The Nightingale by Kristin Hannah

“In love we find out who we want to be, in war we find out who we are.”
Kristin Hannah

SYNOPSIS:

FRANCE, 1939

In the quiet village of Carriveau, Vianne Mauriac says good-bye to her husband, Antoine, as he heads for the Front. She doesn’t believe that the Nazis will invade France…but invade they do, in droves of marching soldiers, in caravans of trucks and tanks, in planes that fill the skies and drop bombs upon the innocent. When a German captain requisitions Vianne’s home, she and her daughter must live with the enemy or lose everything. Without food or money or hope, as danger escalates all around them, she is forced to make one impossible choice after another to keep her family alive.

Vianne’s sister, Isabelle, is a rebellious eighteen-year-old, searching for purpose with all the reckless passion of youth. While thousands of Parisians march into the unknown terrors of war, she meets Gaëtan, a partisan who believes the French can fight the Nazis from within France, and she falls in love as only the young can…completely. But when he betrays her, Isabelle joins the Resistance and never looks back, risking her life time and again to save others.

With courage, grace and powerful insight, bestselling author Kristin Hannah captures the epic panorama of World War II and illuminates an intimate part of history seldom seen: the women’s war. The Nightingale tells the stories of two sisters, separated by years and experience, by ideals, passion and circumstance, each embarking on her own dangerous path toward survival, love, and freedom in German-occupied, war-torn France—a heartbreakingly beautiful novel that celebrates the resilience of the human spirit and the durability of women. It is a novel for everyone, a novel for a lifetime.

MY THOUGHTS:

It’s been so long since a book made me cry. It was the first book I read about WW2 and I loved it, but it completely broke my heart. ⁣ The writing keeps you engaged until the end, it’s fast-paced and it definitely has some very tense moments.

Be advised that this book contains a rape scene.

WHAT I LIKED:

– Isabelle is now my favourite strong female character! Her strength and courage were unbelievable! She fought for what she believed in, never stopping to think about the consequences of her bravery. Never stopping to think about her well-being.

– Despite everything, the first nazi soldier that ocupies their house is actually a decent man that respects the owner of the house. I liked his character.

– The way the author tells the story makes you feel that you’re actually there. Kristin Hannah completely broke my heart with this one.

– The relationship between the two sisters. Despite their difference of opinion, they were always there for each other when needed.

– The romance in his book. In a story full of war and tragedy, it was actually a relief to be able to see some romance in it.

– The ending, although heartbreaking, I think it was the ending the book deserved.