Harmel does it again! This was a refreshing take on this historical period. I found it easy to identify with the characters and as a mother my, the story was vulnerable yet touching. I did find the twist a bit predictable but enjoyed it all the same.

I loved the portrayal of motherhood in a time of war, how different women reacted differently due their circumstances and instincts. How mothers reacted differently to major trauma, or deeply affected those that live through the war were.

And I loved the small nod to one of my favorite books, the book of lost names.

I never thought I'd devour historical fiction while on vacation, but how could I possibly put down The Paris Daughter by Kristin Harmel with its stunning characters, well thought out plot, and that subtle twist!

We are shown just how many "right" ways there are to parent and how there is no one-size-fits-all solution in choosing what we feel is best for our child. It's about motherhood: the strength mothers have that is beyond words beyond reason and beyond love. It is also equally about how we choose to deal with the past: how we grieve and move on. Having two different perspectives from Elise and Juliette showed both the differences and the similarities to motherhood, relationships, and friendships.

As the story is set during WWII and after, the authors note added even more depth to the story that came before; although I know bomb shelters and air raid sirens were a reality for many, this added note made the terrifying thought of bombs falling from the sky that much more real.

This is the first Harmel that I have read, and I am blown away by how suddenly I found myself engrossed and immersed in this story. What a beautiful, heat-wrenching, tear triggering book.

Thank you NetGalley and Simon & Schuster Canada for the complimentary copy to read and review.

Kristin Harmel has a unique way of writing a beautiful story out of the most heart breaking of tales.

Set in WW2, American expats Elise and Juliette become fast friends. They both have beautiful brand new daughters who also become fast friends. Their lives, however, are vastly different, while both ravaged by the fears of war. While no fault of her own, Elise becomes a target of the German occupation and makes the heart rendering decision to leave her sweet daughter to be raised by Juliette as her own. Everyone thought that Juliette and her family were safe in their quiet little world, running their quaint little bookstore. But war knows no such barriers and a bomb falls on the bookstore shattering both women's worlds.

A year later, when Elise returns for her daughter, all she finds is rubble. Juliette has run off to America with her daughter, taking all of the answers Elise seeks with her.

Now, 20 years later, both women are forging through life, shaped by the trauma of that fateful day the bomb fell. Elise's search for answers (and closure) leads her to New York and surprises she never saw coming.

To say I devoured this one is an understatement. It had my heart from the very beginning. It's not just Harmel's writing style that makes this such an easy read but the depth of emotion she manages to inject into the pages. I felt the characters. I rarely cry in books but I did in this one.

If you enjoy historical fiction, found family, mother's sacrificial love for her children and a little bit of mystery (spoiler: there's an art heist), this one is it.

I wouldn’t describe myself as a historical fiction girlie, HOWEVER… there’s just something about a Kristin Harmel story that GETS ME EVERY TIME. Her books are based in history but so driven by beautifully created characters and it really works for me!

The Paris Daughter was no exception, the connection I felt to these characters and their lives was so strong! The portrayal of the bond between mothers and their children is always one that brings tears to my eyes, with that being said I spent the majority of this book crying so prepare yourselves!

I did find that there was a bit of a lull in the middle of the book where things dragged on a bit too long and I did guess the twist fairly early on in the book, however. I still thoroughly enjoyed this story and think others will as well!

As always, I loved Kristen Harmel’s latest. I loved the nods to her last book with some of the minor details. Although I saw the twist coming I thought the writing and story development were so well done.

The Paris Daughter is another beautiful and heartbreaking masterpiece by Kristin Harmel.

Gosh, make sure you have your tissue box when you read this book because you will need it. This book brought out all these glorious feelings, and I loved every moment of it. There is something so beautiful about Kristin's writing, and I am always amazed at her masterful storytelling abilities. This book was so easy to get lost in, in a good way, of course. It's one of those books that is hard to put down because you want to find out what will happen. As always, I can tell that Kristin has done her research and thoughtfully woven real historical facts with this story she created. I always love how historical writers always seem to find a new way to approach the topic of the Second World War.


The Paris Daughter takes place during World War II and starts before the Nazis invaded France. We meet Elise and Juliette, who become friends before the war. Elise is a new mother who is in an unhappy marriage. She often struggles to connect with her husband, Olivier, who is a famous artist. Later, she resents the fact that he endangered their family when he joined the resistance moment.

On the other hand, Juliette has several children and has this "perfect" family life. This story is told from both Elise's and Juliette's POVs, and I loved spending time with both women. Their characters felt so real and raw and possessed tremendous depth. We also meet Ruth, a secondary character and single mom. She is Jewish and, near the beginning of the book, is faced with this impossible choice (just like Elise's character will be later in the book). Ruth must decide whether to send her children away to a safe place or keep them with her and hope that the horrific Nazi policies affecting Jews in Germany are enacted in France. So many different emotions leap from the pages during these scenes. Kristin captures how difficult it would have been for these mothers to send their children away to keep them safe. I thought Kristin did an amazing job at tying in this theme of motherhood with the horrors that unfolded during the war. These three mothers have three very different experiences of the war and must make very difficult choices to ensure their children survive. And gosh, the ending of this book just stayed with me for days.
Thank you, Simon and Schuster Canada, for the copy in exchange for an honest review.

This book was just ok for me. It started out strong when two American-born women meet in Paris in 1939 - both Elise (an artist) and Juliette (a bookstore owner) are pregnant and instantly form a bond that will tie their lives together for the next twenty years. Although both women fear what impact the war will have on their families, another woman they are friendly with named Ruth must make a heart-wrenching decision to protect her children. When Elise is forced to make a similar decision, her life and the life of her 3 year old daughter is forever changed.

The problem I had with this story is that there is supposed to be an emotional payoff at the end when you realize something shocking - but I guessed what that big reveal would be very early on in the book. I can't imagine any reader being shocked by the ending. So, unfortunately, it made reading the second part of the book somewhat agonizing.

This book also suffered in comparison to two other WWII books set in France that I have read recently - both of them were so unique and special that I felt like The Paris Daughter didn't really offer anything new to reading about this historical time period in France.

After reading The Book Of Lost Names, I knew I wanted to get my hands on an ARC of The Paris Daughter. Unfortunately, this book was okay for me. I found the beginning interesting and was enjoying getting to know both Juliet & Elise. However, as the book went on, I found the story line very predictable and really guessed how the book was going to come together extremely early.

My favourite part of this book was the Easter eggs to characters in The Book Of Lost Names. Since they are both WW2 historical fictions in France, it was lovely to see how our characters lives touched each other even in small ways. Also, I do still love Harmel's writing style. It is very digestable and fast paced and I will still be continuing my goal to work through this author's backlist.

**Read an ARC from Netgalley

Rating : 3 Stars

Read if you like: WW2 fiction/after the war
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Elise and Juliette become friends when they both give birth to daughters at the start of the war. But events force Elise to leave her daughter with Juliette, and after the war they vanish and Elise must try to figure out what happened to her daughter.
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This book kept me engaged throughout the whole book. I really loved the exploration of these two women's experiences. Please be aware that there is mention of the death of a child, which can be difficult for some people to read about. I really loved this book and recommend it if you like WW2 historical fiction!

Title: The Paris Daughter
Author: Kristin Harmel
Genre: Historical Fiction
Rating: 3.25
Pub Date: June 6, 2023

I received complimentary eARC from Simon & Schuster Canada & Gallery Books via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own. #Gifted #Ad

T H R E E • W O R D S

Harrowing • Idealistic • Predictable

📖 S Y N O P S I S

Paris, 1939: Young mothers Elise and Juliette become fast friends the day they meet in the beautiful Bois de Boulogne. Though there is a shadow of war creeping across Europe, neither woman suspects that their lives are about to irrevocably change.

When Elise becomes a target of the German occupation, she entrusts Juliette with the most precious thing in her life—her young daughter. But nowhere is safe in war, not even a quiet little bookshop like Juliette’s Librairie des Rêves, and, when a bomb falls on their neighborhood, Juliette’s world is destroyed along with it.

More than a year later, with the war finally ending, Elise returns to reunite with her daughter, only to find her friend’s bookstore reduced to rubble. Surviving neighbors tell her that Juliette and a little girl survived. But which little girl—and what happened in the bookstore’s final moments?

💭 T H O U G H T S

I have come to know and love Kristin Harmel's writing style and WWII stories, so her 2023 release The Paris Daughter was an automatic add to my TBR. The premise sounded intriguing, but unfortunately this one missed the mark for me.

There's no denying how meticulously researched and detailed oriented Kristin's writing is. In this novel, we explore themes of grief and loss, friendship and motherhood, especially the unthinkable choices one is forced to make to survive. While the WWII historical fiction sub-genre is fairly saturated, I appreciated the focus on the post-war years and Elise's journey in search of answers. I also loved the bookstore!

While I've loved many of Kristin Harmel's books in the past, this one just came across overly idealistic and quite predictable. These two factors kept my interest from being fully engaged in the story. The idea was solid, yet the execution just didn't pan out. I saw the 'twist' coming a mile away leaving the ending abrupt and underwhelming. Overall, The Paris Daughter didn't pack the emotional punch I've appreciated in some of her other works.

📚 R E C O M M E N D • T O
• Kristin Harmel fans
• WWII fiction devotees

⚠️ CW: abandonment, death, death of partner, child death, pregnancy, war

🔖 F A V O U R I T E • Q U O T E S

"'I think,' he said slowly, 'that sometimes, the roads we don’t know we’re walking are the ones that lead us to exactly where we’re meant to be.'"

As posted to GoodReads: This wasn't a huge yes for me, but I can think of several people I would suggest give it a try. I think I'm a bit burned out of WWII fiction, and one of the main characters was pretty awful (for an understandable reason but any time it was her story I struggled). Thank you to NetGalley for an ARC. I read 1/2 and listened to 1/2 (thank you Libro.FM)

Thank you NetGalley, Simon & Schuster Canada and Kristin Harmel.
Paris, 1939: Elise and Juliette meet while they are both pregnant and become fast friends.
When Elise becomes a target of the German Occupation she leave her most precious thing in her life- her young daughter with her friend Juliette and her young family.
After the war, she goes back to her friend home/bookstore and finds the place in rubble.
She cannot find her daughter or her friend Juliette.
This tale brings us from France to America in search of answers.
The heart-wrenching story of a mother’s love for her daughter. Well written and researched.
I have read numerous novels from Kristin Harmel and loved them all.
Highly recommend. 5 stars

I really enjoyed this book! The emotionally attachment I had to each character, even when the POV changed slightly, was unparalleled, and the visceral fear and joy I experienced with both Elise & Juliette is incredible. That being said, I'm a little disappointed ONLY because I figured out the plot twist like, as soon as it happened, so I kind of was just waiting for everyone else to figure it out. Other than that, this was positively a joy (like, in a sad way) to read. You can tell how much detail and research effort Kristin Harmel puts into her work, and this was no exception. Definitely recommend!

An astounding, heart-wrenching story that overflows with emotion and makes us ask, what would we do if our biggest fear came true?

THE PARIS DAUGHTER examines the power, strength, and frailty of motherhood through Elise, Juliette, and Ruth, women who suffer during WW2 for various reasons but are bound together through their roles as mothers. Until disaster strikes, changing everything forever. It's a story about lives being shattered and then finding the pieces and putting them back together again - just as Harmel broke my heart and mended it in the end. My favorite title of Harmel's to date, and simply breathtaking.

Heart-wrenching story of motherhood and friendship through WWII. This historical novel takes us through Nazi occupied France. Elise and Juliette first meet in the late stage of their pregnancies and become fast friends. When Elise's husband is killed by Germans she falls under suspicion as part of the resistance and must go into hiding, leaving her precious infant daughter in the care of her beloved friend Juliette and her family. Years go by and Elise counts the days until France is liberated and she can go back to reunite with her daughter. Meanwhile Juliette's family run bookshop is bombed with devastating consequences. When Elise is able to return she finds the bookshop in ruins and her daughter and Juliette nowhere to be found.

I'm blown away by the incredible detail in this book and the way Harmel weaves the story together. There is so much sadness and loss throughout the novel and yet so much hope and resilience. It's dizzying to ponder the countless families separated through war, terrifying as a parent.

Thank you net galley for giving me this opportunity to read The zparis Daughter.
This story takes place just before the onset of WWII. Elise is heavily pregnant with her first child and is walking in a park in Paris. Elise stsrts to have false contractions and then another young mother is walking with her two young sons and walks over to Elise to see if she is ok. That is the beginning of their friendship.
WWII starts and the two friends Elise and Juliette are at odds as how to protect what is theirs. Do they stay in Paris or do they leave?
The Germans are after Elise and she makes the heartwrenching decision to leave her daughter with Juliette as the Germans are looking for a mother with her daughter.
Fast forward to 1960. Elise takes a trip to NYC to find Juliette and to find out about her daughter that she missed so much.
Elise and Juliette have lost so much. But only one little girl survived the bombing. Whose daughter survived? We do not know which daughter survived.

I really enjoyed this and love Kristin Harmel, but I also had a hard time. The first part of this book is so slow. It felt like an info dump about what was happening in WWII when instead of a story, which sucked because that meant it took about 100 pages for the story to really begin. I’m glad I stuck it out, though, because parts two and three were everything I love about Harmel’s storytelling. She has such a way with writing history that is so compelling and so emotive. I would definitely recommend.

Set in Paris in 1939 and New York in the 1960s, this story will bring you on an incredibly heartbreaking and beautiful journey of two mothers and life after war. Elise was left with no other choice but to leave her daughter with her beloved friend, Juliette and her family to save her life. When Juliette’s life is torn apart, Elise will spend years answerless. I enjoyed the focus on both women’s character development as well as life after the war and picking up the pieces of their lives. The author flawlessly weaves the story through multiple POV and settings. I was captivated from the first chapter and had a hard time putting it down; it’s one of those books that sitting down for 20-30 minutes at a time just wasn’t doing it for me. I longed for uninterrupted reading time to fully submerge myself in the incredible, devastating yet, hopeful story.  

Thank you @simonschusterca for this arc in exchange for an honest review!

Release date: 6/06/2023

Kristin Harmel is an auto read for me, and I was excited to get my hands on her latest novel. As with all her novels, Harmel is a wizard when it comes to developing rich characters and captivating. The Paris Daughter is no exception and in my opinion is her best novel to date. I am always drawn to stories that make me FEEL something, and I had an ache in my chest for almost the entirety of this novel. As a mother myself, the novel hit so hard emotionally with themes of love, resilience and incredible sacrifice. I often caught myself wondering what decisions I would be capable of in order to protect my own children if I were a character in this story. I also appreciated that I knew early on in the story that we were on a journey headed towards a collision, but the knowledge and anticipation of this was one of the reasons why I was so captivated. Some novels need twists and turns for the sake of maintaining interest, but this novel was so brilliantly written that I could predict the conclusion, and similtanously anticipate how it would all unfold!