This was such an interesting book! Martine was a young girl when the Nazis came to town. Her dad gives her a bottle of wine and a note, but she drops the bottle of wine. She then ends up in an Abbey.

We then have a time jump (a favorite element of mine in stories) and meet Charlotte. Charlotte goes to France with her boyfriend, and he gifts her a bottle of wine. It's the same bottle of wine Martine drops, which leads to a wonderful story of Charlotte trying to find out its origin.

I love stories like this! Historical fiction, a bit of mystery, and a bit of romance, and you have an engaging story that has something for everyone.

Martine was a young girl when he father told her to hide from the Germans. Attached to her was note and she held a wine bottle with special note attached to it. She was scared and dropped the wine bottle. Many years later Charlotte and her boyfriend bought some wine at an action. He gifted Charlotte the bottle of wine. Once on her own, Charlotte discovered the message on the bottle of the wine. Charlotte took it upon herself to learn about young Martine. She stumbled upon a winery and met a winemaker named Julien. Julien told Charlotte all about his past and his mother’s past. She showed him a picture of Martine holding a stuffed bunny. Julien pieced it together that it was his mother. In the end, the wine was returned to Martine. This was a good combination of a historical fiction story with romance intertwined in it. Thank you to NetGalley and Harper for an advanced e-copy.

Thank you to Netgalley and Harper Collins for providing me with an arc of this book in exchange for an honest review.
As an avid historical fiction WW II reader I was thrilled for the opportunity to read this title. Ellsworth tells the story in a dual timeline exquisitely! In 1942, Martine, a young French Jewish girl is hidden in an armoire by her father to protect her from the approaching Nazis. He pins an address to her coat and gives her a bottle of wine to keep safe. She loses the bottle in her effort to escape and journey to safety. She is found by a nun, Sister Ada who takes her to an abbey to keep her safe.

In 1990, Charlotte, a pilot, and her boyfriend attend an auction where he purchases several bottles of wine gifting one to Charlotte. She discovers a hidden label on the bottle and what follows is an intriguing search for the origin and owner of the bottle.

While Charlotte's journey leads her to question her life and purpose, Martine's is a fight for her very survival amid much tragedy.
This is a novel of perseverance, bravery and friendship of characters not easily forgotten. A must read for historical fiction fans ! I would highly recommend this title

Okay, let me just say, that while I will gripe about a lot, I did enjoy reading this. It’s an accessible and simplistic tale filled with warmth and just enough heartache. She also does a fine enough job of realistically incorporating the nineties setting into her writing.

However. It is occasionally repetitive, entirely predictable (and that is coming from someone who cannot often predict a plot) with only two minor twists, and often off balance with both its pacing and plot-line. The modern POV dialogue is not great for the first half of the book. The FMC’s righteousness is confusing considering she wanted to do exactly what she was arguing was morally wrong. The fact that she got with the love interest with the intent of revenge is baffling. And it seems the author is writing her as autistic, but is unaware of it?

Anyway, all in all, not an astounding read, but a quick and fun weekend binge. Don’t expect much.

I enjoyed this historical novel set during the 1940s and 1990. The connection between the two story lines is fairly obvious, but it was interesting to see it all come together. There are a few romances that work it and those that don’t. All of the characters are engaging and believable. I would have loved more descriptions of Paris and the surrounding wineries, but it was a lovely book overall! I loved the author‘s note at the end that explains her inspiration for the story. It made me like the story even more! Overall a good choice for those who enjoy WW2 historical fiction!

I am really enjoying historical fiction, so this book interested me from the very beginning. Overall, it was a good read. I really enjoyed Martine’s view and her story. It definitely gave me Nightingale vibes. Charlotte’s view fell a little flat for me until the end where it all came together.

This is a great historical fiction read. Reminds me of The Nightingale by Kristin Hannah. It has dual timelines and it's set in 1942 and 1990 and is told from the two main characters points of view Martine and Charlotte. It had a great balance of romance and history that kept me interested from beginning to end. It is a great story about family, loss, fear, romance and growing up during war times. I would definitely read another book from this author.

Thank you to Netgalley and to Harper Collins publisher for this digital ARC in exchange for a honest review.

Spanning over 50 years, a poignant about two women. I am very critical of stories set in World War 2, but I can tell that the author did her research,h and I enjoyed it.. thank you for the arc

This was such a great read, I could not put it down and finished it in two days! The story went back and forth about Martine a young Jewish girl caught up in the war in 1942 and Charlotte an American in present day 1990. It was a great story told about a bottle of wine Martine lost and Charlotte ended up with in present day.

I was hooked to this book right away due to my love for WW1/2 book. I love historical fiction/non-fiction it's one of my favorite genres. This novel is told in Two timeframes are used to tell the story: the present (1990s) from the perspective of Charlotte, a female pilot, and Martine, a 7-year-old Jewish girl attempting to escape the Nazis during World War II. Although Charlotte's partner doesn't seem to be providing her with what she needs in a relationship, he does take her to a wine auction in the hopes of finding some nice vintage wine bottles. When he doesn't think it's worth anything, he buys a few bottles and gives one to Charlotte as a gift, telling her to enjoy drinking it. Martine had to conceal flees the Nazis, spends the war in a convent, and receives a bottle of wine from her father, which she is instructed to preserve since it is her heritage. Do we believe that the wine might have a significant role in the Charlotte timeline?

It was so beautifully written and I couldn't put it down. The author interweaves some of the terrible realities of Jewish people in France during WWII with the kindness and selflessness of people who refused to see their countrymen treated in such a way. It is a true story of how love and friendship know no bounds when people put others' needs before their own. I loved Martine's story and how almost 50 years later it was able to be told through Charlotte's own adventure.

First time reading this author
I really enjoyed the story of wwii, love, loss and finding your way back

Will definitely recommend this book
Thank you for the ARC

3.5 stars

A historical fiction novel following young Martine in 1940’s France and Charlotte, a female pilot in the 1990’s.

Martine, the daughter of a French winemaker, escapes the Nazis to Paris where she is rescued by nuns. While on the run she loses a bottle of wine her father gave her before he was captured that was to be her inheritance.

Charlotte, dealing with misogyny in her career, is in a constant need to prove herself. She’s gifted a bottle of wine from an auction by her French situationship and the bottle turns out to be worth over 100k and also contains a note from a French winemaker to his daughter. She goes on a hunt to find the winery, winemaker, and/or daughter.

Having a dual POV of present and in the past is always fun in a historical fiction. The mystery of the wine bottle and finding the vineyard owners was interesting. And I appreciated the woman airline captain. I’m sure women pilots still face the same misogyny she did even 30 years ago.

It was kind of a slow start and started getting interesting after halfway through.
Charlotte became a little annoying later on in the book, like I was so frustrated with her for a bit there.

Overall the ending tied up nicely, a cute “twist” that could be seen a mile away but I didn’t hate it.

Two women find themselves connected by one bottle of wine.

1942: Martine is only seven and already lost her mother, and now the Nazis have come for her father for the crime of being Jewish. The winemaker fears for his future and that of his daughter as he tucks her into an armoire in her bedroom to hide with her aunt’s address in Paris pinned to her dress and a very valuable bottle of wine to fund her future. When poor Martine finally leaves the armoire hours later, the frightened little girl drops the bottle on accident in the dirt and catches a train to Paris with the help of a neighbor. Unfortunately, her aunt is nowhere to be found, and a young Sister Ada finds her asleep on the porch of Hotel Drouot and brings her back to the abbey outside the city to care for her.

1990: Charlotte is one of very few female pilots in the commercial airline industry. Having recently made captain, she has seniority picking trips. Though based in Chicago, she has an apartment in Paris where she flies the most. Her latest love, the very French Henri, takes her to an auction house at Hotel Drouot as he is starting his wine collection. Together they leave with a crate with a few valuable bottles. They drink some and he gifts Charlotte with one of the inferior bottles. After returning from a trip and Henri ghosting her, Charlotte examines the bottle again noticing a peeling label. This anomaly sends Charlotte on a trek through France to discover the bottle’s origins and the girl referenced on the label.

Martine and Charlotte’s stories are ones of perseverance as they prove themselves in life and in their careers in industries dominated by men. Both women are pragmatists, who protect their hearts, but fate will find a way. This dual timeline novel reads very quickly and will likely make you want a nice glass of wine while reading.

Thank you to NetGalley, Harper Paperbacks, and author Loretta Ellsworth for the advanced copy of the book. The French Winemaker’s Daughter is out on December 10th! All opinions are my own.

An emotional, heartwarming story of how a bottle of wine started a woman on a journey to find out how the bottle ended up at a French auction house 40 years later. From a little Jewish girl that was hidden by her winemaker father from the Nazi’s to a modern day woman pilot on a quest to right a wrong this was a wonderful book. Thank you Netgalley and Harper Perennial for an early copy. This review is my honest opinion.

What a great WWII novel. I loved how Henri, thinking the wine was worthless left it with Charlotte. I loved how this sends Charlotte on a quest to find the original owners of the bottle Martine and her father.

The author takes us through the French countryside and vineyards. It makes you feel as if you are right there with them. I thoroughly enjoyed this novel and was able to read it in one day. I couldn’t put it down!

A nice piece of historical fiction. Spanning over 50 years, two stories come together. It seems a bit unrealistic, but still romantic. An interesting story taking place in World War II and during the 90's. I enjoyed the 90's references and the character development of a female pilot trying to make it in a man's world. The end is really probably completely unrealistic, but that is acknowledged under the guise of serendipity.

Teetering between a 3.75 and full 4 stars rating. The story is moving, but lacked some depth. I do love a WW2 / France historical fiction read m, and this certainly checks those boxes.
Primarily FMC Charlotte fell flat for me, the singularity of being a female pilot / captain in the 1990’s left room to give her character depth through dialogue and thought, and I feel like that lacks in the authors writing overall. However, the alternate timeline set during the war is excellent. The story of Martine and the refuge she finds is well done. Every character in that timeline is important and beloved.
If you’re in it for the historical timeline - highly recommend.
All in all a worthwhile historical fiction read.

Thank you NetGalley and HarperCollins for the opportunity to read this historical dual timeline novel. In
The French Winemaker’s Daughter a valuable bottle of wine connects the lives of a young Jewish girl, Martine during WWII and a airline pilot, Charlotte during 1990.
It is a story of love, friendship and hardships.. Though the novel lacks depth in its characters and the times they live in, it is a fast read that kept my interest.

When I first started this book, I wasn't really sure how I felt about the plot or the characters. It did take me a little bit to get into the story, but once I was invested, I needed to know what would happened. I loved that this switched from past to present chapters. I liked that it captured what happened with a girl in the war who was jewish and hiding as well as a pilot who was looking for the story behind a wine bottle. I did find the book to be a little predictable and guessed what had happened to the girl, but I really loved this whole story overall. If you enjoy WWII historical fiction, then you will probably enjoy this one as well.

if there’s a historical fiction set during WWII that focused on a female protagonist, i’m going to read it and i’m going to enjoy it! this follows a split timeline, one during WWII and one in the 90s, and focuses on two women and how they are connected by a bottle of wine stolen by nazis. it’s a story where you know more than the main characters, so you’re waiting for them to catch up and realize how things are connected. it’s a beautiful story and i absolutely loved the characters. especially charlotte (in the 90s) who is a smart, successful pilot that made intelligent decisions which i always appreciate! definitely recommend for any fans of historical fiction or anyone that’s been wanting to try reading historical fiction, it’s a great starting point!

thanks to netgalley and harper perennial for my advance copy of the french winemaker’s daughter by loretta ellsworth. all opinions are my own.