Wow—what a gripping read! This story pulls you right into the chaos of wartime Paris, where love, survival, and truth are all on the line. It’s fast-paced, emotional, and completely immersive. I loved how it balanced romance with the harsh realities of war, making every moment feel so intense and real. If you enjoy historical fiction with strong characters and high stakes, this one is definitely worth picking up!

✨ This is a very interesting, and most typical, WWII historical fiction novel. If you’ve enjoyed other Jenoff novels or other books in this genre, I’m sure you’ll like this.

✨ The reason I keep coming back to HF is because I always learn something while being captivated by a great story— and this book is no exception. It focuses largely on a large Paris department store that was turned into a prison during the war. Prisoners were forced to sort the items stolen from Jewish homes, then work as shop girls as German officers got their pick of the goods.

✨ It also focuses on a part of the resistance including an actress who used her position as a performer for German soldiers to help allied prisoners— based on an actual person.

✨ Jenoff uses multiple POV’s and multiple timelines to weave an engaging story that kept me interested throughout. Again, if you enjoy this stories, this will be a hit. Again, it’s out today! Is this on your TBR? If you read historical fiction, do you have a particular subject or time period you like to read about most?

I love WWII era books. Last Twilight in Paris is a unique look at Lévitan, a story that held prisoners in Paris. The dual timelines were perfect for this story and I love the twist…never saw it coming but I should have.

As with most WWII books, this book is a story of the strength of not giving up, enduring the horrors of war, and surviving by any means you can. I felt connected to the characters and invested in both storylines. I enjoyed Louise’s story and the fact that she felt the need to find the answers she was looking for, she also kept in mind her family and their needs. Helaine’s story is about a woman who followed her heart and I was hopeful that all would work out for her.

I am so excited this is Pam Jenoff’s latest book. My Dad and I read all her books together. My Dad turned 91, September 20th. Pam Jenoff is his favorite author and I love her books, too. He wants the Physical Book though. Fortunately, he is doing much better, so will order the Book for Him from Barnes & Noble and Signed by Pam Jenoff. He will love that. It is Spectacular just to look at.

I Read this book in 3 days, stayed up late to finish. The Stories Pam Jenoff comes up with are always so interesting. In a Paris Department Store, Lévitan, there are Jewish People Arrested and housed there. During the day, they must work unloading and sorting all the furniture, accessories, and home goods from Jewish Families Homes. The Jewish People have been sent East, clearly with no plans of Returning. Then the Merchandise is displayed and Germans can purchase it. This is horrible, but actually happened.

So, a young couple Helaine and her husband, Gabriel who is a top Cello Player, are trying to start a life together when the war harshly stumbles over their lives. Gabriel must leave the Country to play in an Orchestra and Helaine is Jewish, so eventually she ends up at Levitan. This is considered a good place to be compared to the Camps many are sent to, but it is brutal to be there. Helaine does not know if Gabriel is alright or her parents either. Helaine sneaks to the Rooftop and sees the glorious beauty of Paris all around her, and is in shock that she is caged in an Upscale Department Store frightened and hungry all the time.

Then there is Louise. She is eager to help with the war effort and volunteers to help The Red Cross. She even agrees to go into enemy territory to bring POW’s Care Packages with Food and Supplies. This is quite dangerous though. She meets a performer, Franny and each sees a kindred soul in the other. Yet, Franny seems to possibly be taking too many risks to help those suffering. She wants Louise to help deliver a heart necklace to a man’s wife. Louise wants to help, but also get home safely.

In 1953, Louise has married her husband, Joe, carrying psychological wounds from the war. They have two children and life has become a bit stifling for her. She works at a Shop in England, sorting out seconds hand goods. Her eye catches a heart shaped necklace, just like the one she saw back during the War. Could it possibly be the same one and if so, she wants to know the full story. So, she sets off to London and Paris to find out. It is quite a story.

It was so heartbreaking all the pain the war caused so many people, but through all that struggle we are reminded that even wounded people still can find ways to savor the joy in life. All the pieces of the story blend seamlessly and there is much beauty left after all the destruction.

Love Wins over Hate, even if you end up losing someone you love. My Dad is Going to love this Book. I love you, Dad. Can’t wait to talk this one over with you. 💕 In Loving Tribute to my Father who passed on 12/28/24. So, sorry it was not meant to be. Love Wins Though. Miss You so Very Much.

4.75 – 5 STARS

“Last Twilight in Paris” is a compelling historical fiction that shines a light on a little known piece of WWII history…Levitan…a Parisian store turned Nazi camp where Jews were forced to sort and sell items appropriated from Jewish homes.

The fictional portion of the story centers around two couples, a found necklace, and a tragic, suspicious death. The story unfolds slowly through a dual timeline, told in two alternating points of view—Helaine, a young and naïve Jewish woman living in Paris during wartime, and Louise, a British wife and mother who struggles with domestic life after having served as a Red Cross volunteer in war-torn Europe.

Initially, I struggled with the time period shifts, but it wasn’t long before I was drawn into this well-researched, heartbreaking saga which held me captive right up until the very end when all of the pieces finally fall into place.

This is the first book I’ve read by this author, but it certainly won’t be my last.

Im a huge fan of this author and know that every book she writes comes with a lot of detail and experience that she's uncovered within her past jobs both with the army and the US consulate in Poland. What I love about her HF books that take place during the War years is that even though we all know how it will end up; we know the pain and waves of destruction the Nazi's left...we get to feel it from different voices. It's a pet peeve of mine when I see a reader say that they've already read "enough WWII" books...because every one I read is a new voice. A new footstep. And those voices need to keep coming. I read a stat the other day that the younger generation (current teens) are among the most skeptical that the Holocaust happened. and for that reason alone, these books must be made.

In the Authors Note, we read about the "gasp" that she finds in history which is how she gets her ideas. In this book it was about a furniture store in Pairs where Jews were forced to sort and sell objects from Jewish homes to German officers. As I mentioned previously, I hadn't heard about this part of the war, and so it piqued my own gasp of yet another thread of pain that hasn't been talked about. No other books I've read even shares this little tidbit of information...and loved that the author took that and created the storyline that would connect a Jewish voice with a non-Jew in the 1950's . I also appreciated the mental health aspect of Joe, her husband who may be loving and a good man but he held so much pain inside after the war and was expected to just "get on with it".

all in all, I enjoyed the book, recommend it. but it needed a little bit more for me for 5 stars. My favourite of Jenoff's is the Woman with the Blue Star. Highly recommend you starting there if you are new to her work.

3.75 star

This historical fiction novel includes a multi-layered plot, mesmerizing and realistic characters, dual timelines and two different points of view. The timelines are close together, in the 40’s during the war and in the 50’s following the war and I found this a unique perspective from most historical fiction. One narrator is Helaine, a Jew in Paris who is captured and forced to work in a former upscale department store. There she has to sort and sell things that the Nazis have confiscated from the Jewish people they have sent to prison camps. The second narrator is Louise, a housewife in London who finds a necklace that she saw on the day a good friend died during the war. Louise is determined to go on a quest to find the other half of the necklace and to find out what really happened the night that Franny died. There are a lot of characters, a great deal of history and a completely absorbing plot as Louise follows the clues to a resolution and Helaine’s story of forced labor and being away from her beloved husband are told. I enjoyed the details of the story, especially the way the layers dovetailed together seamlessly at the conclusion. I also liked meeting the characters who were realistically flawed, with love lives that were not perfect and their dreams that they tried to fulfill. This is a timeless story of persistence, friendship, loyalty and tragedy that is memorable and a great book for discussion.
Disclaimer
Disclosure of Material Connection: I received a complimentary copy of this book from the publisher via Netgalley. I was not required to write a positive review, and all opinions expressed are my own. (Federal Trade Commission’s 16th CFR, Part 255, “Guidelines Concerning the Use of Testimonials and Endorsements in Advertising.”)

In 1953 London, Louise is adjusting to her postwar role as a housewife when she discovers a necklace in a box at a secondhand shop. The box is marked with the name of a department store in Paris, and she is certain she has seen the necklace before, when she worked with the Red Cross in Nazi-occupied Europe —and that it holds the key to the mysterious death of her friend Franny during the war. Following a trail of clues to Paris, Louise seeks help from her former boss Ian, with whom she shares a romantic history. The necklace leads them to discover the dark history of Lévitan—a once-glamorous department store with dark secrets and a woman named Helaine. Louise tries to find the connection between the necklace, Levitan, and her friend's death, but nothing is as it seems.

Pam Jenoff is a master at turning mostly unknown incidents during WWII into gripping historical fiction. I have followed her for several years and read many of her books and am always looking for more. She develops the facts into historical fiction with amazing characters. Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the chance to read this book, another amazing book in the WWII genre of historical fiction.

Thank you to NetGalley and Park Row for this ARC copy.

Last Twilight in Paris follows the lives of two women during WWII + the years that follow: Louise and Helaine.

It’s 1943. Helaine is a Jewish woman who is imprisoned during WWII and forced to work in a department-store-turned-camp selling goods taken from Jewish homes. Helaine’s husband, Gabriel, is a cellist for the symphony who disappears under odd circumstances. Helaine is desperate to find answers about her husband and survive.

It’s 1953. Louise is a housewife in the country outside of London. She finds a necklace at the shop where she works that she is certain she saw during her Red Cross days in the war. The necklace brings up so many unanswered questions, and she is determined to figure out who the necklace belonged to, why it’s showing up now, why it showed up during the war, and what it’s potential connection is to people she knew in the Red Cross.

The two stories of these women are woven together seamlessly, and the alternating timelines and perspectives works really well. I love when a historical fiction novel discusses a lesser-known part of history. While the atrocities of WWII are well-known, the Lévitan department store-turned-Jewish-labor-camp is not. The complex role of the Red Cross during the war isn’t always dissected in novels, either, and Last Twilight in Paris touched on some of the questions I’ve had when thinking about WWII.

This book hooked me from the start and I had a hard time putting it down! I really enjoyed the story and the characters, and I flew through the pages because I wanted to know what all the connections were. All historical fiction lovers will want this on their shelves. This was my first Pam Jenoff novel and certainly won’t be my last. With some mystery, romance, and deep friendship, this book tells a beautiful and gripping story that comes together perfectly.

I always enjoy Pam Jenoff books and this one was no different. I also love WW2 topics and this was a good one with a different sort of twist. overall a good read if you like historical fiction.

I have read a number of the historical fiction titles written by Ms. Jenoff. She has mastered the craft of telling involving stories that feature characters about whom readers will care. That is certainly the case in this story which echoes the trauma of WWII and is told through two principal narrators. There are sadnesses, mystery and a department store in these pages. Intriguing for sure.

It is easy to recommend this title to those who already know this author and/or to those who are coming to her stories for the first time. Fans of historical fiction will enjoy this one.

Many thanks to the team at HTP for the invite to this blog tour.

Pam Jenoff hates me. She's never met me, true, but she must hate me because apparently she loves to tear my heart out. I really was really taken in by her other book The Woman With the Blue Star so when I got the opportunity to read an advance copy of her new book, I jumped at the chance. Any book that makes me look more into actual historical events is something I really enjoy and Last Twilight in Paris is one of those stories.

This is a story that does go back in forth in time between two different characters, but not a huge amount of time like some books. It is the story of Helaine who was imprisoned by the Germans during the war, but in a very different location than the camps we have learned about in history. In the story, Helaine is a prisoner in Levitan, a former department store in Paris. Goods stolen by the Nazis from Jewish homes are brought in, sorted and then sold. All this work is done by the prisoners. While Helaine may be a fictional character, Levitan was not. It really was a store that the Germans used to hold Jewish citizens and while not as severe as some of the death camps, they were still forced to work and held against their will. Helaine's story is absolutely horrific and without going into too much detail or spoiler territory, the reader gets to follow her through her whole journey through her ordeal, along with fellow prisoners.

It is also the story of Louise, who, while not a prisoner of war, saw her share of heartbreak during wartime volunteering for the Red Cross. She doesn't realize that even though the war is over, how much of her time and experiences during the war she has brought into her life years after it has ended. Because of events that happened to Louise, she feels driven to set things right for a friend she lost during that time. Again, no spoilers but these two women will have a connection, and I found myself racing through to find out how it was all going to tie together.

Learning about this little known part of the Holocaust was amazing. It was heartbreaking, terrifying but also gives the reader that shred of hope we all need to survive. It also teaches us about healing in the most terrible of times. I can't say enough good about this book. Is it a light fun read? No, I teared up several times and also felt legitimately scared for Helaine and her fellow prisoners in some parts. That's how good of job the author does. So, does Ms. Jenoff rip my heart out? Sure does! But now that I think about it, she must not hate me because while she makes me feel all of these emotions, she does it in the most loving of ways by entertaining us with a good story but teaching about things all should know.

As a big historical fiction reader, I’m not sure how I have never read Pam Jenoff’s books. So I was excited to read this one and, as always, I learned surprising new information.

The dual timeline story shifts between 1943 Paris under Nazi occupation and 1953 England and Paris. We meet Louise, who lives with her husband & children in a small village outside Lindon. Until one day she discovers a necklace in a box at a secondhand shop. The box is marked with the name of a department store in Paris, and she is certain she has seen the necklace before, when she worked with the Red Cross in Nazi-occupied Europe.

Ten years earlier, we meet Helaine a young Jewish woman whose husband has left to fight the Germans. When she’s taken into custody, she’s forced to work at Lévitan—a once-glamorous Paris department store that serves as a Nazi prison. Daily, she sorts through items that once belonged to Jewish families across the city.

I have to say, this one seemed to take some time to draw me in. I loved learning about the Paris department store turned Jewish prison during WWII. I can’t even imagine the pain of sorting through belongings that were plundered from Jewish families.

But while there were definitely parts I enjoyed, some of the storyline was a bit predictable to me. And I didn’t really forge a strong connection to the two main characters. I did enjoy the ending, which was unique and heartwarming. 3.5 stars.

Throughout history there have been many dark times and the Nazi-occupation of Europe is still a raw yet poignantly relevant lesson that still needs to be told. Pam Jenoff delivers a powerful read, highlighting the struggle and triumph of everyday women who faced the extraordinary. A mysterious necklace discovered in post-war London brings to light untold stories of courage in the face of utter despair.

Last Twilight in Paris examines the Holocaust through the eyes of two women-Helaine and Louise. This up close view of the Nazi regime does not minimize the horror experienced by millions at the hands of Hitler and The Third Reich. If anything, reading about the terror and suffering in such a intimate way has the opposite affect-you experience the absolute evil and devastation radiate from the pages and into your soul. Helaine is Jewish-the Star of David she wears on her chest is really a target on her back. Louise is a volunteer with the Red Cross tasked with bringing care packages to those in concentration camps like Dachau. The plot has dual timelines -1943 Paris and 1953 England, where Louise finds a necklace she is sure is the same one she saw the decade before. How the necklace connects Helaine and Louise is the heart of Last Twilight in Paris. While the story of Nazi Germany has been told many times, the personal nature of Last Twilight in Paris gives it a unique feel. Last Twilight in Paris is a fast read-the back and forth of the multiple timelines with short chapters often ending in a mini "cliffhanger" makes you want to devour the novel in one sitting to find out what happens to these two brave and fearless women determined to survive the worst of humanity and reclaim their lives.

Each book by this author is more exciting and astounding than the last. I've read and enjoyed/cried through quite a few. This one is at the top of my favorites. You learn about a part of history that is rarely told. I had no idea about it.

Two women during WW2. One a Jew and the other a Red Cross worker. They are around the same age but from very different backgrounds. But both are deeply affected by the war. One as a prisoner. One just a housewife and mother.

When Louise finds a half heart necklace she starts on a journey. She feels compelled to find its owner and maybe learn what happened. She remembers seeing this necklace when she was a Red Cross worker. She feels that her best friend was killed because of something to do with the necklace. Louise has no idea what she is about to uncover. That it will help her and the owner. Louise is the mother to twins. A boy and a girl. The wife of a man that was in the war and has nightmares because of it. She has some horrors of her own. Maybe finding where this necklace belongs will help her. And save her marriage.

Helaine is an eighteen year old Jewish girl who fell sick as a young child and this never got to go outside like other children. Her parents, mainly her mother, kept her sheltered inside. To keep her alive. To ensure that she would not catch anything that might possibly cause her death. When she decides she wants to venture out her mother is not happy but relents. Helaine is about to start a journey of self discovery that will change her life forever. She meets a man and falls deeply in love. Much to the dismay of her father. He's not Jewish. But they do love each other. Gabriel plays the cello. He is very gifted and it was what first caught Helaine's attention. They end up separated by the war and Helaine goes to a prison camp that is in a department store. It's called Camp Levitan.

There is a lot in this story and you won't want to stop reading. I love how this author always makes sure that any questions you have are answered. How much research is put into every book. I always read the Author's Note at the end because you get to see what all she puts into her work. This book is a sad story but with lots of love entwined. Two couples who faced their demons.

Thank you #NetGalley, #Harlequin, #ParkRow, #HarlequinAudio, for this ARC...

Five stars!

Pam Jenoff writes historical fiction with such grace and clarity. In Last Twilight in Paris, she seamlessly balances the true history of a former furniture store, Levitan, turned Jewish prison and two timelines ten years apart. This beautiful love story is easy to fall into as it takes off quickly with all the emotion and respect of Holocaust times.

It's London, 1953 and Louise Burns is married to veteran Joe and post war life just isn't what she has expected. Joe is having bad dreams and not sharing, while Louise raises their two children and works part time in a second hand shop. One day Louise is going through some donations and finds a mizpah necklace which she swears she has seen before from her days volunteering for the British Red Cross. We will travel along with Louise all the way to Paris as she works to uncovers the mystery behind the necklace. Levitan and the love story of Helaine and Gabriel are the stars of this book for me.

Jenoff connects these two women with different perspectives and timelines all the while holding down a gripping mystery I didn't see coming until it was upon me. This was a riveting read for me that had me engrossed from the beginning to the end.

Thank you to NetGalley and Harlequin Publishing for the opportunity to read and review this book before release. Select this book if you are looking for two sweet love stories that blossom in the midst of a troubling setting.

Quick and Dirty
-dual POV/timeline historical fiction
-educational AF
-holocaust representation
-thought-provoking

I won’t lie; Pam Jenoff's novels haven’t always been my favorite, but this is my favorite of the books I’ve read. I really enjoyed this reading experience, primarily because of the setting (Paris is my jam) and because it taught me something I never knew. Did you know that the Germans repurposed a Parisian department store as a camp for Jewish men and women? Yep, a camp in the heart of the city. The purpose of the camp was to sort the items stolen from Jewish households throughout the city to be sold to German soldiers and leaders. Ugh. There is no end to the atrocities of WWII, and yet we seemed to have learned little as a society. 😭

Some of the plot did feel a little far-fetched, but it somehow worked. Louise’s drive to solve the mystery of her friend Franny’s death kept the book moving forward. I felt this was well-paced, with very few lulls in the story. The ending wrapped up very neatly, but it was satisfying nonetheless. The writing was a little stiff at times, but I had just finished a prosaic book, so take that with a grain of salt.

Lovers of WWII fiction will enjoy this book, and anyone looking to historical fiction to learn from the past will appreciate what Jenoff has done with her latest.

This is the first book I’ve read by Pam Jenoff but it will not be my last. It moved pretty quickly and I wanted to figure out more and more about what happened to the characters. If you like historical fiction or even mystery novels I highly recommend this book.

Title: Last Twilight in Paris
Author: Pam Jenoff
Publisher: Harlequin Trade Publishing | Park Row
Reviewed By: Arlena Dean
Rating: Four
Review:
'Last Twilight in Paris' by Pam Jenoff

My Insight:

'Last Twilight' is a unique story set during WWII, co-authored by two women, and provides readers with an engaging novel.

The narratives of Louise, Joe, Gabriel, and Helaine are particularly captivating. While the story addresses various horrors of war, it also weaves in elements of romance. Overall, the reader experiences a blend of history and storytelling that includes unexpected twists and turns and themes of hope, love, and betrayal, all of which keep the reader turning the pages until the end.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the advance reading of your book.