The Girl from the Grand Hotel by Camille Aubray is a delightful historical novel set on the French Riviera in 1939. Europe is on the brink of war, but the area is excited and abuzz as celebrities arrive for the very first Cannes film Festival.
“I…would give my life for three years in France.” (F. Scott Fitzgerald.)
For Annabel it is a dreamy time. A twenty-something New Yorker, she leaves the US and now works for her uncle at his famous Grand Hotel on the Riviera. She loves her uncle, the job, and the people of the area. But with the threat of war, there are also some sinister types, mostly German army officers, at the hotel, throwing a damper on some of the excitement of the new Cannes’ “Celebration of the Stars.”
As in her previous novels set in France, the author shows she knows well the country and its history. There is copious name-dropping and tidbits about celebrities as the movie types and even a famous author (!) come to stay. Balancing the frivolity of that subject, there is a more serious tale of wartime activity with intrigue and personal danger for many.
I enjoy Aubray’s vivid descriptions of the place, the time, and the people of the area! The story telling is charming in its simplicity, and the arc of the story is nicely wrapped up in the revelatory epilogue.
I recommend this novel to readers who like 20th century French history seen through the prism of old-time glamour and a bit of melancholy for the lovely days in the sun before the gathering clouds of war.

Thank you to Blackstone Publishers and NetGalley for the ARC. This is my honest review.

Welcome to the Grand Hotel.

The onset of WWII looms on the shores of southern France, as Hollywood's elite gather for the first Cannes Film Festival. A young American girl loses everything, and comes to live with her uncle in the hotel. A schooled young women, she's assigned various secretarial tasks with an actor and screenwriter. Then the Nazi's arrive...

This story is inspired by real life events pre-war in southern France. The writing was gorgeous with its locale, but the cast of characters was daunting. It almost felt they were inserted to add glitz to the story, maybe a bit too much. The romance, and mystery takes a bit for the story to unveil, so this is truly a slow-burn story.

Thank you, Blackstone Publishing

The Girl From the Grand Hotel by Camille Aubray is set in the French Riviera during WWII and oozes old Hollywood glamour. American Annabel moves from her home country to her uncle's home in the Mediterranean. She's lost almost everything and seeks a new life. She is employed at the Grand Hotel where the first Cannes festival takes place and becomes enmeshed in Hollywood acting and writing circles. Included in the list of big names who stay at the hotel are Mae West, Scott and Zelda Fitzgerald and Marlene Dietrich. When Nazi officers arrive, the atmosphere crackles with angst.

The synopsis sounded fabulous but the story inspired by real events didn't captivate me as I had hoped. I didn't enjoy the characters or romance. But the writing is gorgeous, bits of mystery are intriguing and the setting believable. Other than the writing which took my breath away, my favourite aspect was learning more about the Nazis banning movies and studios for offending Hitler. Interesting stuff.

If you are enamored by Hollywood's Golden Age in an original setting, this may very well be for you.

My sincere thank you to Blackstone Publishing and NetGalley for providing me with a digital copy of this enthralling novel.

Thanks to NetGalley and Blackstone Publishers for the eARC of this book!

This is the story of a young woman named Annabel who moves to France from the US on the eve of WWII following the death of her parents. Her uncle runs the illustrious Grand Hotel on the Côte d’Azur so she takes on a job there for the summer of 1939. During this time, the Grand Hotel is hosting the inaugural Cannes Film Festival. Annabel encounters starlets and spies, writers and actors, heirs and Herrs. 😜

Annabel has the ability to and an interest in producing the various arts. Through this novel we get a glimpse at a bit of this in both the theatrical and literary fields with some big names in both that many readers will be familiar with! Drawing upon real events in a historical fiction is necessary, but accurately depicting a character whom really existed and doing them justice is less common and what really pulls this one up to the full 5-star rating for me. The background of this novel is researched SO well and, as a historian I appreciate that a lot!

I know, I know—another WWII historical fiction! There are so many, right? However, I felt like this one definitely stood out from others I have read. I tend to avoid giving novels 5 stars (sorry @ authors 🫣), but I really can’t come up with any reason to deduct even half a star from this one. This novel had some mystery and intrigue, glamour, great pacing, and a tiny bit of romance that ACTUALLY contributed to the plot (it’s so hard for me to find romances I actually like LOL)!! I can’t wait to read more from Camille Aubray now!

This book brought 1939 Hollywood to life. I didn’t know much about the beginnings of the Cannes Film Festival prior to reading this so it was interesting to read about it from the perspective of someone on the outside looking in. I’ve always enjoyed reading WW2 historical fiction but this was something new for me to experience since it takes place on the cusp of the war as it came to France and what that would’ve been like for some people during that time. I especially enjoyed the perspective on F. Scott Fitzgerald and his life and writings.

Annabel Faucon’s parents pass away and her grandmother won’t give her tuition to finish school at Vassar, her boyfriend breaks up with her, so in the summer of 1939 she goes to work for her Uncle at The Grand Hotel in  Côte d’Azur, France. During the summer she works with F. Scott Fitzgerald, and movie stars such as Marlene Dietrich, James Cagney, and Mae West. The hotel is brimming with guests and as the summer goes on more and more Nazis.

This was a fun historical mystery to read! I didn’t want to put it down.

Thank you NetGalley and Blackstone publishing for a copy. Perfect read for the spring and summer.

I really enjoyed this book. It was different than anything else I've read recently. I couldn't put it down! I will keep an eye out for this author's future work!

I would definitely recommend this book to fans of books set in this time period, particularly to those with an interest in film. The author used the prologue perfectly to create excitement for what is to come. While the earlier chapters did not contain much to sustain this interest, I did enjoy the later half of the book. I was unable to put it down once the more exciting events began to take place at was got closer and the efforts of Annabel and JP began to escalate. I also appreciated the use of real people as characters in this story, especially F. Scott Fitzgerald.

This was a different story than I expected. It is a mix of like Rebecca with the Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo and something else I can’t think of.

This book has a little bit of everything. Some mystery, romance, espionage. It is a slower pace of reading but it was still good.

I haven’t read of lot of books from right before the war so it was interesting to see how some people reacted in different situations.

I’ve struggled on with this book, but felt it never really got into its stride. The characters felt shallow & events just a little too distant and detached from each other for the story to really flow, despite some passages being really nicely written.
Thank you to NetGalley & the publisher for an ARC of this book in exchange for a fair & unbiased review.

The author did a great job with details of the setting and I felt like I was able to clearly picture the location in my mind. At points the story was a little far-fetched and cheesy, but overall it was an easy read.

I enjoyed The Girl From the Grand Hotel. The glamour and horror of the era were both dramatically portrayed as well as the glitz and glitter of the Hollywood stars. There were scenes with romance, murder, intrigue, loyalty, along with a surprising ending.

Thanks to NetGalley and Blackstone Publishing for the opportunity to read this ARC.

Not my cup of tea. I appreciate the writing, but this book just wasn't something I could really get in to.

Historical novels are 0ne of my favorite types of book, because you feel like you are reliving events from the past. I found this book easy to get into and it flowed throughout, This was my first book I read by this author but I look forward to future ones.

𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗚𝗶𝗿𝗹 𝗙𝗿𝗼𝗺 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗚𝗿𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗛𝗼𝘁𝗲𝗹 ⠀
𝗯𝘆 𝗖𝗮𝗺𝗶𝗹𝗹𝗲 𝗔𝘂𝗯𝗿𝗮𝘆 ⠀⠀
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"𝙄... 𝙬𝙤𝙪𝙡𝙙 𝙜𝙞𝙫𝙚 𝙢𝙮 𝙡𝙞𝙛𝙚 𝙛𝙤𝙧 𝙩𝙝𝙧𝙚𝙚 𝙮𝙚𝙖𝙧𝙨 𝙞𝙣 𝙁𝙧𝙖𝙣𝙘𝙚. -𝙁. 𝙎𝙘𝙤𝙩𝙩 𝙁𝙞𝙩𝙯𝙜𝙚𝙧𝙖𝙡𝙙 ⠀
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Oh what a time to be alive in the summer of 1939 in the South of France…
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Add this ASAP to your TBR if you love the South of France, Old Hollywood, films, "The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo", glamour, murder & scandal. This historical novel brings you to The Grand Hotel during the first Cannes Film Festival which was also doomed. It will razzle dazzle you with the gold, glitz, glamour and gossip of the industry durning this time. ⠀If you are looking for a historical fiction heavy on the events/time period but light on the war theme (ɪɴ ᴛʜɪs ᴄᴀsᴇ ᴘʀᴇ ᴡᴀʀ) 𝐆𝐑𝐀𝐁 𝐓𝐇𝐈𝐒!!!
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With Europe on the brink of war in the summer of 1939, most of Hollywood is set to arrive at the hotel. Annabel is a young American girl employed at the hotel for the summer. She think she is there to do day to day task but is quickly thrown into the world of Hollywood. Annabel is given the job of "babysitting" two mystery guest. One who she has a major crush on... ⠀
Annabel finds that when the nazis arrive trouble is right around the corner. She finds herself knee deep in murder and secrets. ⠀
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𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗚𝗶𝗿𝗹 𝗙𝗿𝗼𝗺 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗚𝗿𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗛𝗼𝘁𝗲𝗹 is based on historical event from three different hotels of the time period. I was hooked from the very very beginning.
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This novel hits shelves April 30th and I can't wait to buy a copy for my shelf. Thank you @netgalley @blackstonepublishing @CamilleAubray for the ARC. ⠀
This is a true gem.
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𝙥𝙖𝙞𝙧𝙨 𝙬𝙚𝙡𝙡 𝙬𝙞𝙩𝙝 𝙖 𝙗𝙤𝙩𝙩𝙡𝙚 𝙤𝙛 𝙘𝙝𝙞𝙡𝙡𝙚𝙙 𝙇𝙖𝙪𝙧𝙚𝙣𝙩 𝙋𝙚𝙧𝙧𝙞𝙚𝙧 𝙍𝙤𝙨é 𝘾𝙝𝙖𝙢𝙥𝙖𝙜𝙣𝙚, 𝙏𝙝𝙚 𝙂𝙧𝙚𝙖𝙩 𝙂𝙖𝙩𝙨𝙗𝙮 (𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙇𝙚𝙤 & 𝘾𝙖𝙧𝙚𝙮 𝙛𝙞𝙡𝙢) 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝘿𝙞𝙧𝙩𝙮 𝘿𝙖𝙣𝙘𝙞𝙣𝙜. ⠀
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📚 350 pages on Kindle ⠀

This book was not quite what I expected from the description. It was not as filled with intrigue and suspense and promised but rather it was flat. The main character had not much of a personality and certainly did not come across as particulary clever. I had difficulty with believing her relationships. The mentions of the celebrities seemed more in a way to gussy up the story. It was not particulary compelling to me.

3.5 I loved Cooking for Picasso by this author. I was very excited to get an ARC from Net Galley for this book. However, I can't say I enjoyed it as much. I think part of the reason is that the market is saturated with speculative fiction surrounding WWII- a young girl, with many talents, is recruited for espionage yada yada, and perhaps the genre is just getting old. Being a film buff, I was looking forward to more details about the first Cannes Film Festival. But that part of the story was less than I anticipated. I will say the author did her research for this novel and paints a lovey portrait of the French Rivera. I wouldn't discourage anyone from reading this book if they are interested, but for me it wasn't all that I was excepting. Thanks Net Galley for this ARC opportunity.

A captivating well written historical novel, of glamour days gone by. The book is well researched and written.

Thank you to NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review this book. I really enjoyed this book, it had a bit of everything that in my opinion makes a good read, interesting time period, some mystery, some romance,, but most importantly the story had a brisk pace it kept moving. The story of Annabel, a young American who goes to live with her uncle at the French Rivera and work at the Grand Hotelwhere he is the manager., takes place right at the start of World War II. Annabel who speaks English, French and some German is an asset to her uncle at the hotel, working a variety of different jobs and ultimately getting mixed up in some espionage. The time frame for this story is also the first Cannes film festival, so there is a sprinkling of famous Hollywood names which adds to the interest of this story. I highly recommend this book, it kept my interest and it was a fun read.

Sorry but I could not get into this book. I read a little over 50% before abandoning it. I will not post my review on Goodreads since I didn't finish. Others may enjoy but I couldn’t get into the characters.