The French Gift
A Novel of World War II Paris
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4.1 • 10 Ratings
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- $11.99
Publisher Description
From Kirsty Manning, author of The Song of the Jade
Lily, comes a gripping World War II set historical novel about murder,
secrets, and survival.
A forgotten manuscript that threatens to unravel the
past…
Fresne Prison, 1940: A former maid at a luxury villa
on the Riviera, Margot Bisset finds herself in a prison cell with writer and
French Resistance fighter Joséphine Murant. Together, they are transferred to a
work camp in Germany for four years, where the secrets they share will bind
them for generations to come.
Paris, around about now: Evie Black lives in Paris
with her teenage son, Hugo, above her botanical bookshop, La Maison Rustique.
Life would be so sweet if only Evie were not mourning the great love of her
life.
When a letter arrives regarding the legacy of her husband’s
great-aunt, Joséphine Murant, Evie clutches at an opportunity to spend one last
magical summer with her son. They travel together to Joséphine’s house, now
theirs, on the Côte d’Azur. Here, Evie unravels the official story of this
famous novelist, and the truth of a murder a lifetime ago. Along the way, she
will discover the little-known true story of the women who were enslaved by
German forces in WWII.
Bringing together the present and the past, The French
Gift is a tender and heartbreaking story of female friendship, sacrifice
and loss, and the promise of new love.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Manning returns (after The Lost Jewels) with a twisty WWII yarn about two imprisoned French women forced into slave labor at a German rayon factory. Blending two timelines, the story begins at a 1939 high-society, Gatsby-style party on the Riviera, where maid Margot Bisset is pressed by the hostess to fake a murder for the guests' entertainment. It was a setup, and when the victim dies, innocent Margot is sent to prison; her cellmate is Resistance writer Josephine Murant, a political prisoner. Under Nazi occupation, they are transferred in 1942 to Germany's gruesome Phrix Rayon Factory, notorious for its workers being maimed and killed. In present-day Paris, widowed Evie Black is contacted by historian Clement Tazi for help with a retrospective on Evie's recently deceased great-aunt by marriage, Josephine. When Josephine's hidden manuscript and diary are found, Evie and Clement piece together Margot's and Josephine's four years together, and Manning provides a grim account of the rayon factory. Manning's multilayered story is both terrifying and triumphant. Her talent for a surprising twist makes this story a must for her fans.
