1942, France.

As the war in Europe rages on, Adèle Ambeh dreams of a France that is free from the clutches of the new regime. The date of her marriage to a ruthless man is drawing closer, and she only has one choice – she must run.

With the help of her mother, Adèle flees to Lyon, seeking refuge at the Sisters of Notre Dame del la Compassion. From the outside this is a simple nunnery, but the sisters are secretly aiding the French Resistance, hiding and supplying the fighters with weapons.

While it is not quite the escape Adèle imagined, she is drawn to the nuns and quickly finds herself part of the resistance. But her new role means she must return to Vichy, and those she left behind, no matter the cost.

Each day is filled with a different danger and as she begins to fall for another man, Adèle’s entire world could come crashing down around her.

Adèle must fight for her family, her own destiny, as well as her country.

 

 

 

 

A Wonderful Read!     

 

What a wonderful read! The author has done her research on this one, and it pays off with a very informative read which kept me spellbound until the very last page.

Adele Ambeh is young, French and, thanks to her father’s recent announcement, on the cusp of marrying a man she’s not sure of at all. Her mother doesn’t like the idea either, and helps Adele to flee the situation by packing her off to a convent to take refuge. But all is not as it appears at the nunnery and it doesn’t take long for Adele to become embroiled in the goings on which she discovers are connected to the Fren*-ch Resistance. Before long Adele must return to Vichy and pretend to be enchanted with the man she ran away from . . .

I have always been fascinated by how ordinary people survived the Second World War domestically, and my interest extended to the French Resistance since reading about Edith Cavell and Violet Szabo when I was a young girl, admiring their selfless actions. The writing in this novel manages to convey the horrors of war, the terror of those living in occupied France whilst producing an absolutely gripping tale! My emotions were all over the place by the time I reached the final page, alternatively covering my mouth with a tissue with the horror of it all one moment and mopping up my tears the next. I can’t imagine anyone reading this and not being greatly touched. Andie Newton has produced a fine novel which earns everyone of the five glittering stars I’m so very happy to give it. I cannot recommend this one highly enough – a must read.

My grateful thanks to the publisher for my copy via NetGalley and to Vicky Joss for my spot on this tour; this is – as always – my honest, original and unbiased review.

 

Tags: women’s historical fiction, WWII

• Format: ebook
• Size: 306 pages
• Publisher: Aria
• Publication Date: 13 August 2020
• Links: Goodreads
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Author Bio

 

 

Andie Newton is an American writer living in Washington State with her husband and two boys. She writes female-driven historical fiction set in WWII. The Girl I left Behind is her first novel. She would love to say she spends her free time gardening and cooking, but she’s killed everything she’s ever planted and set off more fire alarms than she cares to admit. Andie does, however, love spending time with her family, ultra trail running and drinking copious amounts of coffee.

 

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