A Historical Romance Set in WWII France,
Post-War Paris, and the World of Julia Child
REBECCA'S REVIEW:
"The next sound Kat heard was death - the click of a Luger trigger aimed at the back of her head."
So many pieces of the puzzle ended up scattered about the snowy grounds of France's Chateau du Broutel on that fateful night. Friends took on the appearance of enemies and enemies acted suspiciously like friends. Years later Kat Harris still struggled to come to grips with all of the implications. Her overriding determination was to discover what had really happened to a beloved brother; in fact, Kat had rearranged her entire life to do just that, including entrusting her future to the one whom she still wasn't sure she could trust.
Manon Altier was in a precarious position, serving as a French chef inside the famed Chateau du Broutel, now billeted by the enemy, while she secretly aids the French Resistance. When an unexpected arrival claims to be her new personal assistant, and yet knows nothing about the inner workings of a professional kitchen, Manon pivots, trusting that much needed help has indeed landed on her doorstep.
Heavily layered from beginning to end, this story speaks volumes about the courage and tenacity of those whose lives remained at risk from the rising of the sun until the darkening of the moon. With remarkable subtlety, the author does what the reader finds impossible to do, tell the story to completion.
Cascading emotions! Outstanding characters! Fascinating historical detail! A reminder that love can bloom in a wasteland and that food can forge everlasting friendships. Embrace a book that is sure to land on multiple top reads lists, including mine.
PAULA'S REVIEW:
“To look back is not to lament all we have lost, but to see how past experiences have shaped us into who we are. “
"The next sound Kat heard was death - the click of a Luger trigger aimed at the back of her head."
So many pieces of the puzzle ended up scattered about the snowy grounds of France's Chateau du Broutel on that fateful night. Friends took on the appearance of enemies and enemies acted suspiciously like friends. Years later Kat Harris still struggled to come to grips with all of the implications. Her overriding determination was to discover what had really happened to a beloved brother; in fact, Kat had rearranged her entire life to do just that, including entrusting her future to the one whom she still wasn't sure she could trust.
Manon Altier was in a precarious position, serving as a French chef inside the famed Chateau du Broutel, now billeted by the enemy, while she secretly aids the French Resistance. When an unexpected arrival claims to be her new personal assistant, and yet knows nothing about the inner workings of a professional kitchen, Manon pivots, trusting that much needed help has indeed landed on her doorstep.
Heavily layered from beginning to end, this story speaks volumes about the courage and tenacity of those whose lives remained at risk from the rising of the sun until the darkening of the moon. With remarkable subtlety, the author does what the reader finds impossible to do, tell the story to completion.
Cascading emotions! Outstanding characters! Fascinating historical detail! A reminder that love can bloom in a wasteland and that food can forge everlasting friendships. Embrace a book that is sure to land on multiple top reads lists, including mine.
PAULA'S REVIEW:
“To look back is not to lament all we have lost, but to see how past experiences have shaped us into who we are. “
Another remarkable, well-researched story about the multiple groups working together in France during WWII and the far reaching consequences in the years following. Told in the years 1943 and 1952, Kat, Gerard, Gavin and Manon, lived a secretive, covert existence in a dangerous time under the noses of the German occupiers in France. The interesting thing was the addition of Julia Child into the story that drew on her actual role during WWII and the time that she was compiling her famous cookbook.
It was a fascinating, complicated plot that kept me turning pages. I was eager to learn more of this time in history and how the Resistance operated. “War was not for lovers, nor courage for fools.”
If you are looking for a fresh look at WWII history, try this book. You will not be disappointed.
* A complimentary copy of this book was provided by Thomas Nelson via NetGalley. I was not required to post a favorable review. All opinions are mine alone.* 5 stars and a clean read.
* A complimentary copy of this book was provided by Thomas Nelson via NetGalley. I was not required to post a favorable review. All opinions are mine alone.* 5 stars and a clean read.
BackCover Blurb:
As Paris rebuilds in the aftermath of World War II, Kat Fontaine never expected the skills she learned in a French chateau kitchen to be the key that unlocks the secrets swirling in her new post-war life.
Paris, 1952--Still haunted by the years she spent serving in the American Office of Strategic Services (OSS) during WWII, ex-pat Kat Fontaine, now living in Paris, finds a simple cookery class led by indomitable chef Julia Child unearths the tangle of gut-wrenching memories of war. Determined to find her brother who went missing during the war and is presumed dead, Kat questions everything, especially her high-ranking society husband whose past is as murky as her own. But when the puzzle pieces start to come together--and her carefully crafted Paris world begins to fall apart--Kat must confront her own secrets against the mounting suspicions of the husband she thought she knew . . .
Rue, 1943--Deep in the heart of Nazi-controlled northern France, Manon Altier shifts between working for the enemy by day--as a French chef at the famous Chateau du Broutel, where names like Himmler, Rommel, and Goebbels frequent the guest list--and running with underground networks against the Vichy regime at night. Working undercover to filter critical information to agents within the burgeoning OSS presence in France, Manon digs deep into the glitz and glamour of a Nazi stronghold that has her teetering on the edge of being discovered at any turn. But when an intriguing stranger appears at the chateau claiming to work with the French Resistance, Manon must lean on her instincts to judge whether to run and hide or stand firm--even as a terrifying discovery tests her resolve to continue the fight.
From the heights of culinary cuisine in 1950s Paris society to the underbelly of a WWII spy network embedded deep within Nazi-controlled Vichy France--and the spy backstory of the world's most famous would-be French chef, Julia Child--The French Kitchen turns up the heat on the pasts of women whose worlds collide, and forces each to question what she thought she'd planned for a perfect future.
As Paris rebuilds in the aftermath of World War II, Kat Fontaine never expected the skills she learned in a French chateau kitchen to be the key that unlocks the secrets swirling in her new post-war life.
Paris, 1952--Still haunted by the years she spent serving in the American Office of Strategic Services (OSS) during WWII, ex-pat Kat Fontaine, now living in Paris, finds a simple cookery class led by indomitable chef Julia Child unearths the tangle of gut-wrenching memories of war. Determined to find her brother who went missing during the war and is presumed dead, Kat questions everything, especially her high-ranking society husband whose past is as murky as her own. But when the puzzle pieces start to come together--and her carefully crafted Paris world begins to fall apart--Kat must confront her own secrets against the mounting suspicions of the husband she thought she knew . . .
Rue, 1943--Deep in the heart of Nazi-controlled northern France, Manon Altier shifts between working for the enemy by day--as a French chef at the famous Chateau du Broutel, where names like Himmler, Rommel, and Goebbels frequent the guest list--and running with underground networks against the Vichy regime at night. Working undercover to filter critical information to agents within the burgeoning OSS presence in France, Manon digs deep into the glitz and glamour of a Nazi stronghold that has her teetering on the edge of being discovered at any turn. But when an intriguing stranger appears at the chateau claiming to work with the French Resistance, Manon must lean on her instincts to judge whether to run and hide or stand firm--even as a terrifying discovery tests her resolve to continue the fight.
From the heights of culinary cuisine in 1950s Paris society to the underbelly of a WWII spy network embedded deep within Nazi-controlled Vichy France--and the spy backstory of the world's most famous would-be French chef, Julia Child--The French Kitchen turns up the heat on the pasts of women whose worlds collide, and forces each to question what she thought she'd planned for a perfect future.
Thomas Nelson Publishing, August, 2025
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