Tuesday, November 22, 2016

The Velvet Hours - Alyson Richman

I got lost in this story set in Paris.  We meet Marthe De Florian, in 1888 Paris, a girl who grew up in poverty and re-invented herself, first working as seamstress, then as a dancer and finally as a beautiful courtesan to a wealthy man.  In her beautiful apartment she surrounds herself with pastel gowns, Ancient Japanese artifacts and an amazing painting done of her in her prime.

In 1940 Solonge is beginning to find out secrets about her family and everything is changing as she begins to feel the rustling of war approaching.  As the story swung between both characters I thought the author used this technique well, moving the story on.  It did feel a bit rushed at the end, with just a few chapters to move the story to the end. 4/5

1 comment:

John Bellen said...

Though I have never been to Paris, and likely never will, there is something about the mystique of the city that attracts me. It's tough to capture that in a book, especially as the city is often a character in the writing. I'm glad this one worked for you.