I’m definitely intrigued by this book—dual timelines set in Paris always capture my fancy, especially when at least one of the timelines has a war-related storyline—however, there was so much going on in these first few chapters and so many characters introduced that it’s hard for me to assess appropriately. I’m sure that the full-length version of this book would be right up my alley, but I’m not necessarily as confident in the storybuilding or narration. Much of what I read so far felt a bit stilted and staccato, but I hope that the complete version would have steadied itself.

This is the first book I've read by this author. She appears to be well written and quite popular. One thing I noticed from reading her book is how detailed her historical work is. The more detail the better.
I feel as though I were there.
I was given a preview copy of this book but it appears full of hope,promise,love,passion,history,fashion and more. This time split novel has strong women in it and I look forward to reading the full book.

Pub Date: 15 Sep 2020
I was given a complimentary copy of an extended preview of this book. Thank you.
All opinions expressed are my own.

I perhaps was unclear on the format of this book.
This was very interesting and a good start, but it was not a complete book.
It was like the first dew chapters of something being written
I don't feel that I can fairly review it without reading the entire book

I received a free ARC from NetGalley of this ? preview.

The book is called "The Paris Secret" and it is written by Natasha Lester.
The book starts with two sisters Skye and Liberty Penrose who live with their mother on the coast in England. Born illegitimately to Vanessa Penrose, a fortune telling airplane pilot who had her own ideas of raising two girls that didn't fit with society in the late 1930's. Skye has a best friend Nicholas with whom she spends all of her free time, making her sister jealous and vindictive to her.
Unexpectedly they lose their mother when a plane she was flying gets caught in heavy cloud cover and crashes. The sisters are sent to live with a aunt in France where they have a falling out and Skye leaves Liberty when she turns 18.
Soon most of Europe finds itself engaged in war against Germany .wanting to do her part for the war effort , not being allowed to join the Royal Air Force because she is a woman, Skye joins the ATA ( Air Transport Auxiliary) delivering planes that need repairs or upgrades.
After the war ends a line of fashion is introduced to Paris and the world by designer Christian Dior, who names it Miss Dior, in honor of his sister Catherine who became acquainted with Skye during the Resistance.
In the present day Kat Jourdan is a conservator of fashion. She is sent by her grandmother Margaux Jourdan to a mysterious cottage on the coast, in which Kat finds a astonishing collection of over 60 Dior dresses dating all the way back to 1947. Not long after discovering the dresses Kat is contacted by a writer, Elliot, who says he is looking for Margaux Jourdan, who during the war worked for a secret department that ran spies throughout France, and knew Skye and Liberty Penrose. Thinking he must be mistaken, Kat joins Elliot to search for the answers to the questions of the Dior dresses and the much larger question, just who is Margaux Jourdan, and why has her grandmother lied all these years?
I loved this book! It was so good. I read the sneak preview given to me from NetGalley and ran out to buy it because I had to see what happened. . I was hooked from the first page till the end, causing a sleepless night because I couldn't stop reading. But it was totally worth it.. It has real characters, and is well written, a great flow to the story. I recommend this to all historical fiction fans especially those with a love for WWII historical fiction. I give it 5 stars

This is one of those books with multiple narratives and multiple time periods. When an Australian textile conservator discovers a cache of designer dresses in her grandmother’s English cottage she begins to investigate. We go back to the 1930s to free spirited single mother/aviatrix and her two daughters. The daughters’ stories continue in the 1940s with a Paris connection. The author has constructed a nice puzzle of identity, who is the fashion owning grandmother? How did she come to own the gowns. This book should appeal to lovers of WW2 espionage and fashion.

Loved this preview and am flying through the entire book now. Wonderfully written and great characters so far!!!

I can tell from this preview that the book is going to be one I'm going to buy so I can read the entire thing. It's the kind of historical fiction I really enjoy - WWII, spies, occupied France etc. Looking forward to this one!

Thanks to Forever (Grand Central Publishing) and NetGalley for the ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Sorry, I did not realize this was a sample. I already bought the book. Please, remove me from anymore samples, extended or not.

Really unfortunate.

I read the extended preview for this and LOVED it! I can't wait to read the whole book. I lived the elegance and detail in the writing by Natasha Lester. Great for historical fiction fans!

The Paris Secret by Natasha Lester is a promising historical fiction read about history, love, and fashion. The opening chapters of the book are great and I look forward to reading on in this story.

Many thanks to Forever (Grand Central Publishing) and NetGalley for the advance look at this title.

Full of mystery, intrigue and surprising wartime secrets kept me wanting more in this historical fiction book about 4 women and their work during World War 2. Paralleled with a granddaughter's timeline in present day, the story unfolds from her discovery of a large collection of Dior gowns that surprise her. I love how this story was told from the beginning. The relationships that were woven throughout and how Lester developed them brought rich and deep characters who I felt I could relate to even though I knew nothing of what they were going through. Lester did a great job with the jumping timelines, showing how instances in their childhood shaped their future forever but didn't make the story too predictable. The attention to detail was fantastic and I loved hearing a story about WWII told from a different side of the war than I've heard before. I highly recommend for any fans of historical fiction and untold stories about women.

After finishing the first few chapters of The Paris Secret by Natasha Lester, I can tell that this is going to be a beautifully interwoven story about some really strong women. I can't even fathom the strength to have lived through WWII in Paris, and am so interested to see what roles these women played. So far, I'm equally invested in learning about Skye, Margaux, Kat, and Catherine Dior. I love historical fiction, and I feel confident that this will be an engrossing story!

Thanks to NetGalley and Forever for the advanced copy of The Paris Secret [EXTENDED PREVIEW] in exchange for my honest review.

I'm not sure if it was because I was only able to read the first few chapters, but I found myself not really invested in Skye's story, and wanting more of Margaux and Kat's stories. Perhaps with reading more of the book, I will start to think otherwise. I am eager to read the rest of the story! Thank you to Netgalley and Forever (Grand Central Publishing) for this extended preview for my honest review.

What a great preview. The characters are perfect and the plotline seems so very interesting. I can't wait to read and review the full book.

Out of all three of Natasha Lester's books, I think I like this one, The Paris Secret, the best!

In The Paris Secret, we get a glimpse of three different stories / parts with different timelines. The book begins with a prologue in the year 1947 in Paris and includes Margaux Jourdan, a model modeling clothes for Christian Dior, post WWII. Part One is the story of flying-loving Skye Penrose which begins in 1928 Cornwall. Part Two fast forwards to the future in Cornwall in the year 2012 and features Margaux's granddaughter, Kat, who visits the cottage that her grandmother owns (and coincidentally was once lived in by Skye and her family). There, Kat makes an astonishing discovery of sixty-five haute couture gowns. Part Three is about Skye in Paris, in the year 1939 during WWII, where Skye becomes one of eight woman to join the Air Transport Auxiliary (ATA). She soon finds herself being labeled as the poster girl of the ATA. That is where the extended preview of the book ends.

Now I'm so curious to see how how these stories converge. The Paris Secret reminds me of The Nightingale by Kristin Hannah. They both revolve around Paris during WWII and feature past and present timelines whose stories converge at the end. However, the stories in each book are different and interesting in their own right. I'm really looking forward to reading the rest of The Paris Secret.

Thank you NetGalley and Forever (Grand Central Publishing) for providing this extended preview in exchange for my honest review.

Natasha Lester is writing some of the best historical fiction being written today. She is a master as research, and at bringing history alive through interrsting, engaging and multi-dimensional characters. I have bought and read The Paris Secret, when you will too after reading this snippet. I learned a lot while reading this book, while shedding a few tears.

I really don't understand the point of being a NetGalley member when you're supposed to get these books before they're released. Since I already have "purchased" this book, my review here on NetGalley, on Goodreads, Amazon and my blog doesn't seem to count. Ms. Lester may be an excellent author, however, it really doesn't matter when the publisher plays games like this. There are many books out on the marketplace, there are many other books not on this site, but are equally as good!!!! I will not be reviewing this book as mentioned above and to be honest, the need to be a member of NetGalley (for me) is being downgraded.

This book appears to have many elements that will make it an engrossing read. I will certainly buy the book so that I can spend more time with this book’s characters and story lines.

After an opening set in the days after WWII, the novel moves to the year 1928 when Skye and Liberty Penrose are children being raised by their single mother. Their mother Vanessa, who predicts the future for clients, is a pilot who has passed on her love of the skies to her aptly named older daughter.

When the reader first meets Skye, she is ten and unconventional. Younger sister Liberty appears prone to temper tantrums and may be less than stable. Skye meets Nick during this summer and it is clear that they will have connections throughout the entire story.

The book jumps to 2012 in the following section. In this, a descendant of one of the main characters, Kat, travels to Cornwall to visit her grandmother’s house. Grandmother Margaux has ties to Nick and Skye as I think will become clearer.

This is another story with sections set before, during and after WWII. Illuminated through Skye is a story of the women who flew planes during the war. There is a sense that Liberty and the other main characters will face many threats as the novel continues. It also feels like the past and present will tie together by the end of the book.

This appears to be an involving and interesting novel. As noted above, I will be purchasing it so that I can see how it ends.

Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for this preview. All opinions are my own.