Never doubt Kristen Harmel for writing excellent novels. This is one of them and it was amazing. Set in 1940's Paris and the search for answers to an old murder. In a decades old family tradition passed on to generations, it is an honor to steal from the unkind and give to the needy. Sort of a Robyn Hood story. In this case, whatever money was gotten, was used to fund the French Resistance. The family tradition is passed on to Colette and in 1942 when her mother was arrested by the Gestapo, Colette was the next in line to keep time honored custom. Unfortunately, at the same time of her mother's death, Colette's sister was found floating in the Seine. A unique diamond bracelet is the center of the quest, Never to be found, for 70 years it was the thought of that bracelet that was lurking in Colette's mind. An amazing story as we read along and go on the search with our protagonist. My thanks to NetGalley for this ARC and the opportunity to give a review.

"It's hard to make sense of a life when you don't know the whole story. We've all done things we proud of. We've all done things we regret. Can a lifetime of good wash away a long-ago sin? Or are the choices we've made crosses that we must bear through eternity?"

"One day, we will be defined by more than just our religions. One day, all that will matter is that you are you, and I am me, and that will be enough."

"When you let your history shape your future, you relinquish the ability to choose a better way forward."

I have read several of Kristin Harmel's books and I think that this one is the best to date! The Stolen Life of Colette Marceau is not your typical WWII novel. Once again, Ms. Harmel's theme is about people helping the oppressed Jews in Europe during the Holocaust. In this novel, Colette is descended from Robin Hood and learns as child to steal from the "bad people' to help the suffering. It's written in a dual time line,.....both are riveting. I actually devoured this book. Thanks to NetGalley and Gallery Books for the ARC!

Kristin Harmel is an amazing storyteller! She is a “go to” author for me and one that I always recommend to anyone interested in reading historical fiction. This book has a unique mixture of Robin Hood and WWll, written in a dual timeline. As most of Harmel’s books are, it was a very emotional read, full of sacrifice, betrayal, and injustice. It was difficult to read at times but so very powerful and thought provoking that it was also hard to put down. The plot twist was perfect, it wrapped up the tragic story nicely.

I was interested right from the beginning in 2018 when 90 year old Colette steals a very valuable ring and was intrigued by her Robin Hood ancestoral history. I also enjoyed the 1942 timeline that delves into her mother’s history of jewelry theft in order to support the French Resistance against the Nazi’s.

An emotional family drama that spans over 75 years as Colette relives so much loss among her immediate family members and friends. I really enjoyed how the mystery unfolded in the end. I just wished that Colette could have been reunited with the people she lost much earlier.

Thank you Netgalley for an ARC in exchange for my honest opinion.

The description of The Stolen Life of Colette Marceau drew me in immediately, "an electrifying new novel about two jewel thieves, a priceless bracelet that disappears in 1940s Paris and a quest for answers in a decade old murder."

As a young girl, Colette Marceau's mother reveals to her that they are descendants of Robin Hood and that they take from the rich to help others. Colette soon is being schooled in the art of jewel thievery as she and her mother help to fund the French resistance during World War II. One calamitous night, Colette's world collapses around her as her mother is arrested and her younger sister disappears. Seventy years later, Colette continues to take from the cruel and unkind to provide for those in need, but her life is still haunted by the loss of her sister and mother. The bracelet that was shown into the lining of the nightgown that her sister was wearing on the night she disappeared suddenly reappears in a special exhibit and Colette is thrown back into the search for answers about her sister's disappearance. This novel is bursting with intrigue as well as historical detail and had me turning pages at a record pace.

I received this book courtesy of the publisher through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

As a descendant of Robin Hood, Colette Marceau was trained by her mother at a young age to steal jewels—taking only from the cruel and unkind to aid those in need. In Paris in the 1940s, Colette and her mother worked side-by-side, helping to fund the French Resistance during WWII. However, a theft gone wrong leads to the arrest of Colette’s mother, and disappearance and death of her sister, Liliane, along with a priceless bracelet sewn into the hem of her dress. Colette has had the matching bracelet ever since, so when seventy years later the missing bracelet shows up in a museum exhibit in Boston, Colette hopes to find out the truth about what happened to her sister.

This was an epic tale told in a dual timeline format, which I absolutely loved with historical fiction novels. Kristin Harmel’s writing is beautiful and flawless, and I was immediately swept into the story of Colette and her family. This book is the perfect blend of history and mystery, intertwining the elements of both for a suspenseful and intriguing read. The concept of theft from the cruel to aid those in need was thought-provoking and leads you to question what is truly wrong vs. right, and where the lines blur, and I loved the connection to Robin Hood. I think the author also did an incredible job writing about this horrific time in history. Overall, this book was absolutely amazing, a perfect five-star read I’ll be thinking about for a long time.

Thank you to Gallery Books and NetGalley for my gifted digital copy!

I went into this book clueless and thankful that the publisher reached out to gift me an ARC. Thank you to Gallery Books!! This was such a beautifully told story with dual timelines and so many heartbreaking and heartwarming moments. I fell in love with Colette and her quest to figure out what happened to her sister. I was incredibly invested in the found family that Colette collects along the way. Such a good story if you like WW2 adjacent stories!

Thank you to NetGalley, the author and publisher for this arc.

Kristin Harmel can do no wrong. The way she weaves a story is unparalleled. Her stories will break your heart in the best way.

Pick this up. Enjoy.

A heartbreaking tale of France during WWII coupled with a mystery surrounding a missing bracelet, a jewel thief and Holocaust survivors. I was intrigued from the very beginning of this novel and managed to finish it in one day. While the premise is rather far-fetched - Colette is the descendant of Robin Hood - it does make for an excellent story.

In Paris during WWII, when Colette is just a teenager, she and her mother steal jewels from Nazi’s to help fund the French resistance. Until her mother gets caught and her 4 year old sister is found floating dead in the Seine. Some 70 decades later, Colette is still stealing jewelry to fund worthy organizations when a piece of jewelry she’s been searching for shows up on display at a museum. What follows is a race to find out where that bracelet has been hiding and how whoever is hiding it was involved in her sister’s death. Riveting.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for providing a digital ARC of this title!

Kristin Harmel does it again! Harmel has the ability to find uncovered stories and turn them into characters and plots that jump from the page, and THE STOLEN LIFE OF COLETTE MARCEAU is no different.

I was engrossed from the beginning, constantly hooked to the page and wondering where she would take the narrative next. Her character building is fantastic—I could see and hear each character. I imagine building such a diverse character base in terms of age, background and life experiences was difficult, but Harmel executes this flawlessly.

It’s always tricky with WWII historical fiction because it’s so oversaturated, but thus behind the scenes look at a family immersed in jewel thievery for good was so interesting. I love how the timelines collided and how she built the story from beginning to end. The emotional arc was so strong, too.

I read a lot of historical fiction, so it’s always exciting when I am surprised by a new piece of history I haven’t read about before. This one is a must-read!

A very satisfying historical fiction! I think any historical fiction reader would enjoy this.

Colette has been raised to carry on the tradition of her ancestor - Robin Hood - by stealing from Nazis and using the funds to help victims and survivors of the Holocaust. But she has forever been haunted by the death of her sister 70 years ago.

Told in alternating timelines, this story weaves the past and present together well.

I did find some things a little too convenient to serve the plot and also questioned the ability for some of the characters to live as long and as healthily as they did, but I enjoyed the story nonetheless. Rounding up from 3.5

Thank you to NetGalley and Gallery Books.

The Stolen Life of Colette Marceau by Kristin Harmel is a historical fiction novel about an octogenarian jewel thief whose past catches up to her upon the appearance of a long lost diamond bracelet. The story spans the years between pre-World War II to the present day and takes place between Paris and Boston.

The story is quite captivating, especially with how the author mixes in Robin Hood lore with World War II history, then connect it back to the present day. Colette Marceau is a character who is larger than life, and it's fascinating to read about how she slips jewels off her marks without them noticing.

There are some plot points that aren't hard to predict, but because the story is compelling, you still want to read until the end to find out how everything works out. In fact, this story would make for a really good movie.

Special thanks to NetGalley and Gallery Books for this e-ARC in exchange for my honest review.

The Stolen Life of Colette Marceau is available now wherever books are sold.

What a great book! Historical fiction about WWII that has a new spin. This will be a best book of 2025 for me.

This story is about an eighty-nine-year-old woman that is reflecting on her life and the choices that she made.. The characters in this story are interesting and well developed. The story makes you question - is breaking the law bad when it is done for the right reasons? How can it be evil to steal from the rich and give to those in need. The storytelling has a good pace and there are twists and turns with an ending that I was not expecting.

Many thanks to Gallery Books for a NetGalley widget for this fantastic book that I unfortunately did not get to read until a few weeks after publication. I listened to part of the audiobook, and I definitely recommend the narrator. This was my first book by the author and it won't be my last!
I don't read very much historical fiction, especially not involving WWII - many times I feel like the topics or the themes (or the covers!) have been done before and I'm just over it. However, that was NOT the case with this book. I was fascinated by the jewel thefts described, and I was immediately swept into the dual timelines, from 1940s Paris to 2018 Boston area. Yet another Boston-based book that I read away from home 🤣 I fell in love with these characters and sobbed big tears at the end because of my emotional investment in the story.

An outstanding historical fiction that kept me on the edge of the seat. It is full of suspense. A modern day Robin Hood, Colette, has spent a lifetime lifting jewels from the cruel and unkind people and giving it to a good cause. 70 years ago, in 1942, Colette's mother, Annabel, was arrested by the Nazis and sent to her death for stealing jewels from a Nazi officer. Colette was responsible for watching over her sister, but she left her outside their window to go back and help her mother. When she came back, Liliane was gone and later her body was found floating in the Seine. One of the key elements of the story are the jewels sewn into the girls' dresses to give back to the Rosman's, a Jewish family, that were stolen from them. Colette still has half of the bracelets when they are placed together they make a butterfly. The pieces represent the Rosman's twins that the famous Jewish jeweler, Max Besner, made for the mother.
70 years later the other half of the bracelets shows up in a museum exhibit in Boston, Colette ventures out to find where it has been and who was responsible for her sister's death.
Lucas is director of the museum and has the information Colette needs. She recruits her friends Aviva, a lawyer and her best friend Marty to help her with the search. Colette has admitted to stealing over 30 million dollars worth of jewels and given the money to Jewish organizations that benefit survivors.

I did not finish this book and I will tell you why. I usually love historical fiction, especially that in which a woman is living a life of crime in a time of extreme marginalization. Add an exotic setting like Europe and voila, perfect! However, this author managed to make this story so boring and serious, I found no excitement in the plot, nor did I relate with or any strong feelings towards the protagonist, which are two things I require in a book. I felt 33% was enough to judge that this book was a dud for me. I do appreciate the copy from NetGalley and the publisher. Harmel is no longer a must-read for me, unfortunately.

It’s been a long time since I’ve read a book with such impact. It’s always hard to read historical fiction books that are about WWII. The atrocities that took place during that time was enough to get to most people. The fact that we must be continually reminded is mind blowing to me. The story is set around the life of Collette and the many things she survived and lived through was crazy. The genius plot twists that linked everything together was brilliant on the part of this author. This is my first time reading this author and now I can’t wait to delve into her other books.

What a gem of a read this was! This has jumped to the top of my 2025 reads and may just stay there the rest of the year. We'll see!

I absolutely loved this book, all of the characters, the twists and turns, and the end was so beautifully done! I loved that there were both the ww2 storyline and the current storyline both with some of the same characters. Often times, it is different characters completely, and I loved the connections here.

The characters were complex, unique, and so well developed. Kristin Harmel does such a great job with that. I loved the descriptions of the places and almost felt like I were there both in France and in Boston!

So grateful to netgalley and the publisher for the advanced copy of this book. All thoughts are my own.

4.5 stars
Really loved this one. The Stolen Life of Colette Marceau is emotional, immersive, and beautifully written. Colette’s journey is heartbreaking but full of strength, and I was hooked the whole way through. The historical detail is rich without feeling heavy, and the moral dilemmas felt so real. I knocked off half a star only because a few parts felt a bit drawn out, but overall, such a powerful and moving read. Definitely recommend if you enjoy historical fiction with depth and heart.

Thank you to NetGalley and the Publisher for this ARC!

Colette Marceau has been stealing jewels since she’s been a young child. Her mother, Annabel always told her as she was growing up to take only from the cruel and unkind, and give to those in need. She followed this centuries-old creed that her mother instilled in her. It was never more important than seven decades earlier, the Second World War, this family tradition of theirs where Annabel and Colette worked tirelessly along side each other in Paris to fund the French Resistance.

But it all went wrong one night in Paris of 1942. The Germans arrested Annabel and Colette’s younger sister, Liliane, which was 4 years old, disappeared in the turmoil of the raid. Along with the beautiful brilliant bracelet which was expertly sewn and hidden in Liliane’s hem of her nightgown for safekeeping. Shortly, thereafter, Annabel was executed. Floating in the Seine was Liliane but nowhere to be found was the bracelet.

Seventy or so years later Colette over the decades has “redistributed “ a worth of $30 million in jewels to fund many important organizations. She’s done her best to put the tremendous loss of her family behind her but a museum exhibit in Boston turns up the long-awaited missing bracelet to turn her life upside down. She may find out the truth about her sister if she can find out who owns the bracelet now and where it has been all this time. As never before she is forced to face the ghosts of her past when the diamonds are claimed by someone of her childhood. A murderer may be brought to justice at last but first, Colette must gather her braveness to open her own damaged heart.

It has an element of suspense and mystery with a few shocking discoveries in it! Very heartfelt and exciting with romance. It had me in tears a few times. Bring along your tissues! Kristin Harmel always brings out the stunning facts of the time period that are involved in her stories. History is brought out for you. I always seem to learn a thing or two or more through her stories. It’s unputdownable! Don’t miss this one of hers! Definitely a must read!

Thank you NetGalley and the publishers in providing me with this and allowing me to leave an honest review.