Member Review

With a setting of Nazi occupied France during World War Two, a plot that focuses around two English socialite sisters that find themselves caught in the snares of a Nazi officer, and a dangerous plan involving the Secret Intelligence Service to infiltrate Hitler's closest circle, The Socialite is a read that will surely delight many readers who choose to pick it up. I honestly expected one of those readers to be me. World War Two is usually one of my favorite time periods of historical fiction, and I loved the premise of this one being about a courageous young woman who ends up helping the SIS with their dangerous missions in France. Unfortunately, this one didn't end up being anything like what I was expecting, and it's one review book that I came very close to not finishing.

You can tell throughout the story that the author researched every single historical point mentioned throughout the story, and it never comes across as inauthentic or misrepresented. I thought it felt like it was being told by an authentic voice, and the setting does make the reader feel like they're right there with Kat and Barrett experiencing all the horrors that followed anywhere the Nazi's occupied during this horrific time in our world's history. It was also an interesting approach for a novel set during this time period in the fact that it's set from an insider's perspective as Kat and her sister Ellie find themselves welcomed into a Nazi circle, and see a very different side to what life what like during this time.

Unfortunately, this book just didn't end up working for me. I found the story was extremely slow moving, and the plot quickly became muddled. I grew bored with this one quickly, and it ended up taking me a week and a half to finish it, which is almost unheard of for me. I couldn't ever get into the story, and by the end I was just forcing myself to finish it so I could see how it all wrapped up. While I enjoyed the setting and the unique take on the World War Two time period, certain parts of it ended up seeming unrealistic. I found it kind of hard to believe that Kat and Barrett kept having conversations about their plans involving the SIS or performing actions in favor of such, all while right under the Nazi's noses. It didn't seem like something an organization would truly have done since they really made no efforts to cover their tracks during any of these conversations.

I expected to really enjoy the romance, since I did find myself amused by Kat and Barrett's first meeting. However, it ended up feeling rushed and not fully developed to me, and as such, I wasn't truly invested in whether these characters ever ended up together or not. I can't conclude this review without mentioning the fact that this is another title put out by a Christian publisher that really reads entirely like a secular story. There's next to no faith or spiritual content, and that's a fact I personally found really disappointing.

While World War Two is usually one of my fave time periods in historical fiction, this one ended up being a disappointment for me. It heavily reminded me of The Nightingale by Kristin Hannah, and that's another book that I ended up really not enjoying. I'm sure this particular story will appeal to a wide variety of readers, but for me personally it wasn't a favorite and I've definitely read much better historical fiction set during this period.

Final Rating: 2/5

Thanks so much to Thomas Nelson and NetGalley for allowing me to advance read this!

I voluntarily read and reviewed an advance reader copy of this novel from the publisher (Thomas Nelson) via NetGalley. I was not required to give a positive review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.