The Storyteller of Casablanca is a historical fiction novel with a dual timeline. In 2010 Zoe has moved to Casablanca with her husband because of his job. She finds a diary hidden by 12-year-old Josie in 1941 during the WWII era. Josie's family has fled France and is waiting for paperwork and passage to America. This is the first WWII novel I have read where the setting is in Africa and I found very enjoyable. Thanks to the author Fiona Valpy, Lake Union Publishing, and NetGalley for providing a copy of this book for an honest review.

I really enjoyed this novel which entwines two tales set in Casablanca in two different decades. It is the story of Zoe, a British expat who moves to Casablanca in 2010 for a fresh start with her husband. Unhappy in her marriage and struggling to let go of some tragic events, she finds a journal and some mementos that belonged to 12 year old Josie, a French refugee during World War Two. She becomes consumed by Josie’s story and the lust for life that comes out of Josie’s writing is in stark contrast with Zoe, who is losing her grip on reality.

A sad, but also heartwarming story, it touches upon the uncertainty of refugee life both in the context of the world war, but also in the times we live in as many people are still forced to flee their homes through war and poverty. Grief and finding a way to move on after loss, are also central to the novel. It’s a quick read and the Moroccan setting is captivating.

An interesting story from WWII of a Jewish family who flee France to Casablanca when the Nazi’s invade, with the hope of a eventual safe passage to America. Told in the present day by Zoe, who has moved to Casablanca with her husband and finds a journal under the floorboards in their new home. The journal was written by the Jewish family’s daughter Josie, and tells of their time living in the house awaiting a boat to take them to a new life in America. It is well written and based on some real events.

One Book. Two Stories. Both Compelling. This is a story with a LOT going on and a LOT of intricacies that it seems most (at least those on Goodreads so far, about 5 weeks before publication) miss out on touching on. This is effectively *both* a historical fiction (which I think it will ultimately be marketed as) of a young Jewish girl in WWII who leaves a diary behind (where does that ring a bell? 😉 ) *and* a modern day psychological drama. Valpy does a remarkable job of bringing a sensuous and visceral understanding of both periods of Casablanca and Morocco, and both periods and their relevant issues – WWII / Nazis / Resistance / Operation Torch and modern shipping conglomerates / expats / refugees / immigrants – are shown in a degree of realism not often seen. Truly, either story could have been expanded a bit more – perhaps by extending out the later chapters of both – and stood equally well as standalone books. Which is high praise, as few dual timeline historical fiction books can pull this off, in my own reading experience at least. Truly a remarkable book, and very much recommended.

The Storyteller of Casablanca provided a different take on the WW2 historical. I knew very little about Morocco and the North African campaign, so I found this boom eye opening.

Valpy does a good job of weaving the duel timelines together. I admit I was surprised when they suddenly intersected. I confess I found the ending to both storylines rushed which diminished their emotional impact. Valpy chose to tell what happened and as such I felt cheated out of some key confrontational scenes, particularly in the present day story.

Still, the book was a nice change of pace from London and Paris, and provided a wonderful travelogue of Morocco. Valpy’s descriptions made the country come to life.

I have mixed feelings about this book. It is a good overall, but the story for both Josie and Zoe was slow to get going. I loved how they linked up, as well as the two twists at the end. I did not guess the reason for Zoe's anxiety. I found her hard to warm to, although when you learn her story at the end of the book, you understand her more. I felt frustrated the way she wouldn't talk to her husband, but again, understood why. I do wonder whether this information should have been shared earlier, so the reader could empathise more with Zoe. Both plotlines could have been a little shorter. I was more engaged by Josie's story, but sometimes found there was detail I skimmed through. I question also whether a girl of that age would really write in the way Josie does. It was really interesting learning about what happened in Africa during WWII. With thanks to NetGalley for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Josie Duval is a twelve year old Jewish girl living in Casablanca in 1941, Zoe Harris is staying in the same house in 2010 and their story has a dual timeline. The two main characters are bound together when Zoe finds Josie’s diary, a trinket box, keepsakes, under the floor boards in one of the bedrooms and where they have been hidden for over seventy years. Therein lies the story. As Fiona Valpy is one of my favorite authors, I enjoyed this book immensely. There is something to learn of Moroccan culture and its history. My thanks to NetGalley for this ARC.

This was such an immersive and wonderful story. The differing POV really helped to tell the story, with the writing becoming more mature as the story grew with the characters. I loved seeing the comparison of the city from two separate people, under completely different circumstances. Loved it!

What a beautiful book. I want to go to Casablanca discover
The sights and sounds. The sadness that prevails however is grounding and makes one realize that not all is at it seems. This book is an adventure an exciting emotional wonderful book.

Generally, I love Fiona Valpy’s novels, but this one was a little hard for me to get into. Per the usual, I fell right into the past part of the dual timeline—in this case a little girl named Josie who has fled France with her family for Casablanca hopefully en route to the United States to escape German persecution. With Fiona’s mother being Jewish, her family quickly saw the signs of more trouble to come and fled before being rounded up into a ghetto.

The contemporary timeline follows Zoe a recent expat with her family to Casablanca, who clearly has mysophobia and is constantly washing her hands. What is causing her extreme anxiety is the real question. She does try to fit in with the wives of her husband’s associates in their tight-knit expat community, but finds better company in the form of a journal she finds beneath the floorboard of her home—Josie’s journal.

Overall, the book was an interesting read. Josie’s maturity was a little hard to believe at times as my daughter is her age, and I think the story might have been more believable from her older sister’s perspective. I really struggled to connect to Zoe as a character. She fell somewhat flat for me. As with most books, the second half read significantly faster than the first. I did enjoy reading about WWII from the continent of Africa, which was a first for me.

Thank you to Netgalley and Lake Union Publishing for the advanced copy for an honest review.

Beautiful story from WW 2! I loved having a peek at Casa in the war as well as present times! The dual timelines are my favourite and a slice of history, a double whammy. Zoe Harris and Josie Duval have more in common than the house they live in, in their respective times, expats to an extent, introverts and having the same OCD uncannily...
As Zoe discovers Josie's treasures in her attic, she embarks on a journey to self discovery along with getting to know the teen who lived through the tough years of war, destruction and picking the pieces.
I loved the tale and the treatment both!

I’m a historical fiction junkie and I’ve read a lot of stories about WWII, but Fiona Valpy's novel, The Storyteller of Casablanca, is set in French occupied Morocco so I was very intrigued in this new setting.

As is common in many historical fiction novels, this one has 2 parallel storylines: one following 12 year old Josie in 1941 and one following 20-something year old Zoe in 2010. Both are set in Casablanca. Josie’s family leaves their home in France to wait in French occupied Morocco until they can get visas to enter America just as the Germans took over France. She keeps a diary of her day to day events of what was supposed to be a temporary stay in Casablanca. Her family is wealthy and privilege keeps her from experiencing many hardships. But as the war progresses and their visas are delayed , she discovers her father is involved in the resistance and Josie finds way to help her beloved Papa. Meanwhile, In 2010, Zoe is trying to find her place with other expats in Casablanca as she deals with her personal grief and her crumbling marriage. She discovers Josie’s diary in her new home and finds solace in Josie’s world. Eventually both storylines collide for a predictable but satisfying ending.

I really enjoyed Josie’s story. Zoe’s story was ok until the end as her situation became clearer. While so many suffered during the war, young Josie was well aware of how insulated she was from much of it due to her family’s wealth. It was a unique perspective and contributed to the lighter feeling of this war-based novel.

Thank you to @netgalley for this advanced e-copy of the novel. This novel will be released in September 2021.

This review can be found on IG @maria.needs.to.read and on Goodreads.

Overall I really enjoyed this story! I love dual timeline historical fiction! It was predictable but I still enjoyed it ! It made me want to travel to Morocco so bad !!

Thank you netgalley and the publisher for the chance to read this in exchange for honest review !

Josie Duval is a twelve year old Jewish girl living in Casablanca in 1941, Zoe Harris is staying in the same house in 2010 and their story has a dual timeline. The two main characters are bound together when Zoe finds Josie’s diary, a trinket box, keepsakes, under the floor boards in one of the bedrooms and where they have been hidden for over seventy years.

Guillaume, Delphine, Annette and Josie, flee France when the German’s invade Paris, they eventually arrive in Casablanca, and here they hope to get visas, pass the medical checks and immigrate to America. Josie’s loves Casablanca, it’s warm climate, sights, culture, food, people, visiting the library and spending time with her new friend Nina. The whole process is slow and tedious waiting for a boat to take them to safety, the war is getting closer to Morocco, the Duval's money is running out, German soldiers arrive and the families scared.

Zoe and Tom Harris move to Casablanca for a fresh start, their marriage is struggling, other British expats live nearby and the wives make Zoe feel welcome. However, Zoe becomes captivated by Josie’s story, she wants to discover what happened to the Duval’s and did they make it to America? Zoe and Josie both meet interesting people while living in Casablanca, they both like to help others and feel a deep connection to the place. The story is tied together by themes of hope, friendship, grief, and the importance of storytelling in Moroccan culture and it's deep history.

The Storyteller of Casablanca will have you captivated from the very first page, a beautifully written story, I loved the main characters, Fiona Valpy weaves her magic once again, and what an emotional and unexpected ending. I received a copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review, if you enjoyed the Beekeeper’s Promise and I can guarantee you will enjoy reading The Storyteller of Casablanca and five stars from me.

An engaging and well written dual timeline story full of beautiful descriptions and vivid settings. I enjoyed this beautiful tale of loss, hope and resilience of the human spirit. Five stars from me!

A beautiful novel which captures the atmosphere of Second World War Casablanca with the heartbreak of a new mum in present day. When a move to Casablanca billed as a new start, makes Zoe even more unhappy she takes solace in spending time in the nursery hand sewing a quilt. It is there she finds a diary under the floorboards which details how Josie and her family fled the Nazi invasion and were waiting on transport to the USA during WW2. When the diary ends abruptly Zoe endeavours to find out what happened. With a couple of twists I didn’t see coming this was a perfect story that had me turning page after page - sad and sweet in equal measures, perfect.

This is a deeply touching story about a deeply saddened woman connecting through a journal sixty years old of a young girl in WWII Casablanca. The stories in the journal are at times joyous and at others scary from incidents occurring. The woman lives in a relationship in which she and her husband have drifted far apart and is exceedingly lonely for both.
I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Absolutely loved this book! Fiona Valpy just gets better. Perfectly captured Morocco through the eyes of a European woman. Kept me reading far later than I should have

I loved the descriptions of Casablanca, but the story was a bit predictable and somewhat far-fetched. I never really believed that the journal was written by a 13/14-year-old girl. She should have made her more like 16/17 instead. I had guessed there was something up with Zoe, but not until near the end did I figure it out.

Well I loved this, it could not have been more up my street. Present day chapters, Zoe was all about the crafting (patchwork) and finding out about Josie, chapters about the past, Josie was in the midst of one of the most difficult times in history.

I really liked how the chapters were laid out flitting between present day and going back in time through Josie's journals.

I can feel the excitement and anticipation that Zoe has reading Josie's journal and I just wanted to know what happened to her and her family and friends all the way through. I found that I was getting quite emotional in parts because of the things Josie went through but also knowing that this will have happened in some ways to people during that time makes it even more heart breaking.

I felt as Zoe did that she was friends with Josie through reading her words. I felt the same with them both when reading this book.

Casablanca sounds like such an amazing place it made me want to visit.

This book is a mix of heartache and joy and both women have been through so much in their own time periods. When Zoe explains her loss and what she'd been through I got very emptional and I felt sorry for her, no wonder she could relate so much to Josie's Journal.

Brilliant book with some great surprises along the way and it was really interesting finding out about both women had been through their own heartache and they seem so similar.