriguing mystery; and while not swoon-worthy romance, enough romance to keep the readers of these romance writers happy.

When three historical fiction powerhouses join together to write a book, I beg for an ARC, read it fast and then read it again! I thoroughly enjoyed this book. The story was seamless!

One of my favorite writers is Beatriz Williams, so I was very excited to read this novel since she is one of the authors. Although it is perfectly readable, I was disappointed in the book. I found the stories of several women throughout the turbulent times of the 20th century, very predictable.

Each time period has a strong woman as a protagonist, all their interconnections are clear (sometimes too obvious). I found the the trials they endured engaging, but I could have written the ending myself.

The authors did give me a sense of closure but this is not a memorable book.

Thank you Netgalley.

I'd describe All the Ways We Said Goodbye first as an excellent historical fiction/mystery, and second as a romance. I absolutely loved The Glass Ocean and was eager to read something else by these three authors together, and their newest book did not disappoint!

I loved that the story featured three strong female leads, and the way the story flowed despite having been written by three authors. The timeline spanned two world wars and beyond into the 1960s, but due to the chapter headings with the dates at the top I never really found myself getting lost. All three women are linked through ties of love and family, although there was much they did not know about each other - that was the large mystery running through the book. Each had romances, which warmed and broke my heart in turns.

Some of the plot I could see coming (one would, reading about events from various characters' points of view) but there were definitely twists I never saw coming as well. The story was riveting and I loved every minute of it.

Powerhouse authors Beatriz Williams, Karen White, and Lauren Willig have teamed up for their third collaboration, a triple timeline story about three women whose lives are inexplicably bound up in the somewhat tragic history of Paris' Ritz Hotel. The sweeping tale spans fifty years, introducing readers to Aurelie, Daisy, and Babs as they discover who they are and how they fit into the ever-changing world they inhabit.

Aurelie has spent most of her nineteen years in Paris, raised by her somewhat unconventional mother, who spends most of her time presiding over literary salons at the Ritz. So when war breaks out in 1914, Aurelie, who has always felt a bit out of place with her mother and her friends, flees Paris and returns home to her family’s estate. There, she and her father find themselves forced to share their home with a group of German officers, one of whom seems strangely fascinated by Aurelie's beauty and intelligence.

Nearly thirty years later, Daisy is living a relatively normal life in Nazi-occupied Pairs. Her husband is desperate to endear himself to the Nazis in hopes of improving his social station, and Daisy does her best to keep herself at somewhat of an emotional distance from him. Unfortunately, her grandmother is keeping a dangerous secret, and if Daisy has any hope of keeping her safe, she'll have to play a role in the French resistance movement, even if it causes her to betray her husband.

In 1964, Babs is mourning the recent death of her husband, a man she's always considered to be the love of her life. She's not sure what her future holds, so when she receives a letter from a stranger who has questions about her late husband's wartime activities, Babs decides to journey to Paris. Once there, she hopes to lay to rest some nagging questions she's had about the role he might have played in the French resistance, and she ends up learning far more than she bargained for.

AAR reviewers Shannon and Maggie have read All the Ways We Said Goodbye, and are here to share their thoughts on the novel.

Shannon: Dual timeline novels are quite popular these days, but All the Ways We Said Goodbye takes the trend a bit further, telling the stories of three women, each of whom lives in a different time period. I loved this style of storytelling. Each of the women had a compelling story arc, and I became invested in each of their journeys. How did the book as a whole work for you?

Maggie: I thoroughly enjoy dual timeline stories and have been a fan since before their current rise in popularity. In this tale, I particularly liked how the authors twined the three narratives together, with the events taking place in the earlier timelines driving the events of the latter ones. It helped keep me invested in the stories of each of our heroines and also gave the novel a cohesion it might otherwise have lacked.

Shannon: Each storyline was engaging, but Aurelie's was perhaps the hardest for me to relate to. There was something slightly off-putting about her impetuous nature. Did you find her at all irritating?

Maggie: Aurelie was actually my favorite of the three heroines! She was impetuous but she was also a very young woman, an older teen, and I thought she learned and matured during her story arc. I also really liked her concern for her people – from when she made sure the mayors had something to eat and drink, to physically helping with the wheat harvest to ensure that the villagers had bread. Her kindness drew me to her.

Shannon: You raise some good points here. I'll have to take some time to rethink Aurelie from your perspective. Now, let's talk about Daisy. Her story was the most action-packed. I was on the edge of my seat through most of her chapters. She had a great deal to contend with, and I found myself cheering her on all the way.

Maggie: I think we had very different takes on this book! I found Daisy a bit vapid. From her foolish choice of husband to her grandmother having to spell out for her the dangers of their being Jewish during the Nazi occupation (and having to spell out for her that they were Jewish!) she seemed someone who lacked in character and intellect. I couldn’t help but wonder if she would have done the courier work if her partner had been someone old and fat and not the handsome spy she was working with.

Shannon: I think Babs was my favorite of the three heroines; her arc was more emotional than that of Aurelie and Daisy. At first, I worried I'd get bored with her attempts to learn the truth about her husband, especially since I was pretty sure I knew how he fit into the story as a whole, but I needn't have worried. There was something so charming about Babs, something incredibly authentic and relatable. She never tried to be anything other than what she was, and I loved her for it.

Maggie: I agree that Babs was very authentic, relatable and likable. I enjoyed watching her receive a makeover and become a more glamorous version of herself and I thoroughly enjoyed her romance. I did struggle with her in regards to the issue of the letter, though. I found it hard to accept her excuses for the action she took, so while I enjoyed her storyline, that put a bit of a damper on my enthusiasm for the character.

Shannon: Let's turn our attention to a different kind of character. The Ritz Hotel plays an enormous part in the lives of all three women, and, in many ways, it felt like a character in its own right. So much happens under its roof, and I loved the way the authors managed to bring it to life on the page. I've read other books that took place there, but the depiction here really stands out.

Maggie: The Ritz sounded absolutely amazing and lovely. The writers did a wonderful job of conveying the idea of a glamorous, luxurious location that had a thousand stories to tell, and hundreds of mysteries hidden behind its closed doors. I agree that the authors’ depiction of this location – as well as several of the others – was a standout point in the story.

Shannon: There are some romantic threads running through the novel, but I hesitate to actually call it an historical romance. The love stories are an integral part of the book, but the main focus seems to be on the personal journeys of our heroines. Initially, I was a bit disappointed by the understated nature of the romances, but I quickly fell under the spell of the story the authors were telling, and by the time I reached the end, I honestly couldn't imagine enjoying it nearly half as much had it been told in a different way. Did you find the romantic subplots to be satisfying, or did they leave you wanting more?

Maggie: That’s such a tough question to answer. Of course, I always want more romance, but I think in the case of this story it would have been impossible to explore the love affairs more without turning it into a seven hundred page book – and I definitely didn’t want that!  Given what I think the authors were trying to accomplish here, I thought they did a nice balancing act, providing a convincing love story within the broader context of a war narrative.

Shannon: This is a big book, clocking in at nearly 450 pages, but I flew through it. Did that work for you? Did it feel too long, or was it just right?

Maggie: The length worked fine for me. This is an epic story and epics take a bit of time to tell!

Shannon: I'm a big fan of these authors both separately and together, and their latest offering was truly spectacular. I'm giving it an A-, with only a few points taken off because of my initial difficulties with Aurelie's character.

Maggie: I’m a big fan of the authors as well, but this tale is not a favorite for me and not one I would recommend to someone unfamiliar with their writing.  I’m going with a B since I also took points off for difficulties with a personage, although in my case it is the secondary character Precious. I felt she practically screamed deus ex machina, as her interest in Babs made absolutely no sense. In fact, the character herself was difficult for me to grasp, given her rather complex history. That and a few other stumbles along the way made this a good but not great read for me. I’s offer a qualified recommendation to fans of the authors’ work or someone who enjoys epic women’s fiction stories taking place during WWI or WWII.

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I was very excited to receive this copy of All the Ways We Said Goodbye. I LOVE historical fiction and have recently fallen in love with Beatriz Williams. I was prepared for a war story about women who do hard things. I wasn't prepared for it to be a family story as well. I loved the connections to The Glass Ocean. I really enjoyed how some of the characters were direct connections and others were sideline connections. It made the story a little deeper for me. While the history was strong and good, the women in this book were as well. I loved the transformations they all went through. I really enjoyed seeming them grow as people and in maturity and find who they really are on the inside. Readers of the Glass Ocean really NEED to pick this up. You can absolutely read it as a stand alone, but if you are already a fan, its a must read.

Having really enjoyed the previous collaboration of these three authors on The Glass Ocean, I assumed this book would be a winner, and indeed it was.

It is primarily a family saga— a complex and intricate one featuring not one but two commendable war heroines—with dashes of mystery, romance, and espionage.

I’ll be very curious to learn how the writing process worked amongst the three authors (anyone seen an interview on this yet with any of them? Please do let me know if you have). I am assuming each was primarily responsible for one of the three POV characters.

The way the three fit together so seamlessly is a testament to all three authors (such a sense of continuity is no small feat), though I do detect some differences in character quality.

I assume Aurelie belongs to Beatriz Williams. She was my favorite of the lot, though I also loved Daisy. Babs was a tougher sell for me. She’s dowdy! She’s insecure! She’s not French but—gasp—British! I’m sure she was intended to be “relatable,” but to me she came off more like a rube. I didn’t dislike her, but I did pity her, which was a stark contrast from the admiration the other two heroines evoked in me.

Regardless, her story is still good, and in fairness, she didn’t (fortunately for her) have the opportunity to be a war heroine.

In all, a compelling read that is both light and uplifting but also meaningful and moving.

I really enjoyed this book, the alternating story lines keep my interest and made it hard to put the book down. I found Daisy's storyline the most interesting , while her mother's, Aurelie's was a little boring. The story clipped along at a good pace, and although some of the plot points were predictable I still enjoyed the resolution.

3.5 stars

I've been wanting to check out a book by this trio of authors for awhile now because I have enjoyed some of the solo efforts of writers Beatriz Williams and Karen White. I'm not sure how they broke down the writing duties for this one but I was really impressed how it felt like a cohesive story and not three different styles of writing. This might not make my list of top historical fiction reads but it certainly was a good story and I definitely recommend giving this one a look if you are a fan of any or all of the authors.

This story alternates between different characters and timelines which I always enjoy although I did have trouble keeping track of all the characters near the beginning. Aurelie is an heiress living in France back in 1914 just as the war is breaking out. The German military has taken over her family's estate and despite being on different sides, she forms a friendship with one of the soldiers. Switching over to 1942, Daisy was raised by her grandmother at the Ritz in Paris. Her husband is a Nazi collaborator and Daisy secretly starts helping her grandmother's Resistance efforts. And finally there is Barbara, "Babs" Langford who is a widow after the recent death of her husband Kit. The year is 1964 and Babs has traveled to Paris to meet with an American lawyer who wants her help tracking down the identity of a Resistance fighter and perhaps traitor with the mysterious nickname "La Fleur". How do these 3 storylines connect?

This isn't a book in which the main goal is have the reader super shocked at how everything ties together. You do have a fairly good idea of the general direction of the story way before it is all revealed. However, because the female characters are written as strong women, whether they necessarily realized it or not, you feel invested in them and want to see how everything plays out. And there actually did manage to be one or two small surprises along the way which was nice.

As for my criticism of the novel, I thought Aurelie got lost in the shuffle a bit in the first half of the book. I had the most trouble remembering the things going on with her storyline compared to the other two characters. She became distinct in my mind eventually and was an important part of the story, but I really wish it hadn't taken quite so long to get there. I also wouldn't say this is the most memorable historical fiction book when compared to some of the other books about the war in that genre. A few touching moments here and there but I wasn't moved to tears like I have been with other World War 1 and 2 historical fiction novels. I enjoyed reading this book and liked how the story highlighted some of the Resistnace efforts by women but I wouldn't place this in the must read category.

Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for providing me with an advance digital copy in exchange for an honest review!

This was another amazing book by Williams, Willig and White. I always enjoy the books they write by themselves but I also love the ones they collaborate on! The stories of Aurelie, Daisy and Babs intertwine with each other and the common denominator between them all was the Ritz in Paris It did take me a little while to get used to the chapters switching viewpoints and all characters but after I got into it a bit I couldn't stop reading. The love story for each woman was beautiful and sometimes heart-breaking. If you like any of these authors, give this book a try!

Three stories are told in alternating chapters set during World Wat One, World Wat Two, and 1964. Aurelie, the daughter of a French count and an American heiress is caught at the family chateau in occupied France in 1914. She becomes a symbol of resistance to the local villagers and farmers but finds herself falling in love with a German officer. Daisy is Aurelie's daughter, brought up by her grandmother at the Ritz but now married to a Nazi bureaucrat and working for the resistance. Babs comes to Paris in 1964 to solve a puzzle and discover her late husband's activities during the war.

The three stories entertwine and while there is much historical background, the real focus is on the love each woman finds. I found Babs the most difficult character to believe as she blossomed from a downtrodden frump to a glamorous woman in a few pages. She was the least deserving of a happy ending and the only one to find one. An entertaining read, but lacking in historical detail and depth.

he story, told from three different points in history, following three different women, and as the story progresses, we discover how they are all tied together.

In 1914, Aurelie, descended from French nobility and an American mother, escapes Paris to stay with her father at his ancestral home, Courcelles. The Nazis invade and Aurelie has to fight to save the villagers from starvation. A German who she met at her mother's salon in Paris, now a soldier, starts to pay her special attention.

In 1942, occupied France, Daisy, Aurelie’s daughter, becomes a member of the French Resistance. Known as LaFleur, she became one of the most skillful members, able to deliver notes with no one being the wiser. Daisy becomes involved in a love affair with Kit, a Resistance fighter.

Then, 1964: Babs, travels to Paris to meet Drew, an American whose father had ties to her late husband, Kit. Babs knew her husband never got over his true love, La Fleur. She wants to learn more about LaFleur, and discover the truth about her husband’s role in the war.

All three stories intertwine, and we are led to an interesting conclusion.

This book follows three different story lines. In 1914, Aurelie impulsively leaves her home with her mother at the Ritz hotel and travels to her father's ancestral home in Courcelles. When the German's take over the area, they decide to use their home as their headquarters. In 1942, Daisy lives in Paris with her two young children and husband, a Nazi collaborator. Reluctant at first, she joins the French Resistance, and finds herself falling in love with a fellow spy. In 1964, following the death of her husband, Babs receives a letter, hinting that her husband was involved with the famous French resistance letter La Fleur. Babs journeys from England to the Ritz hotel, where she hopes to unravel more information about La Fleur, and her relationship with her husband.

I found this book to be very tedious. Although the three story lines were related, it felt like the authors spent so much time developing the various story lines that nothing ever happened. Most of the book felt like background story rather than actual forward moving plot. The women's resistance and war work was barely discussed, instead the book focused on romance. Overall, this was a bust.

Not my fist book about female resistance fighters in WWI and II; not my first book about the occupation of Paris and the occupants of the Ritz during the war years; this was one of my favorites though. Beatriz Williams et al have done another marvelous job making the past feel tangible.

There have been a plethora of books in recent years about the French Resistance during WWII. This is one more, with a twist -- the story actually starts with the resistance movement in France in WWI. Set in 1914, 1940s, and 1960s, this is the story of three women interconnected by blood/marriage and the wars. Each is a strong character with individual traits (good & bad) and each of their stories is unique and touching.

So why didn't I just love this book? The stories are told in alternating chapters, switching characters and time periods. There are SO many secondary characters to keep track of, so many places with (to an American) strange names, and so many French & German phrases and names that (frankly) I became confused at times which character I was reading about & in which decade. It was obvious from the beginning that these three stories would intersect and be intertwined somehow, and by the time all was revealed it was a relief and everything became clear. It just took too long to get to that point.

This is not a poorly written book; much of the prose is beautiful. I just wasn't cptivated, and I feel there are so many more (and better) books about the subject. Perhaps by comparing them, I have done this book a disservice, but I'm not terribly impressed.

Loved this book! I am thrilled that I am able to review All the Ways We Said Goodbye by Williams, Willig, and White because I have enjoyed their two previous books and thing this team of women does an amazing job writing together. All the Ways We Said Goodbye is my favorite book that the three of them have done together. I thought having three stories set in two different wars and the third trying to investigate things that happened in the earlier two stories was clever and also powerful. The theme of the stories is survival, and love and what it means to be a "formidable woman." Each of the three women do brave things in the face of hardship even though they think they are not strong. But each woman proves that they are "formidable" in the challenges they face, where that challenge is the German army or their guilt over their own actions. Each woman shows their true strength.

The tie in this novel is a place, just like the previous two novels, but this time it is the Ritz hotel in Paris. It is a powerful setting, but not as strong as the women who lived through the difficult times. Babs is a British woman who recently lost her husband and is trying to learn about the woman he lived while a spy in Paris during World War II. Aurelie is a young woman raised in Paris at the Ritz, but who wants to help save France from the Germans, and meets her destiny in her family's castle as it is occupied by the German army. And Daisy is raised by her Grandmother at the Ritz, and it is through her that she begins working with a spy network in Paris to help Jewish people escape the Nazi's.

While I did get a copy of this book for free on NetGalley in exchange for my honest review, I am sure that when the book comes out on January 14th, 2020 I will probably be buying a copy, because this book is a keeper.

I absolutely loved this book! Historical fiction is my favorite genre and I’ve read a lot of it. One of my earliest introductions to the genre were the Pink Carnation series written by Lauren Willig. So when I saw All the Ways we Said Goodbye, I had to read it!


Synopsis:The novel follows the lives of three women in France, each during a different time period: WWI, WWII, and the 1960s. What do they all have in common? Paris, the Ritz, and….the rest is a mystery to be solved by reading the book.


You would think it would be hard to form a cohesive story with three storylines told by three different authors; but this is not the case. The storylines kept me interested throughout and are masterfly interwoven to keep the reader guessing until the end. I loved all of the story lines equally, so there wasn’t any skimming to get through one so I could get through to see the other!


I also enjoyed the touch of romance in this story - I think it enhanced the compassion and connection I had with these characters.


The Ritz during the war features prominently in another book released in May of this year. If I had to compare, and two such similar backdrops invites comparison, the Way we Said Goodbye far supersedes Mistress of the Ritz in characterization, storyline, and overall content.



I quickly became totally engrossed in this wonderful story. I would definitely recommend this book to historical fiction readers and any reader who appreciates a well-crafted story. 5/5

Second book I’ve read by these offers loved it. Strong women different times in history a book that drew me right in a wonderful saga#netgalley#harpercollins

This is the second book I have read by this trio of authors, and it was great! There are three different narrators and time periods, but you gradually see how the stories of these women connect. Well written and highly recommended!

A story of strong women and the connection across time and wars. Each is fighting to survive in a world that has been turned upside down. The book moves between the stories and as the stories progress it reveals secrets and the connections between the women. As a reader I have been suffering from fatigue from World War II stories but this book went beyond the typical war story and focused on the story of the women.