I enjoyed Mistress of the Ritz, but it is not a favorite of mine for Benjamin. Still, this was an entertaining and well-researched piece of historical fiction.

This is an excellent, well written book about the director and his wife who manage the Paris Ritz. This occurs during World War II and illustrates what ordinary Parisians had to tolerate during the Nazi occupation.
I could not put it down, it reads so well.

This was my first book by this author, It was pretty enjoyable. I would give this book a 3.5 star rating! It was a pretty Quick and easy read!

Not my typical book to read, it was a little slow but I kept on and enjoyed it. A part of history that I didn't know about even though some of it is fiction a not much is known of the couple who owned The Ritz. The book takes place over several decades and does tell an interesting story. Not a page-turner for me but I am glad I took the time to keep reading.

Outstanding novel.based on a real.place,characters and time.
This novel.had many characters,so it's not about any main character,because there were many.( Unless it's the Hotel.) that's the main one.
The characters,I liked best were,the proprietor of the Ritz Hotel.and his wife Blanch.or (Blanche tte) as he called her.
Most of the book was centered around the Hotel,itself and all the carryings on of the colorful guests and German officers, who stayed there and called it home,during the 2nd.WW.
Both Blanch and her popsy,did espionage work.during the War without the other knowing and had a really rocky marriage,because they didn't trust each other,enough to confide in each other.
This isn't a stuffy,old book,about War particulars, (for those who don't like that sort of thing),this just took.place,during the War about the very famous Hotel.and is an Excellent read.
Thank you to Netgalley for giving me the opportunity to read,enjoy and review the book and hats off
to the talented
author,Melanie Benjamin,for giving us,such a fine book,as "Mistress of the Ritz" for all to enjoy.

This was an interesting book. I couldn't get an image in my head of the characters until I listened to the book on tape. Once I heard it spoken, I loved it.

Have you enjoyed any of Melanie Benjamin’s earlier novels such as The Girls in the Picture, The Aviator’s Wife, Alice I Have Been, or Mrs. Tom Thumb? Even if you haven’t read Melanie Benjamin before, do you like historic novels or, more particularly, novels about the Nazi occupation of France, such as Pam Jenoff’s The Lost Girls of Paris, Kate Quinn’s The Alice Network, Jennifer Chiaverina’s Resistance Women, or Ayse Kulin’s Last Train to Istanbul? Do you love Paris or would you enjoy learning about Paris’ famed Hôtel Ritz? If you answered ”Yes” to any of these questions, you should read Melanie Benjamin’s The Mistress of the Ritz.

You will meet Claude Auzello, real-life manager of the Ritz, and his American-born Jewish wife Blanche, who hosted Nazi occupiers in the legendary hotel. Although Mistress of the Ritz may not keep you on the edge of your seat worrying about what will happen next, you will see the Nazi occupation from a new angle and will come away feeling like you know two not-so-famous people who played an unusual and dangerous role in World War II. You will also come away understanding why Benjamin calls the Ritz, itself, the third most important character in Claude and Blanche Auzello’s “great big fat juicy story.”

*3.5 stars*

I think I might have been too distracted by life to really get into this one. I did enjoy it, and I love the time frame and the setting (World War Two in Paris at the Ritz hotel, what's not to like?), but I had a hard time connecting with the main character, Blanche, and her husband, Claude. They were colorful and funny, but somehow felt disingenuous to me, or like they weren't real people, only caricatures of people.

However, towards the end, things took a turn and it felt more raw and real, and I enjoyed the last quarter of the book more than the rest of it.

I would still recommend this as a solid historical fiction novel, but it's nowhere close to The Nightingale or Salt to the Sea.

Once again WW II shows its face reminding me how parallel the politics of Nazi Germany seem to be to today's climate in the U.S.
I didn't realize until the end of the book that the two main people of this book actually lived in the Ritz. What a story! So many secrets among so many people. Melanie Benjamin scores again.

This is the first book that I've read by this author, and it will not be my last. One reason that I appreciated this book was that it was told in two perspectives. I specifically enjoyed having the husband's POV. I've fallen into a black hole of reading historical fiction books and I seem to keep finding WW2 related books. While I've read quiet a bit about this time period, I have never come across the husband's POV. It was a unique experience that made the book better and more memorable.
Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for providing me with this book. .

Marriage is not defined by what we hope to gain, but by what we are willing to sacrifice.

Blanche Auzello and her husband, Claude, tell an amazing story set at the Ritz in Paris during the World War II. Their love story is a train crash of sorts as they both come from different cultures. Blanche an American who has stars in her eyes for Hollywood and Claude a French man what appreciates the opposite sex. Love at first sight, Claude makes Blanche his wife by rescuing her from a relationship that would have destroyed his beloved Blanche but instead gave Blanche a whole new Hollywood set in at the Ritz where Hollywood, famous people and eventually the Nazi army took residence in. Their relationship was passionate however, their passion for each other squelched any trust that they needed to grow. This character building took me awhile to appreciate as it played into the Nazi occupation. It is during the Nazi occupation, that the Auzello's relationship is tested and proved but with sacrifice. This is where the story turned for me.

It is a great setting during a terrible time in history. Where people's true character is comes to focus. How love even then can conquer fear.

A Special Thank you to Random House Publishing and Netgalley for the ARC and the opportunity to post an honest review.

Mistress of The Ritz is about sticking it to the Nazis, while wearing gorgeous clothes and drinking cocktails. Blanche Auzello, American wife of the French director of the Ritz hotel, finds herself hosting Nazi officers at the famous hotel. While she and her husband pretend to perform the Ritz’ famous hospitality, Blanche finds that being so close to the Nazi higher-ups, with access to their conversations and knowledge of their daily habits, gives her a unique advantage for the French Resistance. The result is a thrilling novel, full of suspense and intrigue. Be prepared for tragedy as well, because this is based on historical events.

I've really been enjoying the historical fiction genre lately, and this title in particular. The Ritz really came to life as much as the characters living there did. I also enjoyed learning how the differences in culture can affect how people interact, especially when those people are married.

"Mistress of the Ritz" by Melanie Benjamin is a multi faceted world war II historical, which takes place none other then in the grand Ritz Hotel in Paris. "Nothing bad can happen at the Ritz"! Not in such a splendid and glorious place where everything is seemingly perfect. Its here we meet such figures as Ernest Hemingway, Picasso, Coco Chanel and the less known Auzellos, who the "Mistress of the Ritz" is centered around.

The proper and always serious - Claude Auzello; Frenchman and Director of the Ritz Hotel and his beautiful spirited and formidable American wife Blanche weather the German takeover of the Paris Ritz. The author takes its reader from one perspective to the other. Each revealing a part of their past and present lives. A whirlwind romance begins and leads into a tumultuous and vastly misunderstood marriage in their middle age under the black and ominous backdrop of the German occupation and smack dab in the middle of Nazi headquarters within the Ritz Hotel.

As the Occupation wears on and the Ritz Hotel is teaming with the enemy, the couple's marriage begins to crumble as the facade they have tried to maintain slips. Their relationship is challenged by Claude’s announcement early on in their marriage that he has reserved Thursday nights for his mistress, insisting that infidelity is a French male privilege. A heartbroken Blanche finds comfort in her friendship with Lily, a young radical who draws Blanche into the Resistance. Blanche, disappointed by Claude’s apparent willingness to cater to his Nazis guests, is compelled by secret motives to resist in any way she can. Throughout the story and alternating points of view we are privy to the secrets kept, that slowly come to light as Claude and Blanche become increasingly closer to loosing everything.

Melanie Benjamin's fascinating and well written book is a beautiful piece of literature, slow going at first but as you become invested into these characters you realize that each and every word that the author has written was purposefully orchestrated for a perfect ending.

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Since I read the Nightingale By Kristin Hannah last year , I've become a huge fan of stories that take place during WWII .
As This is my first time reading anything by this author , I was really surprised by the amazing writing style as well as the beautiful words .
The novel was full of emotions , great characters and outstanding events .
I loved this book and would definitely check out the other books by Melanie Benjamin.

"It is devastating to see a loved one suffer; it is harder to bear than you own pain. Love is despair, love is delight. Love is fear, love is hope. Love is mercy. Love is anger.".

Another wonderful novel from one of my favorite authors! I love historical fiction and this one, set in The Ritz in Paris during the Nazi occupation of that beautiful city, has helped me learn a little more more about that devastating time in history.
This novel is a bit different than the author's previous works since not much is actually known about the lives of the two featured characters, Claude and Blanche Auzello. There was a lot more imagination needed to fill in the blanks and it is done wonderfully. I always appreciate the amount of research that needs to go into creating a work of historical fiction, and I have a feeling the time spent in The Ritz to create the mood of the novel was probably not hard work at all!

Blanche and Claude Auzello are the cargivers of the Ritz, the most glamorous hotel in Paris. While Claude serves as the Director, Blanche keeps herself busy to keep her mind off of her not so perfect marriage. In 1940, the Germans enter Paris and set up their headquarters in the Ritz. Blanche decides to help the French Resistance while also keeping up pretenses of serving their "guests". Claude has his own secrets as well, and they find themselves in danger. This is the true story of how the determination of the human spirit worked to help bring down the Nazis both from inside and outside forces. But every story doesn't end with a happy ending...

I was surprised by this book. I went into it without reading the synopsis. I found myself alternating between loving and disliking the characters. So little had been known about Blanche and she did deserve to have her story told. This was a slice of history I had never heard of before and I am so glad Benjamin decided to write this. The writing style sucked you into the story. I felt so many emotions and this was very well done. I am going to be searching out more of her work.

Four out of five stars for me. If you like Historical Fiction, this one is for you. Thanks to netgalley and Delacorte Press for providing me a copy of this work in exchange for an honest review.

A completely captivating look into the world of the Ritz during WWII. I'm no stranger to Benjamin's books, but this one seemed exceptional. The Auzello's seemed real, like I was there with them experiencing both the highs and lows.

Inspired by true stories gleaned from records, letters and diary entries.
Blanche Ross has more than one secret, what up and coming screen actress doesn’t? Claude Auzello is the assistant manager of the Hotel Claridge Paris, and he has his eye on The Ritz Paris. Claude and Blanche’s whirlwind romance sees them starting a life together as the reigning couple of the Ritz on the brink of World War II.
With guests like Ernest Hemingway, F. Scott Fitzgerald, Coco Chanel, and the Duke and Duchess of Windsor, The Ritz is the glamourous and enticing destination of Paris for the wealthy, titles and fashionable.
Until the Nazi High Command declares it their Paris headquarters and Blanche and Claude find themselves wading into deep waters of war, occupation, secrets, and resistance.
(Auzello = O-Zello is the closest I can come to the pronunciation)

Fantastic book full of lovely, lively characters. The Auzellos feel real, and you can’t help but feel that you’re right there with them.