The Time Between Us by Marina McCarron

This is historical fiction wrapped up in a love story. Several main characters carry their stories, which all tie together by the ending.

A young French girl, Elise, pines for her lost love William in a WWII story which jumps back and forth between Normandy, France and the USA. Another protagonist, Lucy, an American girl, travels to France many years later looking for her roots. You may guess what happens.

This is a nice, but rather predictable story with some surprises. It leans toward the mature YA genre, in my opinion.

This was a good debut spanning decades (1937-2009) and locales (Normandy, Mass., RI, FL) centering around how the events of D-Day impacted and shaped a family’s generations. While the story is fictitious, I enjoyed the in-depth historical details.

Told in three voices, Elise, a troubled Frenchwoman destined to live in the past, Hank, an American WW2 soldier whose life is shaped by a promise and Lucy, their granddaughter who while searching out her grandparents’ history, finds her own way forward.

While I do think it could have been a bit shorter and the writing could be a little simplistic at times, I did enjoy the character development (especially Elise’s and Hank’s), and watching the progression of the choices they made at a young age. It speaks to how life and its events seems at times to be so arbitrarily put into motion.

All in all, a solidly good read.

My sincere thanks to #NetGalley and #Aria for providing me the free early arc for review. The opinions are strictly my own.

A lovely dual time line novel of Elise during WWII and Lucy in the present (well, 2009). Elise was 16 when she met William, an American who came to her small French village and changed her life in so many ways. Lucy was raised by her much loved grandfather after her parents died. They talked about going to France but never did and now that he's gone. she finally does-and discovers a family secret and what a wonderful man her grandfather was. There are hints along the way about the secret (no spoilers) but that didn't matter to me. Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC. A good read for fans of historical fiction.

Journey to France

A heartbreaking dual timeline story of love, loss and the reality of life. A coming of age story of two different young women at two different time periods in history.

Sixteen year old Elise in Normandy, 1937, meets her brother Philippe's American friend William for the first time. As the war progresses and William goes to war Elise and William fall in love with each other. Their story is told within the pages of this story.

Lucy, raised by her Grandfather after the death of her parents, never knew her grandmother. Her grandfather never talks about her and his time during the war. One time he mentioned taking a trip to France and wanted her to go, but she was too busy with her studies and her boyfriend at the time. It is a decision she will regret.

After her grandfather passes, she decides to go alone on the trip to Normandy and trace the steps of her grandfather during the war hoping to find out something about her past.

I enjoyed this story, Elise's story is sad and heartbreaking, Lucy's story is filled with love for her grandfather and regrets she did not spend more time with him while he was alive.

I like the characters and it was a well written story. I felt for all the families impacted by the war, and especially Hank. Lucy was a fun character and brought some spark into the story. It was a good read and I would recommend it.

Thanks to Marina McCarron, Aria & Aries, and NetGalley for allowing me to read a complimentary copy of the book for my honest review.

Thank you to Net Galley and Aria & Aries for the chance to read and review this book. The opinions expressed are my own.

Historical fiction is one of my favorite genres and this one did not disappoint. The story includes two story lines. There is the story of 16 year old Elise who lives in 1937 during the War, and the other story line involves Lucy who is living in 2009. The author does a great job of bringing their stories together. I liked this story, but felt a little sorry for Hank. I'm glad he had such a strong relationship with Lucy. I recommend this book if you like to read historical fiction.

The time between us by Marina McCarron is a fabulous, emotional historical story set in two timelines. Elise living in Esperance, France in 1936 and Lucy living in America in 2009.
The story starts with William dying on the beaches in Normandy and his friend Hank promises him that he will keep his word and look after Elise.
Elise lives with her mother Marianne and works in the local bakery. She lives a sheltered life until she meets William the love of her life.
Way forward to 2009 tells us about Lucy who is getting over her grandfather’s death by going to France to see where her great grandfather walked and died all of them years ago.
Although each story is separate at the beginning, they become intertwined through the years that go by.
This is a beautiful written story or war; love and loss and it is well written for a debut novel. It pulled me in from the first page and I loved the story of Elise, her working in the bakery and her spending time in the library in the first part of the book. But than thought she got a bit self-centred. She wasn’t the only one that suffered loss in the time of war. I was also expecting a bit more at the ending. Don’t get me wrong it was okay but the rest of the book was amazing, but I thought the ending was a bit flat. 4.5 stars from me.

Having visited the Normandy area many times and having an interest in war history I was drawn to this book. I also enjoy reading books which switch between the past and present.
I initially found it hard to engage with the characters but eventually found myself warming to them with the exception of Elise. I found her character very cold and hard to read which is perhaps the way the author wanted her to come across. I found parts of the book questionable such as the lack of mention that would have been directed to Bertrand's wife who as German. I would have liked more mention of the impact of the German occupation but felt very little was said about it. I was also disappointed in the ending of the book which left me asking many questions which will never be answered; I prefer a book to tie up loose ends and give the reader closure.
All in all it was well written and easy to read. Some parts were engrossing, others not so. I would read books by the author again and would recommend them to others.

Two Stories start this book; Elise living in France in 1936 and Lucy living in America in 2009.
Dual timeline books are some of my favorites; I love being able to see the connections of people with generations between them.
The very start of this book is beautifully written in that it gives us an insight that is rarely seen, from the eyes of a soldier coming off the boats at Normandy. After this, we are given a glimpse into the hardships faced by those living in Occupied Europe between the start of the war and the way it ended for many.
I loved Elise in the beginning, she is taking care of her mother while working in a bakery and immersing herself in books; all while living at the start of this horrific war. There was just a certain point where I could not find compassion for her anymore; but I feel like this also shows us how not everyone handled the war and its effects as well as others did.
Lucy on the other hand is a beautiful character throughout the whole of her side of this story. She treks to France from Boston on a journey she was meant to take with her grandfather before his death. She visits Omaha Beach, where her grandfather landed, and is able to use this connection to get a sense of what it was for him at this time. She has her own emotional journey to go on during this trip, and it is a beautifully written road of self discovery.

This book was longer than I anticipated (not a bad thing); but this is because the secondary section to this story that focuses on Hank (Lucy's grandfather), as well as the end (well start) of Lucy's story. We get to see a wonderful friend, father, and grandfather; and even though it is written from his thoughts, you can see how great of a man he was, even after the disaster of WW2.

Thank you to Marina McCarron, Aria & Aries, and NetGalley for the ARC of this book!

With grateful thanks to netgalley for an early copy in return for an honest opinion.
A very new reader and a very exciting debut book a twin timeline that worked very well a rather sad but interesting storyline.

This is a poignant story of war, love and family. Told with a dual timeline and in two parts it spans 65 years. I know I am supposed to like And have great sympathy for Elise but I could only like her for the first quarter of the book. After that I found her selfish and cold, even with the way the author described her I just couldn’t like her. On the other hand, Hank is a wonderful character as is Lucy.

The historical parts of the book were emotional and heartbreaking. Hank was such an admirable man and such an amazing parent and grandfather. He is somebody I would have liked to known if he was real. The storyline was great and the author wrote it in a wonderful manner. The relationship between Lucy and Hank was magical. The ending was disappointing though and left me hoping there is going to be another book in this series. I was looking forward to a somewhat predictable ending but alas it didn’t happen. It would have been a perfect book had it ended differently.

If you like WWII books then you will love this one. Thank you to Aria Books for the invitation to read the excellent book via NetGalley

“Bullets sing. He never knew that. If he listens closely he can hear every single one of them.”

I had to go back and double-check that this amazing story was written by a debut author! Seriously, this is a fantastic book - my interest was held from page one to the final page. I think what initially hooked me and kept me invested was the incredible visceral narrative and the inclusion of the five senses in her writing. Never before have I read an account of a soldier storming the beach at Normandy. McCarron was able to capture the sights, smells, sounds, touch and tastes to the extent that I felt I was in the soldier’s boots. It was phenomenal! This style was carried through the narrative.

Told in a dual timeline, this story alternates between France 1936 and Boston 2009. The author engages readers in a historical family saga that explores how the war affected both those fighting and those left behind. In a rarely written perspective, readers are pulled into Operation Overlord through the eyes of a soldier as well as a young woman in Normandy. One experiences June 6, 1944, from Omaha Beach and one one the same day from the village of Esperance. Both cope with the lasting effects of this 1944 campaign for the invasion of Europe. The protagonist in the second timeline also experiences Omaha Beach, but as a tourist trying to find her grandfather’s best friend’s marker.

I was emotionally wrung out by the end of the book. McCarron magnificently taps into her readers’ emotions as the war plays out in the LaCroix and Hardwick and Corrigan families. I think this is the best book out there that gives readers a glimpse into the ‘keep calm and carry on’ wartime attitude and allows them to draw their own conclusions as to whether this sentiment was a healthy one or not.

“Fate is what happens when you abdicate responsibility for your life. Destiny is when you get to a good end by making good decisions.”

How ironic that Elise LaCroix was born and lived in a little village in Normandy named Esperance - the French word origin for the English derivative of ‘hope.’ You’ll have to read this spectacular book to discover if Elise was a victim of fate or destiny. The poignancy of the publication date was not lost on me!

This magnificently written, five-star historical fiction must be on your radar come November 11, 2021.

I was gifted this advance copy by Marina McCarron, Aria & Aries, and NetGalley and was under no obligation to provide a review.

The Time Between Us by Marina McCarron

Two women , Elsie in 1937 who is enjoying a romance with American William at the cusp of war.
Lucy in 2009 , living in Boston and grieving the loss of her grandfather.
I enjoyed reading about the lives of both of these women and thought the author did the timelines perfectly to fit both characters.
The link between the two was poignant and emotionally complex . Loved it.

I love these types of books that go back and forth between generations. I loved reading about both young women and their different experiences in the generation they grew up, but also no matter what the generational gap just how we are still dealing with the same things and what the same things out of life. A very beautiful read. I highly recommend this one. I really like the writers style and look forward to her future books.