The Paris Apartment by Kelly Bowen
Source: NetGalley and Forever
Rating: 5 stars

Estelle Allard has a secret and in 1942, having secrets is a life-ending proposition. With no intention of losing her life, Estelle learns to play the spy in a world now full of evil men and women hellbent on ridding the world of those they deem unacceptable. As a rich, beautiful, unattached socialite Estelle fits easily into lie at the Ritz where she bumbles her way through conversations, feigns ignorance at every turn, and literally sings for her supper. As the saying goes, looks can be deceiving.

Estelle Allard is crafty, clever, highly intelligent, and willing to risk her life for the lives of others. Her work at the Ritz may seem frivolous to most, but Estelle’s access to the high-ranking Nazis who live and socialize at the grand hotel allow her to feed information to the Resistance at every turn. Though she never knows if her information is doing any good, Estelle perseveres. In fact, Estelle expands her operation beyond information gathering to the hiding of precious objects and art, and the safe passage of soldiers being smuggled from one location to another. In an ultimate act of resistance, Estelle even hides a small Jewish child following the “relocation” of her own family.

Long days and long nights have Estelle constantly on edge and while she isn’t completely sure her efforts are making a difference, she continues on. She plays the ignorant socialite so well that even the most discerning among the Nazi party can’t prove Estelle is anything or anyone beyond who she says she is. That is, until the day Sophie walks into her life. Sophie is an unknown quantity who seemingly wants nothing from Estelle in return but is willing to help her. Though Estelle trusts few people, she chooses to trust Sophie so that she might save the life of the young girl she has been hiding for so long. As their plans play out, the danger if discovery and capture is very real and the odds of surviving, minimal.

The Bottom Line: I am always drawn to books related to this time and have found myself to be quite critical of books of this genre. The market is somewhat flooded with books related to this time and place so when I find one, I particularly like, I feel its praises should be sung far and wide. The Fat Lady is warming up . . .

In truth, this is a time slip book with the chapters alternating between Estelle and Sophie’s time and the present. Estelle’s granddaughter Lia, who is largely in the dark about her grandmother’s past has inherited Estelle’s estate and is completely confused by what she has found. As Lia begins to uncover the mystery of her grandmother, we are taken back in time to Estelle as she tells her own story. I found the far more plentiful chapters of Estelle’s time and place to be the most enjoyable; the descriptions were flawless, the dialogue excellent, and the mood appropriate tense. I found these chapters and Estelle and Sophie’s story to be the most compelling and feel the book would have been just as good (Better? Maybe?) without Lia’s presence. This is an excellent historical fiction and a fine addition to the genre.

Kelly Bowen is one of my absolute favorite writers and with The Paris Apartment she's again knocked it out of the park. The imagery and storytelling are just incredible. I couldn't stop reading until I got to the very last page and now I'm in a HUGE book hangover!!!!

This was beautiful! I will be recommending this to EVERYBODY! Thank you for this book! I can’t wait to get a physical copy!

A lovely and bittersweet WWII story, would recommend for fans of Kate Quinn. Readers of Bowen’s historical romances should note that while there’s a bit of romance in here, that’s not a primary focus of the book.

This was a breathtaking book. The mystery aspect pulled me in right away and I couldn’t wait to find out what was going on. The characters were written so strongly and I enjoyed the history tied in throughout.

Lia is surprised to learn that she has inherited her grandmother's Paris apartment, partly because she never knew her grandmother had an apartment let alone ever lived in Paris. She is further stunned to discover other treasures such as artwork hidden inside secret rooms. Enlisted to help evaluate and restore the art is Gabriel, who it turns out, is connected to Lia's grandmother's past.

Kelly Bowen takes us on a journey back to Nazi occupied Paris during WWII. She has a wonderful way of describing the opulence of the high ranking socialites, and also revealing the cruelty that was exhibited to the Jewish people. The characters, good or bad, come to life and the reader is transported back in time as if they are in the room with them. You can feel their fear, their despair, and also the little bit of hope they hang on to.

I found it fascinating to learn, even if the accounts are fictional, of the activities of the resistance spies. How brave they were to face such a terrible enemy! If girls were to look for heroes, those women who helped end the war would be a great place to look.

I highly recommend The Paris Apartment. It is historical fiction at its finest. Thank you to Netgalley, Kelly Bowen and Forever (Grand Central Publishing) for the ARC. This review is my honest opinion.

While this historical novel follows the current fad of being a novel with made up people instead of telling us the true stories of actual people, it felt more real than most I have read recently. Ms. Bowen obviously did a lot of research so she could base the characters on real people and their actual actions during the war. There are several aspects of this book that needed significant research, and it was clearly a work of love for Ms. Bowen to bring us this story. This is a dual timeline book with Lia in 2017, while Estelle and Sophie are enduring WWII. Each woman has her own tale to tell, and we live through them as we discover heroic deeds. Thank you #NetGalley and #ForeverPublishing for allowing me the opportunity to give my voluntary and honest opinion of #TheParisApartment. I will have to search out Ms. Bowen's other works.

I really loved "The Paris Apartment" and would highly recommend it to my friends. Kelly Bowen takes readers through a dual narrative, bringing to life both the individual and the collective hardships of WWII. She couples this storyline with the difficulties of trying to interpret historical narratives. Lia has the tough job of sorting through her Grandmother's apartment in Paris which has been sealed up and hidden from view for decades. As she works through the art and belongings of her Grandmother, the secrets take Lia through a range of emotions from disbelief, anger and disappointment to a place of pride and respect for who her Grandmother was during the war. The narrative brought me in right away and kept my interest the entire time I was reading. I wanted to know what happened to Sophie, Estelle and Jerome and put the pieces together with how Gabriel's family worked into the mix of it all. This story is surprisingly positive and enchanting despite covering the significant challenges faced by French citizens during war times in France. I also found this novel very different from other historical fiction novels I have read which also focus on France during WWII. I would definitely recommend this book for readers who enjoy historical fiction and want a fresh new perspective on the lives of those who struggled and survived WWII.

I also want to thank NetGalley and Forever for giving me the opportunity to read and review this book.

I absolutely love a book with alternating timelines, and dual perspectives especially when they're done well. The Paris Apartment flows with such beauty, it's an effortless read. Told from present day, and events from the past, "The Paris Apart" has such a wonderful group of characters that I loved. When I received the ARC from Forever there was a paper with it that did a background of people who insired this book, and that made thos character all the more amazing. I felt so drawn to them, it was hard for me to think of this book as fiction. This book felt so real, and wasn't at all overly dramatic. It paints such a great story, and ties up every loose end it created. There is heartbreak, danger, love, art, as well as mystery and a little bit of thrill. As I said before there are so many characters, I can only hope there will be additional books that we might be able to see them again.
The Paris Apartment is absorbing, and haunting I absolutely adored it. The beauty of this books is that were still facing some of the facist, and racist moments today. What our grandparents fought for is still there, we're still fighting. Courage and heart. This book has it all!

I enjoy historical books but this one was had to get into...although it was hard I would try this author again.

I absolutely loved THE PARIS APARTMENT. I was hooked with the first page and couldn't put the book down. It had me on the edge of my seat, so to speak, eager to find out what would happen next. The story moved seamlessly back and forth between present day and the events of the past, introducing us to a cast of characters who felt incredibly real and about whom I cared deeply. Their fears were my fears; their journey became my journey. Every revelation, every twist and turn evolved just when I needed to know it.

The arcs for the main characters in the present were well drawn. I liked the romance, mystery, adventure, thrills, heartbreak, danger -- everything. My only complaint is that it ended way too soon! Unlike some books which are overwritten and would benefit from cutting and trimming, with this one I had the opposite feeling. There were so many interesting stories and appealing characters, I wanted to hear more detail and spend more time with each one! Kudos to author Kelly Bowen. I see that she's written historical romance novels up to now. I'm so glad to see that Bowen has written historical fiction and I look forward to reading her next book in this genre!

When Aurelia inherits her grandmother's secret Paris apartment, she is shocked to discover an untouched space filled with art, couture, and Nazi memorabilia. In an effort to uncover the truth of her grandmother's past, she hires art restorer Gabriel. What follows is a tale of courage that I found absolutely breathtaking. I can't remember the last time I read historical fiction and couldn't put the book down. Alternating between WW2 and present day, I was fully invested in all of the characters and their storylines, but particularly the WW2 timeline. The characters were well developed and of course I loved the strong female protagonists of Estelle and Sophie. Bowen brought historical Paris to life with rich details and beautiful writing. I haven't been moved to tears by a book in a long time. This story was filled with hope and heartache and is definitely a new favorite.
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Thank you Netgalley and Forever for access to this advanced copy.

Kelly Bowen does an excellent thriller romance and this is no exception. Set in WWII in Paris, it is a story of tragedy, bravery, resistance, and walking the the edge of danger to help others. The shifting point of view between pat and present is very compelling, and will make this book a particularly good choice for fans of Kate Morton.

I loved this book! It was heartwarming and strong. It was exactly what I needed with everything going on in the world! A happy little escape!

I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own. I was a big fan of this book. The main characters where interesting and I enjoyed reading about what was happening to them. The book was a bit hard to get into at first, but it was an enjoyable read regardless.

When Aurelia LeClaire unlocks the door to a Paris apartment left to her in her grandmother's will, she encounters a place filled with famous paintings, secret rooms, and mysteries. Untouched since 1943, the apartment has remained vacant, waiting for someone to piece together clues from the past to make sense of the present. In this gripping novel that switches back and forth from 1943 and 2017, Aurelia (known as Lia) joins forces with Gabriel, an art historian who has family connections to one of the paintings. Will Lia and Gabriel be able to unravel the heretofore hidden pieces of the puzzle to figure out what happened in the apartment during that fateful time in 1943? How will the outcome affect the developing relationship between Lia and Gabriel? Find out when you read this excellent work of World War 2 historical fiction, which would be a worthy addition to any adult fiction collection.

Overall I really enjoyed this book. It is a little confusing getting into it but once all of the characters and timelines are established, Kelly Bowen shines. I loved the mystery aspect as well as the strong heroines. The ending had me in tears and I didn’t want it to end. Thank you to netgalley for the arc.

From reading the book blurb about this one, I knew going in it had mystery, romance and history and it certainly didn't disappoint. This is such a well crafted story and really interesting!

It's a dual timeframe story - set in 2017 and during WWII. Lia inherits an apartment in Paris after her grandmother's (Estelle) passing that is full of mysteries. Including a cache of paintings, which leads her to contacting Gabriel, an art restorer. Through these paintings and the other artifacts in the apartment, you learn Estelle's history during the war and how her life intertwined with Gabriel's family history. So many twists and turns, it'll keep you completely hooked...it's fantastic!

I received an ARC from NetGalley and Forever (Grand Central Publishing)

What a captivating story! It's 2017 when Lia visits the apartment she recently inherited from her grandmother. No one has been in the apartment since the end of WWII, and the interior shows that! Filled with incredible art, couture gowns, Nazi photos, and a hidden compartment, Lia asks herself, which side of history was her grandmother on? Lia enlists the help of art restorer Gabriel to find the truth. They uncover two women's sacrifice, strength, and struggle during WWII.
This book is set in 2017 and 1942 with four points of view. I enjoyed the two points in history as well as understanding the full story from four different characters. I recommend this book to fans of historical fiction (with some romance and mystery)!

Equal parts heart-pounding, heartbreaking, and heart lifting, THE PARIS APARTMENT is an absorbing novel. Kelly Bowen has crafted a story of deep humanity and redemption, demonstrating the stunning beauty that can emerge from the darkest places. A true work of art.