A different story of war that flows seamlessly between the war years in Paris and ten years later in New York. The story at its core is about love and grief and and who should and how to draw the lines around morality.

I look forward to reading other books by this author and I thank NetGalley and St Martin’s Press for providing me an early version of this novel.

Of all the historical fiction about WWII currently on the shelves, it's refreshing read a story with an unexpected plot.

Set in occupied France during WWII and in America in the 1950's, the story begins with Charlotte and her baby Vivi desperate to survive the invasion of Paris. Everyone is trying to survive and no one can be trusted. But is surviving enough? Her soldier husband is dead. Her best friend is arrested. She is alone.

Until a man walks into her bookshop wearing a uniform she detests.

It takes a talented storyteller to weave into the plot a narrative so tender that it almost eclipses the horrors of war. The tumult of emotions in both time periods is consuming, yet not without hope.

One of the best books I've read this year.

I received this book "Paris Never Leaves You" from NetGalley and all opinions expressed are my own. I like to read historical fiction and this was a really good book. Alternating between Paris and New York the story takes you through the time period. A story of love and survival.

Thanks to St. Martin's Press for providing me this ARC book. I enjoyed it immensely and will certainly recommend it. I have read many books on the subject of living through WWII, and this story gave me a different perspective. I also think it would make a terrific movie.

Thanks to Netgalley, St. Martin's Press and Beatrice Jason for an egalley of this novel in exchange for an honest review.


Alternating between New York in the 1950's and Paris in the 1940's, Paris Never Leaves You was a compelling story about a bookseller, Charlotte and her baby daughter, Vivienne, who survive occupation during the war and are sponsored by acquaintances to find a new life in the United States. But as Vivienne grows older she is asking for more information about her family history. Can Charlotte overcome her guilt and finally open up to her daughter about the past?

Again, I felt myself flipping the pages and wanting to see where Ellen Feldman was going to take us. I have read other WWII books that feature children questioning what happened to their families during the war and this book was different in invoking many different types of feelings and questions in me as I read. I should probably leave some of my thoughts on certain characters until after the publication date. Half because I wish to not spoil anything for any other readers and also because one character has me percolating a bit over some of her actions and words(Hint: it's not Charlotte or Vivi). I did enjoy it though!

Goodreads review published 05/01/20
Publication Date 02 /06/20

This is a story about a young woman and her daughter, trying to survive in German occupied Paris during WWII.
Charlotte Foret a young widow, works in a Paris bookshop during the war, her daughter Vivienne, is also there with her.
While at the book store she meets a charismatic, German soldier who ends up helping Charlotte and Vivie survive by bringing them a bit of food and medicine for the child.
Well written and some unusual twist to this story, which takes place in Paris and later in New York City.
It is a story of misconstrued words and actions. It is a story of survivors guilt and the actions it takes to save oneself.
Full of engaging characters, some harsh description of how the Jewish people were treated, yet it is also a story of love, friendships, and a will to live.
I would like to thank: Netgalley and St. Martin's Press for a copy of this book.

As many World War II based books are, this is an emotional journey that historical fiction lovers will fall in love with. The fact that it's based in Paris and involves a bookstore was an added bonus! Well written, fully developed, and you'll find yourself immersed in the story for hours before you look up and realize you slipped into book heaven shutting out the real world. I've never read anything by this author before and can honestly say I will be looking forward to her future work, as well as ordering in for our customers. Recommend to anyone who loves historical fiction, but also those who enjoy a developed story with good writing.

I have read practically every WWII Paris novel that had been released lately, and there are many. This one is from an entirely different perspective, with a twist or two I did not expect. Highly recommended!

Such a wonderful read!!! I’ve read many WWII books and this is yet again, another depiction, different depiction, of what people went through. We don’t know what we will do when the time is here. War time calls for what you think is right at the time.

When a reader gets involved in a book like this and finds that they cannot stop thinking of the book look after the last word has been read--it is truly a title that will remain in one's soul for a long time. Obviously, this book was definitely a perfect explanation of how this left a lasting impression with me.
A definite page turner from word one---it was a beautiful story of love, resilience and survival.
I thank you so much for allowing me to read this magnificent title prior to publication---I just adored it!

I love reading historical fiction books, and Paris Never Leaves you, is one of the best I’ve ever read. What I love is that it’s a World War 2 novel, and it’s told from a perspective I haven’t heard before. This book had me feeling many emotions as the characters went through struggles and questioned their identity. I highly recommend this book and can totally see it in book clubs and on best seller lists!

Paris Never Leaves You is a very different and unexpected World War II story. Charlotte Foret and her young daughter Vivi are not rounded up at night, forced to leave their homes and their families, and transported to a concentration camp. Instead, Charlotte, a young widow who runs a book shop, is left on her own in Paris, as the Nazi's move in and take over. Vivi is very young, and the Germans take everything, leaving very little for the populace to eat. The danger is great - the Nazi's are unpredictable and kill for no reason, French citizens turn each other in for a variety of reasons - but Charlotte is determined that Vivi will survive. When a young Nazi officer, Julian Bauer, comes into the bookshop, Charlotte wants nothing to do with him, but he keeps coming back. When Vivi is ill, he brings her medicine. And he brings them food which keeps them alive. Both Charlotte and the Nazi officer have their secrets, and after the war, Charlie's secrets help her to immigrate with Vivi to America; Julian's secrets land him in Bogota, Columbia. But secrets can be a heavy burden, and they have a way of catching up to you no matter where you are.

Paris Never Leaves You is the story of identify...what makes you who you are. It's also a story of love, and sacrifice and relationships and how all that interacts with identify. It's a unique story, one that resonates and takes you out of your normal space and puts you into the world that Charlie, Vivi and Julian faced. The writing is wonderful, the characters jump off the page and ask you the question, "what would YOU do in their place?". An outstanding read, one of the best!

I had a difficult time getting into the book in the beginning, but the slow pace didn't last long and once it picked up it really picked up and I felt compelled to keep turning the pages to find out what happened next. There was a twist at the end I didn't quite see coming and was something fresh and different for someone who has read a lot of novels set in WWII. I thought it was a great book with an out of the ordinary perspective.

I was really set to enjoy this book. I love books set in WWII or just post WWII era. However, this one feels disjointed. The time jumps happen out of nowhere and it just doesn't have the flow of the story that I was hoping for. The main character wasn't super likable and some of her choices didn't feel real either. I think conceptually it was a good idea but it just didn't land as well as I was hoping.

I have read several other reviews of this book and am afraid that I don’t agree with them. It was difficult for me to follow the story from chapter to chapter. Often it would take me a couple pages into a chapter to discern whether it was during the war or ten years later. Charlotte was the main character and Vivianne her daughter. During the War, Vivianne was a baby and they lived in Paris. After the War they moved to New York. Vivi’s father was killed in the War. To me this book went on and on with storylines , that while important/interesting didn’t add to the story. I don’t feel like I got to know the characters until the last third of the book. I truly regret that because I think I would have liked knowing them. Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for allowing me to read an advance copy for my honest opinion.

I finished reading the Advanced Reader Copy of this book in January 2020. It will be released on June 2, 2020. I predict that this will be one of the most popular books of 2020! Every book club will have it on their to-be-read list.

It is easy enough to read the synopsis of the book, so I will not go on to write that same summary here. What I will say it that "this book will never leave you". When you walk into a grocery and see an orange, you will think of this story. When you hold that secret in your heart, that you do not tell others (and we all do this), you will think about this story. When you hear a secret that someone held for years and then had to let it out, and chose you, you will remember this story. It is the kind of book that will remain in your mind forever.

I thought about what I wanted to write as a review for this book for a few days. I do not have the skills to adequately express how much this book touched me! The plot is wonderfully heartbreaking and uplifting. The characters are so life-like in all their glorious flaws, compassion and strength. The scene settings are described so brilliantly, that I felt I was in the story, experiencing the same pain of trying to survive and then live with the guilt of surviving.

I absolutely recommend this wonderful book very highly. This was the first book I read by this author, but it definitely will not be the the last. She is a master storyteller!

I want to thank St. Martin's Press, St. Martin's Griffin, for allowing me to read the ARC. My review is completely my own opinion, not influence by receiving the ARC.

War is hell. I often find that reading books about war is the same. I do my best to avoid them. The premise of Paris Never Leaves You is that it was post WWII, however, that isn't totally accurate. Set in a dual timeline, the story alternates between the 1950s in NYC where we find Charlotte and her daughter living post-war and the 1940s in France and what Charlotte had to do to survive the war to get to that point. Charlotte lives with the guilt as so many survivors do.

In the past year there have been numerous books set during WWII, many of which were based on a one sided view of what happened during the war. After all, how books about the Russians during WWII have you read? It was a traumatic awful time for those in France particularly and most of the books reflect that. Paris Never Leaves You is the same. I found myself skimming pages more often than not and this is a very short book so there were not a lot of pages to skim. I never fully connected to the characters, didn't really care about them. I suspect that reflects more on me than the book itself. However, there are tremendously well written books that deal with the war and the people who endured it. I just don't think Paris Never Leaves You is one of those books.

I loved this. I couldn't put it down. I read it in about a day (had to work at some point in the middle). Charlotte is a young woman with a baby when the Nazis take over Paris. This is the story of what she does to survive and how she deals with her conscience later. I thought all of the characters were well written. I definitely recommend this one.

This is a very interesting book that I highly recommend. It deals with just how far will a person go to survive when pushed to extremes. The story alternates between occupied Paris of WWII and a decade later in NYC where a young mother and her daughter flee after the war. Charlie has grown up in Paris with a British nanny and her wealthy book publisher father. Her husband has died during the early days of the war and she is running a bookstore during the occupation. A German Officer begins to frequent her store and begins to bring scarce food and medicine for her child. He is a true enigma in that he reveals to her that he is actually Jewish, a doctor, and quite literally hiding from certain death if he were discovered by his superiors. He becomes her protector. As the war progresses, Charlie’s exposure is from all sides. If she is discovered to be sleeping with the enemy, she and her daughter could be killed but as she is fighting hard to not fall in love with her German protector.

As the Germans flee Paris, her lover actually pretends to arrest her and puts her into a French prison for her safety until the Americans can arrive .She actually pretends to be Jewish to escape Paris and the dangers it presents to a collaborator. She arrives in NYC and begins a new life with the help of her father’s contacts. Her past cannot escape her and her new Jewish identity exposes her to prejudice and fear even in NYC. Eventually a letter arrives that turns her feelings upside down. Her daughter is now a teenager and has her own questions about the past that cannot be ignored.

I really liked this story. The characters were well created and believable.

Paris Never Leaves You by Ellen Feldman WWII historical fiction about the psychological effects of the war on civilians who witnessed the cruelty and brutality inflicted on others and were trying to survive in Paris during the Occupation. Duel timeline set in occupied France during the war and in New York during the 1950's. Well written and well paced with relatable characters. A different portrayal of the people trying to survive during WWII.

Thank you to the publisher, author, and NetGalley for the opportunity to preview the book.