This was a good historical fiction about Coco Chanel during WWII timeframe. The writing was beautifully written. I was able to visualize myself there in Paris.

Coco Chanel is one of history’s most fashionable icons. This novel focuses on Coco Chanel’s life during the four years when the Nazis occupied France. She collaborated with the Nazis and even became their spy. Thus, Coco Chanel was willing to do anything to protect her business no matter the cost.

Coco Chanel has always been a fascinating historical figure. This novel focuses on the years that have been little focused on by historians. In this book we get to see a dark side of the glamorous Coco Chanel. Coco Chanel is not a likable character. Even though she is the main character of this book, she is an anti-heroine. She is cold and ruthless. She did horrible things with very little regret. She was anti-Semitic and a spy for the Nazis. Thus, I did not feel any sympathy for Coco Chanel and found her actions to be abhorrent.

Overall, this novel shows the cosmopolitan Coco Chanel as a complex woman who made many terrible decisions. I admire how the author did not sugarcoat Coco Chanel’s actions and personalities. She showed her how she truly may have been. While the novel tries to be sympathetic to Coco Chanel and tries to explain why she joined the Nazis, I found her reasons to be trivial. Still, the book does show how Coco Chanel was an acute business woman. She cares about her family and her business. The Queen of Paris is very well-written and is filled with many sumptuous details about Paris. There is still plenty of glitz and glamor that Coco Chanel is known for within these pages. I recommend this for fans of The Socialite, The German Heiress, and The Paris Secret! The Queen of Paris is a book that must not be missed for any Coco Chanel fan!

I was drawn in by the beautiful cover and the story kept me reading. It is so interesting to read these stories from history that do not match maybe the common mental image of the person. Someone who seemed like she was just a designer, was actually so much more. Thanks for writing such a great story!

The writing in this one was so beautiful. The main character was a tad iffy for me but this was such an intriguing read and I really enjoyed it! This was a fun and new take on the overdone WWII novel and I really loved it.

Coco Chanel is well known for her success as a perfumer (Chanel No 5) and a couturier. She overcame many obstacles and triumphed. I had to admire her determination, but I had trouble reconciling her work as a Nazi collaborator. She had a quick wit and the intelligence to maneuver through the dangerous political landscape that existed in Paris. Coco was a survivor. Her battle over No 5 while unsuccessful highlighted her business savvy. Coco was a force to be reckoned with. She loved deeply but not always wisely. Her liaisons with the famous and infamous never gave her the happiness and security she sought. The Queen of Paris was interesting and informative. Pamela Binnings Ewen based her story on fact. I was surprised by Coco's wide social circle and how involved she became with the powerful. I couldn't put down this book. It drew me in and made me check other sources to try and understand this complex woman. Reading The Queen of Paris was time well spent.
I received a copy of this book which I voluntarily read and reviewed. My comments are my honest opinion.

This was a fascinating book about Coco Chanel during WWII. You understand that Coco will do literally anything to save her company, which is thought of as quintessentially French. I was surprised that this previously proud French woman tacitly supported the Nazis by living at the Ritz and entertaining them during the war. Then I was shocked when I read that she’d been a spy for the Germans.
Coco Chanel is not a sympathetic character in this book, but I liked learning more about her. 4 stars.

Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

I love the lushness of the setting, the characters and the overall time period that we were taken to. I really enjoyed how the author interwove a thriller with Coco Chanel's life during Occupied France.

I received an advanced digital copy of this book from the author, publisher and NetGalley.com. Thanks to all for the opportunity to read and review. The opinions expressed in this review are my own.

Coco Chanel was a multitude of things. In this imagining of her years during the Nazi occupation of Paris. We see her in all the duplicitousness that she used her entire life. The author wants you to like her, but it is difficult to do so, given the circumstances of the story.

4 out of 5 stars.

I want to thank NetGalley, the publisher and the author for giving me the opportunity to review this book. I admit in my joy at joining NetGalley I may have been overzealous in my requesting numbers. As this book has already been published, I am choosing to work on the current upcoming publish date books in my que. As I complete those I will work on my backlogged request and will provide a review at that time. I again send my sincere thanks and apologies.

Can you truly enjoy a book and kind of dislike the main character?
The Queen of Paris challenges the reader to determine an answer to this question as they see the choices and lifestyle famous perfumer Coco Chanel benefited from during France's occupation in WWII. Personally I don’t like all her decisions and struggle to determine which truly saved her life and which were in her own best interest to keep her elegant, high lifestyle. One thing I do know is that this book is well worth the read and fairly different from your average WWII fiction.

<b>Villain or Survivor</b>
In the spectrum of WWII historical fiction there are clear survivor stories where I think people cannot be held accountable for some of their action based on circumstances. The Tattoist of Auschwitz is the first that comes to mind; but nowheres near the only example. In The Queen of Paris we see the luxury that Coco Chanel retained during the occupation of France by the Nazi's. Did she have to endure Germans in her living space (ie: hotel)? Yes. Did she have to perhaps 'make nice' with some of them? Sure. But did she have to eat so luxuriously, attend parties, have tobacco access, and pass on notes? Here I am not so sure. Given the conditions for the 'average' person in France at the time even the hardships that Coco Chanel experiences are actually luxuries to most. Arguably she would have been in better shape if the Nazi's had won the war...
So is she a villain or a survivor?

<b>Hating the Main Character</b>
I love villains. Always have. As a kid I thought they were the best as they were always so powerful and didn't rely on love or luck to get by. Yep I'm pretty black hearted a lot of the time when it comes to romance. Villains are interesting as they are often made into awful people because of circumstance and so I tend to have more empathy for them than heroes. A few mainstream examples of villains I adore include: Loki, Maleficent, Gollum, Harley Quinn, and many more. So I'm used to disliking a lot about the main character in a story.

<b>So what makes CoCo different?</b>
Coco Chanel was a real person, in real life situations. It's one thing to have fan-girl love for the characters above; but we all know in real life most people are not going to make those exact choices. But in the case of Coco she really did do these things. She really did spy and pass information to the Germans. She really did benefit from their time in Paris; and she really did flee in fear of persecution when France was freed from occupation as she was certainly a sympathizer if nothing else. While people around her were starving, murdered in camps, stripped of everything they owned and their humanity; she wined and dined with prestigious Germans. This is a lot harder for me to forgive.
Pamela Binnings Ewen does an excellent job of showing some of the tight spots Coco was in and how at times it certainly felt like she had few 'good' choices. But the reality is that she had the means to help a lot of people; and she didn't try until it was too late. Being more concerned about securing ingredients for her perfume than helping a friend in true peril is only one example of her choices not sitting right for me.

<b>Overall</b>
I could be a total hypocrite for criticizing Coco Chanel's choices and life. Having never been in the types of situations she was; it's hard to say if I might have chosen to fight a little harder. What I do know, in early 2021 as I write this, is that those who are anti-maskers or don't understand the necessity of the lockdowns for the COVID-19 pandemic are the types of people I might put into a bin with Coco. It's not hard to: wear a mask for the majority of people (I had to get over my own anxiety about it), avoid holding gatherings, and be conscious of those around you by sanitizing and keeping your distance. These are relatively simple requests in comparison to the strict curfews, persecution, rations, etc. that most of Europe experienced in WWII.
So, I would like to think that unlike Coco Chanel, I would have used celebrity power to benefit as many people as possible; while still staying relatively safe. She did not need to remain at the hotel like she did; and she did not need to participate in the spying. Those are decisions she made of her own will. But don't trust me on it, read this brilliantly written book and determine for yourself; is she a villain or a survivor?

Please note: I received an eARC of this book from the publisher via NetGalley. This is an honest and unbiased review.

This is the story of Gabrielle “Coco” Chanel during occupied France from late 1939-1944. We also get a glimpse of younger Coco in 1909 until about 1919. It gives a very brief glimpse of Coco’s younger years and her struggle after her mother passed away and her father abandoned her, to the time where she had a child with Boy Chapel (which is only speculated), and to when France was occupied by Germany and she was in the Ritz with the German officers.

I will say the author really tries to put herself in the shoes of what Coco must have been thinking end how she moving about doing things, which is no easy feat. However, I wish the book did not go back and forth between times. It was a bit confusing ando did not feel it added much context to the “present time” events that were occurring. I also felt that at times the book dragged. There was too much mentioning of what not would do if he was there, but to me, boy played such a little part that why continue to bring him up constantly? I would have much rather learn more of how the game of her Number 5 really came to be but that was barely even mentioned.

Overall, a decent read but it could have been like 50 pages shorter.

Thanks to Black Stone Publishing for my review copy. I had such mixed feelings reading this book, in a good way. I hated Chanel who is a ruthless, shrewd woman who will do whatever she needs to in order to succeed, even becoming a nazi spy. I felt no sympathy for her, only disgust… and yet….⁣
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The writing drew me in. I don’t agree with Chanel’s choices, but I was intrigued by her life during the war and all she did to try to save her own skin. It was fascinating to read about regardless of my personal feelings about the heroine of the story. She’s not written to be liked, but rather to be examined.⁣
⁣
I’d recommend this story if you are looking to uncover the more sinister side of the renowned icon. 3 stars.

The Queen of Paris is a novel about Coco Chanel during WWII. We do get glimpses of her early life. Her mother died when she was young. Her father abandoned her at a convent after that. She had a horrible early life. Then she becomes a mistress to a wealthy older man and begins an affair with one of his friends. We find out Coco was very complicated. She was very vain, had a drug addiction to morphine, gave up the son she had due to the men she was involved with, was anti-Semitic, had a relationship with a German higher-up, lived with Gestapo in the same hotel, and became a spy for the Germans. The only reason I continued reading? The author did a wonderful job in convincing me that her redeemable quality was the fact that she loved the son that she could never claim was hers. Some of the things she did was for her son. Thank you to Netgalley and Blackstone Publishing for the copy. All opinions expressed are my own.

The name Coco Chanel evokes thoughts of high end designer wear and the classic fragrance, Chanel No. 5. Not many who adore the products know the history behind the woman whose name is synonymous with classic high style, nor the vile associations she forged to keep her company and herself alive during World War II.
Gabrielle “Coco” Chanel was born poor and abandoned along with her sisters at a convent at a young age. After she aged out of sheltering there, she learned to use any means possible to make the right associations, leading to friends in high places. She began with a career as an entertainer of sorts, which led to the role of mistress of one after another wealthy young man. During this time she began to design hats for other women who traveled in her circle. Quickly displaying a head for business, she moved from casual hat designer to budding entrepreneur.
She was a well established haute couture designer by the time World War II began. The Nazis arrived in Paris, and rather than join the resistance, or take leave to the country, she forged alliances with those who would protect her while she lived in close quarters with German leadership at the Hotel Ritz. Particularly friendly with Baron (Freiherr) Hans Günther von Dincklage, her association with him may have been the catalyst to serve as a spy for the Germans. Her politics were aligned with theirs in several significant instances, and while it was not established until well after the war, evidence did emerge proving that she was a collaborator.
Her associations were also cultivated for her personal benefit, as she sought to have control of her company taken away from other partners and given to her alone. The business aspects of her story reveal the ruthless and determined personality that provided her means to security and success throughout a tumultuous career.
Was she a likeable protagonist in this historical fiction? The reader will have to decide. Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC and opportunity to provide this review.
#NetGalley #thequeenofparis

A fascinating tale of what the life of Coco Chanel may have been during the German occupation of Paris during WWII. The story is compelling and beautifully written, however I found myself feeling nothing but disdain for Chanel. As a anti Semite and Nazi collaborator, doing whatever she needed to maintain her lifestyle, fight for her wealth and position and having complete disregard for what was happening around her, she appears to try to appear the victim. So disturbing to see of this side of the war, but an excellent read.

This book is great! Would definitely recommend. Thanks so much to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC.

Queen of Paris was so much better than I expected. It moved so quickly and I enjoyed the fast pace. First, I wonder how much was actually "real" so now I need to read a biography of Coco to learn what what she was really like after she left the orphanage/convent. Something tells me I am going to prefer this story based on the truth!!!
I wore Chanel No. 5 and it was my favorite perfume 60 years ago. I thought that was the only kind to wear. After all, my mother had worn it for years!!!!! I was familiar with Chanel's dresses, etc and remembered her as the fashion designer who designed "the littlel black dress." and always had to have pearls! It just seems like that bit of Coco history never dies.
It was interesting how Ms. Ewen developed Coco over the years. I never once thought she was selfish or snobbish. I just think she enjoyed the upper class life, but she still remembered where she came from and how poor she was at one point. I was proud of her for her hard work and did feel sad that she only got 10% of her company even though the dresses had her name and her perfume carried her name also. Yes, it was all hers, but noone realized it. So glad she even fought for it.
I realy enjoyed the descriptions of France and learned about the high ranking Nazis taking over the Ritz and Paris. This is my latest genre and it amazes me what people went through during World War II.
Thank you NetGalley for letting me have an ARC and I really did enjoy it.

Wow! Such an interesting perspective on Coco Chanel - her life and struggles during wartime and German rule. She appeared ruthless and determined in her pursuit to win at all costs. And amazingly is recruited by the Nazis as a spy. Who would have thought!

Thank you Netgalley, Blackstone Publishing and Pamela Binnings Ewen for free e-ARC in return of my honest review.

Coco Chanel is a very controversial figure in history. Acknowledged fashion designer, seamstress, business women and creator of the most sold perfume in the World, Chanel #5, She is also a possible Nazi-collaborator and traitor of France. Or she is a member of French Resistance. She is also a mother of a son who is was a Prisoner of War in Nazi camps. Her story will always be fascinating as we probably will never know the truth.

First of all, I am biased as I love Chanel, as a designer and as a historical figure. No matter who she was, I believe her to be a strong-willed woman and one of a kind seamstress. Thanks to Chanel, women started to wear pants ans said goodbye to uncomfortable garments.

I enjoyed reading The Queen of Paris. I feel like Pamela Binnings Ewen did a great job building Chanel's character from all the information available. The volume of research the author did is enormous. Ewen choose to explore Chanel's war years in Ritz, Paris, her struggle to save her son from Nazi camp and her battle for her perfume, Chanel #5. The author manages to show Chanel's stubbornness and desire to win through the pages. Chanel came alive in this book.

As for the plot - I find it quite interesting and intriguing at parts. It made me ask questions to myself about patriotism, motherhood and protection of one''s intellectual property.

if you love historical fiction, please give it a go, you would find some interesting facts and their interpretations.

There is so much to Coco Chanel’s story that amazes me. She’s of course known for her contributions to fashion including the infamous Chanel No. 5 and the Little Black Dress, but she was also at one time a little orphan girl named Gabrielle who grew up to be a Nazi spy. While this book is primarily set during Workd War II, the focus remains on Chanel and her part in it. I have also read Mademoiselle Chanel by C.W. Gortner but enjoyed this book far more because I felt that the narrative was more descriptive and intriguing.