The Paris Dressmaker by Kristy Cambron - A Book Review

   

The story of Lila de Laurent, the Paris dressmaker, along with the story of Sandrine Paquet, is both heart-wrenching and beautiful. The story is set in Paris, France between the years of 1939 and 1944, and focuses on the roles of women in the French Résistance, especially those who worked to catalog the art that was stolen and transported out of France, determined to help restore it to its original owners once the war had ended. These women risked love, life, and reputation in their efforts alongside the men who welcomed them as confederates, even though before the war they could not vote, work or open a checking account without their husband's permission.

The Paris Dressmaker is extremely well researched, and evokes a broad range of emotions in its readers. As with Cambron's other books, it won't be soon forgotten, and will leave an imprint on readers' views of the past as well as the future. I used the text-to-speech feature on my Kindle for much of this book, and that did make the story's structure a bit of a challenge as it goes back and forth,not only between Lila and Sandrine's stories, but hops around within the time frame in which it takes place. It is totally worth navigating, and once both the primary and secondary characters are firmly established, it will require less attention.

I am grateful to have received a complimentary copy of The Paris Dressmaker from Thomas Nelson via NetGalley without obligation. All opinions expressed here are my own.