A heartbreaking but beautiful work of historical fiction, I really enjoyed this book about love, forgiveness and perseverance. It's hard to believe that some of these things actually happened and that people lived to tell their stories.

My hopes were too high for this one sadly. I've loved every single one of Sarah Jio's books for long and was eagerly anticipating this one for far too long. Overall, it was a sweet story. However, the writing felt a bit juvenile to me and the historical story never really took off until the final 50 pages. The epilogue also felt a bit cliche as well. :(

I have loved every book by Sarah Jio, and this is absolutely no exception. The way she develops her characters and draws the reader in emotionally is second to none. I love the mother/daughter relationships in this story and it’s message of thankfulness, forgiveness, and love.

Sarah Jio is an interesting author to me because I really love her historical fiction and struggle with her contemporary work. This was the fastest I read a book in a long time. I enjoyed both the past and present. The stories were interesting, and Paris was a great setting. I've read a lot of WWII historical fiction, and I thought this book was unique.

Sorry to say I didn't finish this one. The plot was too sad and I wasn't in the mood to read this type historical fiction. I've read this author before and enjoyed her writing style. The cover is lovely.

All the Flowers in Paris was a beautiful novel! I enjoyed how the story combined present day with the past during the 1940s. And I enjoyed how the characters' stories were portrayed. Caroline is living in Paris but doesn't remember anything about her life because she was in an accident and lost her memory. She spends her days visiting a local restaurant and going to art classes, trying to pick up the pieces of her real life. Years ago, Celine, along with her father and daughter are living in Paris during the war when the Germans have taken over the city. Celine's life is torn apart by one particular cruel German soldier. Caroline stumbles upon the story of Celine and her family. Throughout the novel, we learn both Celine and Caroline's stories. The story tells the emotional parts of the tragedies that they experienced in their lives and how they tried to overcome what happened.

Like one of its final lines, Sarah Jio’s beautiful and haunting time-slip novel is “tragic and heart-breaking but also redemptive and triumphant.” Caroline Williams is an American woman in modern-day Paris who suffers from amnesia due to an accident. After she is released from the hospital, she meets Victor, the chef at Bistro Jeanty, and begins to fall in love with him as he helps guide her through her slowly-emerging, painful memories. She has random glimpses of a past that includes a child. This is also the story of Céline, a young widow during the Nazi occupation who works in her family’s florist shop and cares for her young daughter Cosi. She’s in love with her childhood friend, Luc Jeanty, but when he leaves for a few weeks, the Nazis take her half-Jewish father and daughter away and she is forced to live with a cruel and sadistic Nazi officer who continually rapes her. (Both her neighbors and Luc’s mother turned them in.) Her daughter escapes from the truck carrying her away, and is hidden under the floorboards for almost a year before Paris is liberated.

Caroline, who is living in the same apartment where Céline was imprisoned, finds a box containing letters written by Celine to Luc. With the help of a graduate student who is doing research on Celine and a Bistro Jeanty patron and the building’s doorman (both of whom suffered losses in the war), Celine’s full story emerges. Like all great time-slip novels, there are distinct parallels between the dual storylines. In this case, it’s about two ferocious moms who will do anything to protect their daughters. Both female protagonists suffer devastating losses, and it’s an artifact from Celine’s time during the war that enables Caroline to emerge from her amnesia and grief to rejoin the living and accept love. In the words of Celine’s daughter Cosi, written in her childhood journal, “I think that the most important things in life are thankfulness, forgiveness, and love.” Very highly recommended.

I received a complimentary ARC of this book from Ballantine Books through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Opinions expressed are completely my own.

ALL THE FLOWERS IN PARIS
By Sarah Jio


This novel is told in alternating voices of Celine in 1943 Paris and Caroline in 2009 Paris. While an entertaining read, I felt it was a bit too contrived. Both characters suffered so much tragedy and sadness that linked them in too obvious, at times, coincidences.
The novel is well written and I enjoyed flipping through the easy to read pages.
I received an ARC from Netgalleyin exchange for a fair review

Two women are connected across time by the city of Paris, from World War II to the present. Caroline suffers memory loss after an accident and Celine endures the German occupation of Paris trying to keep herself and daughter alive. A beautiful story of survival and love.

It's been a few years since Sarah Jio last published a novel, so I was excited to find out about the release of All the Flowers in Paris. It was well worth the wait. While there are a lot of novels about WWII and the Holocaust, this one definitely spoke to me a lot, just because of how it was written.

The story was very captivating and I read it in a short amount of time, unwilling to put it down. I liked how the women's lives mirrored each other in some ways and I cared deeply about them both. The descriptions and attention to detail made it easy to visualize everything that was happening. Some parts were sad and others were just too horrifying to fathom. Having said that, this is another book that should have been published three years ago.

I was able to guess some of what was going to happen, but still wanted to confirm if I was right or not. There were a lot of surprises and unexpected moments, as well. This novel mirrors The Winemaker's Wife in some ways, but is also very different. I recommend reading both, although maybe with some time between the two.

This is one of Sarah Jio's best, on par with Blackberry Winter and Goodnight June.

Movie casting ideas:
Caroline: Miranda Raison
Celine: Rose Williams
Victor: Steve Kazee
Luc: Israel Broussard

3.5 stars and a fast read. This book is told in two alternating timelines. The first is modern day and Caroline, who is in a bike accident and has amnesia, is beginning to try to put her life back together and trying to figure out why her life before the accident seemed to be so sad. The second is during Nazi occupation of Paris in the 1940's and is the story of Celine and her young daughter, Cosi, who find themselves under the thumb of a cruel Nazi soldier.

As Caroline starts to get her memory back, she comes across the story of Celine and Cosi and finds how their lives may be more intertwined than she thought. And she starts to figure out her past sadness and how she can find happiness again.

This was a amazing time slip novel between WWII and today. I was amazed at the ability of the author to keep me engaged in both story lines. It was also amazing how she tied the two together.

The concept of amnesia to give one of the characters a fresh start was interesting. I'll admit it felt a little implausible at times, bit it did make a beautiful story in the end.

It was hard to read the WWII story. The atrocities that happened in Paris during the war were awful. And while this book was fiction, the story line probably wasn't far from true events.

This was my first book my this author, but I will definitely read more by her.

I received a copy of this book from NetGalley. This is my honest opinion.

Set in the City of Light, All the Flowers in Paris opens with Caroline, who has amnesia. Caroline’s past is like a blank sheet, forcing her to fill in the pages of her life going forward. Although remnants of her past are slowly revealed to her, Caroline does not like what she discovers: She was a sad, withdrawn woman who shuts herself off from the world in her sprawling apartment. Caroline is determined to rewrite her life as she wishes.

While rooting through her apartment for clues to herself, Caroline unearths unsent love letters penned by a young widow named Celine, living in Nazi-occupied Paris with her father and daughter Cosi. Celine’s father, a florist, is beloved by all, that is until his well-concealed secret is revealed: his mother was Jewish. Suddenly, everything is turned topsy-turvy for Celine's family, and the wolf is waiting at the door.

Thoughtful and thought-provoking, heart-rending and hopeful, All the Flowers in Paris beautifully blends the lives of Caroline and Celine. Although they are very different people living in vastly different times, both women learn to live life with purpose and passion and would sacrifice all to save those they love.

A timeless story set in a timeless city, All the Flowers in Paris is a must-read for romantics and history lovers alike.

***

I received a complimentary copy of this book from Random House Publishing Group, Ballantine Books, courtesy of NetGalley. Opinions expressed in this review are entirely my own.

All the Flowers In Paris by Sarah Jio is a story of two different stories of grief and hardship. One is set in 1943 and the other one in 2009 Paris. Both the stories intersect later on in the story. Caroline loses her memory because of an accident but she regains it gradually and finds out her true self. Celine, on the other hand, is a widow with a daughter (Cosi) and works with her father in a flower shop during the German occupation of Paris. Ms. Jio does a wonderful job of describing Paris during both time periods. The setting was descriptive and beautiful and definitely makes the reader feel that they are in Paris whether it is war torn Paris or present day. The characters are very well developed which is probably one of the best parts of the book. While I enjoyed the book overall, the first seventy percent was distracting and did not pick up until the last thirty percent when the connection between the time periods started to become clear. I have read many books where the time period alters between chapters. I feel that it could have been smoother and perhaps intertwined the stories earlier.
I would like to thank the publisher, the author and NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Wow, this was one of the best book I've read in a while! I loved the parallel story lines with Caroline's personal journey in present day and Celine's journey during the occupation. What a tough woman Celine was and what an unbelievable tough life she lived. Sarah Jio's writing style is beautiful. It's obvious from the beginning that there was a connection between Caroline and Celine, but Jio teases it and slowly reveals the overlap as the story develops. The relationship between the two ladies is fully revealed at the end and comes together so beautifully. It's been a few days since I finished and this one is still with me. I'm looking forward to reading more from Jio!

What isn’t there to love about this book? It has: dual timelines, good vs evil, love, mother/daughter dynamics, an underlying mystery, heroes, perseverance, grief, art, Paris. I thoroughly enjoyed this one.

Two women, two different times: Celine in Nazi occupied Paris and Caroline in present day Paris. Celine fights to protect those she loves, Caroline struggles to remember who she is after an accident takes her memories away from her.

Spellbinding. As the pages turn and the stories of each woman unravels you are mesmerized waiting for the next discovery. A definite favorite read!!

Thank you NetGalley and Bellatine Books. for this advanced reader copy edition and hearing my honest review. Looking forward to reading more with you
#partner

I absolutely could not put down Sarah Jio's novel All The Flowers in Paris! It is a wonderful novel centering around Caroline in present day Paris and Celine and her daughter Cosi during wartime Paris. Caroline has suffered a bicycle accident and loses her memory. While recovering, she does everything she can to find out who she is and what brought her to Paris. For Celine and Cosi, living during WW2 in Paris is difficult not just for them but for everyone. Celine is not just trying to protect her daughter and her father, but keep a stable life for them as the war starts to affect those around her.

Not many books are considered my favorites, this is definitely one of them. Ms. Jio's writing is absolutely wonderful and I cannot wait to read more of her books.

NetGalley sent me the title and cover of All The Flowers in Paris, which was all I needed to want to read it. I was immediately drawn to the contrasting stories and times of the book...one the story of a young woman living in modern day Paris who has lost her memory and the second a young widow who is struggling to protect her family in the Nazi occupied Paris of WWIII. Sarah Jio crafted the two tales of loss and survival with meticulous details that kept me engrossed to the end even though I knew the "ending" of both stories well before I finished the book.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for giving me the arc.
I was excited to read this book because of the synopsis. I have been on a historical fiction rampage with two simultaneous storylines. This did exactly that. I was interested in both storylines which is rare for me because I tend to be more interested in one storyline over the other. I look forward to reading more from this author.